Share

Louisiana-Lafayette Baseball Schedule For 2009 is Set

A season-opening, four-game series at M.L. “Tigue” Moore Field with Nebraska, 26 total home games and meetings with nine teams which qualified for the 2008 NCAA Tournament highlight Louisiana’s Ragin’ Cajuns baseball team’s 2009 schedule which was announced Thursday by head coach Tony Robichaux.

The Ragin’ Cajuns will play 21 games against NCAA Tournament teams from last season. Included are midweek matchups with LSU and Rice, participants in the 2008 World Series, and three-game road series at Southern Mississippi and East Carolina.
Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2009 Schedules, Big East, Conference USA, East Carolina, Louisiana-Lafayette, Rutgers, Southern Conference, Sun Belt, UNC-Greensboro

Share

FROM CBB NEWS SOURCES

FSU 13 Stetson 3

DeLand, Fla. – Third-ranked Florida State (36-7) registered its seventh consecutive non-conference victory with a 13-3 win over Stetson (19-27) Tuesday night in front of 2,751 at Melching Field, the eighth largest crowd in stadium history. The Seminoles reached the double-digit run plateau for the fourth straight game against the Hatters outscoring Stetson 60-9 during the stretch. The win was the tenth straight for Florida State in the series. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: ACC, ACC Recap, Atlantic Sun, Boston College, Florida State, Maryland, Mount St. Mary's, NEC, Quinnipiac, Southern Conference, UNC-Greensboro, Virginia, Wake Forest, West Virginia

Share

FROM CBB NEWS SOURCES

FIU 6 Miami (FL) 3

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (www.fiusports.com) – It had been four years since FIU had beaten Miami at Mark Light Field and an eternity since it beat the nation’s No. 1 team. That all changed Wednesday night with a 6-3 win for the Golden Panthers (14-29) against top-ranked Miami (33-5) in front of 2,483 on the Hurricanes’ home field.

FIU led throughout the game and held Miami hitless for five-straight innings after starter Eric Horstmann gave up a pair of singles in the first. The Golden Panthers built a 4-0 lead before Miami bounced back for three runs in the seventh. UM carried the momentum into the eighth, loading the bases with two outs against reliever James Lajiness. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: ACC, ACC Recap, Big South, CAA, Clemson, Coastal Carolina, Davidson, Duke, FIU, High Point, Maryland, Miami (FL), NC State, Presbyterian College, Southern Conference, Sun Belt, Towson, UNC, UNC-Greensboro, Virginia, Wake Forest, William and Mary

Share

FROM CBB NEWS SOURCES

UNC 17 Charlotte 0

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – No. 2 North Carolina pounded out a season-high 22 hits and had five pitchers combine on a four-hit shutout in a 17-0 win over Charlotte Tuesday at Robert and Mariam Hayes Stadium. The Tar Heels (35-7) became the first team in the nation to reach the 35-win mark and extended their season-best winning streak to 10 games with the victory. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: ACC, ACC Recap, Atlantic Sun, Big East, Big South, Boston College, CAA, Charlotte, Clemson, Duke, Elon, Georgetown, GT, Harvard, Ivy League, Maryland, Mercer, Old Dominion, Radford, Southern Conference, UNC, UNC-Greensboro, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, Western Carolina

Share

FROM CBB NEWS SOURCES

FSU 4 Florida 2

Tallahassee, Fla. – Second-ranked Florida State (32-3) captured its first regular season series victory over intra-state rival and No. 24 Florida (24-13) since 2005 with a 4-2 win Tuesday night. A new Dick Howser Stadium crowd of 6,737 were on hand to see senior Ryan Strauss pick up his second straight win over the Gators this year while throwing his first career complete game.

“Florida State, Florida is enough said,” added head coach Mike Martin on taking the season series from the Gators. “Florida has a great ball club and we were very fortunate to win. We executed very well offensively and you have to give Florida credit. They kept the ball game close throughout by making some very good pitching decisions.” Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: ACC, America East, Big South, Coastal Carolina, Conference USA, Davidson, Duke, East Carolina, Florida, Florida State, Maryland, NC State, North Carolina Central, SEC, Southern Conference, UMBC, UNC, UNC-Greensboro, Virginia, Wake Forest

Share

FROM CBB NEWS SOURCES

FAU 6 Miami (FL) 3

CORAL GABLES, FL – Florida Atlantic right-hander Michael Obradovich struck out a season-best seven batters, allowing just three runs in eight outstanding innings and All-America candidate William Block hit two home runs in the Owls’ 6-3 win over No. 1 Miami.

