Baseball: WVU Set for Towson
May 17, 2010 01:00 PM | General
By Steve Stone for MSNsportsNET.com
May 17, 2010
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| Jedd Gyorko |
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University baseball team finishes its non-conference portion of the regular-season schedule with a matchup at Towson on Tuesday, May 18, at 3 p.m. at John B. Schuerholz Park.
The Mountaineers (24-27, 8-16) kept their postseason chances alive by taking two of three over Georgetown last weekend. A win over the Tigers (17-34) would give WVU a chance to finish over .500 for the fifth consecutive season if it can sweep Villanova later this week.
Coming into the season as a relatively inexperienced group, WVU showed its maturity last week by winning the close games. It defeated Bethune-Cookman on May 12, 6-5, and defeated Georgetown on Saturday and Sunday by scores of 4-3 and 6-5, respectively. The Mountaineers also fell to the Hoyas, 7-5, in 11 innings last Friday.
WVU and Towson already met this season, as the Mountaineers fell by a 10-4 margin at Hawley Field on May 18. In that game, redshirt junior Colin Durborow led WVU by going 2-for-4 with one home run, two RBIs and one run scored. Chris Rasky also garnered two base hits, including a double.
The Mountaineers hold a .307 batting average entering the final week of the regular season. Since their loss to Towson, WVU has hit .336 in 23 games with 35 home runs while averaging almost 13 hits per game.
Junior Jedd Gyorko has enjoyed another standout year for WVU, hitting .380 with a career-high 16 home runs, 52 RBIs, 24 doubles and 81 hits. The Morgantown native continues to have a solid plate approach, walking 38 times compared to just 18 strikeouts. He has elevated his power numbers despite batting in the leadoff spot for 49 of the team’s 51 games.
Redshirt junior Grant Buckner now holds an 18-game hitting streak, tying the mark that he set last season. After earning several national awards for his performance against Notre Dame on May 8-9, he continued his success at the plate by batting .353 (6-for-17) with two doubles and four runs scored in four games last week.
Junior reliever Andy Altemus made three appearances last week, finishing 1-0 with a 2.25 ERA in eight innings pitched. His 26 appearances this season are tied with Seton Hall’s Matt Singer for the most in the BIG EAST.
WVU has saved its best baseball for the latter part of the season, winning six of its last seven games. In that stretch, WVU’s team ERA is 4.02, with Altemus and junior right-hander Andy Berry each showing two wins apiece.
Towson will play its first game in seven days, as it defeated George Washington, 17-9, in its last contest on May 12. Prior to that victory, the Tigers carried a six-game losing streak against North Carolina State, Maryland and Hofstra.
Junior Chris Wychock currently holds the Triple Crown for Towson, leading the team in batting average (.342), home runs (11) and RBIs (46). He has a .633 slugging percentage and a team-leading 20 doubles.
Senior Steve Yarsinsky is hitting .341 with 10 home runs and 40 RBIs. Leadoff batter Ben Winter is Towson’s top run-scorer with 48, and holds a .332 mark and a team-high five triples.
Towson has an 8.11 team ERA. Reliever Drew Permison leads the Tigers with a 3.50 ERA in 24 appearances. He has 47 strikeouts and 31 walks in 43.2 innings pitched.
