[PDF Release]
[Championship Page]
RIPON, Wis. – Grinnell finished atop the South Division for the third straight season and will now serve as host for the 2012 Midwest Conference Baseball Championship that is set for May 11-12. St. Norbert claimed its 12th North Division crown and will be joined by Knox and Beloit to battle for a trip to the NCAA Tournament.
Tournament action opens at 9 a.m. on Friday morning when Beloit takes on Grinnell at North Diamond field on the campus of the Pioneers while St. Norbert and Knox will play at nearby William Penn University, also at 9 a.m. The winners of the two opening games will meet at 1:00 p.m. with the losers to play in the first elimination game at 4:00 p.m. The winner of the double elimination MWC Championship will also earn the conference’s bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Grinnell is back in the MWC Tournament after winning the South Division for the third consecutive year and have done so with pitching and timely hitting. The Pioneers staff has the second best ERA (4.70) in the conference while holding opposing hitters to a .290 batting average which is only behind one team in the MWC. Offensively Grinnell posts a .278 team average led by reigning MWC South Division Player of the Year Mike Nodzenski. Nodzenski is ninth with a .366 average but posts the second best slugging percentage (.650) which is elevated by his seven home runs and 14 doubles which are both top-3 in the league. J.R. Dowrick hit .333 during the regular season with ten extra base hits including three triples with teammate Michael Goldfien (.331/.413/.414) leading the club in runs scored (29). 2011 South Division Pitcher of the Year Ben Pope highlights one of the better staffs in the league for the Pioneers. He has a near perfect 4-1 mark with a 3.65 ERA and an impressive 1.03 WHIP on the year. Will Pahos compliments Pope with a 3-2 mark in 53.1 innings while posting a 4.22 ERA. Andrew Kelley has worked mostly in relief this year but is second on the team with four wins and sports a team-best 2.31 ERA in 39 innings.
St. Norbert clinched a trip to the MWC Tournament after missing out on the four team playoff last season and aims for its first MWC Championship since the 2003 season. The Green Knights are one of the most offensively gifted teams in the tournament leading the conference in several categories including batting average (.334), on base percentage (.434), runs (290), hits (400) and runs batted in (265).They have scored ten or more runs 14 times this season which included a 24 run, 25 hit, outburst in a April 28th win over Lawrence. Matt Hannon hit .391 during the regular season which was fourth best in the league with 59 hits (tops in MWC) and had only seven strikeouts in 175 plate appearances. The Green Knights also have eight other players that hit .300 or better with Chad Ljunggren (.352/.447/.392) and Garrick Fisher (.352/.398/.476) also adding punch to the lineup. Kevin Nutley sports a 2.98 ERA in 57.1 innings which is good for fourth in the MWC while throwing a pair of complete games and registering two saves. Josh Honzik (4.17 ERA) and Mason (3.89 ERA) have five and six wins, respectively, with Nathan Schadrie posting a perfect 4-0 record working mainly out of the bullpen.
Knox earned a right to play for a MWC Championship for the first time since the 2008 season when the Prairie Fire won the conference title and advanced to the NCAA Division III Tournament. During the regular season Knox posted a .293 batting average and also finished fourth in the MWC in on base percentage (.401). Jackson White leads all Prairie Fire hitters with a .384 average with a home run and 18 RBI. Caleb Weaver provides the power with the third best slugging percentage in the league (.634) which includes six home runs, two triples and 11 doubles. Weaver also tops on the team with 38 RBI with teammate Michael Schroeder driving in 23 runs while hitting .312 with five doubles and a triple. Gabe Ayers headlines the pitching staff with a 3.35 ERA in 16 appearances. Nathaniel Grady is holding opposing hitters to a mere .218 batting average and has a 4.06 ERA in 31 innings pitched with Kenny Blanchard picking up a team-best four wins in 14 appearances this year.
After hosting the 2011 Baseball Championship Beloit is back after getting into the tournament on the last weekend. The Bucs use plate discipline and a deep pitching staff to compete for the school’s first baseball championship since the 2009 season. During the regular season Beloit finished in the top-3 of the conference in on base percentage (.398), runs scored (243) and run batted in (216) while leading the league in walks (187) and number of times hit by a pitch (62). Evan Mascitti enters the tournament with a .366 average and a club-best 48 hits while Jordan Jaenicke (.341/.476/.504) scored the second most runs in the MWC (40) and blasted six home runs. Jake Tresemer tops the list in doubles (15) while also adding three triples to add power to the Bucs lineup. Alex Norman headlines a staff that posts the third best ERA in the league (5.11) with the top individual ERA (2.22) in 69 innings pitched. Norman has six wins on the season and struck out 48 batters and didn’t surrender a home run all season. Grant Henricksen made ten starts and had a 4.48 ERA with three wins while Al Loth had a pair of wins and six saves (tops in MWC) in 13 relief appearances.
For all information relating to the 2012 MWC Baseball Championship (recaps, live stats, schedule, box scores, etc.) please visti the championship page.