The Baker University baseball team battled through some adversity during its spring break compiling a 5-3 record.
The ‘Cats began their conference season with a sweep over Evangel University, winning 4-2 and 18-7 in Springfield, Mo. The team got off to a slow start, trailing by two until consecutive doubles were produced in the fourth inning by juniors Dusty Griffin and Kyle King to put the ‘Cats on the board. Junior Jerrod White tied the score at two with a homerun and set the tempo for the rest of the game. The team scored two late runs in the seventh inning to win the game 4-2.
Senior pitcher Logan Peck received his second victory of the season on the mound.
Head coach Phil Hannon said the team may have been a little nervous for its first conference games of the year.
“Everything we had been working for was for our conference games,” Hannon said. “The guys had butterflies, but after getting our first couple of runs, they started to relax.”
Baker shook out all the nerves in the first game and came out strong offensively in the second. The team strung together 14 hits in its 18-8 victory. Although he said it was not his best performance, sophomore Jeremiah Johnson received his fourth win of the season on the mound.
“I didn’t pitch very well, but our offense backed me up to give me a lot of runs to work with,” Johnson said. “It’s nice to know your team will support you.”
Despite the win, the team lost starting third baseman Aaron Westerhouse, who was hit by a pitch in the jaw. Westerhouse underwent surgery and is expected to recover and be back on the field by April.
Hannon said freshman Zandy Hall has stepped in to fill the role.
“It’s been a good learning experience for all the guys, especially the ones who have stepped up,” he said.
Facing Missouri Valley College, Baker lost the first game 8-6 but bounced back and won the second game 4-1 at Sauder Field. Sophomore Joe Kaup battled through some adversity on the mound, pitching five innings and leaving the bump with the game knotted at four. The Vikings outscored Baker in the sixth to take the game 8-6.
The ‘Cats recovered in the second game after scoring four runs off just three hits to win the game 4-1. Junior Nick Burd improved his pitching record to 2-1. Hannon said he was proud of the team’s ability to bounce back.
“After losing the first game, coming back and winning the second game shows how tough our team is,” he said.
Baker repeated the routine against Bacone College, losing 2-0 and then winning 7-1 at Sauder Field. Sophomore Bryce Davin pitched a complete game but had no help from the Wildcat offense, which produced just two hits. The ‘Cats were unable to score and lost the game 2-0.
In game two, five nonstarters transformed the Baker lineup to help the team bounce back and win 7-1. Seniors Andrew Hannon and Paul Foltz produced half of Baker’s total hits, each going two for three at the plate. Junior transfer Hansen Perkins received his first win as a Wildcat on the mound.
Phil Hannon said the game was a big win for the team and a good way to let some of the starters rest while giving the nonstarters an opportunity to step up.
“All those guys are competitors who’ve been working out with us just waiting for their time,” he said. “If you get your time, just go out and shine, and that’s what happened. They don’t want to let their teammates down, so they stepped in, relaxed, had nothing to lose and played good baseball.”
Sophomore catcher Mike Meyer started both games against the Warriors. He said he thought the nonstarters performed well and played as if they were the regular starters. Meyer said he focused on doing the little things to step up and get the job done.
“I go out there and do my job when coach asks me to,” he said. “I make my plays and do what I need to do.”
The ‘Cats concluded their spring break play splitting games with Lindenwood 0-6 and 10-7 in snowy St. Charles, Mo. The team lacked offense until the sixth inning when senior Dan Carr had a two-out hit. Carr’s only hit of the game led the ‘Cats to a 0-6 loss.
Baker rebounded in the second game with solid offense and pitching. The game improved Johnson’s pitching record to a perfect 5-0 and gave senior Jake Landis his sixth save of the season.
Landis said he was pleased with the team’s overall performance during spring break.
“We’re playing great baseball, and the best thing is we still have yet to play our best baseball,” he said. “That’s something to look forward to.”
The Baker offense continued to stay strong in a game against Park University Tuesday when the ‘Cats won 8-5 in Parkville, Mo. The team took an early 4-0 lead, but it wasn’t enough to close the game. Park tied the score 4-4 in the seventh inning, advancing the game into an extra inning. With a key double by Ben Mejia and a stolen base by freshman Danny Cast, the ‘Cats scored four more runs in the eighth inning leading to an 8-5 victory.
Landis said he was excited that the team had enough to pull out a win against a good team.
“It showed what we didn’t do last year,” Landis said. “This year, we’ve found a way to win close ball games. We went into extra innings, got base hits and scored runs.”
The ‘Cats’ record is 11-6 overall and 5-2 in the Heart of America Athletic Conference. They will face Central Methodist College at 1 p.m. Saturday at Sauder Field.
son on the mound.
“I didn’t pitch very well, but our offense backed me up to give me a lot of runs to work with,” Johnson said. “It’s nice to know your team will support you.”
Despite the win, the team lost starting third baseman Aaron Westerhouse, who was hit by a pitch in the jaw. Westerhouse underwent surgery and is expected to recover and be back on the field by April.
Hannon said freshman Zandy Hall has stepped in to fill the role.
“It’s been a good learning experience for all the guys, especially the ones who have stepped up,” he said.
Facing Missouri Valley College, Baker lost the first game 8-6 but bounced back and won the second game 4-1 at Sauder Field. Sophomore Joe Kaup battled through some adversity on the mound, pitching five innings and leaving the bump with the game knotted at four. The Vikings outscored Baker in the sixth to take the game 8-6.
The ‘Cats recovered in the second game after scoring four runs off just three hits to win the game 4-1. Junior Nick Burd improved his pitching record to 2-1. Hannon said he was proud of the team’s ability to bounce back.
“After losing the first game, coming back and winning the second game shows how tough our team is,” he said.
Baker repeated the routine against Bacone College, losing 2-0 and then winning 7-1 at Sauder Field. Sophomore Bryce Davin pitched a complete game but had no help from the Wildcat offense, which produced just two hits. The ‘Cats were unable to score and lost the game 2-0.
In game two, five nonstarters transformed the Baker lineup to help the team bounce back and win 7-1. Seniors Andrew Hannon and Paul Foltz produced half of Baker’s total hits, each going two for three at the plate. Junior transfer
Phil Hannon said the game was a big win for the team and a good way to let some of the starters rest while giving the nonstarters an opportunity to step up.
“All those guys are competitors who’ve been working out with us just waiting for their time,” he said. “If you get your time, just go out and shine, and that’s what happened. They don’t want to let their teammates down, so they stepped in, relaxed, had nothing to lose and played good baseball.”
Sophomore catcher Mike Meyer started both games against the Warriors. He said he thought the nonstarters performed well and played as if they were the regular starters. Meyer said he focused on doing the little things to step up and get the job done.
“I go out there and do my job when coach asks me to,” he said. “I make my plays and do what I need to do.”
The ‘Cats concluded their spring break play splitting games with Lindenwood 0-6 and 10-7 in snowy St. Charles, Mo. The team lacked offense until the sixth inning when senior Dan Carr had a two-out hit.
Baker rebounded in the second game with solid offense and pitching. The game improved Johnson’s pitching record to a perfect 5-0 and gave senior Jake Landis his sixth save of the season.
“We’re playing great baseball, and the best thing is we still have yet to play our best baseball,” Landis said. “That’s something to look forward to.”
The Baker offense continued to stay strong in a game against Park University Tuesday when the ‘Cats won 8-5 in Parkville, Mo.
Landis said he was excited that the team had enough to pull out a win against a good team.
“It showed what we didn’t do last year,” Landis said. “This year, we’ve found a way to win close ball games. “