Florida Atlantic (19-11) bolstered its 2008 resume with a road win over the nation’s best team. FAU is averaging 41 victories per season since 1999, during that span the Owls have qualified for NCAA Regional play six times. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: ACC, ACC Recap, Big South, Boston College, CAA, Clemson, Coastal Carolina, Duke, FAU, Georgia, GT, High Point, Liberty, Maryland, MEAC, Miami (FL), Mount St. Mary's, NC AT, NC State, NEC, Northeastern, South Carolina, Southern Conference, Sun Belt, UNC-Greensboro, VCU, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest

Share

FSU 10 UNC-Asheville 5

FSU Recap
UNCA Recap Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: ACC, ACC Recap, Big South, Boston College, Clemson, Coppin State, Duke, FAU, Florida State, GT, Horizon League, Independents, Kennesaw State, Maryland, NC AT, NC State, Radford, Sun Belt, UNC-Asheville, UNC-Greensboro, Valparaiso, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, Wofford

Share

FROM CONFERENCE PRESS RELEASE
College of Charleston, 2007 Southern Conference regular-season co-champion, is the favorite to win the 2008 crown according to a vote of the league’s coaches. The Cougars picked up five of a possible 10 first place votes and finished with a total of 86 votes. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2008 Preseason Poll, Appalachian State, College of Charleston, Davidson, Elon, Furman, Southern Conference, The Citadel, UNC-Greensboro, Western Carolina, Wofford

Share

FROM VALLEY BASEBALL LEAGUE
Baseball website PGcrosschecker.com recently compiled its list of the top 20 players in the Valley Baseball League. The list was compiled by Allan Simpson with input from the league’s managers and scouts.

Similar to the recently released Baseball America list, PG Crosschecker identified Winchester’s Luke Greinke as the league’s top prospect. He was also the league MVP. He was followed by Covington outfielder Jason Kipnis, but then six of the next seven players listed were pitchers.

Simpson noted that league officials felt that the 2007 season saw a jump in overall talent around the league, in particular in the pitching department. The numbers appear to support that assertion. In 2007, league pitchers as a whole had a 3.70 earned run average while hitters had a .247 batting average as a league. In 2006, hitters posted a .258 average while pitchers compiled a 3.88 ERA, and the year before saw a .257 batting average and 3.97 ERA as a league.

While Waynesboro finished first in the regular season and won the Jim Lineweaver Cup as league champions, the Generals placed just three players in the top 20 and none higher than #11. In fact, many of the top prospects come from the lower half of the standings. Simpson noted that was a sign of the league’s improved depth.

PGCrosschecker.com Valley League Top 20 Prospects

1. Luke Greinke, UT, Winchester (Auburn)

2. Jason Kipnis, OF, Covington (Arizona State)

3. Zac Blakney, RHP, Fauquier (Montevallo)

4. Shayne Moody, SS, Woodstock (Charlotte)

5. Ashur Tolliver, LHP, Harrisonburg (Arkansas-Little Rock)

6. Donald Jordat, RHP, Luray (Miami-Dade C.C.)

7. Rob Gilliam, RHP, Luray (UNC Greensboro)

8. Tim Sexton, RHP, Staunton (Miami-Dade C.C.)

9. Josh Judy, RHP, Haymarket (Indiana Tech)

10. Tyler Kuhn, SS/2B, Luray (West Virginia)

11. Pat Irvine, C/OF, Waynesboro (Elon)

12. Garrett Parker, RHP, Harrisonburg (Oklahoma City)

13. Bobby Hernandez, RHP, Staunton (Barry)

14. Josh Eidell, RHP, Woodstock (Villanova)

15. Elih Villanueva, RHP, Luray (Florida State)

16. Jeremy Cruz, 1B, Luray (Stetson)

17. Chris Masters, LHP, New Market (Western Carolina)

18. Brandon Sizemore, 2B, Waynesboro (Charleston)

19. Kurt Davidson, C/1B, Waynesboro (Akron)

20. Dustin Umberger, RHP, Luray (Liberty)

Full scouting reports from the summer on each player are available here. A subscription is required to view the insider-level reports.

