Baseball Welcomes Missouri State With MVC Regular Season Crown in Reach
5/18/2011 4:38:00 PM | Baseball
Creighton (36-13, 12-6)
vs. Missouri State (31-18, 11-6 MVC)
May 19 @ 12:00 pm • May 20 @ 7:00 pm • May 21 @ 1:00 pm
TD Ameritrade Park Omaha
MVC Regular Season Finale - Battle for First Place
vs. Missouri State (31-18, 11-6 MVC)
May 19 @ 12:00 pm • May 20 @ 7:00 pm • May 21 @ 1:00 pm
TD Ameritrade Park Omaha
MVC Regular Season Finale - Battle for First Place
This Weekend's Opponent
Missouri State Bears
www.missouristatebears.com
Record: 31-18, 11-6 • Location: Springfield, Mo. • Enrollment: 1,905
Head Coach: Keith Guttin • Alma Mater: Missouri-St. Louis (1978)
Career Record: 990-625 • School Record: 990-625
2010 Record: 21-34 • Letterwinners returning/lost: 13/11
www.missouristatebears.com
Record: 31-18, 11-6 • Location: Springfield, Mo. • Enrollment: 1,905
Head Coach: Keith Guttin • Alma Mater: Missouri-St. Louis (1978)
Career Record: 990-625 • School Record: 990-625
2010 Record: 21-34 • Letterwinners returning/lost: 13/11
Probable Pitching Starters
ERA W-L App GS CG IP H R ER BB SO
Creighton
Thur. - Jonas Dufek, RHP 2.38 8-1 14 12 1 85.1 59 24 22 22 99
Fri. - Ty Blach, LHP 2.53 9-1 15 15 0 81.2 76 24 23 24 76
Sat. - TBA
Evansville
Thur. - Nick Petree, RHP 2.89 8-1 14 9 1 81.0 70 30 26 25 74
Fri. - Blake Barber, RHP 3.04 7-3 14 13 0 80.0 87 33 27 15 56
Sat. - TBA
Creighton
Thur. - Jonas Dufek, RHP 2.38 8-1 14 12 1 85.1 59 24 22 22 99
Fri. - Ty Blach, LHP 2.53 9-1 15 15 0 81.2 76 24 23 24 76
Sat. - TBA
Evansville
Thur. - Nick Petree, RHP 2.89 8-1 14 9 1 81.0 70 30 26 25 74
Fri. - Blake Barber, RHP 3.04 7-3 14 13 0 80.0 87 33 27 15 56
Sat. - TBA
Battle For a Conference Title
The Creighton Bluejays come into the weekend with a 1/2 game lead over the Missouri Valley Conference and are aiming for the first MVC regular season crown since 2005, what would be just the second in school history. A sweep this weekend would give the Jays first place, while taking two-of-three from the Bears (who sit in second) would give the Jays at least a share of the title. MSU is aiming for its fourth regular season crown, as they won it in 2001, 2003 and 2009. The Bears have also won the tournament twice, while the Bluejays will be playing for their second MVC Tournament title, first since 2007, and automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
The Series
Creighton and Missouri State have met up 72 times on the baseball field since the first meeting in 1991, a 7-1 Bluejay victory. The Bears, howeve, hold the nod in the overall sereis, leading 37 games to 35 games. The Bears are on a two game win streak, taking both games on Sunday last season. Overall, Creighton holds a 17-14 edge when playing in Omaha, while the Bears hold an 18-15 lead when playing in Springfield and a 5-3 lead when playing at a neutral site.
Meet the Coaches
Ed Servais (Creighton) - Ed Servais is in his eighth season leading the Creighton baseball program in 2011. The Wisconsin-La Crosse native currently holds a .642 winning percentage (290-162) while at the helm of the Jays, which puts him atop all Bluejay baseball coaches in school history. Servais moved into first in Creighton history in wins by a head coach with his win on Tuesday, May 17 over Iowa, coached by third winningest coach Jack Dahm. The 5-3 win moved Servais over current Cubs GM Jim Hendry, who left Creighton with a career 289 wins. Servais has taken the Jays to two NCAA Tournaments and has won the MVC Coach of the Year award three times in his seven seasons.
Servais' teams pride themselves on defense, as they again ranked among the top teams in the Nation in defensive fielding percentage last season, boasting a .980 percentage as a team, good for second in the nation. Servais has coached three Gold Gloves in his time at Creighton.
Servais started his coaching career as an assistant at St. Mary's and then was the first head coach at Viterbo, starting up the program and leading them to a 23-6 record in the first year. He then moved back to St. Mary's as the head coach, went to Iowa State as an assistant and landed at Creighton as an assistant from 1998-2003 before being named head coach in 2004. Servais is assisted by Rob Smith, Craig Moore and Brandon Tormoehlen.
Keith Guttin (Missouri State) - In his 29th season as the leader of the MSU Bears baseball program, Guttin holds a 990-625 overall record in his career. The veteran MSU coach has won 61 percent of his games as a head coach and has led the Bears to eight 40-win seasons. Guttin has been named the MVC Coach of the Year 10 times, including in 2008 when the Bears went 40-17. Guttin was also named the ABCA Midwest Region Coach of the Year award in 2003, following the Bears trip to the school's first ever College World Series appearance. Guttin has been a part of the MSU baseball program as a player, assistant coach and head coach for 32 of the program's 46 years, taking over the helm in 1983 when MSU moved to Division I. As a player, Guttin earned MIAA all-conference honorable mention in 1977, when the then Division II Bears made their first NCAA Division II tournament appearance in seven seasons. He is assisted by Paul Evans, Brent Thomas, Brant Combs, Christian Overstreet and Jon Ubbenga.
Collecting Dust
This weekend marks the third straight Missouri State trip to Omaha with a Valley regular-season title in balance for Creighton. In 2007, Creighton entered the final day of the regular-season tied for first place with Wichita State, only to lose when MSU's Tim Clubb threw 7.2 innings of one-run relief in a 4-3 MSU win. In 2009, Creighton was atop the MVC with a 14-3 mark heading into its final homestand against Missouri State. The Bears swept the Jays, and Creighton would also be swept the following weekend at Wichita State to end the regular-season. That Bluejay team would recover to eliminate Missouri State from the Valley Tournament, only to lost to host Wichita State in the championship game.
Looking Back
The Bears took two-of-three from Creighton last season in Springfield, winning the final two games by one run a piece. In the Sunday double header, the Bears won the opening game 5-4 before Christian Overstreet delivered a walk-off home run to lead off the bottom of the ninth, giving MSU a 6-5 win at Hammons Field in Springfield.
Giving Up the Long Ball
No current Bluejay has hit a homerun off the MSU pitching staff, with Trever Adams being the only current starter with an extra basehit (a double last season). The Bears have hit 13 home runs off the Creighton pitching staff in the last three seasons, hitting eight off current Bluejay roster pitchers. The Bears hit six total last season (two off both Ty Blach and Brandon Koenigstein and one off Jonas Dufek), five in 2009 (one off Dufek, Jack VanLeur and Greg Hellhake) and two off non-roster pitchers in 2008.
Cutting it Close
Creighton and Missouri State played two, one-run games last season, with the Bears winning both, 5-4 and 6-5. In the history of the two teams meetings, Creighton leads the 21, one-run games with one game, 11-10 advantage.
Creighton and Missouri State have met up 72 times on the baseball field since the first meeting in 1991, a 7-1 Bluejay victory. The Bears, howeve, hold the nod in the overall sereis, leading 37 games to 35 games. The Bears are on a two game win streak, taking both games on Sunday last season. Overall, Creighton holds a 17-14 edge when playing in Omaha, while the Bears hold an 18-15 lead when playing in Springfield and a 5-3 lead when playing at a neutral site.
Meet the Coaches
Ed Servais (Creighton) - Ed Servais is in his eighth season leading the Creighton baseball program in 2011. The Wisconsin-La Crosse native currently holds a .642 winning percentage (290-162) while at the helm of the Jays, which puts him atop all Bluejay baseball coaches in school history. Servais moved into first in Creighton history in wins by a head coach with his win on Tuesday, May 17 over Iowa, coached by third winningest coach Jack Dahm. The 5-3 win moved Servais over current Cubs GM Jim Hendry, who left Creighton with a career 289 wins. Servais has taken the Jays to two NCAA Tournaments and has won the MVC Coach of the Year award three times in his seven seasons.
Servais' teams pride themselves on defense, as they again ranked among the top teams in the Nation in defensive fielding percentage last season, boasting a .980 percentage as a team, good for second in the nation. Servais has coached three Gold Gloves in his time at Creighton.
Servais started his coaching career as an assistant at St. Mary's and then was the first head coach at Viterbo, starting up the program and leading them to a 23-6 record in the first year. He then moved back to St. Mary's as the head coach, went to Iowa State as an assistant and landed at Creighton as an assistant from 1998-2003 before being named head coach in 2004. Servais is assisted by Rob Smith, Craig Moore and Brandon Tormoehlen.
Keith Guttin (Missouri State) - In his 29th season as the leader of the MSU Bears baseball program, Guttin holds a 990-625 overall record in his career. The veteran MSU coach has won 61 percent of his games as a head coach and has led the Bears to eight 40-win seasons. Guttin has been named the MVC Coach of the Year 10 times, including in 2008 when the Bears went 40-17. Guttin was also named the ABCA Midwest Region Coach of the Year award in 2003, following the Bears trip to the school's first ever College World Series appearance. Guttin has been a part of the MSU baseball program as a player, assistant coach and head coach for 32 of the program's 46 years, taking over the helm in 1983 when MSU moved to Division I. As a player, Guttin earned MIAA all-conference honorable mention in 1977, when the then Division II Bears made their first NCAA Division II tournament appearance in seven seasons. He is assisted by Paul Evans, Brent Thomas, Brant Combs, Christian Overstreet and Jon Ubbenga.
Collecting Dust
This weekend marks the third straight Missouri State trip to Omaha with a Valley regular-season title in balance for Creighton. In 2007, Creighton entered the final day of the regular-season tied for first place with Wichita State, only to lose when MSU's Tim Clubb threw 7.2 innings of one-run relief in a 4-3 MSU win. In 2009, Creighton was atop the MVC with a 14-3 mark heading into its final homestand against Missouri State. The Bears swept the Jays, and Creighton would also be swept the following weekend at Wichita State to end the regular-season. That Bluejay team would recover to eliminate Missouri State from the Valley Tournament, only to lost to host Wichita State in the championship game.
Looking Back
The Bears took two-of-three from Creighton last season in Springfield, winning the final two games by one run a piece. In the Sunday double header, the Bears won the opening game 5-4 before Christian Overstreet delivered a walk-off home run to lead off the bottom of the ninth, giving MSU a 6-5 win at Hammons Field in Springfield.
Giving Up the Long Ball
No current Bluejay has hit a homerun off the MSU pitching staff, with Trever Adams being the only current starter with an extra basehit (a double last season). The Bears have hit 13 home runs off the Creighton pitching staff in the last three seasons, hitting eight off current Bluejay roster pitchers. The Bears hit six total last season (two off both Ty Blach and Brandon Koenigstein and one off Jonas Dufek), five in 2009 (one off Dufek, Jack VanLeur and Greg Hellhake) and two off non-roster pitchers in 2008.
Cutting it Close
Creighton and Missouri State played two, one-run games last season, with the Bears winning both, 5-4 and 6-5. In the history of the two teams meetings, Creighton leads the 21, one-run games with one game, 11-10 advantage.
Follow the Jays
Follow the Jays all season through live stats at www.gocreighton.com. Click on the link on the right side of the front page to follow all the action of Creighton baseball in the three game series against Missouri State. The games will also be broadcast on 1180 KOIL on Thursday and KOZN 1620 AM on Friday and Saturday, with John Bishop and David Gustafson calling the games. A link for that is on the baseball schedule page on www.gocreighton.com also. Make sure to check in after the game for statistics on your favorite Jays. You can also follow the Jays via Twitter at gocreighton or on Facebook at Official Creighton Athletics Page.
Last Time Out
Creighton took two-of-three from Evansville last weekend in the final road series of the 2011 season for the Bluejays. Creighton won game one, a Friday/Saturday suspended game due to weather, 2-1 in 12 innings and then won game two on Saturday 4-0. The Purple Aces did everything right on Senior Day Sunday, preventing the sweep with a 10-1 win.
