May 12, 2008

Contact: Greg Murphy

Complete Release in PDF Format

AROUND THE HORN: Cleveland State finishes the regular season with five games this week, including its final two home contests as the Vikings host Duquesne on Tuesday (May 13) beginning at 5:00 p.m. followed by the home finale on Wednesday (May 14) against Pittsburgh at 5:00 p.m. CSU concludes league action with a three-game series at Butler on Friday and Saturday (May 16-17).

REVIEWING LAST WEEK: CSU dropped all four of its games, losing doubleheaders at Wright State and UIC. Following are brief recaps of all four contests.

Game 42 - Wright State 4, CSU 2 (May 10): Wright State broke a 2-2 tie with a run in the sixth to earn a 4-2 win over Cleveland State. Josh Hungerman worked 7.1 innings, giving up six hits. Seven different players had one hit each for CSU.

Game 43 - Wright State 11, CSU 6 (May 10): Wright State scored five runs in the fifth to break open a one run game and defeat Cleveland State, 11-6. Alex Kerins went 3-for-4 with a run and an RBI, while Josh Geric hit his seventh homerun.

Game 44 - UIC 6, CSU 2 (May 11): Mike Kool fired a complete game, allowing two runs (one earned) on seven hits as UIC topped Cleveland State, 6-2, in the first game of a doubleheader. Alex Kerins had two hits and Bobby Cash had the Vikings lone RBI.

Game 45 - UIC 4, CSU 1 (May 11): Chris Kovacevich and Ada Worthington combined to allow one unearned run on five hits as UIC completed a two-game sweep of Cleveland State with a 4-1 win. Alex Kerins had two hits for CSU which cut the Flames lead to 2-1 with a run in the seventh. However, UIC scored single runs in the seventh and eighth to claim the win.

PREVIEWING THE VIKINGS: Cleveland State has a completely different look from last season's squad as the roster features 26 new players. Senior Bobby Cash (.314, 16 R, 6 2B, 3 HR, 24 RBI) moves from shortstop to second base, while senior Josh Geric (.272, 22 R, 4 2B, 7 HR, 24 RBI) returns to anchor the Viking defense behind the plate. The other six field positions have new faces as junior John Foco (.233, 18 R, 7 2B, 14 RBI) has locked down the starting spot at first base, while senior Alex Kerins (.348, 45 R, 15 2B, 11 HR, 50 RBI) starts at third base and redshirt freshman Tom Carter (.264, 26 R, 8 2B, 2 HR, 16 RBI) at shortstop. Senior Kyle Bischof (.290, 29 R, 10 2B, 8 HR, 43 RBI), junior Brad Buell (.354, 51 R, 15 2B, 2 HR, 23 RBI) and freshman Adam Heideman (.339, 23 R, 7 2B, 3 HR, 16 RBI) make up the outfield from left to right.

STREAK HITS FIVE: After dropping all four games over the weekend, Cleveland State has now lost a season-high five straight games. The Vikings, who had previously lost four straight on two different occasions this season, had losing streaks of 13 and 17 games last season.

VIKINGS REACH 20 WINS: When the Vikings defeated Akron on April 29, it allowed CSU to reach the 20-win plateau for the 18th time in program history and the first since the 2001 team won 23 games.

... AND CAN TIE LEAGUE RECORD: If CSU can sweep three games at Butler this weekend, the Vikings would tie the program record for conference wins in a season. The school record of 12 conference wins is shared by the 1997 and 1999 teams.

500: Head coach Kevin Kocks earned his 500th career victory when the Vikings won the second game against Canisius on April 22. The 15-year coaching veteran claims a 503-397 career mark.

HE'S THE MAN: Freshman Adam Heideman did not let an early season slump affect him as the rightfielder is ranked ninth in the Horizon League with a .339 batting average. He has hit safely in 13 of the last 16 games to raise his average more than 210 points. During the last 14 contests, Heideman has totaled 10 runs, eight RBI, three doubles and two homeruns. Heideman's best offensive game of the season came on April 25 against Youngstown State, as he tallied a career-high four hits in six at-bats, scored four runs and drove in three. To put his recent production at the plate into perspective, Heideman was batting just .130 on April 5.

OUCH!: You'll have to forgive Adam Heideman if he is a little sore. After all, the freshman has been hit by a pitch a Horizon League leading 15 times. The total is a CSU single season school-record, breaking the old mark of 14 by Brian Beaumier in 2002.

PERFECT 10: Alex Kerins had his team-leading 10-game hit streak ended when he went hitless in Saturday's first game against Wright State. The 10-game hit streak matched the highest by a Viking this season, joining Tom Carter and Bobby Cash who had 10-game hit streaks earlier this season.

