‘Yote Notes – Apr. 24,
2006
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Mike Safford Jr. – Sports
Info. Director
msafford@collegeofidaho.edu
BASEBALL (25-16): ‘Yotes close out home schedule Tuesday vs. Eastern,
begin 9-game road trip at Corban Friday
LAST WEEK: vs. No. 1 Lewis-Clark State (L
11-8, L 11-2), at No. 1 Lewis-Clark State (L 3-1, L 8-7)
COMING UP: vs. Eastern Oregon (DH), Tuesday,
Noon; at Corban (DH), Friday, Noon (PDT); at Corban, Saturday, Noon.
COYOTES
DROP OUT OF POLL: After back-to-back weeks in
the NAIA Top-20, the Albertson College baseball team have now spent two weeks
outside the NAIA national poll. The
Coyotes fell to the No. 31 slot (20 voting points, sixth highest among of teams
in the “others receiving votes” category) – which is the sixth-straight poll
they have earned votes. ACI had climbed to No. 19 in the NAIA after a stretch
of 13 wins in 14 games. Two other NAIA
Region I teams were in the poll – No. 1 ranked Lewis-Clark State and No. 5
ranked British Columbia. The next
national poll will be released on Wednesday.
TALE OF TWO
STREAKS: The ups and downs of a long season
are evident for the ‘Yotes, as the squad has seen both ends of streaks in the
past 2 months. Albertson came into
April with a 12-game win streak, extending it to 13 games with a win over
Northwest Nazarene on April 1. However,
the Coyotes dropped the nightcap against the Crusaders, starting a streak of
ten losses in 12 games, including five-in-a-row.
TUESDAY IS
SENIOR DAY: On Tuesday afternoon, eleven
Coyote players will make their final regular-season appearance at Simplot
Stadium in an ACI uniform. Of the
group, five of the seniors (Greg
Stalling, Jake McGrady, Nate Freese, Lars Alsager, Dominic
De La Paz) have been with the club for four years, three players have been
with the ‘Yotes for three seasons (Josh
Przybos, Robert Hamilton, James Porter), while
three have been with the team for two seasons (Nic Florence, Charlie Strandlund, Paul Erickson).
SNOW BOWL
REVISITED: Prior to the regularly scheduled
doubleheader with Eastern, the two teams will complete a suspended game from
March 14 – the “Snow Bowl” in La Grande.
The suspended game is currently scoreless in the top of the fifth inning
– when the two teams were forced to stop play do to hail and snow that covered
the grounds.
MORE ON
EASTERN OREGON: The Mountaineers (11-20,
7-11 Region I) are in a strange position as a lame-duck baseball program, as
Eastern announced two weeks ago that this would be the final season that they
would sponsor an intercollegiate hardball program. The news comes right as EOU is in the midst of a run at the NAIA
Region I playoffs, battling with Concordia for the final spot in the four-team
tournament. Led by slick senior
outfielder Todd Schafer (.354 1 HR 17 RBI) and left-handed pitcher Brandon
Ferguson (3-1 5.65 ERA), the Mountaineers have posted a 7-9 record at home this
season (and will be the home team in the suspended game in Caldwell). Including the ‘Yotes 7-3 win from earlier
this season, ACI holds a 141-41-1 all-time series edge on the Mountaineers.
RECORD BOOK INFO: Four Coyotes have rewritten the
pages of the ACI career record book during the 2006 season. Greg Stalling leads the way, already the
career leader in walks (138), stolen bases (89), and runs scored (208). He currently is second in games started
(201), is third in hits (254 – 16 from the record), at bats (727), hit by
pitches (38), and games played (205), is fifth in doubles (43), and 12th in RBI
(125). Jake McGrady ranks third
all-time in stolen bases (69), is fourth in games played (196), at bats (664), and
games started (179), is fifth in sacrifice bunts (17), is sixth in hits (213)
and, and is eigth in runs scored (144).
Nate Freese sits in third-place in all-time saves (9) and in
doubles (47), is fifth in all-time in hit-by-pitches (33), is sixth in games
started (167), seventh in at bats (609), eighth in games played (180) and RBI
(128), and is tenth in hits (177) and triples (5). Rounding out the group is Lars
Alsager, who ranks third all-time in appearances by a pitcher (74).
