Baseball
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6-5-06
Baseball
Adrian College Baseball ranks
fifth in Mideast
ADRIAN, Mich.—The
Adrian College baseball team ended the 2006
season ranked fifth in the Mideast region, as
ranked by the American Baseball Coaches Association.
The Bulldogs, who went 26-17, won their second-consecutive
MIAA Championship, sharing the title with Hope
College with a 21-7 conference mark.
Adrian advanced to the NCAA Regional Tournament
in Terra Haute, Indiana, going 1-2 in the bracket
that produced the national champion, Marietta.
The
2006 Bulldogs had four All-Region performers,
one All-Regional Tournament athlete, and 12
All-MIAA honorees, including the conference’s
player and pitcher of the year.
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| ADRIAN
COLLEGE DAY AT COMERICA PARK |
| |
|
ADRIAN,
Mich.-- Comerica Park, home of the
Detroit Tigers, welcomed Adrian College to the
park on Sunday, May 21, for the Tigers interleague
game versus the Cincinnati Reds.
More
than 350 Adrian College students, alumni, family
and friends attended the 1-0 Tigers' win, while
the baseball team was honored on the scoreboard
for their second-straight MIAA Championship. |
05/24/06
- Baseball
FOUR BULLDOGS NAMED TO ALL-REGION TEAM
Nokovich named
first-team All-Mideast
ADRIAN,
Mich.—The
Adrian College baseball team continues to reap the
benefits of its successful 2006 season with four student-athletes
being honored as All-Mideast Region performers.
Senior
pitcher Jeff Nokovich is the first Bulldog to earn
first-team all-region honors since 1997, while Bobby
Rickstad, a sophomore utility player, was named to
the second team. Freshman second-baseman Todd Meyers
and senior shortstop Tony Vennekotter were both named
third-team All-Mideast Region.
Nokovich,
a product of Flint and Burton-Bendle High School,
ended the 2006 campaign with a 1.70 ERA and a 7-3
record. The MIAA’s Most Valuable Pitcher struck
out 92 batters and held opponents to a .159 batting
average. The southpaw had six complete games and allowed
only four extra-base hits in his senior year.
Rickstad,
a Comstock native, did it all for the MIAA Champions.
The sophomore hit .336 with 26 RBI, nine doubles,
two triple and a homer. In the field, he played second
base, third base, left field and right field, while
also serving as the team’s designated hitter
at times. Also appearing on the mound, Rickstad went
6-2 with a 2.77 ERA, striking out 33 with five complete
games.
Meyers,
a hometown Adrian product, hit .364 in his freshman
year, driving in 25 runs with six doubles and a triple.
He fielded at a .947 clip at second base with 96 assists
and 16 double plays. Meyers also stole 11 bases on
the year.
Vennekotter,
another Adrian native, was named co-Player of the
Year in the MIAA, and hit .358 with 22 RBI. The short
stop had five double and a triple, while fielding
at a .940 clip at short stop with 125 assists and
18 double plays.
The
Adrian College Bulldogs ended the 2006 campaign with
a 26-17 mark, advancing to the NCAA Mideast Regional
Tournament. AC had a 21-7 mark in the MIAA, winning
their second-consecutive league title.
05/22/06
- Baseball
AC’s
BECKMAN NAMED TO NCAA ALL-MIDEAST REGIONAL TEAM
Senior
hit .615 in Tournament play |
|
ADRIAN,
Mich.—Adrian
College senior third-baseman Isaiah Beckman
has earned a spot on the NCAA Mideast Regional
All-Tournament team for his play last week.
Beckman,
a Niles, Michigan native, went 8-13 (.615) over
the Bulldogs’ three games in Terra Haute,
Indiana, driving in two runs, scoring one, and
recording five put outs and an assist at the
hot corner. His 4-for-4 performance and two
RBI lifted AC to a 3-2 win over Elizabethtown
College on Friday.
