Baseball: WVU Hosts Duquesne, Ohio
March 30, 2009 05:24 PM | General
By Steve Stone for MSNsportsNET.com
March 30, 2009
GAME NOTES
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - The West Virginia University baseball team faces Duquesne for the second time this season on Tuesday, March 31, at 4 p.m. at Hawley Field. WVU follows with another home contest on Wednesday against Ohio at 5 p.m.
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| Vince Belnome leads a hot West Virginia squad that sits at first place in the BIG EAST.
WVU Photography/Brian Persinger photo |
“These two games against Duquesne and Ohio are very important games,” Coach Van Zant said. “We only have eight nonconference games left on the schedule and we need to win as many of them as we can because they all add up at the end of the season.”
The Mountaineers (18-6, 5-1) are in sole possession of first place in the BIG EAST after taking two of three games from Villanova last weekend. WVU won by scores of 12-8 and 7-4 on Saturday and Sunday, respectively, and also defeated Southeastern Conference opponent Kentucky last Tuesday, 10-7.
WVU defeated the Dukes (4-20, 0-5), 8-5, on March 11 at Hawley Field. With the game tied at 5-5 entering the bottom of the fifth inning, Joe Agreste hit the game-winning RBI single to put the Mountaineers ahead, and Grant Buckner followed with a run-scoring single through the left side to help give WVU the nonconference victory.
The Mountaineers are 10-2 since defeating Duquesne. Through its first 24 games, WVU continues to lead the conference in an array of offensive categories, including batting average (.372), slugging percentage (.562), runs scored (240) and hits (315).
Sophomore Dan DiBartolomeo carries a 22-game hitting streak heading into Tuesday's game. The converted third baseman from Margate, N.J., also sits atop the conference with a .482 batting average, including a 5-for-8 showing with one home run, two doubles and three walks against Villanova last weekend.
Vince Belnome and Tobias Streich sit at 1-2 in the conference with 42 and 36 RBIs, respectively. Belnome is hitting .430 with three home runs and 15 doubles, while Streich is batting .341 with four home runs and eight doubles.
Standout reliever Chris Enourato, who holds the school’s career saves mark at 15, has gone four straight appearances without giving up an earned run. The Bridgeport, W.Va., native leads the BIG EAST in wins (5) and ERA (1.44).
Senior utility player Anthony Manley leads the Dukes with a .369 average, while junior infielder Mark Tracy shows a team-best four home runs. Tracy led Duquesne by going 1-for-4 with two RBIs against WVU earlier this season.
Both teams finish up their scattered three-game series when WVU travels to Pittsburgh, Pa., to face the Dukes on April 14 at 4 p.m.
Coming to Morgantown on Wednesday are the Bobcats (11-10, 5-1) of the Mid-American Conference, who have won eight of their last nine games. Ohio last played WVU on April 9, 2008, in which the Mountaineers won in a 13-12 comeback victory in 10 innings.
Marc Krauss, a junior outfielder, is one of the MAC’s best players. Krauss is batting .430 with eight home runs and 26 RBIs, and has drawn 15 walks while slugging at a .779 clip
Sophomore Gauntlett Eldemire is another strong performer for the Bobcats. Eldemire shows a .394 mark with seven home runs, 21 RBIs and 21 runs scored.
WVU’s contests against Duquesne and Ohio open a nine-game home stretch at Hawley Field. The Mountaineers battle Georgetown in a three-game series this weekend, and host St. John’s and Maryland Eastern Shore next week.