TOUGH SERIES VS. LEWIS-CLARK STATE: Despite playing
well in three of the four games, ACI was swept by No. 1 ranked Lewis-Clark
State in the annual home-and-home series with the Warriors. The ‘Yotes had an 8-7 lead in the eighth
inning of the opener, and a 5-4 lead in the seventh inning of the finale, but
could not hang on. Brian Champ
had a solid series against L-C, hitting 4-for-10, while Jake McGrady went
5-for-15 and Charlie Strandlund went 4-for-12, including a pair of
doubles. Also showing promise was
junior pitcher, Pat Lyon, who tossed a pair of scoreless innings against
the Warriors, fanning four batters.
ROAD TRIP STARTS AT CORBAN: Albertson
begins a regular-season closing nine-game road trip this weekend, playing a
three-game set at Corban College in Salem.
The Warriors (8-25, 3-18) sit in the cellar of the regional standings –
but have played a lot of close games this season (lost ten decisions by two
runs or less). The Corban attack is led
by Brian Nelson (.364 5 HR 26 RBI) and Jeremy Frantz (.333 5 HR 26 RBI), while
the pitching staff is paced by Jordan Emery (4-4 3.86 ERA). ACI swept the three-game series from the
Warriors in March and holds a 60-8 edge in the series, dating back to 1990.
MORE INFORMATION ON THE COYOTES: For game
stories, statistics, and information regarding the Albertson baseball program,
head to the official site Coyote baseball: www.collegeofidaho.edu/athlete/baseball.htm. Up to date regional scores and standings can
also be found online at www.collegeofidaho.edu/athlete/baseball/stats/standings.htm.
SOFTBALL (13-20): Lady ‘Yotes swept in Oregon, finish regular-season
with eight-game homestand
LAST WEEK: at Southern Oregon (L 9-6, L 8-0);
at No. 23 Oregon Tech (L 9-1, L 9-1)
COMING UP: vs. No. 4 Simon Fraser (DH),
Monday, 2 p.m.; vs. Northwest Nazarene (DH), Wednesday, 4 p.m.; vs. Corban
(DH), Friday, 2 p.m.; vs. Concordia (DH), Saturday, 11 a.m.
REGIONALLY RANKED?: Last week the Albertson College
softball team mysteriously dropped out of the NAIA Region I Top-5 poll –
because the poll only included the Top-4 teams. Simon Fraser, Oregon Tech, Southern Oregon, and Concordia were
listed, however, the Lady ‘Yotes, who had held the No. 5 spot each of the last
three weeks, nor any other team, occupied that spot. Expect either Albertson or Eastern Oregon to claim that spot when
the rankings are released on Tuesday.
APRIL SWOON PLAGUES ‘YOTES AGAIN: For some reason,
April has been a struggle for the ACI softball team nearly every season the
‘Yotes have fielded a softball team. In
2002, the Coyotes went 3-16; in 2004, they went 6-14; and last season, ACI
limped to a 3-19 mark. This year has
been no different, as the Lady ‘Yotes have lost seven of their last eight games
and have a 4-10 mark in the month. Only
the 2003 squad (the only club to post a .500 or better record) had a decent
April, recording a 9-11 mark.
MORE ON THE APRIL SHOWERS: As a team,
the ‘Yotes statistical numbers have taken a hit during April. As a team, ACI is hitting just .263 during
the month, 22-points lower than the first two months of the season – while
averaging nearly a run less per game.
The staff ERA has struggled as well, allowing nearly a run and a half
more per game in April (3.43 prior to the month), with the defensive numbers
also struggling (a .950 fielding percentage in April).
EXTRA-BASE PARADE: On thing can be said about the
2006 Coyote softball club is the fact that they have hit the ball hard all
season. The Lady ‘Yotes have already
clubbed more doubles as a team (46) than any other ACI team, while their 66
extra-base hits are 15-more than any other previous squad. The 19 home runs hit by the Coyotes are
six-times more than a previous team had hit – and have nearly doubled the 11
home runs ACI hit in the first four years of the program.