Creighton 2, Evansville 1 (12 innings) – The Bluejays and Purple Aces were locked in a pitcher's duel on Friday, with Jonas Dufek striking out seven in his first 5.0 innings of work and allowing just three hits and Kyle Lloyd of Evansville allowing just three Bluejay hits in five frames with five strike outs. Unfortunately, neither pitcher had the opportunity to finish, as lightning was spotted in the area forcing the teams to suspend the game until Saturday. The Bluejays struck first on Saturday, plating a run in the top of the seventh. Scott Thornburg led off the inning with a single through the left side, advanced to third on a single by Mike Gerber through the right side and scored thanks to a Chance Ross single over the short stop's head. The Jays would get caught up in two fielders choices before a pop out ended the inning. Evansville tied up the game in the bottom of the eighth thanks to back-to-back two-out doubles by the top of the order. The two teams played scoreless baseball until the top of the 12th when Alex Staehely squeezed in Jimmy Swift who led off the rally with a one out single. Chase Webb earned his third win while Jack VanLeur picked up his second save of the season.
Creighton 4, Evansville 0 – Bluejay starter Ty Blach threw 7.0 innings of solid work on the mound, allowing just three hits and striking out eight in his shutout performance. The south paw allowed just three walks on the day, allowing just one baserunner past second base on the day. The Jays provided run support in both the third and fourth innings. Chance Ross led off the third with a single to left field and then stole second. A double to the right field fence by Nick Judkins drove in Ross for the first run of the game. Just two batters later, Jimmy Swift singled through the left side to score Judkins and put the Jays up 2-0 after three. A solo homerun by Mike Gerber plated Creighton's third run in the fourth inning. A single tally in the eighth put Creighton up 4-0, when Alex Staehely scored on a Gerber single. Relief work by Mark Winkelman and Jack VanLeur closed out the win for the Jays.
Evansville 10, Creighton 1 – Senior Day in Evansville belonged all to the Purple Aces, as senior Cody Fick threw a complete game and limited the Jays to just five hits and one run on the day. The Jays scored their only run in the top of the second, plating the first run of the day. A one out walk to Anthony Bemboom proved costly for the Aces, as he was driven in on a Scott Thornburg double a batter later. The Purple Aces took over from there, scoring two in the third, five in the fourth, one in the fifth and two in the eighth. Creighton used four pitchers on the day, allowing 12 hits as a staff and walking five Aces.
Creighton 5, Iowa 3 – Ed Servais became Creighton's winningest coach at the home of former Bluejay head coach Jack Dahm, picking up the come-from-behind 5-3 win. The Jays trailed Iowa 3-2 going into the seventh, after the Jays committed an uncharacteristic three errors in the ballgame, leading to two unearned runs. In the seventh, the Jays plated the tying run when Scott Thornburg led off the inning with his second hit-by-pitch of the night. Joey Bowens came in to pinch run for the catcher, advancing to second on a Mike Gerber walk. The pair advanced a base each on a Chance Ross sacrifice bunt and scored when Michael Mutcheson drove in a run with a ground ball to second. The Jays won the game in the ninth, scoring two runs on two outs. With two away, Ross blooped a single that scooted to the right of McQuillan. Mutcheson then singled to center, advancing Ross to third. With two strikes, Nick Judkins droped in an RBI single just out of the reach of the second baseman and shortstop, plating Ross. Jimmy Swift gave the Jays insurance with a single to center field that plated Mutcheson. Jack VanLeur improved to a perfect 4-0 on the season, while Kurt Spomer earned his eighth save of the season.
Scouting Creighton
Creighton was picked to finish fifth in the MVC this season, returning 20 players and just four starters from the team that went 27-25 last season. So far in the 2011 season, the Bluejays sit atop the MVC, with a 36-13 overall record and 12-6 mark in the MVC.
Creighton is being led offensively this season by Trever Adams and Alex Staehely. Adams leads the team in batting average (.399), home runs (13), RBI (52) and triples (4). Adams has six game winning RBI this season, including blasting a two run home run against North Dakota State and a walk-off single up the middle in the 4-3 win over Portland. He also picked up the first Bluejay hit and scored the first run in TD Ameritrade Park Omaha history. He currently has a 14-game hitting streak, the third time this season he has put together a streak of 10+, and has reached base safely 33-times. Staehely continues to swing a hot bat, second on the team with a .315 batting average and a team and Valley leading 19 doubles. Michael Mutcheson and Jimmy Swift lead the team in hit by pitch with 10 on the season. Overall, the team is hitting .276 with 275 runs on 445 hits and 94 doubles.
The Jays have also had solid pitching performances on the mound this season. Jonas Dufek and Greg Hellhake have already set career strikeout records, with 13 and six, respectively while Ty Blach fanned a career high of nine against MVC foe Southern Illinois (4/22/11). Kurt Spomer has been the top pitcher lately, picking up the closer position and holding a 2.25 ERA and eight saves. The pitching staff has a combined 3.55 ERA and is holding opponents to a .245 batting average against.
As any team under Ed Servais can attest - the Jays are still among the nation's best in defense, as they hold a .978 fielding percentage on the season. Creighton committed just one error all last weekend at Evansville and has committed 42 in the 49 games this season.
Follow the Jays all season through live stats at www.gocreighton.com. Click on the link on the right side of the front page to follow all the action of Creighton baseball in the three game series against Missouri State. The games will also be broadcast on 1180 KOIL on Thursday and KOZN 1620 AM on Friday and Saturday, with John Bishop and David Gustafson calling the games. A link for that is on the baseball schedule page on www.gocreighton.com also. Make sure to check in after the game for statistics on your favorite Jays. You can also follow the Jays via Twitter at gocreighton or on Facebook at Official Creighton Athletics Page.
Last Time Out
Creighton took two-of-three from Evansville last weekend in the final road series of the 2011 season for the Bluejays. Creighton won game one, a Friday/Saturday suspended game due to weather, 2-1 in 12 innings and then won game two on Saturday 4-0. The Purple Aces did everything right on Senior Day Sunday, preventing the sweep with a 10-1 win.
Creighton 2, Evansville 1 (12 innings) – The Bluejays and Purple Aces were locked in a pitcher's duel on Friday, with Jonas Dufek striking out seven in his first 5.0 innings of work and allowing just three hits and Kyle Lloyd of Evansville allowing just three Bluejay hits in five frames with five strike outs. Unfortunately, neither pitcher had the opportunity to finish, as lightning was spotted in the area forcing the teams to suspend the game until Saturday. The Bluejays struck first on Saturday, plating a run in the top of the seventh. Scott Thornburg led off the inning with a single through the left side, advanced to third on a single by Mike Gerber through the right side and scored thanks to a Chance Ross single over the short stop's head. The Jays would get caught up in two fielders choices before a pop out ended the inning. Evansville tied up the game in the bottom of the eighth thanks to back-to-back two-out doubles by the top of the order. The two teams played scoreless baseball until the top of the 12th when Alex Staehely squeezed in Jimmy Swift who led off the rally with a one out single. Chase Webb earned his third win while Jack VanLeur picked up his second save of the season.
Creighton 4, Evansville 0 – Bluejay starter Ty Blach threw 7.0 innings of solid work on the mound, allowing just three hits and striking out eight in his shutout performance. The south paw allowed just three walks on the day, allowing just one baserunner past second base on the day. The Jays provided run support in both the third and fourth innings. Chance Ross led off the third with a single to left field and then stole second. A double to the right field fence by Nick Judkins drove in Ross for the first run of the game. Just two batters later, Jimmy Swift singled through the left side to score Judkins and put the Jays up 2-0 after three. A solo homerun by Mike Gerber plated Creighton's third run in the fourth inning. A single tally in the eighth put Creighton up 4-0, when Alex Staehely scored on a Gerber single. Relief work by Mark Winkelman and Jack VanLeur closed out the win for the Jays.
Evansville 10, Creighton 1 – Senior Day in Evansville belonged all to the Purple Aces, as senior Cody Fick threw a complete game and limited the Jays to just five hits and one run on the day. The Jays scored their only run in the top of the second, plating the first run of the day. A one out walk to Anthony Bemboom proved costly for the Aces, as he was driven in on a Scott Thornburg double a batter later. The Purple Aces took over from there, scoring two in the third, five in the fourth, one in the fifth and two in the eighth. Creighton used four pitchers on the day, allowing 12 hits as a staff and walking five Aces.
Creighton 5, Iowa 3 – Ed Servais became Creighton's winningest coach at the home of former Bluejay head coach Jack Dahm, picking up the come-from-behind 5-3 win. The Jays trailed Iowa 3-2 going into the seventh, after the Jays committed an uncharacteristic three errors in the ballgame, leading to two unearned runs. In the seventh, the Jays plated the tying run when Scott Thornburg led off the inning with his second hit-by-pitch of the night. Joey Bowens came in to pinch run for the catcher, advancing to second on a Mike Gerber walk. The pair advanced a base each on a Chance Ross sacrifice bunt and scored when Michael Mutcheson drove in a run with a ground ball to second. The Jays won the game in the ninth, scoring two runs on two outs. With two away, Ross blooped a single that scooted to the right of McQuillan. Mutcheson then singled to center, advancing Ross to third. With two strikes, Nick Judkins droped in an RBI single just out of the reach of the second baseman and shortstop, plating Ross. Jimmy Swift gave the Jays insurance with a single to center field that plated Mutcheson. Jack VanLeur improved to a perfect 4-0 on the season, while Kurt Spomer earned his eighth save of the season.
Scouting Creighton
Creighton was picked to finish fifth in the MVC this season, returning 20 players and just four starters from the team that went 27-25 last season. So far in the 2011 season, the Bluejays sit atop the MVC, with a 36-13 overall record and 12-6 mark in the MVC.
Creighton is being led offensively this season by Trever Adams and Alex Staehely. Adams leads the team in batting average (.399), home runs (13), RBI (52) and triples (4). Adams has six game winning RBI this season, including blasting a two run home run against North Dakota State and a walk-off single up the middle in the 4-3 win over Portland. He also picked up the first Bluejay hit and scored the first run in TD Ameritrade Park Omaha history. He currently has a 14-game hitting streak, the third time this season he has put together a streak of 10+, and has reached base safely 33-times. Staehely continues to swing a hot bat, second on the team with a .315 batting average and a team and Valley leading 19 doubles. Michael Mutcheson and Jimmy Swift lead the team in hit by pitch with 10 on the season. Overall, the team is hitting .276 with 275 runs on 445 hits and 94 doubles.
The Jays have also had solid pitching performances on the mound this season. Jonas Dufek and Greg Hellhake have already set career strikeout records, with 13 and six, respectively while Ty Blach fanned a career high of nine against MVC foe Southern Illinois (4/22/11). Kurt Spomer has been the top pitcher lately, picking up the closer position and holding a 2.25 ERA and eight saves. The pitching staff has a combined 3.55 ERA and is holding opponents to a .245 batting average against.
As any team under Ed Servais can attest - the Jays are still among the nation's best in defense, as they hold a .978 fielding percentage on the season. Creighton committed just one error all last weekend at Evansville and has committed 42 in the 49 games this season.
Scouting the Bears
Missouri State comes into this weekend with a 31-18 record, winning the last four games straight and seven of their last eight. The Bears swept Bradley and took two-of-three at Illinois State the weekend before, as they sit at 11-6 in Valley play. The team is hitting .295 with a .403 slugging percentage, knocking out 27 homeruns as a team. MSU is led by Brock Chaffin and Aaron Conway, who are hitting .338 and .324, respectively. Conway has a team high 17 stolen bases, swiping all but five. Kevin Medrano is the only other Bear hitting over .300, holding a .322 average and starting all 43 games he has played in. Brent Seifert leads the team with nine homeruns while Spiker Helms has picked up a team high 36 walks. MSU has hit into 38 double plays on the season, turning one more on opponents (39 turned by the Bears).
Reigning MVC Pitcher of the Week Dan Kickham leads the bears with 13 saves this season, holding a 1.63 ERA in his 23 appearances. Blake Barber leads the team with 13 starts and a 3.04 ERA on the mound. Nick Petree has an 8-1 record, the best percentage of any MSU starter, recording a team high 74 strikeouts. The pitching staff is holding a 4.02 ERA on the season. They have given up 193 earned runs in 432 innings of work. The Bears have struck out 359 batters, walking just 172 for a 2:1 strikeout to walk ratio. MSU's pitching staff has picked off 10 baserunners this season, with Grant Gordon and Blake Barber with three each.
Defensively the Bears have committed 71 errors this season, holding a .962 fielding percentage. Three Bears have 10+ errors this season, with Travis McComack and Brent Seifert each with 13 and Kevin Medrano with 11.
Last Time Out
Clay Murphy pitched eight shutout innings for Missouri State Tuesday and Travis McComack hit the game-winning sacrifice fly after 22nd-ranked Oklahoma State tied the game in the ninth inning for a 4-3 MSU win over the Cowboys at Hammons Field.
Murphy was dominant against OSU yet again, allowing three hits in eight innings while striking out 10, but did not factor in the decision as the Cowboys scored three runs off closer Dan Kickham for a 3-3 tie in the ninth.
Murphy retired the first 11 batters he faced, took a no-hitter into the fifth, and has now allowed 10 hits and fanned 25 in 20 career innings against OSU.