An
honorable-mention All-MIAA performer this past
spring, |
|
Beckman
hit .290 in his final year at Adrian, leading
the MIAA Champs in both RBI with 35, and doubles
with 10. Adrian
finished the year 26-15.
|
05/19/06
- Baseball
OTTERBEIN RALLIES TO TOP AC 4-3 IN 11 INNINGS
AC finishes fourth at NCAA Regional
by
Rose-Hulman Sports Information
TERRE HAUTE,
IND. -- Otterbein College rallied from a
3-2 ninth-inning deficit with one run in the ninth
and another in the 11th to capture a 4-3 victory over
Adrian College in the NCAA Division III Mideast Baseball
Regional at Rose-Hulman on Friday.
With Adrian leading
3-2 in the ninth inning, Pat Connor opened the frame
with a walk and advanced to second on a sacrifice
by Chris Martin.
Kyle Dyar then reached
first base on a throwing error by pitcher Jeff Nokovich,
advancing Connor to third. He later scored on a wild
pitch to tie the score.
In the 11th, Otterbein
scored once again to earn the victory. Bobby Wright
drew a leadoff walk and advanced to second on a throwing
error. Following a sacrifice bunt, he scored on a
single by Martin.
J.J. Mathews tossed
7 2/3 scoreless innings in relief to earn the win
for Otterbein. Mathews scattered four hits with no
walks and two strikeouts to move to 2-1.
Adam Stone threw 8
1/3 strong innings for Adrian to force the extra inning
contest. Stone received a no-decision after allowing
six hits and three walks with four strikeouts.
Offensively, Martin
had two hits and one RBI, while Jerry Tulga added
a single and one RBI.
The Adrian offense
was led by Bobby Rickstad with three hits and two
RBIs, including a double. Todd Meyers added a pair
of hits for the Bulldogs.
With the victory, Otterbein
advances to game 11 of the tournament and an elimination
contest against Manchester College at 6:45 p.m. The
Cardinals improved to 32-15 on the season, while Adrian
finished a 26-17 campaign.
05/19/06
- Baseball
BULLDOGS OUTPITCH BLUEJAYS, SAY ALIVE IN NCAA
Reynolds picks up complete-game win
by
Rose-Hulman Sports Information
TERRE
HAUTE, IND. -- Adrian College remained alive
in the NCAA Division III Mideast Baseball Regional
with a 3-2 victory over Elizabethtown College on Friday
morning at Rose-Hulman.
Craig
Reynolds scattered 11 hits over a complete game to
improve to 6-5 on the season and lead the Bulldogs
to their 26th win of the season. Reynolds also won
the first NCAA Playoff game in school history with
a victory over Millsaps in the 2005 Mideast Regional.
The
effort narrowly topped a complete game effort by Sam
Heaps of Elizabethtown, who allowed 13 hits in eight
innings with three strikeouts.
Offensively,
Isaiah Beckman led the Adrian offense with four singles
and two RBIs. Chad Baas provided an insurance run
with a solo home run in the eighth inning.
Ryan
White led Elizabethtown with three hits and one RBI,
while Jon Kalejta, Brandon Watson and Jose Medina
recorded two hits each.
Elizabethtown
opened the scoring with one run in the first inning.
With two outs, Kalejta doubled down the right field
line, then scored on an RBI single by Watson.
Adrian
answered with two runs in its half of the first inning.
Todd Meyers and Chris Pappas each singled and stole
bases, before Beckman singled through the left side
to plate both runs.
The
score remained the same until the eighth, when Baas
homered to give Adrian a 3-1 lead. Elizabethtown answered
with one run in the ninth on an RBI single by Ryan
White, but Reynolds struck out Kalejta with two outs
and a runner on first to secure the win.
Adrian
improved to 26-16 and returns to action against Otterbein
at 3 p.m. today. Elizabethtown finished the season
with a 26-16-1 record.
