On a day when it moved up to No. 20 in Division II, Ashland University's baseball team gave itself some good news on the field, as well.
Wednesday (April 15) at Donges Field, the Eagles took two games from Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference South Division rival Lake Erie, 10-6 and 3-2. AU, leading the South at 10-0, also has the league's best overall (25-9) and conference (14-4) marks.
The Storm is 12-14/9-9/4-6.
Wednesday's opener saw Ashland put up a nine-spot in the bottom of the first inning and never look back. Senior second baseman Stephen James, junior third baseman Blake Bellman and sophomore designated hitter Steve Mowry each had two of AU's 10 hits, and James, junior first baseman Mackenzie Hampshire and senior left fielder Kyle Brooks each drove in two runs.
Freshman pitcher Luke Smith improved to 3-0 after going the first six innings, and fellow rookie Derek Baker got the final out for his first collegiate save.
In Game 2, the Eagles rallied from a 2-0 deficit after 4½ innings by scoring three times in the bottom of the fifth. The winning run came via a Mowry RBI single.
Sophomore pitcher Cory Teachout allowed two runs (none earned), four hits and three walks while striking out five in seven innings to move to 2-2. Junior Alex Smith earned his sixth save with two scoreless frames.
Ashland continues its six-game home swing on Saturday (April 18) with a doubleheader against Walsh at 1 p.m. During the day, both head coach John Schaly, who earned his 1,000th career win earlier this season, and the 1995 AU College World Series team will be recognized.
|
RANK |
School [1st place] |
Record |
Pts. |
Pvs. |
|
1. |
Colorado Mesa [11] |
33-5 |
415 |
1 |
|
2. |
St. Cloud State (Minn.) [3] |
30-3 |
398 |
2 |
|
3. |
Franklin Pierce (N.H.) [2] |
30-2 |
389 |
4 |
|
4. |
Nova Southeastern (Fla.) |
32-7 |
378 |
5 |
|
5. |
Catawba (N.C.) -1- |
33-9 |
359 |
3 |
|
6. |
Mercyhurst (Pa.) |
28-2 |
334 |
10 |
|
7. |
Alabama-Huntsville |
32-6-1 |
306 |
12 |
|
8. |
Minnesota State |
23-4 |
278 |
16 |
|
9. |
Seton Hill (Pa.) |
30-6 |
266 |
6 |
|
10. |
Cal. Poly-Pomona |
27-11 |
256 |
15 |
|
11. |
Florida Tech |
32-7 |
250 |
7 |
|
12. |
Mount Olive (N.C.) |
32-10 |
246 |
13 |
|
13. |
St. Mary's (Texas) |
28-8 |
237 |
20 |
|
14. |
Colorado St.-Pueblo |
28-8 |
164 |
8 |
|
15. |
Dixie State (Utah) |
25-11 |
160 |
9 |
|
16. |
Grand Valley State (Mich.) |
19-12 |
159 |
17 |
|
17. |
Missouri Southern State |
28-9 |
147 |
11 |
|
18. |
UNC Pembroke |
29-10 |
145 |
- |
|
19. |
West Alabama |
29-8 |
139 |
24 |
|
20. |
ASHLAND |
23-9 |
84 |
21 |
|
21. |
Millersville (Pa.) |
28-8 |
76 |
22 |
|
22. |
Lynn (Fla.) |
28-10 |
73 |
18 |
|
23. |
St. Edward's (Texas) |
28-10 |
62 |
14 |
|
24. |
Southern New Hampshire |
16-7 |
61 |
- |
|
25. |
Point Loma Nazarene (Calif.) |
30-7 |
47 |
- |
AU
BB/DS