 

Tags: ACC, Akron, Auburn, Barry, Charlotte, College of Charleston, Elon, Florida State, Liberty, Perfect Game, Stetson, UNC-Greensboro, Valley Baseball League, Villanova, West Virginia, Western Carolina

Share

Courtesy of Valley League
Winchester utility player Luke Greinke (Orlando, Fla./Auburn) was named Most Valuable Player and Waynesboro skipper Lawrence Nesselrodt was selected as Coach of the Year as the Valley Baseball League announced its 2007 All-League awards on Wednesday, August 8.

Greinke, a rising senior at Auburn, filled several roles for the Winchester Royals and was a true utility player with solid play in the field, at the plate, and on the mound. Offensively, he battered the baseball while playing first base, outfield, and designated hitter. He led the league with a .417 batting average to claim the league’s batting title. He also led the VBL with a .642 slugging percentage and .517 on-base percentage while collecting 12 doubles, five homers, and 32 RBIs for a potent Winchester offense that led the league hitting .275 as a team. Greinke was equally as impressive on the mound, going 3-1 with a 2.66 ERA in eight appearances covering 50 2/3 innings.

Nesselrodt was named the league’s top coach for the second consecutive season. The Generals finished with the league’s top record in the regular season at 30-13-1 and also have the league’s best mark over the last two years combined at 57-28-1. Waynesboro has held true to its top seed by advancing to the VBL championship series.

Greinke was one of 16 players selected to the 2007 Valley League All-League squad. Waynesboro and its championship opponent Luray, the defending league champion, each placed three players on the All-League squad to lead the way. Front Royal, Harrisonburg, New Market, and Winchester each placed two players on the team with Covington and Staunton adding the last two picks.

Three players were repeat selections to the squad, led by Luray short stop Tyler Kuhn (Louisville, Ky./West Virginia), who was the 2006 VBL MVP. Entering the championship series, Kuhn was hitting .314 with seven doubles, two triples, three homers, 21 RBIs, 20 walks, and seven steals.

The other repeat picks both came from Waynesboro. Kurt Davidson (North Canton, Ohio/Akron) was the selection at first base after being honored at third base in 2006. He leads the league by a wide margin with 51 RBIs and 61 hits. Davidson is also second with 90 total bases while hitting .305 with 12 doubles and five homers. A clutch hitter all season, Davidson had the game-winning RBI in the Generals’ semifinal game three win over Covington and in the championship series opener in the 14th inning against Luray.

The other repeat honoree was Generals ace Jon Dages (Indianapolis, Ind./Butler), who went 7-2 with a 2.62 ERA. Entering the championship, he ranks second in the league with 68 2/3 innings pitched and seven wins.

Waynesboro’s other all-league winner was second baseman Brandon Sizemore (Bryceville, Fla./Tallahassee C.C.). He sits third in the league with 53 hits and leads the Generals with 13 doubles. Sizemore is hitting .277 with a triple, three homers, 27 RBIs, and 13 steals.

Luray’s other selections came from their dynamic duo of starting pitchers, Robert Gilliam (Chapel Hill, N.C./UNC-Greensboro) and Dustin Umberger (Hummelstown, Pa./Liberty). Gilliam won the honor of the league’s ERA leader for the regular season and carries a 1.26 mark and a 7-1 record into the final series. He also has a save and has struck out 81 batters in 57 innings. Umberger ranks second in the league with a 1.45 ERA and led the league with eight wins on a perfect 8-0 record. He ranks third with 76 strikeouts in 56 innings.

Greinke, the all-league pick at the utility spot, was joined by teammate Jose Cueto (Miami, Fla./Virginia Tech). The outfielder ranks fourth in the league with a .328 batting average and fifth with a .537 on-base percentage. He led the Royals with six home runs while adding eight doubles, 24 RBIs, 20 walks, and 11 steals.

