KUTZTOWN, PA (March 3, 2011) – While many college students will be relaxing and traveling to exotic destinations during their spring break from classes, the Kutztown University baseball team will be busier than ever, going up against some of the best teams in Division II during its annual trip to Savannah, GA.
The Golden Bears will play six games in as many days beginning on Saturday March 5 and going until Thursday March 10. For the complete 2011 Savannah Invitational schedule, please CLICK HERE.
KU (5-3 overall) will open its spring break schedule against West Liberty University on Saturday March 5 at 10 a.m. It will then be followed by California (PA) on Sunday at 12 p.m., Concord University on Monday at 10 a.m., Armstrong Atlantic State Tuesday at 2 p.m., West Liberty on Wednesday at 10 a.m., and Mount Olive College on Thursday March 10 at 12 p.m.
The Golden Bears will take a flurry of rankings with them on their 12-hour trip down to Georgia. KU is ranked 14th by collegebaseballlineup.com, 28th by Collegiate Baseball, and third in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Division II Atlantic Region poll.
“This will be the toughest set of games we have ever played in Savannah,” said head baseball coach Chris Blum. “We play three top 20 teams and the other three games are all important for regionals. I feel we are mentally and physically prepared for the challenge.”
Other schools traveling to Savannah that are ranked include Mount Olive, who is ranked seventh by collegiate baseball and 13th by collegebaseballlineup.com. Armstrong Atlantic is 22nd in the collegiate baseball poll and California (PA) is 29th in the collegebaseballlineup.com top 30 poll and fourth in the NCBWA Atlantic Regional poll.
One thing Kutztown has held to its advantage so far this year is its ability to get top performances from many of its players one game after the next. From experienced veterans to incoming freshman, KU has proven to have a balanced attack and has the potential to have a very dangerous lineup come midseason.
Three of its leaders KU will depend on throughout the year will come from the 3, 4, 5 hitters in Shayne Houck (Boyertown, PA/Boyertown), James Quigley (Bensalem, PA/Bensalem) and Mike Dugan (Ocean City, N.J./Ocean City). All three have double digit hits this season and each has experienced a great deal of success throughout their careers.
Houck is coming off a record breaking season, earning him the award of Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division Player of the Year, as well as ABCA/Rawlings Atlantic Region Player of the Year. He became Kutztown's all-time single season leader in home runs (17), doubles (24), runs scored (74), RBI (77), and total bases (160). Houck finished the season with a team-best .449 batting average. Houck has wasted no time backing up his previous season's accomplishments in hopes of winning a PSAC title this year. His top game this season was a multi-home run performance including a game-winning grand slam in the 10th inning against the Apprentice School on Feb. 18. He currently is hitting .378 this season and leads the team with 14 RBI's.
Quigley also has a home run to his name as he belted a three-run homer on Feb. 5 against Barton. He is batting .344, is second on the team with 11 hits, and has eight RBI's on the season.
Approaching this year's team compared to previous years however, has been a little different though for the Golden Bears, who head into spring break with a different set of expectations early in the season.
“We have a new core group of guys on the team this year,” said Dugan. “Despite that winning is always important, it's not the biggest thing right now. As a team, we still have some things to figure out together to build unity. This week is a great test for the team to show where we are and what area's we need to build upon.”
After yet another 10-plus day layoff between games, KU is set to return to the field after a second-place finish at the Builder Invitational on Feb. 20. KU had won the annual tournament in Hampton, VA six consecutive years, but ran into a motivated Lock Haven team in the championship game. After KU rolled through the Bald Eagles 22-1 in the round robin portion of the tournament, the two teams met in the championship game where Lock Haven defeated Kutztown, 8-4.
Coming off a defeat is never easy for a team, but more times than not, has been found to fuel a team to go out and fight that much harder for a win its next time out.
“It's always great when you can build off the success from certain games,” said Dugan. “But if you do lose, you want to be able to play the next day. You don't want to think about it, waiting for your next chance to get on the field. With the tough loss we had at end of our trip to Virginia, it's tough not to get back on the field and challenge yourself. The sooner you play, the better it is.”
Cody Montz (Schuylkill Haven, PA/Schuylkill Haven) has given the Golden Bears a consistent bat early on as he leads the team with a .684 average. Also holding a .400 or above average are sophomore's Andrew Otterberg (Wall Township, N.J./Wall Township) (.500) and Matt Albaugh (Hatfield, PA/North Penn) (.409).
Gilbert Vega (Lancaster, PA/J.P. McCaskey) also had a career game early in his sophomore season. Vega had three hits and five RBI's on Feb. 19 against Briarcliffe College, both of which were career-highs. He is currently batting .280 with seven RBI's.
Leading KU off the mound early on has been senior Jonathan Grosse (Bayport, NY/Bayport-Bluepoint). Grosse has thrown 10.1 innings in his opening two starts of the season and leads the team with 12 strikeouts while holding opponent hitters to just a .167 average. He also holds a 1.74 ERA.
Other notable Golden Bear pitchers are Tyler Persun (Mount Joy, PA/Donegal) and Nich Boles (King, N.C./West Stokes/North Carolina A&T), who also have made two starts apiece. Persun split his two outings and has six strikeouts on the season. Boles, a transfer from North Carolina A&T, has 10 strikeouts in just eight innings of work and holds a 4.50 ERA.
Battling hard and coming home from spring break with some wins under its belt is a challenge that KU has been waiting for the entire offseason. And even though they might not admit it, they may be looking forward to making their annual visit to Masato's Hibachi Grill in Savannah even more. So needless to say, look for a determined Golden Bear team to continue to learn about itself as it moves towards its year-long goal of making it to and succeeding in the postseason.
--KU--
