Baseball Hosts Lourdes Friday and Saturday at Madonna

COMPLETE WEEK NINE GAME NOTES (PDF)

FRIDAY, MAY 1
Marygrove (2-41, 1-31 WHAC) vs. Lourdes University (12-33, 6-23 WHAC)
Time: 2 p.m. (doubleheader)
Location: Ilitch Ballpark at the Madonna Athletic Complex – Livonia, Mich.
Coverage: Live Video | Live Stats (1:50 p.m.)

SATURDAY, MAY 2
Marygrove (2-41, 1-31 WHAC) vs. Lourdes University (12-33, 6-23 WHAC)
Time: 2 p.m. (doubleheader)
Location: Ilitch Ballpark at the Madonna Athletic Complex – Livonia, Mich.
Coverage: Live Video | Live Stats (1:50 p.m.)

BY THE NUMBERS
1: The Mustangs have connected on two home runs this season, both coming off the bat of sophomore Raleigh Wilson (Harrison Twp., Mich./West Texas College). Wilson’s pair of long bombs double that of Lourdes’ team total, one (1). The sophomore connected on a pair of no-doubters against Aquinas on April 18, sending both well over the left-center wall.

2: Join us Saturday (May 2) as we celebrate Senior Day 2015. Despite being a young team in its first season of play, the Mustangs have two (2) seniors on the roster: James Edwards (Detroit, Mich./Shaw University) and Chris Gittleman (Windsor, Ontario/Trinity Christian College). The seniors will be honored with a brief ceremony between games Saturday.

3: As the season nears a close, three (3) Mustangs have played their respective positions cleanly, earning a perfect fielding percentage for the effort. Pitchers Daniel Bailey (Harrison Twp., Mich./L’Anse Creuse High School) and Tyler Sykes, and catcher D.J. Wade (Southfield, Mich./University High School) have been stellar defensively, each posting a 1.000 fielding mark.

THE END OF SEASON NUMBER ONE
The 2015 campaign will conclude this weekend with a four-game set against fellow Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) counterpart, Lourdes University, closing the books on a historic first season at for the Detroit-based program. The 2015 campaign brought about plenty of highs and lows as the team won a pair of historic games, battled tough through injuries and grew together on-and-off the field.

BLANDFORD MAKES THE NEWS
Freshman utility man Trey Blandford (Louisville, Ky./Fern Creek High School) made waves – the airwaves to be exact – with a fantastic diving catch in foul territory to halt the at bat of the WHAC’s top hitter, Romer Portis. Blandford’s sprawling grab came in the third inning of Sunday’s first game. On a roll as of late, Blandford has recorded a hit in eight of his last 11 games played.

TOUGH COMPETITION
Head coach Ryan Kottke and the Mustangs have not backed down from day one, facing some of the NAIA’s top teams, including No. 3 Northwood (Fla.), No. 23 St. Thomas (Fla.), No. 24 Northwestern Ohio and lastly No. 2 Davenport (Mich.). The games against some of the nation’s top teams has allowed the young Mustangs to grow, evidenced by the Green and Gold’s recent close contests with fellow WHAC counterparts. The Mustangs were close to victory Saturday (April 25), taking Indiana Tech to extra innings.

UNDERWOOD’S FUTURE IS BRIGHT
It goes without saying, but the future of freshman right-handed pitcher Ryne Underwood (Louisville, Ky./Fern Creek High School) is bright, very bright. On Saturday (April 25), Underwood toss seven straight scoreless innings, helping the Mustangs take the red-hot Warriors into extra innings.

DID YOU KNOW?
The first hit in program history was recorded by David Chung. The freshman infielder broke up a potential no-hit bid in the first game of 2015 with a double down the left field line.

A LOOK AT THE LOURDES GRAY WOLVES
Fourth-year head coach Andy Ham’s Lourdes University squad will close out the 2015 season with a four-game set opposite the Mustangs on Friday and Saturday (May 1-2). The Gray Wolves are led by Garrett Jex with a .318 average and a .451 on-base percentage, while Andy Kefalos checks in with a team-high 10 doubles and .388 slugging percentage. A.J. Schraffenberger  (1-3, 4.57 ERA) will pitch game one Friday for the Gray Wolves.

KEY TO THE SERIES VS. LOURDES
The Lourdes-Marygrove series will feature a pair of teams that have struggled at the plate throughout the season. The Gray Wolves enter the week with a .222 team batting average compared to the Mustangs’ .204 mark. With the Mustangs’ young starting pitching on the rise as of late and Lourdes steady pitching, the team to break through on offense first will have the edge in the series.

RECRUITING IS ABOUT TO PICK UP
The 2015 recruiting class already boasts seven solid commitments: Michael Battista (Parkway Christian), Dallas Chicone (Port Huron Northern), Daniel Dayfield (Woodhaven), Joey Gignac (North Farmington), Nick LaFleur (Troy Athens), Scott Stubenrauch (Oxford) and Jared Walters (Ogemaw Heights). With international and junior college recruiting heating up, combined with a year of experience for current Mustangs, the 2016 edition of Marygrove baseball is primed to be a breakout season for the Green and Gold.

BASEBALL VS. OTHER FIRST YEAR TEAMS
At 2-41, the Mustangs are on target to achieve similar first-year status compared to other Marygrove teams outside of the year-one national champion women’s soccer team. Now a perennial power in the WHAC, the Mustang men’s soccer team finished their inaugural campaign 4-11 with no NAIA wins.

THANK YOU FOR A GREAT SEASON!
The Mustang Sports Network would like to thank all of our listeners and viewers from this season! The 2015 baseball season broke listener and viewer records game after game!

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