Brent Seifert drew a one out walk in a 3-3 tie ballgame to lead off the ninth. He moved to third when Luke Voit singled up the middle on a hit-and-run, putting the runners on the corners. McComack hit a fly ball to center that plated Seifert for the MSU win.
Missouri State comes into this weekend with a 31-18 record, winning the last four games straight and seven of their last eight. The Bears swept Bradley and took two-of-three at Illinois State the weekend before, as they sit at 11-6 in Valley play. The team is hitting .295 with a .403 slugging percentage, knocking out 27 homeruns as a team. MSU is led by Brock Chaffin and Aaron Conway, who are hitting .338 and .324, respectively. Conway has a team high 17 stolen bases, swiping all but five. Kevin Medrano is the only other Bear hitting over .300, holding a .322 average and starting all 43 games he has played in. Brent Seifert leads the team with nine homeruns while Spiker Helms has picked up a team high 36 walks. MSU has hit into 38 double plays on the season, turning one more on opponents (39 turned by the Bears).
Reigning MVC Pitcher of the Week Dan Kickham leads the bears with 13 saves this season, holding a 1.63 ERA in his 23 appearances. Blake Barber leads the team with 13 starts and a 3.04 ERA on the mound. Nick Petree has an 8-1 record, the best percentage of any MSU starter, recording a team high 74 strikeouts. The pitching staff is holding a 4.02 ERA on the season. They have given up 193 earned runs in 432 innings of work. The Bears have struck out 359 batters, walking just 172 for a 2:1 strikeout to walk ratio. MSU's pitching staff has picked off 10 baserunners this season, with Grant Gordon and Blake Barber with three each.
Defensively the Bears have committed 71 errors this season, holding a .962 fielding percentage. Three Bears have 10+ errors this season, with Travis McComack and Brent Seifert each with 13 and Kevin Medrano with 11.
Last Time Out
Clay Murphy pitched eight shutout innings for Missouri State Tuesday and Travis McComack hit the game-winning sacrifice fly after 22nd-ranked Oklahoma State tied the game in the ninth inning for a 4-3 MSU win over the Cowboys at Hammons Field.
Murphy was dominant against OSU yet again, allowing three hits in eight innings while striking out 10, but did not factor in the decision as the Cowboys scored three runs off closer Dan Kickham for a 3-3 tie in the ninth.
Murphy retired the first 11 batters he faced, took a no-hitter into the fifth, and has now allowed 10 hits and fanned 25 in 20 career innings against OSU.
Brent Seifert drew a one out walk in a 3-3 tie ballgame to lead off the ninth. He moved to third when Luke Voit singled up the middle on a hit-and-run, putting the runners on the corners. McComack hit a fly ball to center that plated Seifert for the MSU win.
Bluejays at their Offensive Best
• Head coach Ed Servais became the winningest head coach in Bluejay baseball history with the 5-3 win over Iowa (coached by former Bluejay skipper Jack Dahm) on Tuesday. Servais now sits at 290-162 (.642 winning percentage).
• Trever Adams is hitting .418 (23-of-55) during his 14-game hitting streak. It marks the third time this season he has put together a streak of at least 10-games, with 18-games being his high. He has at least one hit in 32 of the last 33 games and is hitting .430 (55-for-128) in those contests with 10 home runs and 40 RBI. Adams also has a hit in 42 of the last 44 games, going 75-for-172 (.436) with 13 homers and 48 RBI in that time.
• Scott Thornburg picked up MVC Player of the Week Honors last week after going 7-for-15 from the plate (.467) in the four games. Three were behind the dish and one as the designated hitter. The junior from Lakewood, Colo., earned his first career honors, picking up multi-hit games in three of the four games.
• In Scott Thornburg's last 10 games, he is hitting .433 and has raised his batting average 60 points (to .295). Seven of his 13 hits in the last 10 games have been doubles and he has driven in seven RBI, scoring nine runs himself.
• Jimmy Swift hit his third home run of the season in the second inning against Nebraska, a two run shot over the left field fence. Swift has a hit in 11-of-the-last-14 games, holding a .335 average in that stretch. He has driven in 13 in that span, picking up four doubles. He was named MVC Player of the Week following the Bradley series when he went 7-for-13 with 10 RBI.
• Nick Judkins has been a vaccuum at first base this season. The junior has committed just two errors on the season (one at Illinois State on 4/9 and one against Nebraska on 5/10) in 482 chances, for a .996 fielding percentage.
• Chance Ross had an RBI double against Nebraska on Tuesday, an RBI at Evansville and an RBI in the 5-3 win at Iowa. The everyday third baseman is hitting .273 when playing at home with two doubles and 10 RBI.
• Jimmy Swift had a career high three doubles in the May 1 game against Bradley, including two in the same inning.
• Nick Judkins leads the MVC with 19 sacrifice bunts, tied for first nationally. No other Bluejay has more than 12. He broke into the top 10 on the Bluejay all-time charts, jumping all the way into 2nd for sacrifices in a season.
• Michael Mutcheson has been Creighton's top leadoff hitter this season. The Jays are 31-6 when Mutcheson bats leadoff, but 5-7 when all other players hit atop the order.
Meet the Jays Pitching Staff
• Jonas Dufek enters his start on Thursday with 99 strikeouts this season, and four or mour punchouts in all 12 starts this season. Since 1995, the only Creighton pitcher with 102 or more strikeouts was Peyton Lewis (with 114) in 1999.
• Ty Blach had another solid outing for the Jays against Evansville, pitching 7.0 innings of shutout baseball. The south paw allowed just three hits and three walks while striking out eight. Blach holds a 2.81 ERA in Valley play this season, holding a 4-1 record.
• Creighton's bullpen while at home has been lights out. Kurt Spomer holds a 2-0 record with three saves and a 0.54 ERA in 16.2 innings of work while at home this season and Reese McGraw is right behind him with a 3-0 record and 0.60 ERA in 15.0 innings. The two have combined for 28 strikeouts and just five walks.
• Ty Blach is a perfect 4-0 at home this season, making seven starts and throwing 31.1 innings. The south paw holds a 1.72 ERA in Omaha and has 39 strikeouts at home, which leads the staff while at home.
• Since beginning MVC play at Illinois State, Kurt Spomer holds a 1.46 ERA in 12.1 innings of work in the Valley. He has picked up four MVC saves and is 1-0 in the conference in that time frame, spanning seven appearances out of the bullpen.
• In Kurt Spomer's last 14 outings, he is 2-0 with a 1.00 ERA and seven saves. In Reese McGraw's past 13 appearances, he is 2-0 with a 0.98 ERA in 18.1 innings out of the bullpen.
• Mark Winkelman leads the pitching staff on the road with 16 appearances. He holds a 3.62 ERA with one save when Wink is on the mound.
• Jonas Dufek moved in the Creighton all-time charts last weekend, thanks to his 12 strikeouts against Wichita State. He now is T-7th in career wins (20), T-8th in strike outs in a season (99) and 10th in strike outs in a career (216).
• Chase Webb made his first start of the 2011 season against Iowa on Tuesday, May 17. In his 2.1 innings of work, Webb allowed four hits, three runs (one earned) and struck out one.
Get one for the Gipper... Or Skipper!
Head coach Ed Servais moved into first place on the All-Time list for wins as a Bluejay baseball head coach in the 5-3 win over Iowa on May 17, following moving into second with the 10-1 win over Bradley on Saturday, April 30. Servais holds a .642 winning percentage at the helm of the Jays, winning MVC Coach of the Year award three times in his first seven seasons. He has compiled a 290-162 record in his eighth season as Creighton's skipper. Below is a list of the top three in order:
Coach (Years) Record Win %
Ed Servais (2004-present) 290-162 .642
Jim Hendry (1984*-1991) 289-182-2 .613
Jack Dahm (1994-2003) 283-276-2 .506
* Hendry took over mid-way through the 1984 season.
FORE!
Creighton started 2-3 in their new ballpark, TD Ameritrade Park Omaha, but have improved to 6-3. And while the team was hopeful to have a better opening weekend against SIU, the Jays currently sit at 36-13, the second best start in program history. Only one other team has a better record after 49 games, the 2007 NCAA Regional Team. Below is how each of those teams, as well as the 1999 and 2000 NCAA Tournament teams fared in their next three games (the amount of regular season games the Jays have left).
Year Record After 49 Games Next 3
2007 37-12 3-0
2005 35-14 3-0
2000 34-15 1-2
1999 31-18 1-2
1991 34-15 0-3
Dry-Spell
Bluejay right fielder Trever Adams has a team leading 52 total RBI on the season. The senior has gone five games straight without knocking in a single RBI, the first time in his CU career he has gone that long without driving in a run. Earlier this season Adams drove in 18 RBI in five games, spanning from April 2-9.
The Fri-urday Starter
Jonas Dufek has moved from the Saturday starter into the Friday position, leading off the weekend for the Bluejays on the mound. The senior from Omaha holds a 2.21 ERA and is 8-1 when starting in 12 appearances. Ht is holding opponents to a .193 batting average against, striking out 98 when starting. His counterpart, Ty Blach has the next best ERA among starters, holding a 2.53 ERA and a 9-1 mark when starting this season. The two combined have the lowest combined ERA of any Creighton starters this season (2.37). The duo is 17-2 in 163.0 innings of work as starters this season.
Hooky Thursday
12pm baseball game…Thirsty Thursday…$4 ticket… All GREAT reasons to play hooky and get rowdy at the ballpark!! Just bring a note from your boss, co-worker or friend explaining why YOU deserve a day at the ballpark, away from the office. Present your note at the TD Ameritrade Ticket Office on game day and receive a $4 ticket. Creighton Athletics will select the best note/excuse and the winner will receive (2) Creighton Baseball season tickets for the 2012 season. Notes can be written on company letterhead, scratch paper, post-it, bar napkin, etc. and will be judged based on creativity and comicalness.
Every Rose has its Thorn
Scott Thornburg has earned his first MVC Player of the Week honors of his Bluejay career, as announced by the league offices on Monday. The junior catcher/designated hitter helped the Bluejays to a 9-8 win over Nebraska at home on Tuesday before taking two-of-three in Evansville over the weekend.
Thornburg was Creighton's hottest hitter during the last week, finishing 7-for-15 (.467) from the plate, starting three of four games behind the dish and the other as the designated hitter. Thornburg had multi-hit games in three of the four, including a two-double performance at Evansville on Sunday, May 15. The junior from Lakewood, Colo., drove in three RBI on the week and scored two runs.
Thornburg, who is currently on a career-high six game hitting streak, is hitting .448 in his last 9-games, picking up a hit in 13 of his 29 at bats over that stretch and raising his batting average 60 points. Seven of his 13 hits have been doubles. He has driven in seven RBI in the 9-game stretch, scoring nine runs himself, while playing perfectly behind the dish with no errors in 56 chances. He is hitting .298 on the season with a .426 slugging percentage in 94 at bats.
What a Relief!!!
One reason for Creighton's success in the last 10 games has been strong pitching by relievers Mark Winkelman (0.00 ERA in 7.2 IP), Reese McGraw (1-0, 1.50 ERA in 12.0 IP), and Kurt Spomer (0-0, 2 saves in 5.0 IP). The trio has struck out 25 and allowed just three earned runs over its past 24.2 innings of work, good for a 1.09 ERA.
Batting Around
Creighton batters 1-through-9 each picked up a hit in the game against Nebraska on Tuesday, May 10, marking the third time this season the Jays have accomplished the feat. They also did it in the 7-5 win at Wichita State on May 7 and at Air Force on March 16. Leading the Jays on Tuesday were Michael Mutcheson, Alex Staehely and Scott Thornburg with two hits a piece, while Trever Adams improved his hit streak to 10-games, and his reaching base safely streak to 29 games, which leads the Valley this season.
Starter's Success
Ty Blach made his team-high 15th start of the season Saturday, May 14, taking over the lead in the Valley this season. Creighton is 12-3 in Blach's first 15 starts this year and the Bluejays have won 15 of the past 18 games he's appeared in, dating to late last season. Blach has made 29 career appearances, including 26 starts. Only three times has the opposition scored four or more earned runs against him, and in 22 of those games Blach allowed two or fewer earned runs.
Blach's career ERA of 2.81 ranks second-best in the Ed Servais era among pitchers with 50 innings or more. Brandon Bird is first on that list at 2.60, while Pat Venditte is third on the same list at 2.86.
Horse Racing?
In addition to leading Creighton in its pursuit of a regular-season title, senior OF Trever Adams is also chasing an MVC Triple Crown. He ranks third in the MVC in batting average (.399), leads the league with 13 homers, and is third with 52 RBI. In league play, he's just as good, ranking third in batting average (.425), first in homers (6) and third in RBI (20). Since 1975, the only player to win the MVC Triple Crown was Missoui State outfielder Matt Cepicky (.414-30-100).