05/17/06
- Baseball
ADRIAN FALLS TO NATIONALLY RANKED MANCHESTER,
10-5
Manchester home runs lead Spartans to win over
AC
by
Rose-Hulman Sports Information
Manchester
College junior Zac Bireley blasted a pair of home
runs and scored four times to lead the Spartans to
a 10-5 victory over Adrian College in the NCAA Division
III Mideast Regional opener at Rose-Hulman Institute
of Technology on Wednesday.
Bireley finished 3-3
with four runs and two RBIs, while Ryan Seal slapped
a pair of hits to lead a 10-hit attack for Manchester.
On the mound, junior
Tyler Wolfe tossed a complete game seven-hitter to
improve to 6-4 on the season. Wolfe allowed five runs
in the first four innings, then shutout the Bulldogs
offense for the final five frames.
Isaiah Beckman led
the Adrian offense with three doubles, while Chris
Pappas scored twice and the duo of Todd Myers and
Bobby Rickstad drove home two runs each.
Adrian jumped out to
a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning, courtesy
of a walk to Ryan Sulek, a single by Chris Pappas
and a sacrifice fly by Bobby Rickstad.
Manchester scored five
times in the second to earn a 5-1 advantage. George
Mallett opened the frame with a hit by pitch, then
Bireley drew a walk. Following a walk to Danner Partridge,
catcher Michael Shearer walked to tie the score at
1-1.
Seal continued the
frame by reaching on a fielder's choice, due to a
throwing error by Beckman. Matt Talarico slapped a
two-run single to make the score 4-1, then a passed
ball capped the rally.
Adrian closed within
6-5 with a three-run fourth-inning rally. Beckman
opened with a double to right center and scored on
a ground out by Chad Baas. Luke Kettinger walked and
Sulek slapped a single to keep the rally alive, then
Todd Meyers crushed a two-run double to left center
to cap the frame.
Manchester added one
run in the fifth, two in the seventh and one in the
eighth to improve to 34-9 on the season. The Spartans
square off with No. 1 seed Wooster at 8 p.m., while
Adrian (25-16) returns to action at 8 p.m. on Thursday
against the loser of the Marietta/Elizabethtown game.
05/15/06
- Baseball
ADRIAN TO BATTLE MANCHESTER AT ROSE-HULMAN
REGIONAL
#5 Adrian to battle #4 Manchester in tournament
opener
For the second consecutive
year, Adrian College is headed to Terre Haute, Indiana
for the Mideast NCAA Regional. This year's first round
opponent will be #4 seed Manchester College, who finished
the year ranked #12 in the country.
Adrian, champions of
the MIAA, finished the year 25-15 overall, while the
Spartans bring a 33-9 overall record to the contest
and won the regular season championship in the Heartland
Conference. Manchester gained a pool-C berth (at-large)
after losing their conference tournament this past
weekend.
Last year, Manchester
eliminated Adrian from the Mideast Regional at Terre
Haute. The Spartans outlasted AC 4-3 in 10 innings
in 2005.
Adrian and Manchester
will start the tournament off at 9:30 a.m. on May
17th.
05/09/06
- Baseball
VENNEKOTTER, NOKOVICH GRAB MIAA MVP AWARDS
Vennekotter named co-top position player, Nokovich
tabbed best pitcher in MIAA
The Adrian College
Baseball Team was crowned MIAA Champs and punched
a ticket to the NCAA Regional during the past week.
Now the individual
players that made that feat happen are being honored
by the league’s coaches on the All-MIAA teams.
Senior shortstop Tony
Vennekotter (Adrian/Adrian HS) was named
the co-player of the year, while senior pitcher Jeff
Nokovich (Flint/Burton Bendle HS) was tabbed
the most valuable pitcher on Tuesday afternoon by
the league coaches’.
