| Cody Koback is a threat both at the plate and on
the mound for UW-Stevens Point. Photo by Larry Radloff, d3photography.com |
By Ricky Nelson
for D3sports.com
As it did last season, Pool C recipient UW-Whitewater will host WIAC champion UW-Stevens Point, UMAC champion St. Scholastica, Pool C qualifier St. Thomas and NATHC champion Aurora. Games will be played at Prucha Field at James B. Miller Stadium in Whitewater, Wis.
The newcomer to newly dedicated Miller Stadium is Hamline, the MIAC automatic qualifier. All six of the teams were regionally ranked this season, but that's where most similarities end. Sixth-seeded Aurora creates havoc on the bases with its 138 steals and .421 team on-base percentage. Fifth-seeded St. Thomas hasn't ceded 10 runs since March and wins a lot of close games.
Fourth-seeded Hamline throws strikes and finds a way to get on
base. Third-seeded St. Scholastica has obliterated teams by an
average score of 10-3, and its five losses were by a combined six
runs. Second-seeded UW-Whitewater relies heavily on its top four
hitters and its top two pitchers, who have accounted for 18 of the
Warhawks' 32 wins. Top-seeded UW-Stevens Point plays old country
hardball with strikeout pitchers and a lineup that has its top five
batters hitting between .395 and .455.
Favorite: Stevens Point. The
Pointers have won 13 straight and 20 of their last 21 games.
Stevens Point has three front-line starters in Scott Williams, Joel
Delorit and Cody Koback, and one of the nation's best closers in
Ryan Iverson. The Pointers lineup rakes at a .346 clip while
scoring more than eight runs per game and has a nationally top-10
defense with a .971 fielding percentage. That equals a favorite.
Not a resounding favorite in a tight regional field of familiar
teams, but a slight favorite to return to Appleton for the fourth
time in six years.
Most likely to disappoint: St.
Scholastica. The Saints split two pitcher's duels at
UW-Whitewater this season, but that was with St. Scholastica's top
two starters against Whitewater's No. 3 or 4 and another who made
his only start of the season to date. If the favorite is Stevens
Point, one of the other two higher seeds must be most likely to
disappoint. Add the head-to-head matchups with the fact that
Whitewater is 18-2 at home this season, and St. Scholastica is the
pick.
Cinderella: Hamline. The Pipers
won the MIAC tournament for the first time, beating crosstown rival
St. Thomas in the championship. Hamline doesn't have gaudy numbers
– opponents actually out-hit the Pipers by a slight margin
– Hamline simply wins. A regional title would be a surprise,
but so was the MIAC title to a certain degree. Picked to finish
fifth in the conference, Jason Verdugo's upperclassman-led squad
could be somewhat overlooked at this regional as well. But this
team has won 23 of its last 27 games for a reason.
Players to Watch
OF/P Cody Koback, UW-Stevens Point (.422 AVG, .518 OBP, 68 R,
16-18 SB; 5-1, 3.58 ERA)
OF Joe Link, St. Scholastica (.371 AVG, 51 R, 3 HR, 37 RBI, 41-41
SB)
OF Daniel Putnam, UW-Whitewater (.438 AVG, .525 OBP, 56 R, 27-32
SB)
P Cass Kreitlow, Hamline (8-1, 3.39 ERA, 4 CG, 52 K in 58.1 IP,
.224 OBA)
P Kris Edwards, St. Thomas (4-4, 2.97 ERA, .207 OBA, 63 K in 63.2
IP)
OF Josh Davidson, Aurora (.435 AVG, .495 OBP, 46 R, 37-42 SB)