2004 Midwest Conference Baseball

Matt Frank
St. Norbert

The junior third-baseman from DePere, Wis., (DePere H.S.) hit a blistering .472 on St. Norbert's spring trip to Florida, getting 17 base hits in 36 at bats in ten games. Frank scored 13 runs, hit two doubles, stroked three triples, ripped one home run and drove in 12 RBI. He also hit safely in his last nine games.

Chris Morgan
Ripon

The senior pitcher from Rosendale, Wis., (Laconia H.S.) finished his spring trip with a 2-1 record and a 1.78 ERA, including two complete-game wins. He gave up 16 hits and just seven runs, five that were earned. He has only allowed three walks while striking out 31. Morgan has surrendered just one double, and has not given up a triple or home run.
 

Joel Cladohous
Grinnell

A senior pitcher/first baseman from Anchorage, Alaska, Cladohous was untouchable in three starts durig Grinnell's spring trip. Cladohous posted a 3-0 record with a 0.74 ERA in those three games. He fired a one-hitter against Western Conneticut State and allowed just four hits to both Earlham and Principia Colleges.

Jim Remm
Carroll

A catcher from Milwaukee, Wis. (Thomas More H.S.) Remm's play helped Carroll take three of four games versus Beloit to start conference play. Jim was 10 of 16 at the plate (.625), including two home runs and two doubles. He batted in nine runs and scored a run on seven occasions during his four starts in the series.

 

Joe Larkins
Monmouth

A junior pitcher from Galesburg, Ill., (Galesburg H.S.) was at the top of his game Wednesday, carrying Monmouth to a victory in its only contest of the week. Larkins improved his record to 5-0 and lowered his ERA to 1.00 with a nine-inning, six-hit shutout gem against tough Illinois Wesleyan in MC's 9-0 victory. The hard-throwing righthander struck out nine while walking four and extended his scoreless string to 18-2/3 innings. The win against IWU snapped a five-game losing streak to the Titans and was the Scots' first victory against the school since 1929. Said IWU coach Dennis Mertel: "Their pitcher, he's the story. We had opportunities every innings, and he just ate us up."

Nick Johnson

Ripon

A sophomore pitcher/outfielder from Prescott, Wis., (Prescott H.S.) Johnson went 4-for-6 over the two games against Lawrence with a double and two RBI. Against Beloit, Johnson took to the mound and improved to 3-0 on the season by pitching a four-hit complete-game nine-inning shutout in a 5-0 win in game two. He struck out seven and walked five in the win. In game one, Johnson hit two home runs while going 2-for-4. On Saturday, Johnson scored three runs as Ripon split with Beloit.

Jimmy Bombulie
Grinnell

A sophomore catcher from Klein, Texas, Bombulie led Grinnell with homers in three consecutive at-bats against Knox and became the first Grinnell player to homer three times in a game. He also doubled in that game to finish the contest 4-for-4 with four runs batted in and three runs scored. Bombulie homered again on Saturday in a 6-5 win at Knox. He finished that game 1-for-3 with two RBIs and two runs scored.

Brian Lussier
Carroll

The junior first-baseman from Oak Creek, Wis., (Thomas More H.S.) led the Pioneers to a sweep over Lawrence in on April 19. In the series, Lussier batted 4 of 9 (.444) including a 3 of 4 performance in game 1. He scored 3 runs, had 7 r.b.i., and hit a double and 2 home runs in the series.

Taylor Thiel
Monmouth

A junior catcher from Galesburg, Ill., (Galesburg H.S.) Thiel led Monmouth College to a four-game sweep of defending South Division champions Grinnell. Thiel hit .428 (6-for-14) in the four games, had a slugging percentage of .786 and turned in two three-RBI games. In the opener of the doubleheader at Grinnell, Thiel had a game-winning bases-clearing double in extra innings. In the nightcap, he had another 2-for-4, three-RBI game. In the return twinbill at Monmouth, Thiel had his third 2-for-4, three-RBI performance of the series in the nightcap.

Matt Frank
St. Norbert

The junior shortstop from De Pere, Wis., (West De Pere HS) led St. Norbert to a 4-4 record over a six-day stretch last week. Frank hit a respectable .357 (10-for-28), but his hits produced runs for the Green Knights. He scored eight runs, hit six doubles, hit one triple, banged out one home run and drove in a staggering 15 runs in the stretch. This is Frank's second POW selection of the year.

Casey Boydstun
Monmouth

A senior shortstop from Galesburg, Ill., (Galesburg H.S.) continued his record-breaking season in a four-game sweep of Knox. Boydstun scored the game's only run in the 1-0 opener. Boydstun broke through on Saturday in the opener by going 5-for-6 with a homer, four runs and five RBIs. He followed that up by going 3-for-6 in the nightcap. Boydstun had three extra base hits and scored three times in the second game. For the four games, Boydstun was 10-for-20 (.500) with eight runs scored and six RBIs, and his slugging percentage for the week was an even 1.000.

Nick Thoen
Ripon

A sophomore catcher from Prescott, Wis. (Prescott H.S.) Thoen finished the weekend series against Carroll by going 6-for-17 at the plate with eight RBI and six runs scored. Over that same time span, Thoen had two home runs in the third game against Carroll, giving him three for the four games, and added a double. Only two Carroll runners were able to steal a base off Thoen in the entire four-game series.

Jabob Chavez
Grinnell

A senior pitcher/first baseman from Austin, Texas, Chavez led Grinnell to a comeback win in last Monday's 12-10 non-conference victory over Cornell. Chavez hit a solo homer in the top of the ninth inning to give Grinnell an 11-10 lead. He also worked the last two innings in relief, striking out four and picking up his fifth win of the season. Chavez has compiled a 2.01 earned run average in 48.2 innings this season.