Front Royal’s two picks include third baseman Bennett Davis (Katy, Texas/Manatee C.C.) and closer Joel Brookens (Fayetteville, Pa./North Carolina St.). Davis sits second in the league with 14 doubles. He hit .280 with three home runs, 36 runs scored, 30 RBIs, and 14 steals. Brookens leads the league with 13 saves and ranks second with 19 games finished. He had a 1.35 ERA in 20 innings and held opponents to a .129 batting average.

Harrisonburg placed two players on the all-league squad after finishing second in the regular season. Outfielder Robert Taylor (Ingram, Texas/Arkansas-Little Rock) and relief pitcher Garrett Parker (Duncanville, Texas/Howard-Payne) represented the Turks. Taylor ranks third in the league with a .352 batting average. He scored 22 runs, had six doubles, four homers, 14 walks, and a .420 on-base percentage. Parker finished 2-1 with a 0.84 ERA and eight saves in 21 1/3 innings. He did not allow a run until the postseason and ranks fifth in the league in saves.

New Market had two all-league selections with catcher Nick Stanley (Largo, Fla./South Florida C.C.) and designated hitter Nolan Brannon (St. Petersburg, Fla./Tampa). Stanley ranks fifth in the VBL with a .325 batting average and leads the league with 15 doubles. He had 50 hits, 23 runs, two homers, 20 RBIs, and 16 walks. Brannon hit .323 with 41 hits, six doubles, 17 RBIs, and 15 walks.

The final two selections were Covington outfielder Jason Kipnis (Northbrook, Ill./Kentucky) and Staunton closer Bobby Hernandez (Key West, Fla./Barry). Kipnis shares the league lead with nine home runs and won the home run derby during the 2007 all-star game in Front Royal. He ranks second with a .591 slugging percentage, second with a .498 on-base percentage, first with 46 runs scored, second with 41 RBIs, first with 91 total bases, first with 49 walks, and second with 24 stolen bases. Hernandez was second in the league with 12 saves and second with 21 appearances. He had a 1.78 ERA and 35 strikeouts in 25 1/3 innings while holding opponents to a .143 batting average.

The awards were voted upon by the league’s 11 head coaches, broadcasters, and select media members who covered the league.

2007 Valley League MVP – Luke Grineke, Winchester

2007 Valley League Coach of the Year – Lawrence Nesselrodt, Waynesboro

2007 Valley League Batting Champion – Luke Greinke, Winchester

2007 Valley League Pitching ERA Leader – Robert Gilliam, Luray

2007 Valley League All-League Team

1B – Kurt Davidson, Waynesboro (Akron)

2B – Brandon Sizemore, Waynesboro (Tallahassee C.C.)

3B – Bennett Davis, Front Royal (Manatee C.C.)

SS – Tyler Kuhn, Luray (West Virginia)

OF – Jose Cueto, Winchester (Virginia Tech)

OF – Jason Kipnis, Covington (Kentucky)

OF – Robert Taylor, Harrisonburg (Arkansas-Little Rock)

C – Nick Stanley, New Market (South Florida C.C.)

DH – Nolan Brannon, New Market (Tampa)

UT – Luke Greinke, Winchester (Auburn)

SP – Jon Dages, Waynesboro (Butler)

SP – Robert Gilliam, Luray (UNC-Greensboro)

SP – Dustin Umberger, Luray (Liberty)

RP – Joel Brookens, Front Royal (North Carolina St.)

RP – Bobby Hernandez, Staunton (Barry)

RP – Garrett Parker, Harrisonburg (Howard-Payne)

Note: Due to a tie, three relief pitchers were selected

Tags: ACC, Akron, Arkansas Little Rock, Auburn, Butler, NC State, UNC-Greensboro, Valley Baseball League, Virginia Tech, West Virginia

Share

UNC 5 East Carolina 1

The North Carolina Tar Heels received homers from Tim Federowicz, Chad Flack, and Reid Fronk all hit homers to led the Tar Heels to a 5-1 victory at East Carolina. The Tar Heels used the game to get seven different pitchers some work and they were impressive as they combined to strike out 17 hitters while only allowing one run. Matt Danford picked up the win to put his record at 4-0 while Jeff Ostrander got the loss for East Carolina to drop his record to 2-1.