Vennekotter and Nokovich
are also placed on the First Team All-MIAA team and
are joined by teammate’s junior outfielder Ryan
Sulek (Roseville/St. Clement HS), senior
first baseman David Markey (Troy/Athens
HS) and utility player sophomore Bobby Rickstad
(Kalamazoo/Comstock HS).
Freshman second baseman
Todd Meyers (Adrian/Adrian HS) was
a Second Team pick, while senior pitcher Craig
Reynolds (Pinckney/Pinckney HS), senior third
baseman Isaiah Beckman (Niles/Niles
HS), sophomore catcher Alexander Younce
(Livonia/Churchill HS), senior outfielder Lance
Kettinger (Erie/Mason HS), freshman pitcher
Adam Stone (Ann Arbor/Huron) and
senior utility player Chris Pappas
(Dearborn/Dearborn HS) were all named coaches’
honorable mention.
Vennekotter,
a three time All-MIAA selection, finished league play
hitting .375 (7th) and knocked out 30 hits. The slick
fielding shortstop drove in 15 runs, while leading
the league in free passes with 17. Vennekotter is
one of the finer defensive players in the Mideast
Region.
Nokovich led
the MIAA in wins (6), ERA (1.38), innings pitched
(52.1), fewest hits allowed (25) and strikeouts (69).
He was named the MIAA player of the week three times
in 2006 and is the all-time leader in “K’s”
in MIAA history.
Sulek,
a first year starter for AC in centerfield, finished
third in the MIAA in batting average (.402), fourth
in hits (37), and first in stolen bases (12) and runs
scored (32). He did not commit an error in 28 league
games.
Rickstad
is being honored for the second time in his young
career on the First Team. Last year he was named the
First Team third baseman, while this year he is tabbed
as the utility man on the squad. Batting third for
Adrian all year, Rickstad hit .345 and drove in 19
runs, while stealing seven bases and making the defensive
switch to the outfield. When not roving the outfield,
Rickstad was dealing on the mound. He finished the
year on the hill 5-1 overall and his ERA of 2.89 was
the sixth best in the MIAA.
Markey,
a repeat selection at first base, hit .300 and drove
in 21 runs for AC. AC’s five hitter cracked
out 24 hits and only struck out once in 80 league
plate appearances.
Meyers
entered the line-up three games into the
season and enjoyed a fine rookie campaign. He finished
eighth in the MIAA in hitting (.374) and fourth in
runs scored with 25. He knocked in 21 runs, while
stealing five bases.
Adrian finished
21-7 overall in MIAA play and led the league in hitting
(.339), ERA (2.53) and fielding percentage (.960).
05/09/06
- Baseball
NOKOVICH NAMED MIAA PLAYER OF THE WEEK AGAIN
Left-hander repeats as top pitcher in the MIAA
The MIAA office announced
Tuesday afternoon that Adrian senior Jeff Nokovich
has been tabbed for the second consecutive week and
third time this year as the MIAA pitcher of the week.
Nokovich, who hails
from Flint (Burton-Bendle HS), pitched a three-hit
shutout over 12 innings as the Bulldogs edged Albion
1-0 to clinch a share of the conference championship.
This season in conference
play he struck out 69 batters over 52 innings to become
the MIAA's career strikeout leader with 216 over 188
innings.
The back-to-back MIAA
Champs will await Sunday evening when they found out
who and what NCAA Regional they will play in.
05/07/06
- Baseball
ORDER YOUR MIAA CHAMPIONSHIP T-SHIRT TODAY
Represent your 2006 MIAA Champs with the official
shirt
The Adrian College
Baseball team has done it, winning back-to-back MIAA
Championships. The Bulldogs will be headed for the
NCAA Regional on May 17th.
Whether your going
to the games or not, you'll still need to rock the
official Championship t-shirt.
Order your back-to-back
MIAA Baseball Champion T-shirt today! Shirts are available
in black only. Sizes S - XXL $10.95 plus tax and shipping.
Please allow one week for delivery.
Click
here for ordering information.