TOUGH ROAD TRIP: Albertson College dropped all four contests on their
softball road trip to Oregon this weekend, losing doubleheaders at Southern
Oregon and Oregon Tech. On Friday afternoon, the Lady ‘Yotes
were victimized by Tanisha Burch of Southern, who clobbered two home runs in
the Raiders 9-6 and 8-0 victory over ACI.
Albertson got a
3-for-3 game from Anna Schroeder, a pair of Nicole Illias, doubles,
and a two-run Katie Zillner, home run in the opener, but the Raiders
built a 6-2 lead and hung on for the win. Game 2 saw the ‘Yotes shutout
for the first time this season, as Alicia Caudill tossed a two-hitter. Saturday, Oregon Tech hammered the Coyotes – Game 1 by a 9-1
margin in five innings, and Game 2 by the same score in six frames. Amanda Doherty hit her league-leading 11th and 12th
home runs in the wins for the No. 23 ranked Owls. Lisa Stout, and Zillner each had RBI singles to plate the
Coyotes runs.
SHUTOUT STREAK ENDED: Through the first 30 games this
season, the ACI softball team hae scored at least one run in every contest,
prior to their 8-0 loss to Southern Oregon on Friday. Dating back to last season, the Lady ‘Yotes consecutive game
streak without being shutout finished at 34 – more than double the previous
mark of 15, set in 2004.
HIT STREAK ENDS AT 12 FOR ZILLNER: The
school-record hit streak for sophomore Katie Zillner ended at 12 games on
Friday, as she went 0-for-1 with a walk in the 8-0 loss to Southern
Oregon. Zillner has put up monster
numbers in Cascade Conference play – hitting .420 with nine doubles, two home
runs, and nine RBI.
CANADIAN NATIONAL TEAM PARADES TO VALLEY: One of the
premier NAIA softball programs makes their annual trip to Caldwell on Monday
afternoon, as No. 4 ranked Simon Fraser meets the ‘Yotes. The Clan (21-1) have won 17-consecutive games
and are gunning for their fourth NAIA title in the last eight years (SFU has
finished no worst than third at the Women’s World Series since 1998). Mike Renney’s squad is led by a pair of
Canadian National Team members – third-baseman Erin McLean (.475 6 HR 31 RBI)
and outfielder Melanie Matthews (.493 2 HR 22 RBI), while pitchers Melissa
Oddie (11-1 1.39 ERA) and Jennifer Schreyer (10-0 1.64 ERA) have been a
formidable one-two punch. The two teams
met back in early March, with SFU notching 2-1 and 10-3 wins over the ‘Yotes –
extending their all-time record to 16-0 against ACI.
BATTLE OF CANYON COUNTY: Wednesday sees the Coyotes
end their non-conference schedule against their Canyon County rival, Northwest
Nazarene. The two teams have not
met since mid-February, when ACI took 4-3 and 7-3 decisions (games scheduled
for March 29 were postponed due to rain).
The Crusaders (17-21) are having their best softball season in program
history and sit in the middle of the pack in the Great Northwest Athletic
Conference. NNU is led by Adrian Herman
(.437 4 HR 25 RBI; 9-9 3.41 ERA) – the GNAC’s leading hitter, along with Tricia
DeSimone (.377 22 RBI; 7-9 5.65 ERA) and Natalie Newgent (.314 3 HR 16 RBI),
part of a team batting average of .278.
The Coyotes have won the first four season series from the Crusaders and
hold a 20-6 all-time series edge.
ROUNDING OUT THE LEAGUE SLATE: This
weekend, the Lady ‘Yotes close out the regular season with home contests
against Corban and Concordia.
ACI swept the Warriors (5-25, 3-13 CCC) three weeks ago in Salem and
look for their first series win against the squad who used to be known as
Western Baptist. Rachel Hiatt (.395 1
HR 13 RBI; 4-11 6.56 ERA) has been the top hitter and pitcher all season for
the Warriors, while Lindsey Batey (.329 14 RBI) and Laura Santie (301 2 HR 19
RBI) provide offensive punch. Despite
ACI taking 7-4 and 3-0 decisions from the Warriors earlier this month, Corban
holds a 7-5 all-time series edge.