For the Team
Creighton excels when it comes to the little things, such as sacrifice bunts. The Jays are fourth nationally in sacrifice bunts since the start of the 2008 season, with 287 in that time. Leading the way this season has been junior first baseman Nick Judkins, who is tied for first nationally with 19 sacrifice bunts. Judkins has eight sacrifices in his last 14 games, and has seven more sac bunts than any other Valley player this spring. He now sits in 2nd place on the all-time Bluejay charts, just three behind the MVC Record set by Vince Pietro in 1999. The NCAA record in a single season is 34, set by Ben Orloff of UC Irvine in 2007.
One to Four
Bluejay right hander Jonas Dufek has turned into a strike out pitcher in his senior season on the mound, leading the Jays with 99 strike outs this season. In his career, Dufek has fanned 216 batters while walking just 59 total, including an impressive zero in his five innings of work at Evansville last weekend. He has cut his ERA from the past two seasons in half, holding just a 2.32 ERA this season against a 4.33 his sophomore season and 4.92 his junior year.
Keep Going and Going
Jimmy Swift leads the Creighton lineup with 159 consecutive starts in his career. The senior, who moved from the hot corner at third base to short stop this season, has played in and started every game since his sophomore season, holding a .295 lifetime batting average with 19 stolen bases. He is one of four Jays this season who has started every game for the club, joining Trever Adams, Alex Staehely and Chance Ross. Nick Judkins has started 48-of-49 games at first base this season.
We Came to Play
The Bluejays put up a four-spot to open the game on Tuesday, May 10 against Nebraska, the first time this season they have scored four in the opening frame and the highest first inning output since last season against Portland (5-0 after one).
Adapting
Creighton has played a majority of their games on the road this season, putting together the eighth best road record, as ranked by WarrenNolan.com. The Bluejays won nine of the last 12 on the road and are 18-8 in road games this season. The Jays also sit at #17 in the country in win percentage, winning 73.4% of their games this season
Moving On Up
The Tuesday night against Nebraska brought 17, 588 fans to TD Ameritrade Park Omaha, ranking third in attendances this season, behind the 22,197 from the first NU vs CU game at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha and the 18,156 who saw Georgia at Georgia Tech on April 26. Creighton now sits in 8th in the country in home attendance, averaging 4,546 in their 19 home games this season. While at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha, Creighton is averaging 9,127 fans.
The Park that Adams Built...
Creighton is 6-3 in its first nine games at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha, including a 5-1 mark in night games at the venue. Trever Adams leads all players with 16 hits and two homers, while Jimmy Swift tops everyone with four doubles and 12 RBI. On the mound, Reese McGraw and Ty Blach are each 2-0, making them the only two players with multiple victories on the TD Ameritrade Park Omaha mound.
• Creighton has won 31 straight home games when scoring eight or more runs, dating to a 12-0 loss on April 3, 2007.
• Creighton has won 46 straight home games when allowing 0 or 1 run, including a 43-0 mark under Ed Servais, since losing 1-0 to Wichita State on April 19, 2002.
• Head coach Ed Servais became the winningest head coach in Bluejay baseball history with the 5-3 win over Iowa (coached by former Bluejay skipper Jack Dahm) on Tuesday. Servais now sits at 290-162 (.642 winning percentage).
• Trever Adams is hitting .418 (23-of-55) during his 14-game hitting streak. It marks the third time this season he has put together a streak of at least 10-games, with 18-games being his high. He has at least one hit in 32 of the last 33 games and is hitting .430 (55-for-128) in those contests with 10 home runs and 40 RBI. Adams also has a hit in 42 of the last 44 games, going 75-for-172 (.436) with 13 homers and 48 RBI in that time.
• Scott Thornburg picked up MVC Player of the Week Honors last week after going 7-for-15 from the plate (.467) in the four games. Three were behind the dish and one as the designated hitter. The junior from Lakewood, Colo., earned his first career honors, picking up multi-hit games in three of the four games.
• In Scott Thornburg's last 10 games, he is hitting .433 and has raised his batting average 60 points (to .295). Seven of his 13 hits in the last 10 games have been doubles and he has driven in seven RBI, scoring nine runs himself.
• Jimmy Swift hit his third home run of the season in the second inning against Nebraska, a two run shot over the left field fence. Swift has a hit in 11-of-the-last-14 games, holding a .335 average in that stretch. He has driven in 13 in that span, picking up four doubles. He was named MVC Player of the Week following the Bradley series when he went 7-for-13 with 10 RBI.
• Nick Judkins has been a vaccuum at first base this season. The junior has committed just two errors on the season (one at Illinois State on 4/9 and one against Nebraska on 5/10) in 482 chances, for a .996 fielding percentage.
• Chance Ross had an RBI double against Nebraska on Tuesday, an RBI at Evansville and an RBI in the 5-3 win at Iowa. The everyday third baseman is hitting .273 when playing at home with two doubles and 10 RBI.
• Jimmy Swift had a career high three doubles in the May 1 game against Bradley, including two in the same inning.
• Nick Judkins leads the MVC with 19 sacrifice bunts, tied for first nationally. No other Bluejay has more than 12. He broke into the top 10 on the Bluejay all-time charts, jumping all the way into 2nd for sacrifices in a season.
• Michael Mutcheson has been Creighton's top leadoff hitter this season. The Jays are 31-6 when Mutcheson bats leadoff, but 5-7 when all other players hit atop the order.
Meet the Jays Pitching Staff
• Jonas Dufek enters his start on Thursday with 99 strikeouts this season, and four or mour punchouts in all 12 starts this season. Since 1995, the only Creighton pitcher with 102 or more strikeouts was Peyton Lewis (with 114) in 1999.
• Ty Blach had another solid outing for the Jays against Evansville, pitching 7.0 innings of shutout baseball. The south paw allowed just three hits and three walks while striking out eight. Blach holds a 2.81 ERA in Valley play this season, holding a 4-1 record.
• Creighton's bullpen while at home has been lights out. Kurt Spomer holds a 2-0 record with three saves and a 0.54 ERA in 16.2 innings of work while at home this season and Reese McGraw is right behind him with a 3-0 record and 0.60 ERA in 15.0 innings. The two have combined for 28 strikeouts and just five walks.
• Ty Blach is a perfect 4-0 at home this season, making seven starts and throwing 31.1 innings. The south paw holds a 1.72 ERA in Omaha and has 39 strikeouts at home, which leads the staff while at home.
• Since beginning MVC play at Illinois State, Kurt Spomer holds a 1.46 ERA in 12.1 innings of work in the Valley. He has picked up four MVC saves and is 1-0 in the conference in that time frame, spanning seven appearances out of the bullpen.
• In Kurt Spomer's last 14 outings, he is 2-0 with a 1.00 ERA and seven saves. In Reese McGraw's past 13 appearances, he is 2-0 with a 0.98 ERA in 18.1 innings out of the bullpen.
• Mark Winkelman leads the pitching staff on the road with 16 appearances. He holds a 3.62 ERA with one save when Wink is on the mound.
• Jonas Dufek moved in the Creighton all-time charts last weekend, thanks to his 12 strikeouts against Wichita State. He now is T-7th in career wins (20), T-8th in strike outs in a season (99) and 10th in strike outs in a career (216).
• Chase Webb made his first start of the 2011 season against Iowa on Tuesday, May 17. In his 2.1 innings of work, Webb allowed four hits, three runs (one earned) and struck out one.
Get one for the Gipper... Or Skipper!
Head coach Ed Servais moved into first place on the All-Time list for wins as a Bluejay baseball head coach in the 5-3 win over Iowa on May 17, following moving into second with the 10-1 win over Bradley on Saturday, April 30. Servais holds a .642 winning percentage at the helm of the Jays, winning MVC Coach of the Year award three times in his first seven seasons. He has compiled a 290-162 record in his eighth season as Creighton's skipper. Below is a list of the top three in order:
Coach (Years) Record Win %
Ed Servais (2004-present) 290-162 .642
Jim Hendry (1984*-1991) 289-182-2 .613
Jack Dahm (1994-2003) 283-276-2 .506
* Hendry took over mid-way through the 1984 season.
FORE!
Creighton started 2-3 in their new ballpark, TD Ameritrade Park Omaha, but have improved to 6-3. And while the team was hopeful to have a better opening weekend against SIU, the Jays currently sit at 36-13, the second best start in program history. Only one other team has a better record after 49 games, the 2007 NCAA Regional Team. Below is how each of those teams, as well as the 1999 and 2000 NCAA Tournament teams fared in their next three games (the amount of regular season games the Jays have left).
Year Record After 49 Games Next 3
2007 37-12 3-0
2005 35-14 3-0
2000 34-15 1-2
1999 31-18 1-2
1991 34-15 0-3
Dry-Spell
Bluejay right fielder Trever Adams has a team leading 52 total RBI on the season. The senior has gone five games straight without knocking in a single RBI, the first time in his CU career he has gone that long without driving in a run. Earlier this season Adams drove in 18 RBI in five games, spanning from April 2-9.
The Fri-urday Starter
Jonas Dufek has moved from the Saturday starter into the Friday position, leading off the weekend for the Bluejays on the mound. The senior from Omaha holds a 2.21 ERA and is 8-1 when starting in 12 appearances. Ht is holding opponents to a .193 batting average against, striking out 98 when starting. His counterpart, Ty Blach has the next best ERA among starters, holding a 2.53 ERA and a 9-1 mark when starting this season. The two combined have the lowest combined ERA of any Creighton starters this season (2.37). The duo is 17-2 in 163.0 innings of work as starters this season.
Hooky Thursday
12pm baseball game…Thirsty Thursday…$4 ticket… All GREAT reasons to play hooky and get rowdy at the ballpark!! Just bring a note from your boss, co-worker or friend explaining why YOU deserve a day at the ballpark, away from the office. Present your note at the TD Ameritrade Ticket Office on game day and receive a $4 ticket. Creighton Athletics will select the best note/excuse and the winner will receive (2) Creighton Baseball season tickets for the 2012 season. Notes can be written on company letterhead, scratch paper, post-it, bar napkin, etc. and will be judged based on creativity and comicalness.
Every Rose has its Thorn
Scott Thornburg has earned his first MVC Player of the Week honors of his Bluejay career, as announced by the league offices on Monday. The junior catcher/designated hitter helped the Bluejays to a 9-8 win over Nebraska at home on Tuesday before taking two-of-three in Evansville over the weekend.
Thornburg was Creighton's hottest hitter during the last week, finishing 7-for-15 (.467) from the plate, starting three of four games behind the dish and the other as the designated hitter. Thornburg had multi-hit games in three of the four, including a two-double performance at Evansville on Sunday, May 15. The junior from Lakewood, Colo., drove in three RBI on the week and scored two runs.
Thornburg, who is currently on a career-high six game hitting streak, is hitting .448 in his last 9-games, picking up a hit in 13 of his 29 at bats over that stretch and raising his batting average 60 points. Seven of his 13 hits have been doubles. He has driven in seven RBI in the 9-game stretch, scoring nine runs himself, while playing perfectly behind the dish with no errors in 56 chances. He is hitting .298 on the season with a .426 slugging percentage in 94 at bats.
What a Relief!!!
One reason for Creighton's success in the last 10 games has been strong pitching by relievers Mark Winkelman (0.00 ERA in 7.2 IP), Reese McGraw (1-0, 1.50 ERA in 12.0 IP), and Kurt Spomer (0-0, 2 saves in 5.0 IP). The trio has struck out 25 and allowed just three earned runs over its past 24.2 innings of work, good for a 1.09 ERA.
Batting Around
Creighton batters 1-through-9 each picked up a hit in the game against Nebraska on Tuesday, May 10, marking the third time this season the Jays have accomplished the feat. They also did it in the 7-5 win at Wichita State on May 7 and at Air Force on March 16. Leading the Jays on Tuesday were Michael Mutcheson, Alex Staehely and Scott Thornburg with two hits a piece, while Trever Adams improved his hit streak to 10-games, and his reaching base safely streak to 29 games, which leads the Valley this season.
Starter's Success
Ty Blach made his team-high 15th start of the season Saturday, May 14, taking over the lead in the Valley this season. Creighton is 12-3 in Blach's first 15 starts this year and the Bluejays have won 15 of the past 18 games he's appeared in, dating to late last season. Blach has made 29 career appearances, including 26 starts. Only three times has the opposition scored four or more earned runs against him, and in 22 of those games Blach allowed two or fewer earned runs.
Blach's career ERA of 2.81 ranks second-best in the Ed Servais era among pitchers with 50 innings or more. Brandon Bird is first on that list at 2.60, while Pat Venditte is third on the same list at 2.86.
Horse Racing?