UNC Recap
East Carolina Recap

Furman 6 Clemson 3

The Furman Paladins picked up a surprising 6-3 victory over regional rival Clemson. The Paladins got a two run triple from Bobby Hubbard in the eighth inning to break open a close game. Furman reliever Spencer Hale pitched 3.1 strong innings while giving up only one run to pick up his first victory of the year for an overall record of 1-2. Clemson reliever P.J. Zocchi gave up two runs in four innings and grabbed the loss to drop his record to 3-2.

Furman Recap
Clemson Recap

UNC-Wilmington 8 NC State 4

Mark Carver led the Seahawks with three hits and drove in three runs to lead UNC-Wilmington to a 8-4 victory over NC State on Wednesday. Cody Dickens pitched four shutout innings to pick up the victory to put his record at 2-2 on the season while Wolfpack starter Sam Brown gets the loss as he up three runs in 2.1 innings to even his record at 1-1.

UNC-Wilmington Recap
NC State Recap

Duke 5 UNC-Greensboro 4

The Duke Blue Devils picked up a come from behind 5-4 victory over UNC-Greensboro in non-conference action. The Blue Devils scored three runs in the top of the ninth to grab the lead and were able to get the final three outs in the bottom of the ninth to secure the victory. The three run ninth was highlighted by a Brett Bartles two run homer to tie the game. After the Bartles home run, Alexander Hassan picked up a walk and was driven in by a Gabriel Saade triple. Duke reliever Michael Ness picked up the win to put his record at 4-3 while UNC-Greensboro reliever Kory Judd got the loss to even his record at 4-4.

Duke Recap
UNC-Greensboro Recap

Georgia 9 Georgia Tech 4

The Georgia Bulldogs and Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets completed their season series with Georgia picking up a 9-4 victory to clinch the season series victory over the Yellow Jackets. The Bulldogs got great games from Matt Olson and Travis Parrott who each drove in three runs to lead the Bulldog offense. Ryan Wooley picked up the win in relief by pitching a perfect 0.2 innings to put his record at 1-1 on the season. Brad Rulon was credited with the loss to even his record at 2-2.

UGA Recap
GT Recap

Virginia Tech 9 VMI 0

The Virginia Tech Hokies picked up a 9-0 shutout victory at VMI on Wednesday. They were led by Rob Whitey, Andrew Wells, Scott Stoehr, and Rhett Ballard who combined on a three hit shutout of VMI. Whitey ups his record to 2-0 while VMI starter Chris Henderson gets the loss to put his record at 5-3.

VT Recap
VMI Recap

 

Tags: ACC, Clemson, Duke, East Carolina, Furman, NC State, UNC, UNC-Greensboro, UNC-Wilmington, Virginia Tech, VMI

Share

Boston College 12 Dartmouth 6

Boston College continued their recent winning ways with a 12-6 victory over regional rival Dartmouth. BC was led by Ryan Hutchinson and Eric Campbell who each went 3-5. Kurt Hayer picked up his first career victory by pitching the first 2.2 innings while giving up five runs. Dartmouth starter Chase Carpenter picked up the loss by giving up seven runs in 1.1 innings of work.

BC Recap
Dartmouth Recap
Maryland 7 UMES 2

Brett Jones pitched two perfect innings in relief to pick up a 7-2 victory over local rival UMES. Maryland was led on offense by Dan Melvin and Joe Palumbo who each went 2-4 at the plate. Maryland Eastern Shore starter Tyler Winch got the loss by going seven innings while giving up four runs.

Maryland Recap
UMES Recap

Wake Forest 6 UNC-Greensboro 5

Wake Forest held off a late comeback attempt by UNC-Greensboro to pick up a 6-5 victory. Brett Linenkohl led off the game with a homer and finished the game 2-5 with an RBI and two runs scored. Wake Forest starter Kirby Wedekind picked up the win by working four innings while only giving up a run. Josh Ellis got his seventh save by pitching a perfect bottom of the ninth. Alex Shelton got the loss for UNC-Greensboro by giving up two runs in two innings.

Wake Forest Recap
UNC-Greensboro Recap

Tags: ACC, Boston College, Dartmouth, Maryland, UMES, UNC-Greensboro, Wake Forest