POWER SURGE: CSU is ranked second in the Horizon League with 43 homeruns, nearly doubling its homerun total of 24 last season. Individually, Alex Kerins ranks second in the conference with 11 homeruns, while Kyle Bischof is fourth with eighth and Josh Geric tied for sixth with seven.

CLOSE CALLS: The Vikings have been involved in several close games this season, as evidenced by their 4-9 record in one-run games. In fact, five of CSU's 11 league losses are by one run. The Vikings had lost six straight one run games, but have won their last two, including a 9-8 win over Youngstown State on April 26.

WHAT CAN BROWN DO FOR YOU?: Junior John Brown has made the most of his opportunity over the last three weeks. After not starting since March 15, Brown was called upon as a pinch hitter against Butler on April 20 in the first game of a doubleheader and responded with the game-winning walk-off double. He has started the next 13 games at designated hitter, going 12-for-45 (.267) with seven runs, 10 RBI, four doubles and one homerun.

IN RELIEF: Drew Fronczek has quietly had a solid season out of the bullpen for CSU, leading the team with a 2.18 ERA and a 3-2 record in 33 innings of work. He has given up just 11 runs (eight earned) with 21 strikeouts and one save. Over his last nine appearances, Fronczek has worked 11.1 innings, giving up just two runs and fanning 10.

KERINS' BIG YEAR: Alex Kerins has been one of the top offensive producers in the conference this season, ranking first in the league in RBI (50), second in homeruns (11), third in slugging percentage (.618) and total bases (110), sixth in hits (62) and eighth in doubles (15). Over the last 14 games, Kerins has gone 24-for-54 (.444) with 16 runs, 14 runs batted in, six doubles and two homeruns during that time. Earlier this season, he tied a school-record with three homeruns in a win at Eastern Michigan (April 7) also finishing with seven RBI. He leads the team with 20 multiple hit games, including three straight, and 15 multiple RBI games.

CASH FLOWING IN LEAGUE PLAY: Senior Bobby Cash has been a tough out in league games this season, batting .406 (26-64) with five runs, three doubles, one triple, one homerun and eight RBI in the 18 Horizon League games he has played in. He has at least one hit in 16 of those games and nearly hit for the cycle against Youngstown State on April 25, coming up a double shy.

THE CATALYST: Junior Brad Buell has been nothing short of spectacular as CSU's leadoff hitter this season, reaching base safely in 42 of 45 games. He ranks third in the league in runs scored (51), sixth in hits (62) and seventh in batting average (.354). Over the last nine games, Buell has gone 17-for-33 (.515) with 11 runs and four RBI, recording multiple hits in six of those games. In an April 22 extra inning win over Canisius, Buell drove in the game-winning run with a one-out, walk-off double. Buell was inserted into the game in the sixth inning after arriving late due to class.

CLUTCH RBI'S: The Vikings have driven in 248 runs this season with 106 of those, or 43-percent, coming with two outs. Alex Kerins leads the way with 20 two-out RBI, while Kyle Bischof has 17 and Bobby Cash 13.

ON THE RUN: The Vikings have swiped a school-record and lead the league with 93 stolen bases this season, shattering the old mark of 74 set in 1995. Brad Buell leads the team and is first in the conference with 20 stolen bases, needing five more to break the school-record of 24 stolen bases by Tim Miller in 1980. Alex Kerins (16) and Bobby Cash (15) have also totaled double-digit stolen bases, ranking third and fourth in the conference, respectively.

BISH "OFF" THE HOOK: Very few players in the Horizon League have been as consistent at the plate as senior Kyle Bischof this season as the leftfielder has reached base safely in 40 of 45 games, ranking fourth in the league in homeruns (8), fifth in RBI (43) and seventh in walks (20). After hitting a homerun in five straight games (March 29-April 5), Bischof went 18 games without another homer until he drilled a two-run shot to rightfield on April 26 against Youngstown State.

TURNING TWO: CSU has been able to get out of several jams this season with a league-leading 53 double plays. The Vikings were ranked seventh in the nation in the latest statistics for double plays per game (1.29).

THIS SEASON IS A HIT: Last season, the CSU offense gave its pitchers little or no run support, hitting just .258 as a team and scoring just 203 runs in 58 games (3.50 runs per game). Bobby Cash led the team with a .272 average last season. In 45 games this season, the Vikings are hitting .290 and have already scored 278 runs (6.17 rpg) as six everday players are hitting higher than .272, including four players hitting at a .300 clip or higher.

ON DECK: CSU will compete in the 2008 Horizon League Baseball Championship, Presented by U.S. Army, from May 20-25 at Eastwood Field in Youngstown.