In addition to leading Creighton in its pursuit of a regular-season title, senior OF Trever Adams is also chasing an MVC Triple Crown. He ranks third in the MVC in batting average (.399), leads the league with 13 homers, and is third with 52 RBI. In league play, he's just as good, ranking third in batting average (.425), first in homers (6) and third in RBI (20). Since 1975, the only player to win the MVC Triple Crown was Missoui State outfielder Matt Cepicky (.414-30-100).
For the Team
Creighton excels when it comes to the little things, such as sacrifice bunts. The Jays are fourth nationally in sacrifice bunts since the start of the 2008 season, with 287 in that time. Leading the way this season has been junior first baseman Nick Judkins, who is tied for first nationally with 19 sacrifice bunts. Judkins has eight sacrifices in his last 14 games, and has seven more sac bunts than any other Valley player this spring. He now sits in 2nd place on the all-time Bluejay charts, just three behind the MVC Record set by Vince Pietro in 1999. The NCAA record in a single season is 34, set by Ben Orloff of UC Irvine in 2007.
One to Four
Bluejay right hander Jonas Dufek has turned into a strike out pitcher in his senior season on the mound, leading the Jays with 99 strike outs this season. In his career, Dufek has fanned 216 batters while walking just 59 total, including an impressive zero in his five innings of work at Evansville last weekend. He has cut his ERA from the past two seasons in half, holding just a 2.32 ERA this season against a 4.33 his sophomore season and 4.92 his junior year.
Keep Going and Going
Jimmy Swift leads the Creighton lineup with 159 consecutive starts in his career. The senior, who moved from the hot corner at third base to short stop this season, has played in and started every game since his sophomore season, holding a .295 lifetime batting average with 19 stolen bases. He is one of four Jays this season who has started every game for the club, joining Trever Adams, Alex Staehely and Chance Ross. Nick Judkins has started 48-of-49 games at first base this season.
We Came to Play
The Bluejays put up a four-spot to open the game on Tuesday, May 10 against Nebraska, the first time this season they have scored four in the opening frame and the highest first inning output since last season against Portland (5-0 after one).
Adapting
Creighton has played a majority of their games on the road this season, putting together the eighth best road record, as ranked by WarrenNolan.com. The Bluejays won nine of the last 12 on the road and are 18-8 in road games this season. The Jays also sit at #17 in the country in win percentage, winning 73.4% of their games this season
Moving On Up
The Tuesday night against Nebraska brought 17, 588 fans to TD Ameritrade Park Omaha, ranking third in attendances this season, behind the 22,197 from the first NU vs CU game at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha and the 18,156 who saw Georgia at Georgia Tech on April 26. Creighton now sits in 8th in the country in home attendance, averaging 4,546 in their 19 home games this season. While at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha, Creighton is averaging 9,127 fans.
The Park that Adams Built...
Creighton is 6-3 in its first nine games at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha, including a 5-1 mark in night games at the venue. Trever Adams leads all players with 16 hits and two homers, while Jimmy Swift tops everyone with four doubles and 12 RBI. On the mound, Reese McGraw and Ty Blach are each 2-0, making them the only two players with multiple victories on the TD Ameritrade Park Omaha mound.
• Creighton has won 31 straight home games when scoring eight or more runs, dating to a 12-0 loss on April 3, 2007.
• Creighton has won 46 straight home games when allowing 0 or 1 run, including a 43-0 mark under Ed Servais, since losing 1-0 to Wichita State on April 19, 2002.
Pinching In
The Bluejays have utilized their bench a lot this season, with 13 different players getting called upon in a pinch hit situation. Leading the charge is Jordan Makovicka with six hits in 14 at bats, for a .429 average. Below is a look at the Bluejays off the bench with a countable average (five Jays, Erik Mattingly, Michael Blatchford, Michael Mutcheson, Vince Bellino and Nick Judkins are hitless in pinch hit situations).
Player Avg. AB R H
Jordan Makovicka .429 14 4 6
Mike Gerber .400 5 1 2
Anthony Bemboom .333 3 2 1
Scott Thornburg .300 10 1 3
Clay Cuno .286 7 1 2
Gabriel Thibodeaux .222 9 0 2
Brad McKewon .154 13 1 2
Joey Bowens .100 10 5 1
On the Loose
Creighton's third baseman Chance Ross was cut loose on the basepaths last weekend, stealing two bases on Friday and two more on Saturday. It marks the second time this season the junior has picked up two stolen bases in three games, stealing a pair against both North Dakota State and Portland. He has 11 stolen bases on the season, tied with Trever Adams for the most on the team.
Stranded
Before stringing together four consecutive two-out singles to score twice in the ninth inning of Tuesday's 4-2 win, Creighton had not scored in the ninth inning since April 23rd, a span of 13 games. By comparison, Creighton was 2-for-27 in two-out situations against Evansville last weekend.
Rough Outings
The Creighton baseball team has been pretty solid behind the arms of Friday and Saturday starters Ty Blach and Jonas Dufek. Sunday's have seen a handful of starters and even more of CU's bullpen staff. The Sunday numbers for opponents are considerably higher, but have spiked in the last three Sunday's. In all of the Sunday games this season, Creighton pitchers have given up 94 hits, 65 runs and allowed 40 free passes. In the last three Sunday's combined, the pitching staff has given up 33 hits, 28 runs and issued 15 free passes.
Walking Woes
The Creighton pitching staff walked a combined 10 batters on Sunday, May 8 at Wichita State and seven batters against Nebraska on Tuesday, May 10. Six of the 10 batter walked scored in the 12-3 Shocker win, while just 2-of-the-7 scored in the Husker game. 10-of-the-13 combined Bluejay pitchers used in the two games had at least one walk.
One of a Kind
Trever Adams is the only player with two seasons of 12 or more homers under Ed Servais. He's also the only player under Servais with multiple seasons of 74 or more hits, to hit over .350 in two different seasons and to own more than 120 total bases more than once. With one more RBI, he'll be the first player with two seasons of 53 or more RBI as well.
Our Own Rick Vaughn
Kurt Spomer owns a 2.25 ERA in 40 innings of work this season. He is currently the fourth reliever under Ed Seravis to own 40 or more innings and a ERA of 2.25 or better. Each of the other three times it has happened (Brandon Bird in 2005 and both Pat Venditte and Andy Masten in 2007), the Jays have reached the NCAA Tournament and won either the MVC regular-season or tournament title. Along those same lines, Spomer's eight saves are the most by a Bluejay since Masten had a school-record 16 saves in 2007. Bird added 11 saves in 2005.
D-D-D-DFENCE
There's an old adage that championships are won with pitching and defense, and those are two characteristics associated with Creighton baseball under Ed Servais. In the eight years under Servais, Creighton owns the nation's fewest errors with just 413 miscues, far ahead of second-place San Jose State's 456 errors in that same span.
Additionally, Creighton's .9765 fielding percentage under Servais also leads the nation, ahead of second-place South Carolina (.9748.)
Creighton also ranks 20th nationally with a 4.04 ERA in the eight years under Servais. Of the teams on that top-20 list, 19 of the 20 have advanced to the Super Regionals since 2004, and 13 of the 20 have advanced to the College World Series (garnering five titles) in those years.
No Picnic in the Park
The move into TD Ameritrade Park Omaha highlighted the longest home-stand of the season for the Jays, as they played eight straight at home, going 6-3. Creighton closes the MVC regular season at home against Missouri State, who is second in the Valley with an 11-6 MVC record, 31-18 overall.
They Needed One
Creighton put up 16 runs in the win over Bradley on May 1, scoring 11 of the 16 with two outs. The Jays stranded just three runners on base on the day, The 16 runs on 16 RBI both marked season high outputs for the team.
CPR
Creighton has found a closer in walk-on Kurt Spomer. The junior from Honey Creek, Iowa leads the team with seven saves this season, nearly perfect in 8-10 save opportunities. The right-hander holds a 1.89 ERA when coming out of the bullpen this season, working 38.0 innings in 26 appearances. 25 of the 26 appearances have been at least 1.0 innings of work.
The Valley's Best
Creighton owns a 1/2-game lead in the Missouri Valley Conference standings heading into the final weekend of Valley play, welcoming No. 2 Missouri State this weekend. The MVC is currently rated as the No. 9-rated conference by Warrennolan.com. In 2010, the regular-season champion from the No. 10-rated conference was eventual College World Series darling TCU.
Just Another Day's Work
Bluejay outfielder Trever Adams has now reached safely in 33 consecutive games, a streak that leads the MVC. He has also gotten a hit in 41 of his last 43 games, including 22 multi hit games in that stretch. He is hitting .426 with 13 home runs 48 RBI in the last 45 games. Below is a list of the longest consecutive games reached streaks by a Bluejay since 1999.
38 Vince Pietro - March 6 - April 26, 2000
(snapped by Illinois State)
38 Darin Ruf - Feb. 24 - May 4, 2007
(snapped by SIU)
33 Robbie Knight - March 11-May 3, 2009
(snapped by Missouri State)
33 Trever Adams - March 16, 2011 - Present
30 Tony Roth - April 23, 2004 - March 7, 2005
The Bluejays have utilized their bench a lot this season, with 13 different players getting called upon in a pinch hit situation. Leading the charge is Jordan Makovicka with six hits in 14 at bats, for a .429 average. Below is a look at the Bluejays off the bench with a countable average (five Jays, Erik Mattingly, Michael Blatchford, Michael Mutcheson, Vince Bellino and Nick Judkins are hitless in pinch hit situations).
Player Avg. AB R H
Jordan Makovicka .429 14 4 6
Mike Gerber .400 5 1 2
Anthony Bemboom .333 3 2 1
Scott Thornburg .300 10 1 3
Clay Cuno .286 7 1 2
Gabriel Thibodeaux .222 9 0 2
Brad McKewon .154 13 1 2
Joey Bowens .100 10 5 1
On the Loose
Creighton's third baseman Chance Ross was cut loose on the basepaths last weekend, stealing two bases on Friday and two more on Saturday. It marks the second time this season the junior has picked up two stolen bases in three games, stealing a pair against both North Dakota State and Portland. He has 11 stolen bases on the season, tied with Trever Adams for the most on the team.
Stranded
Before stringing together four consecutive two-out singles to score twice in the ninth inning of Tuesday's 4-2 win, Creighton had not scored in the ninth inning since April 23rd, a span of 13 games. By comparison, Creighton was 2-for-27 in two-out situations against Evansville last weekend.
Rough Outings
The Creighton baseball team has been pretty solid behind the arms of Friday and Saturday starters Ty Blach and Jonas Dufek. Sunday's have seen a handful of starters and even more of CU's bullpen staff. The Sunday numbers for opponents are considerably higher, but have spiked in the last three Sunday's. In all of the Sunday games this season, Creighton pitchers have given up 94 hits, 65 runs and allowed 40 free passes. In the last three Sunday's combined, the pitching staff has given up 33 hits, 28 runs and issued 15 free passes.
Walking Woes
The Creighton pitching staff walked a combined 10 batters on Sunday, May 8 at Wichita State and seven batters against Nebraska on Tuesday, May 10. Six of the 10 batter walked scored in the 12-3 Shocker win, while just 2-of-the-7 scored in the Husker game. 10-of-the-13 combined Bluejay pitchers used in the two games had at least one walk.
One of a Kind
Trever Adams is the only player with two seasons of 12 or more homers under Ed Servais. He's also the only player under Servais with multiple seasons of 74 or more hits, to hit over .350 in two different seasons and to own more than 120 total bases more than once. With one more RBI, he'll be the first player with two seasons of 53 or more RBI as well.
Our Own Rick Vaughn
Kurt Spomer owns a 2.25 ERA in 40 innings of work this season. He is currently the fourth reliever under Ed Seravis to own 40 or more innings and a ERA of 2.25 or better. Each of the other three times it has happened (Brandon Bird in 2005 and both Pat Venditte and Andy Masten in 2007), the Jays have reached the NCAA Tournament and won either the MVC regular-season or tournament title. Along those same lines, Spomer's eight saves are the most by a Bluejay since Masten had a school-record 16 saves in 2007. Bird added 11 saves in 2005.
D-D-D-DFENCE
There's an old adage that championships are won with pitching and defense, and those are two characteristics associated with Creighton baseball under Ed Servais. In the eight years under Servais, Creighton owns the nation's fewest errors with just 413 miscues, far ahead of second-place San Jose State's 456 errors in that same span.
Additionally, Creighton's .9765 fielding percentage under Servais also leads the nation, ahead of second-place South Carolina (.9748.)
Creighton also ranks 20th nationally with a 4.04 ERA in the eight years under Servais. Of the teams on that top-20 list, 19 of the 20 have advanced to the Super Regionals since 2004, and 13 of the 20 have advanced to the College World Series (garnering five titles) in those years.