Saturday’s meetings with the Cavaliers (20-18, 8-5) should be good ones
– as Concordia topped the ‘Yotes in a pair of one-run games in Portland. Led by the bats of Kristin Donohue (.395 3
HR 25 RBI) and Brynn Ludwig (.393 3 HR 17 RBI), the Cavs are on the verge of a
second-place finish in the league and a berth in the NAIA Region I
tournament. Concordia also has one of
the top hurlers in the loop in righty Annele Huckins (13-8 2.02 ERA, 157 K). Despite the earlier losses, ACI holds an
11-10 all-time edge over the Cavaliers.
ABOUT THE CASCADE CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT: Unlike the
past four seasons, the Lady ‘Yotes are guaranteed a spot in the playoffs for
the first time in school history. The six
Cascade Conference softball coaches voted last year to allow each team to
participate in the CCC postseason tournament – with the tournament a true
double-elimination affair. The top-two
teams in the regular-season standings will receive a bye in the first-round of
the tournament (along with earning an automatic berth to the NAIA Region I
tournament). The highest finisher in
the tournament, not among the regular-season top-two, will earn the final berth
to regionals.
MORE
INFORMATION: Updated
information and statistics on the 2006 softball team can be found on Albertson
softball official website at www.collegeofidaho.edu/athlete/fastpitch.htm. Up-to-date NAIA Region I standings can be
found online at www.collegeofidaho.edu/athlete/softball/stats/standings.htm.
TRACK: Edwards qualifies for nationals in 5,000, ‘Yotes to
run at Boise State
COMING
UP: at Outback
Invitational (Bronco Stadium, Boise), Saturday, 10 a.m.
EDWARDS QUALIFIES FOR SECOND EVENT: Shannon
Edwards qualified for the NAIA outdoor track national championships with a
school-record setting performance in the 5,000 meters, as part of the Albertson
College contingent at the University of Oregon Invitational at Hayward Field
last weekend. Edwards, who had
previously recorded an NAIA “A” qualifying time in the 10,000-meters, ran her
race in a time of 17:46.88 – 19 seconds faster than the automatic qualifying
time for the NAIA and was the tenth-fastest time in the NAIA this spring.
She currently holds the Cascade Conference’s top times in the 1,500-meters,
5,000-meters, and the 10,000-meters.
HOPPER NOW 4-FOR-4: Also running well in Eugene was Caldwell native, Tyler
Hopper, who won his fourth consecutive 800-meter race. Running in the
second-to-last flight, the sophomore outdistanced 14 runners in a personal-best
time of 1:54.54 – just 22-hundredths of a second of the NAIA provisional
qualifying time. He has won races at
the Eastern Oregon Open, the Western Oregon Open, and the Northwest Nazarene
Open. He holds the third-fastest
800-meter time in the CCC this season.
ROUNDING
OUT AT U OF O: Other
Coyotes competing in the Willamette Valley were David Fluckiger, who
shaved two seconds off his NAIA qualifying time in the 1,500-meters (3:52.60), Jacob
Haas, who missed an NAIA provisional time in the 5,000 (15:14.91) by two
seconds, and Katie Ball, who ran the second-fastest 1,500-meter time
(4:57.04) in the Cascade Conference this season.
COMPETING
IN TOWN FOR THE FINAL TIME: The ‘Yotes do not have to go on the road this weekend, as
they will compete in the Outback Invitational, hosted by Boise State. A total of 11 women and 12 men will compete
in shorter distance events – with the primary focus to keep ACI sharp for next
week’s Cascade Conference Championships.
MORE INFORMATION: Updated information and statistics on the 2006 track team
can be found on Albertson track official website at www.collegeofidaho.edu/athlete/track.htm.
GOLF & TENNIS: Off to NAIA Regionals
GOLF TO
CANADA: The Coyote
men’s and women’s golf team participated Monday and Tuesday at the NAIA Region
I championships at Christina Lake Golf Club in British Columbia. Complete results from the tournament will be
in next week’s ‘Yote Notes.
TENNIS
TO CLARKSTON: The
Coyote women’s tennis team will compete Saturday and Sunday at the NAIA Region
I championships in Clarkston, Wash. – hosted by Lewis-Clark State. ACI will meet the host Warriors and Southern
Oregon in opening day play, then round out the round-robin team format with a
match against the University of Alberta.
- ALBERTSON
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