04/11/08
Two wins were tacked on to the Baker University baseball team’s record last weekend as it came away from a tough series with a top conference opponent in William Jewell College.
The ‘Cats split both doubleheaders Friday and Saturday with the Cardinals, making their overall record 8-16 and 5-13 in conference. Head coach Phil Hannon said he was pleased with his team’s performance and thought the series was a definite confidence builder against a tough William Jewell team, who entered the series with an impressive record.
“The conference is so tight, and we got off to a rough start, so this should show them that we can play with anyone,” Hannon said. “Jewell is a good conference school so these guys can realize they can go out and play with anybody, but we have to focus on winning two games of a doubleheader.”
Baker started the series strong with an 8-4 home victory Friday. Down 4-3 in the fifth, the ‘Cats busted the inning open scoring five runs to take the game. Senior Aaron Westerhouse and juniors Christopher Moody and Ryan Highfill all had two RBIs apiece in the team’s 13-hit performance.
Senior Bryce Davin pitched five innings to earn his first win of the season from the mound.
“I think Bryce did a good job,” Hannon said. “(Freshman) Carter Bledsoe and (sophomore) Mike Strnad, the relieving guys, did a good job of pitching in a roll as well.”
Game two told a different story as the ‘Cats only scored two runs off of seven hits. The pitching staff could not find a rhythm as the defense committed four errors as well. Despite the loss, junior Travis McCleary had an outstanding presence at the plate in the doubleheader, hitting three triples and a double in his 5-for-7 showing.
“It felt pretty good, and I was pretty comfortable,” McCleary said. “I got on base, and everyone else hit me in, and they got on base so it was a good team performance.”
Saturday, the team made a trip to Liberty, Mo., and a very similar pattern repeated. The ‘Cats defeated William Jewell 6-2 in the first game but lost 8-4 in the second game.
In game one, junior Vidal Nuno proved his toughness once again to earn his fourth win of the season. Nuno held the Cardinals to just four hits and threw a season high of 10 strikeouts. Sophomore Nick Peterson said the team has a lot of confidence with Nuno.
“With Nuno, we know that if we score two or three runs, then it’s pretty much a guaranteed win,” Peterson said. “When he’s on the mound, it gives us a lot of confidence in the field and at the plate.”
In the second game, the Cardinals opened the floodgates in the first and second innings scoring four runs that the ‘Cats could never catch up to. Peterson said the two wins from the series were key for the team.
“It was important because we’re just coming off of a losing streak and we got one win in Benedictine (College), and taking two from William Jewell definitely boosted our moral and gives us confidence heading into the rest of the season,” Peterson said.
Up next for Baker is another weekend series against MidAmerica Nazarene University. Hannon said he anticipates a scrappy MidAmerica team that will battle the entire game.
“Our biggest thing is to stay mentally tough because it is going to be a grueling season with back-to-back games and knowing at any given time somebody’s going to come through for us,” he said.
Friday’s doubleheader is set for 1 p.m. at Sauder Field followed by a doubleheader at 1 p.m. Saturday in Olathe.