No Picnic in the Park
The move into TD Ameritrade Park Omaha highlighted the longest home-stand of the season for the Jays, as they played eight straight at home, going 6-3. Creighton closes the MVC regular season at home against Missouri State, who is second in the Valley with an 11-6 MVC record, 31-18 overall.
They Needed One
Creighton put up 16 runs in the win over Bradley on May 1, scoring 11 of the 16 with two outs. The Jays stranded just three runners on base on the day, The 16 runs on 16 RBI both marked season high outputs for the team.
CPR
Creighton has found a closer in walk-on Kurt Spomer. The junior from Honey Creek, Iowa leads the team with seven saves this season, nearly perfect in 8-10 save opportunities. The right-hander holds a 1.89 ERA when coming out of the bullpen this season, working 38.0 innings in 26 appearances. 25 of the 26 appearances have been at least 1.0 innings of work.
The Valley's Best
Creighton owns a 1/2-game lead in the Missouri Valley Conference standings heading into the final weekend of Valley play, welcoming No. 2 Missouri State this weekend. The MVC is currently rated as the No. 9-rated conference by Warrennolan.com. In 2010, the regular-season champion from the No. 10-rated conference was eventual College World Series darling TCU.
Just Another Day's Work
Bluejay outfielder Trever Adams has now reached safely in 33 consecutive games, a streak that leads the MVC. He has also gotten a hit in 41 of his last 43 games, including 22 multi hit games in that stretch. He is hitting .426 with 13 home runs 48 RBI in the last 45 games. Below is a list of the longest consecutive games reached streaks by a Bluejay since 1999.
38 Vince Pietro - March 6 - April 26, 2000
(snapped by Illinois State)
38 Darin Ruf - Feb. 24 - May 4, 2007
(snapped by SIU)
33 Robbie Knight - March 11-May 3, 2009
(snapped by Missouri State)
33 Trever Adams - March 16, 2011 - Present
30 Tony Roth - April 23, 2004 - March 7, 2005
(snapped by Texas A&M-Corpus Christi)
TDAPO
Creighton has outscored the opposition 56-32 in nine games at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha. That includes a 7-0 margin in the first inning, and a 22-3 differential in the 7th through 9th innings. Creighton is 6-0 when scoring three or more runs at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha.
The Jays have attracted 82,950 fans in its first eight home dates at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha, an average of 9,216 fans per game. That figure would rank second-best nationally, trailing only LSU (10,550).
This year's College World Series will be played June 18-28/29 at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha. Creighton serves as the annual host of the College World Series.
Worth Noting
Creighton has put together an impressive 36-13 record this season, with four wins over New Mexico, two wins over Illinois State and a victory over Kansas State, all of which were NCAA Tournament teams following the 2010 season. Creighton also has a 12-6 record in Valley play this season, leading the chase going into the final weekend. The Jays had moved up in RPI to a season high 38 following the weekend sweep at Indina State. Creighton is still the highest in the Missouri Valley Conference. Below is where the MVC teams sit as of 5/18/11.
Creighton 53
Missouri State 67
Illinois State 75
Wichita State 92
Evansville 110
Indiana State 162
TDAPO
Creighton has outscored the opposition 56-32 in nine games at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha. That includes a 7-0 margin in the first inning, and a 22-3 differential in the 7th through 9th innings. Creighton is 6-0 when scoring three or more runs at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha.
The Jays have attracted 82,950 fans in its first eight home dates at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha, an average of 9,216 fans per game. That figure would rank second-best nationally, trailing only LSU (10,550).
This year's College World Series will be played June 18-28/29 at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha. Creighton serves as the annual host of the College World Series.
Worth Noting
Creighton has put together an impressive 36-13 record this season, with four wins over New Mexico, two wins over Illinois State and a victory over Kansas State, all of which were NCAA Tournament teams following the 2010 season. Creighton also has a 12-6 record in Valley play this season, leading the chase going into the final weekend. The Jays had moved up in RPI to a season high 38 following the weekend sweep at Indina State. Creighton is still the highest in the Missouri Valley Conference. Below is where the MVC teams sit as of 5/18/11.
Creighton 53
Missouri State 67
Illinois State 75
Wichita State 92
Evansville 110
Indiana State 162
Southern Illinois 171
Bradley 193
Through the Order
Creighton's eight and nine-hole hitters in the Saturday, April 30 game, Scott Thornburg and Joey Bowens, combined for five hits on the night, each scoring two runs and knocking in at least one RBI (Bowens with two). It marked the first time those two spots in the line-up have both had two hits since March 16, when they Jays played at Air Force.
Take 'em to the Casino
Bluejay pitchers Jonas Dufek and Ty Blach each picked up their seventh win of the season in the weekend sweep of Bradley. It marks the first time since 2008 that Creighton has had two pitchers aith 7+ wins in a season. Pat Venditte (9-3) and Jeremy Hauer (8-2) both did it that season. Dufek also won again at Wichita State on May 7, becoming the first Bluejay this season to reach eight wins. Blach picked up his eighth win in a pre-determined 2.0 innings on Tuesday, May 10 against Nebraska.
Doctor, Doctor
Creighton's future med-school student, Joey Bowens, went a perfect 3-for-3 in the 10-1 win over Bradley on April 30. The junior has played in 34 games, starting 18 in the outfield. Bowens has a career high of four hits in a single game (earlieer this season against SDSU), but this was the first time the Libertyville, Ill., native had exactly three on the night.
A Little Fun
The Bluejays had a little fun at the expense of sophomore Jordan Makovicka following the 5-3 win over Kansas on April 26. After Makovicka knocked a two-RBI single in the eighth to give the Jays the win, his Bluejay teammates gave him a shaving cream pie in the face while he was talking to reporters. The two RBI were just the second and third for Makovicka on the season, and the single came in his 16th at-bat of the year. Less than a week later, Makovicka returned the favor, pie-ing Joey Bowens after his 3-for-3 night at the plate and stellar defense in the 10-1 win over Bradley on April 30.
Anniversary
The 1991 season marks the 20-year anniversary of Creighton's 1991 College World Series team. The group was honored by Creighton April 22-24 and will be honored again in June during the 2011 College World Series. Top names on that squad include head coach Jim Hendry (current GM Of the Chicago Cubs), and future first-round draft picks Scott Stahoviak, Chad McConnell and Alan Benes. The Bluejays went 2-2 in 1991, becoming the first school from Nebraska to reach as well as win games in the CWS. Creighton's two wins are twice as many as all other schools from the state of Nebraska combined in CWS action.
In the Polls
The Bluejays have put together one of the best starts in school history and cracked the top-30 poll on April 18, 2011. The Jays were ranked at #28 in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper's magazine, released on Monday, April 18. The last time the Jays were ranked in the poll was May 28, 2007, when the Jays won the MVC Tournament and jumped into the #22 spot after not previously being ranked. Creighton was #29 in the Baseball Writers Poll and receiving votes in the USA Today/ESPN poll. After a 1-3 week the following week, Creighton dropped out of both polls. They are now receiving votes in both the NCBWA and USA Today/ESPN Poll. Revolving Door
Jordan Makovicka put his name in a hat for the starting left fielder on Tuesday against Kansas on April 26 and made a pretty good case for himself. The sophomore drove in the game winning run on a single in the eighth. He now is hitting .167 when patrolling left field. Seven different Bluejays have seen time in left field this season, as Creighton continues to try and find the best lineup. Taking most of the games has been Joey Bowens, who has played 40 games in left, hitting .226 when in the outfield. No other Jay has played in more than 18 games in left, with Brad McKewon (.185) and Michael Blatchford (.220) leading the way with 18 games in left. Creighton has also thrown catcher Anthony Bemboom in left field to keep his bat in the order, but the junior is hitting .222 when in left and .237 when catching.
Cutting it Close
Creighton has played in 21 one-run games this season, tallying an impressive 15-6 record in those contests. Of Creighton's 49 games in 2011, just under half (.429) have been decided by just one run. In fact, four of the Bluejays' 13 losses has been by more than three runs (the 11-4 BYU loss on March 22, and at Wichita State, 8-0 on May 6, 12-3 on May 8 and 10-1 at Evansville on May 15.)
Finish this... “Creighton...:
• has shown more power when playing on the road this season. The Jays have 19 home runs and 39 doubles when playing on the road.
• has been caught in 33 double plays when on the road this season against just five when at home.
• struck out just four times in both the Friday and Saturday night games against Bradley, both which were season low's for the team.
• is 12-8 when committing one error, 8-1 when bobbling two or more balls and 16-4 when playing error free baseball.
• owns a 2.81 ERA in the nine games at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha, and is over .500 with a 6-3 record.
• is hitting .290 while playing at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha this season with seven home runs and 19 doubles.
• has trailed in 18 of its 36 victories this season.
• is 15-6 in one run games this season, 4-1 in two run games and 7-1 when one team or the other is shutout.
• is 28-0 when leading after 7 innings this season.
• is 29-0 when leading after 8 innings this season.
• is 34-6 when scoring 3 runs or more this year.
• is being led offensively by Trever Adams, who has at least one hit in 42 of his last 44 games. He has reached base safely in each of the last 33 games, a streak that leads the Valley.
Under the Stars
The Bluejays are 6-3 when playing at night this season. Three of Creighton's wins have been come from behind, as the Bluejays had a come from behind win against SIU on Friday, 4/22 and put up two runs in the eighth to defeat Kansas on April 26. and two runs in the ninth to down Iowa 5-3 on May 17 The three losses, 6:30 and later start times, have been at the hands of Nebraska and Wichita State. The Jays lost game one 8-5 and gave up two unearned runs in the second to fall 2-1against the Huskers earlier this season and were shut out 8-0 against Wichita State on Friday, May 6. With the new facility, Creighton will play three more regular season games this season with a start time after 6:00 pm central time (just one more at home). The Jays were 10-7 in night games last season.
Decades
With 13 homers and 11 stolen bases this year, Trever Adams is the only player in the MVC this season with 10 or more homers and 10 or more stolen bases. In the past three seasons, the only other Valley players with at least 13 homers and 11 steals in the same season was Evansville's Cody Fick (19 HR/12 SB) in 2010.
Home or Away
The Jays are one of four Missouri Valley teams that holds a winning record both at home and on the road. Creighton is 17-5 at home and 18-8 on the road this season. The Jays also hold the distinction of having a winning record at home and on the road in Valley play, going 4-2 at home and 8-4 on the road. Creighton has one series left at home (against Missouri State, May 19-21).
Pitching Machine
Jack VanLeur has 108 career appearances entering this weekend and has become just the third player in Creighton history to pitch in 100 games with his appearance against SIU on April 24, joining the ranks of Pat Venditte (110) and Scott Reese (123).
Fanning Figures
Going into the series with Southern Illinois, the Bluejays had struck out 213 times as a team. In the highest total in three games all season, Creighton batters struck out 32 times on the weekend, just under a sixth of the previous season total. The starting three Saluki pitchers all had career high strike out numbers against the Jays, as they struck out 11 times both Friday and Saturday and 10 on Sunday.
If You Build It... They Will Come
Creighton's new home, TD Ameritrade Park Omaha, has boosted the average attendance of the Jays this season considerably (and the winning ways of the Jays doesn't hurt either!) Creighton now sits in 8th in home attendance, averaging 4,546 per game. Below is the top 20 home averages this season:
1 LSU 400,295 38 10,534
2 Mississippi 261,006 32 8,156
3 Arkansas 218,157 28 7,791
4 S. Carolina 258,651 35 7,390
5 Texas 206,952 32 6,467
6 Mississippi St. 170,075 28 6,074
7 Florida St. 137,670 29 4,747
8 Creighton 86,389 19 4,546
9 Clemson 134,441 31 4,336
10 TCU 139,170 33 4,217
11 Alabama 117,622 30 3,920
12 Florida 123,674 32 3,864
13 Texas A&M 129,066 34 3,796
14 Rice 112,544 32 3,517
15 Southern Miss. 79,217 23 3,444
16 Wichita State 110,723 32 3,460
17 Louisiana 92,784 28 3,313
18 Arizona St. 86,522 27 3,204
Bradley 193
Through the Order
Creighton's eight and nine-hole hitters in the Saturday, April 30 game, Scott Thornburg and Joey Bowens, combined for five hits on the night, each scoring two runs and knocking in at least one RBI (Bowens with two). It marked the first time those two spots in the line-up have both had two hits since March 16, when they Jays played at Air Force.
Take 'em to the Casino
Bluejay pitchers Jonas Dufek and Ty Blach each picked up their seventh win of the season in the weekend sweep of Bradley. It marks the first time since 2008 that Creighton has had two pitchers aith 7+ wins in a season. Pat Venditte (9-3) and Jeremy Hauer (8-2) both did it that season. Dufek also won again at Wichita State on May 7, becoming the first Bluejay this season to reach eight wins. Blach picked up his eighth win in a pre-determined 2.0 innings on Tuesday, May 10 against Nebraska.
