2004 Midwest Conference Baseball

Roy Stockton
Beloit

A junior catcher from Vacaville, Calif., (Vacaville HS) Stockton is hitting .524 with 22 hits in 42 at bats in Beloit's first 15 games. He has six doubles, three home runs and 18 RBI, all team highs, in those first 15 games. His slugging percentage is a whopping .881 and his on-base percentage is .600. He has walked four times and has been hit by pitches four times. He also has scored 12 runs, tied for the second highest total on the team. He has split time behind the plate and as the Bucs designated hitter.

Joe Larkins
Monmouth

A senior pitcher/DH from Galesburg, Ill., (Galesburg HS) Larkins got off to a great start on the mound and at the plate for Monmouth. Larkins has a 2-2 record with one save and a team-leading 2.51 ERA. He has worked 28.2 innings and allowed 17 hits while striking out 31 and walking 11. Larkins, who beat Eureka College 4-0 in his last outing, is allowing opponents to hit only .170 against him. At the plate, Larkins is batting .340 (17-for-50) with a home run and nine RBIs. His home run was a grand slam, and it brought him to within one homer of the career record at Monmouth.

Nick Thoen
Ripon

Thoen, a junior from Prescott, Wis., (Prescott HS), led Ripon in a four-game series, catching every inning of the series. The junior had 11 at bats, collecting five hits, scoring six runs, and eight RBIs. Thoen also hit three homeruns. As a catcher, not a single runner stole a base.

Brian Short
Illinois C.

Short, a first-year catcher from Eldred, Ill., (Carrollton HS), lifted Illinois C. to a split against two non-conference opponents this past week. Short went 5-for-8 (.625) with three runs batted in as the Blueboys defeated MacMurray and fell to Blackburn. In the win over MacMurray, Short's line-drive single drove home the winning run in a
7-6, 11-inning victory.

Brad Mott
Ripon

Mott, a junior shortstop from Neenah, Wis., (Neenah HS) led Ripon to a four-game sweep of Carroll. Mott was 14 for 20, scoring 13 runs and 16 RBI. The junior hit six home runs in the four game series along with two doubles and one triple. Mott hit four home runs in one game to tie an NCAA III record.

Scott Rans
Knox

Rans, a senior catcher from Waukegan, Ill., led an offensive explosion that produced three wins in five games during the past week. At the plate, Rans went 10-for-19 (.526), including three home runs. The senior drove in 11 runs and scored seven for the Prairie Fire. Behind the plate, Rans was solid as he threw out four baserunners attempting to steal in the five games.

Mario Bilotti
St. Norbert

Bilotti, a sophomore catcher from De Pere, Wis., (De Pere HS) hit .533 as he led St. Norbert to a 4-1 week. Bilotti was 8-for-15 last week with two runs scored and three RBIs from the No. 9 spot in the batting order. The catcher also aided the pitching staff to a solid week, calling five games where the staff allowed just 32 hits in 41 innings.

Ryan Johnson
Monmouth

Johnson, a senior pitcher from Ottumwa, Iowa (Ottumwa HS) picked up a pair of wins as the Scots improved their mark to 5-1 in the South Division. For the week, the senior pitched 8.2 innings, allowed two hits, no earned runs, two walks and eight strikeouts. Johnson improved his record to 6-2 and has a 5-0 record and a 1.01 earned run average in his last 26.2 innings.

Jake Green
Illinois C.

Green, a junior infielder from Rochester, Ill., (Rochester HS) went 7-for-9 at the plate in two games against Knox with five home runs, 10 RBIs, seven runs scored, and two walks. With the new totals of 9 home runs and 25 RBI, the junior now has the third-highest single-season home run total in school history and entered the top 10 in RBIs.

Jason Shanda
Lawrence

Shanda, a senior catcher from Madison, Wis., (East HS) was the force behind the Lawrence offense this past week. Shanda batted .571 in four games with a double, a triple, three runs scored, and three runs batted in. He also was solid behind the plate, throwing out 4 of 8 runners attempting to steal. During the week, Shanda broke Lawrence’s career hits record with 125.

Joe Larkins and Ryan Johnson
Monmouth

Joe Larkins and Ryan Johnson both threw shutouts against Knox, as Monmouth clinched the South Division title and the right to host the MWC Tournament. Both pitchers also earned their 20th career victory. Larkins, a senior pitcher from Galesburg, Ill. (Galesburg HS), fired a four-hitter in the opener, striking out three and walking none in the 4-0 victory. Johnson, a senior pitcher from Ottumwa, Iowa (Ottumwa HS), fired a three-hitter in the nightcap, as he struck out nine and walked one in a 5-0 win. Larkins is now 5-2 on the season with a 1.59 earned run average. Johnson, who is 7-2, is 6-0 with a 0.80 ERA in his last six appearances.

Eric Roecker
Ripon

Roecker, a senior 2nd baseman from Hartford, Wis., led the Red Hawks to a 4-game sweep of Lawrence and the North Division Championship. Roecker was 8-for-15 in the series with 2 doubles, 2 home runs and 10 RBI’s. In the 2-game sweep over Edgewood, the senior was 7-for-9 with 5 total runs, 6 RBI’s, and one homerun.

Taylor Thiel
Monmouth

Thiel, a senior catcher from Galesburg, Ill. (Galesburg HS) had a record-breaking doubleheader against Grinnell. Thiel’s three home runs against Carroll broke Monmouth’s single-season record. The senior finished the day going 4-for-6 (.667) at the plate with three homers, five runs batted in, four walks, seven runs scored, and a slugging percentage of 2.167. Thiel now has ten home runs on the season, which is just one shy of Monmouth’s career record.