Doctor, Doctor
Creighton's future med-school student, Joey Bowens, went a perfect 3-for-3 in the 10-1 win over Bradley on April 30. The junior has played in 34 games, starting 18 in the outfield. Bowens has a career high of four hits in a single game (earlieer this season against SDSU), but this was the first time the Libertyville, Ill., native had exactly three on the night.
A Little Fun
The Bluejays had a little fun at the expense of sophomore Jordan Makovicka following the 5-3 win over Kansas on April 26. After Makovicka knocked a two-RBI single in the eighth to give the Jays the win, his Bluejay teammates gave him a shaving cream pie in the face while he was talking to reporters. The two RBI were just the second and third for Makovicka on the season, and the single came in his 16th at-bat of the year. Less than a week later, Makovicka returned the favor, pie-ing Joey Bowens after his 3-for-3 night at the plate and stellar defense in the 10-1 win over Bradley on April 30.
Anniversary
The 1991 season marks the 20-year anniversary of Creighton's 1991 College World Series team. The group was honored by Creighton April 22-24 and will be honored again in June during the 2011 College World Series. Top names on that squad include head coach Jim Hendry (current GM Of the Chicago Cubs), and future first-round draft picks Scott Stahoviak, Chad McConnell and Alan Benes. The Bluejays went 2-2 in 1991, becoming the first school from Nebraska to reach as well as win games in the CWS. Creighton's two wins are twice as many as all other schools from the state of Nebraska combined in CWS action.
In the Polls
The Bluejays have put together one of the best starts in school history and cracked the top-30 poll on April 18, 2011. The Jays were ranked at #28 in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper's magazine, released on Monday, April 18. The last time the Jays were ranked in the poll was May 28, 2007, when the Jays won the MVC Tournament and jumped into the #22 spot after not previously being ranked. Creighton was #29 in the Baseball Writers Poll and receiving votes in the USA Today/ESPN poll. After a 1-3 week the following week, Creighton dropped out of both polls. They are now receiving votes in both the NCBWA and USA Today/ESPN Poll. Revolving Door
Jordan Makovicka put his name in a hat for the starting left fielder on Tuesday against Kansas on April 26 and made a pretty good case for himself. The sophomore drove in the game winning run on a single in the eighth. He now is hitting .167 when patrolling left field. Seven different Bluejays have seen time in left field this season, as Creighton continues to try and find the best lineup. Taking most of the games has been Joey Bowens, who has played 40 games in left, hitting .226 when in the outfield. No other Jay has played in more than 18 games in left, with Brad McKewon (.185) and Michael Blatchford (.220) leading the way with 18 games in left. Creighton has also thrown catcher Anthony Bemboom in left field to keep his bat in the order, but the junior is hitting .222 when in left and .237 when catching.
Cutting it Close
Creighton has played in 21 one-run games this season, tallying an impressive 15-6 record in those contests. Of Creighton's 49 games in 2011, just under half (.429) have been decided by just one run. In fact, four of the Bluejays' 13 losses has been by more than three runs (the 11-4 BYU loss on March 22, and at Wichita State, 8-0 on May 6, 12-3 on May 8 and 10-1 at Evansville on May 15.)
Finish this... “Creighton...:
• has shown more power when playing on the road this season. The Jays have 19 home runs and 39 doubles when playing on the road.
• has been caught in 33 double plays when on the road this season against just five when at home.
• struck out just four times in both the Friday and Saturday night games against Bradley, both which were season low's for the team.
• is 12-8 when committing one error, 8-1 when bobbling two or more balls and 16-4 when playing error free baseball.
• owns a 2.81 ERA in the nine games at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha, and is over .500 with a 6-3 record.
• is hitting .290 while playing at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha this season with seven home runs and 19 doubles.
• has trailed in 18 of its 36 victories this season.
• is 15-6 in one run games this season, 4-1 in two run games and 7-1 when one team or the other is shutout.
• is 28-0 when leading after 7 innings this season.
• is 29-0 when leading after 8 innings this season.
• is 34-6 when scoring 3 runs or more this year.
• is being led offensively by Trever Adams, who has at least one hit in 42 of his last 44 games. He has reached base safely in each of the last 33 games, a streak that leads the Valley.
Under the Stars
The Bluejays are 6-3 when playing at night this season. Three of Creighton's wins have been come from behind, as the Bluejays had a come from behind win against SIU on Friday, 4/22 and put up two runs in the eighth to defeat Kansas on April 26. and two runs in the ninth to down Iowa 5-3 on May 17 The three losses, 6:30 and later start times, have been at the hands of Nebraska and Wichita State. The Jays lost game one 8-5 and gave up two unearned runs in the second to fall 2-1against the Huskers earlier this season and were shut out 8-0 against Wichita State on Friday, May 6. With the new facility, Creighton will play three more regular season games this season with a start time after 6:00 pm central time (just one more at home). The Jays were 10-7 in night games last season.
Decades
With 13 homers and 11 stolen bases this year, Trever Adams is the only player in the MVC this season with 10 or more homers and 10 or more stolen bases. In the past three seasons, the only other Valley players with at least 13 homers and 11 steals in the same season was Evansville's Cody Fick (19 HR/12 SB) in 2010.
Home or Away
The Jays are one of four Missouri Valley teams that holds a winning record both at home and on the road. Creighton is 17-5 at home and 18-8 on the road this season. The Jays also hold the distinction of having a winning record at home and on the road in Valley play, going 4-2 at home and 8-4 on the road. Creighton has one series left at home (against Missouri State, May 19-21).
Pitching Machine
Jack VanLeur has 108 career appearances entering this weekend and has become just the third player in Creighton history to pitch in 100 games with his appearance against SIU on April 24, joining the ranks of Pat Venditte (110) and Scott Reese (123).
Fanning Figures
Going into the series with Southern Illinois, the Bluejays had struck out 213 times as a team. In the highest total in three games all season, Creighton batters struck out 32 times on the weekend, just under a sixth of the previous season total. The starting three Saluki pitchers all had career high strike out numbers against the Jays, as they struck out 11 times both Friday and Saturday and 10 on Sunday.
If You Build It... They Will Come
Creighton's new home, TD Ameritrade Park Omaha, has boosted the average attendance of the Jays this season considerably (and the winning ways of the Jays doesn't hurt either!) Creighton now sits in 8th in home attendance, averaging 4,546 per game. Below is the top 20 home averages this season:
1 LSU 400,295 38 10,534
2 Mississippi 261,006 32 8,156
3 Arkansas 218,157 28 7,791
4 S. Carolina 258,651 35 7,390
5 Texas 206,952 32 6,467
6 Mississippi St. 170,075 28 6,074
7 Florida St. 137,670 29 4,747
8 Creighton 86,389 19 4,546
9 Clemson 134,441 31 4,336
10 TCU 139,170 33 4,217
11 Alabama 117,622 30 3,920
12 Florida 123,674 32 3,864
13 Texas A&M 129,066 34 3,796
14 Rice 112,544 32 3,517
15 Southern Miss. 79,217 23 3,444
16 Wichita State 110,723 32 3,460
17 Louisiana 92,784 28 3,313
18 Arizona St. 86,522 27 3,204
19 Hawaii 111,343 35 3,181
20 Virginia 95,356 32 2,980
Oh Snap!
Creighton outfielder Trever Adams snapped his 18-game hit streak in the 3-2 loss to SIU on Friday, April 22. Adams went 0-for-3 in the game with two different hit-by-pitches, including one in the 10th inning of the game. The senior put together the longest streak by a Bluejay since the 2009 season. Adams did have a 10-game streak earlier this season.
Hits for 300, Alex
Creighton's first hit in the new TD Ameritrade Park Omaha on April 19, 2011 was significant for many reasons. Obviously it was the first Bluejay hit in their new home (a single by Trever Adams in the second inning), but it was also Creighton's 300th hit this season. The Bluejays had 341 hits the whole season last year. Leading the Jays this season with 77hits (under a sixth of the total 445) is Adams.
Major League Numbers
There were 12 Major League Baseball games the night of April 19. The Creighton-Nebraska crowd of 22,197 was larger than six of them, and also larger than the MLB average crowd of 22,072.
45,408 Milwaukee at Philadelphia
41,596 Atlanta at Los Angeles (NL)
30,320 San Francisco at Colorado
27,032 Houston at New York (NL)
25,250 New York (AL) at Toronto
22,450 Los Angeles (AL) at Texas
-- 22,197 Nebraska at Creighton --
13,731 Chicago (AL) at Tampa Bay
12,994 Arizona at Cincinnati
12,411 Detroit at Seattle
12,045 Minnesota at Baltimore
11,118 Pittsburgh at Florida
10,506 Cleveland at Kansas City
Record Setting
Creighton's record after 33 games was 26-7, matching the best record after 33 games in school history. Also starting 26-7 after 33 games were both the 2000 and 2005 teams that eventually would qualify for the NCAA Regionals. The 2000 team lost its 34th game (also against Nebraska), while the 2005 club is the program's only squad to start 27-7.
A New Place to Call Home
Tuesday, April 19th's opening game against Nebraska was the first for the Bluejays in TD Ameritrade Park Omaha, their new home for games. Creighton had a great deal of success playing at the CU Sports Complex, racking up a .770 winning percentage under Ed Servais in his tenure. When opening the CU Sports Complex, the Jays won the first 14 games at the stadium, including defeating Mount Marty 8-7 in the opener and 16-3 in game two. That season, the Jays finished 23-6 overall at home, losing the last six straight. Creighton fell to Nebraska 2-1 in the TD Ameritrade Park Omaha opener, starting 0-1 in the new complex. The Jays won just one-of-three against SIU, but defeated Kansas State on April 26 and swept Bradley the last weekend of May to move their current record in TD Ameritrade Park Omaha to 6-3 with the win over Nebraska.
Two-for-Two
The Bluejays swept the MVC Player/Pitcher of the Week honors for the week of April 18, with Trever Adams and Kurt Spomer earning the honors. Adams continued to lead the Bluejay offense, going 7-for-14 from the plate during that week. The senior right fielder improved his overall batting average to .397, driving out two doubles and two home runs on the week, both in the sweep at Indiana State. Adams finished the week hitting .500, with a slugging percentage of 1.071 and an on-base percentage of .611. Adams was intentionally walked twice on the week, both against Big 12 power Kansas State. He was also walked twice in the 6-5 win on Sunday over Indiana State, both after his solo home run and one on four pitches. Adams finished the day on Saturday (the 9-5 win) going 3-for-4 from the plate, driving in four and scoring once. He finished the week with five runs scored, scoring in every game last week and twice in the 6-5 Sunday win. In Kurt Spomer's last eight appearances to that date, the junior from Honey Creek, Iowa, has some sort of a decision in each, picking up three wins, four saves and one loss. In action last week, Spomer picked up a win over Kansas State, a win over Indiana State (4/17) and a save at Indiana State (4/16). In 4.1 innings of work, the right hander gave up just two hits, no runs, walked two and struck out four. Spomer got out of a jam in the eighth inning of Sunday's win, coming in with a tie ball game, getting two outs and then striking out two and forcing a ground ball in the ninth to earn the win.
In Great Company
Trever Adams has a .399 batting average to go with 13 homers and 52 RBI thus far. Not only is he leading Creighton in all three Triple Crown categories this season, but he's leading all three categories for any Bluejay after 49 games since 1999. The last Bluejay players to get off to a comparable start after 45 games were Ryan Gripp (.416-16-64) and Peyton Lewis (.373-13-61), both in 1999. Gripp would be named a first-team All-American, while Lewis earned second-team All-America accolades as the duo helped lead Creighton to the NCAA Regionals.
Going Streaking
Trever Adams entered the weekend series with SIU with an 18-game hitting streak. In that time, he was 32-for-70 (.457) with seven homers and 32 RBI. Adams owned at least one hit in 28 of the last 29 games, and during those 29 games he was 52-for-112 (.464) with 10 homers and 40 RBI. Here are Creighton's longest hitting streaks under Ed Servais:
28 – Tony Roth, April 23, 2004 - March 1, 2005
23 – Elliot Soto, March 24 - April 29, 2009
19 – Zach Daeges, May 8, 2004 - March 1, 2005
18 - Trever Adams, March 16, 2011 - April 24, 2011
16 – Robbie Knight, March 11 - April 5, 2009
15 – Darin Ruf, April 12 - May 3, 2008
15 – Chris Gradoville, April 20 - May 15, 2007
14 - Trever Adams, April 23 - Present
Walk-Off Winners
Creighton won in “walk-off” fashion in three of the four home games from April 3-April 22. Creighton beat Kansas State 7-6 on a walk-off walk by Joey Bowens in the final game at the CU Sports Complex. Before that, Trever Adams had a walk-off single to score Michael Mutcheson and give the Jays a 4-3 win over Portland on April 3rd. The Jays also defeated SIU on April 22 in the bottom of the 10th, putting up a run to win the game on a Chance Ross blooper over the short stop's head, scoring Staehely from third base.
Touch Em All
The Bluejays hit eight home runs in the series sweep at Indiana State on April 15-17, getting two each from Nick Judkins, Trever Adams and Anthony Bemboom, with Jimmy Swift and Mike Gerber each adding solo shots on the weekend. The Jays improved their slugging percentage 15 points on the weekend, moving from .410 as a team to .425. The Jays added four doubles to the eight home runs to help improve the percentage. Creighton moved from a tie for 5th in the Valley in slugging percentage to second over the weekend. Adams is now the sole leader in the slugging percentage in the Valley, holding a .763 percentage, nearly 100 points higher than Cody Fick of Evansville, who has a .676 average and is in second place.
Running Rampant
Ed Servais has turned Creighton loose on the basepaths so far this season. Creighton has stolen 52 bases, eclipsing its entire stolen base total from 2010 and exceeding the 38 swipes in 2009. Creighton's 73.1 success rate on the basepaths this season (49-67 )is the best mark in any season so far under Servais.
A First for Everything
Creighton had eight homers in the series sweep at Indiana State, hitting three each on Friday and Sunday and two dingers on Saturday. The Jays entered the weekend with multiple homers in just two of its first 29 games, and hadn't had two or more homers in three straight games since March 7-8, 2009. Creighton has never had four straight games with two or more homers under Ed Servais.
Finding a Gap
With 19 doubles on the season, Alex Staehely currently leads the MVC in the category in the MVC, and leads the Bluejays this season. Staehely's double output has been slowed a little, as he has went ten games without a double dating from April 3 to April 23. He did hit a double in the April 24 loss to Southern Illinois. The sophomore had seven hits in the span, accompanied by four sacrifice bunts. Staehely did pick up his second home run of the season in the 5-3 win over Kansas, marking back-to-back games with extra base hits. He had a double and home run in the 7-5 win over Wichita State on May 7.
Catch Ya Later
Creighton left 10 runners on base in the rubber match between CU and Illinois State on Sunday, April 10 in Normal, Ill., pushing the total to 26 on the weekend. The Jays outscored the Redbirds 18-12, but with the extra runners driven in it could have helped Creighton's cause. The Jays left the bases loaded three times in the series.
1 and 2 and 3 and 4
Creighton's Sunday starter Greg Hellhake pitched a great game in the 6-5 win on Sunday, April 10 as well as the Sunday, April 17 6-5 win over Indiana State, picking up his third win of the season in the first game and leaving with a 4-3 lead. In the fifth inning, Hellhake's last full inning of work, the right hander threw just four pitches. It marks the first time for a CU pitcher since Otto Roberts accomplished the feat at Air Force in 2009.
Sunday “Shellhaker”
Creighton's Greg Hellhake has turned into the weekend finisher, earning the nod to start on Sundays. After starting the season off with a couple rough outings, Hellhake has gotten into a rhythm on the mound. In the last six starts, Hellhake has gone 29.2 innings, allowing just nine earned runs and picking up 13 strike outs to eight walks. In his best start in the last six, Sunday, April 3 against Portland, a 4-3 win, Hellhake went 6.0 scoreless innings of work, giving up just four hits and striking out two. He has lowered his ERA from 6.57 in his third start to 3.68 after seven starts. He currently has a 4.74 ERA and is holding batters to a .232 average against him.
20 Virginia 95,356 32 2,980
Oh Snap!
Creighton outfielder Trever Adams snapped his 18-game hit streak in the 3-2 loss to SIU on Friday, April 22. Adams went 0-for-3 in the game with two different hit-by-pitches, including one in the 10th inning of the game. The senior put together the longest streak by a Bluejay since the 2009 season. Adams did have a 10-game streak earlier this season.
Hits for 300, Alex
Creighton's first hit in the new TD Ameritrade Park Omaha on April 19, 2011 was significant for many reasons. Obviously it was the first Bluejay hit in their new home (a single by Trever Adams in the second inning), but it was also Creighton's 300th hit this season. The Bluejays had 341 hits the whole season last year. Leading the Jays this season with 77hits (under a sixth of the total 445) is Adams.
Major League Numbers
There were 12 Major League Baseball games the night of April 19. The Creighton-Nebraska crowd of 22,197 was larger than six of them, and also larger than the MLB average crowd of 22,072.
45,408 Milwaukee at Philadelphia
41,596 Atlanta at Los Angeles (NL)
30,320 San Francisco at Colorado
27,032 Houston at New York (NL)
25,250 New York (AL) at Toronto
22,450 Los Angeles (AL) at Texas
-- 22,197 Nebraska at Creighton --
13,731 Chicago (AL) at Tampa Bay
12,994 Arizona at Cincinnati
12,411 Detroit at Seattle
12,045 Minnesota at Baltimore
11,118 Pittsburgh at Florida
10,506 Cleveland at Kansas City
Record Setting
Creighton's record after 33 games was 26-7, matching the best record after 33 games in school history. Also starting 26-7 after 33 games were both the 2000 and 2005 teams that eventually would qualify for the NCAA Regionals. The 2000 team lost its 34th game (also against Nebraska), while the 2005 club is the program's only squad to start 27-7.
A New Place to Call Home
Tuesday, April 19th's opening game against Nebraska was the first for the Bluejays in TD Ameritrade Park Omaha, their new home for games. Creighton had a great deal of success playing at the CU Sports Complex, racking up a .770 winning percentage under Ed Servais in his tenure. When opening the CU Sports Complex, the Jays won the first 14 games at the stadium, including defeating Mount Marty 8-7 in the opener and 16-3 in game two. That season, the Jays finished 23-6 overall at home, losing the last six straight. Creighton fell to Nebraska 2-1 in the TD Ameritrade Park Omaha opener, starting 0-1 in the new complex. The Jays won just one-of-three against SIU, but defeated Kansas State on April 26 and swept Bradley the last weekend of May to move their current record in TD Ameritrade Park Omaha to 6-3 with the win over Nebraska.
Two-for-Two
The Bluejays swept the MVC Player/Pitcher of the Week honors for the week of April 18, with Trever Adams and Kurt Spomer earning the honors. Adams continued to lead the Bluejay offense, going 7-for-14 from the plate during that week. The senior right fielder improved his overall batting average to .397, driving out two doubles and two home runs on the week, both in the sweep at Indiana State. Adams finished the week hitting .500, with a slugging percentage of 1.071 and an on-base percentage of .611. Adams was intentionally walked twice on the week, both against Big 12 power Kansas State. He was also walked twice in the 6-5 win on Sunday over Indiana State, both after his solo home run and one on four pitches. Adams finished the day on Saturday (the 9-5 win) going 3-for-4 from the plate, driving in four and scoring once. He finished the week with five runs scored, scoring in every game last week and twice in the 6-5 Sunday win. In Kurt Spomer's last eight appearances to that date, the junior from Honey Creek, Iowa, has some sort of a decision in each, picking up three wins, four saves and one loss. In action last week, Spomer picked up a win over Kansas State, a win over Indiana State (4/17) and a save at Indiana State (4/16). In 4.1 innings of work, the right hander gave up just two hits, no runs, walked two and struck out four. Spomer got out of a jam in the eighth inning of Sunday's win, coming in with a tie ball game, getting two outs and then striking out two and forcing a ground ball in the ninth to earn the win.
In Great Company
Trever Adams has a .399 batting average to go with 13 homers and 52 RBI thus far. Not only is he leading Creighton in all three Triple Crown categories this season, but he's leading all three categories for any Bluejay after 49 games since 1999. The last Bluejay players to get off to a comparable start after 45 games were Ryan Gripp (.416-16-64) and Peyton Lewis (.373-13-61), both in 1999. Gripp would be named a first-team All-American, while Lewis earned second-team All-America accolades as the duo helped lead Creighton to the NCAA Regionals.
Going Streaking
Trever Adams entered the weekend series with SIU with an 18-game hitting streak. In that time, he was 32-for-70 (.457) with seven homers and 32 RBI. Adams owned at least one hit in 28 of the last 29 games, and during those 29 games he was 52-for-112 (.464) with 10 homers and 40 RBI. Here are Creighton's longest hitting streaks under Ed Servais:
28 – Tony Roth, April 23, 2004 - March 1, 2005
23 – Elliot Soto, March 24 - April 29, 2009
19 – Zach Daeges, May 8, 2004 - March 1, 2005
18 - Trever Adams, March 16, 2011 - April 24, 2011
16 – Robbie Knight, March 11 - April 5, 2009
15 – Darin Ruf, April 12 - May 3, 2008
15 – Chris Gradoville, April 20 - May 15, 2007
14 - Trever Adams, April 23 - Present
Walk-Off Winners
Creighton won in “walk-off” fashion in three of the four home games from April 3-April 22. Creighton beat Kansas State 7-6 on a walk-off walk by Joey Bowens in the final game at the CU Sports Complex. Before that, Trever Adams had a walk-off single to score Michael Mutcheson and give the Jays a 4-3 win over Portland on April 3rd. The Jays also defeated SIU on April 22 in the bottom of the 10th, putting up a run to win the game on a Chance Ross blooper over the short stop's head, scoring Staehely from third base.
Touch Em All
The Bluejays hit eight home runs in the series sweep at Indiana State on April 15-17, getting two each from Nick Judkins, Trever Adams and Anthony Bemboom, with Jimmy Swift and Mike Gerber each adding solo shots on the weekend. The Jays improved their slugging percentage 15 points on the weekend, moving from .410 as a team to .425. The Jays added four doubles to the eight home runs to help improve the percentage. Creighton moved from a tie for 5th in the Valley in slugging percentage to second over the weekend. Adams is now the sole leader in the slugging percentage in the Valley, holding a .763 percentage, nearly 100 points higher than Cody Fick of Evansville, who has a .676 average and is in second place.
Running Rampant
Ed Servais has turned Creighton loose on the basepaths so far this season. Creighton has stolen 52 bases, eclipsing its entire stolen base total from 2010 and exceeding the 38 swipes in 2009. Creighton's 73.1 success rate on the basepaths this season (49-67 )is the best mark in any season so far under Servais.
A First for Everything
Creighton had eight homers in the series sweep at Indiana State, hitting three each on Friday and Sunday and two dingers on Saturday. The Jays entered the weekend with multiple homers in just two of its first 29 games, and hadn't had two or more homers in three straight games since March 7-8, 2009. Creighton has never had four straight games with two or more homers under Ed Servais.
Finding a Gap
With 19 doubles on the season, Alex Staehely currently leads the MVC in the category in the MVC, and leads the Bluejays this season. Staehely's double output has been slowed a little, as he has went ten games without a double dating from April 3 to April 23. He did hit a double in the April 24 loss to Southern Illinois. The sophomore had seven hits in the span, accompanied by four sacrifice bunts. Staehely did pick up his second home run of the season in the 5-3 win over Kansas, marking back-to-back games with extra base hits. He had a double and home run in the 7-5 win over Wichita State on May 7.
Catch Ya Later
Creighton left 10 runners on base in the rubber match between CU and Illinois State on Sunday, April 10 in Normal, Ill., pushing the total to 26 on the weekend. The Jays outscored the Redbirds 18-12, but with the extra runners driven in it could have helped Creighton's cause. The Jays left the bases loaded three times in the series.
1 and 2 and 3 and 4
Creighton's Sunday starter Greg Hellhake pitched a great game in the 6-5 win on Sunday, April 10 as well as the Sunday, April 17 6-5 win over Indiana State, picking up his third win of the season in the first game and leaving with a 4-3 lead. In the fifth inning, Hellhake's last full inning of work, the right hander threw just four pitches. It marks the first time for a CU pitcher since Otto Roberts accomplished the feat at Air Force in 2009.
Sunday “Shellhaker”
Creighton's Greg Hellhake has turned into the weekend finisher, earning the nod to start on Sundays. After starting the season off with a couple rough outings, Hellhake has gotten into a rhythm on the mound. In the last six starts, Hellhake has gone 29.2 innings, allowing just nine earned runs and picking up 13 strike outs to eight walks. In his best start in the last six, Sunday, April 3 against Portland, a 4-3 win, Hellhake went 6.0 scoreless innings of work, giving up just four hits and striking out two. He has lowered his ERA from 6.57 in his third start to 3.68 after seven starts. He currently has a 4.74 ERA and is holding batters to a .232 average against him.
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/ Baseball2013 Creighton Athletic Hall of Fame Inductee Dan Smith
Friday, October 30
Jim Hendry & Alan Benes (4/11/11)
Friday, October 30
CREIGHTON BASEBALL
Thursday, October 15
Ambidextrous Pitcher
Thursday, October 15
