April 14, 2008
SEWARD COLLECTS 23 HITS IN D.H. SWEEP OVER GARDEN CITY
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Tyler Binkley
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Seward County Community College received back-to-back complete games from Tyler Binkley and Austin Terhune, and the Saints hitters compiled 23 base hits in a Jayhawk West Conference doubleheader sweep over Garden City Community College on Monday afternoon at Brent Gould Field in Liberal. The Saints cruised to a 13-0 victory in game one, and Terhune picked up his second-straight complete game with a 9-3 win in the series finale. The doubleheader sweep gives the Saints the series victory over Garden City after the two squads split a doubleheader on Sunday afternoon. The Saints improve to 29-13 overall, and they are alone in first place in the Jayhawk West with a 20-4 league mark. Garden City slips to 19-21 overall and to 10-14 in the Jayhawk West. Seward County has now won 18 of its last 19 games overall.
The Saints remain one game ahead of Hutchinson Community College (29-11, 19-5) in the league race after HCC completed a four-game series sweep over Pratt Community College on Monday afternoon in Pratt. The Blue Dragons will host the Saints for a Jayhawk West showdown this weekend (April 19-20) at Hobart-Detter Field in Hutchinson.
Seward County’s offense tallied 11 base hits (six extra-base hits) in game one, which featured a nine run third inning. Sophomore catcher David Masters hit his team-leading fifth home run in the bottom of the first inning to give the Saints a 2-0 lead. Sophomore Erik Hansen followed with a two-run double to increase the Saints’ lead to 4-0 after one inning.
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Erik Hansen
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The nine-run second frame included eight base hits and 13 plate appearances for Seward County. Masters posted his second and third hit of the game in the inning with a run-scoring double to left field and a two-run RBI single to center field. The Saints had a string of six consecutive batters that recorded a RBI in the inning.
Sophomore right-handed pitcher Tyler Binkley shutdown the Broncbuster’s offense scattering five base hits and issuing three walks with five strikeouts in his first career complete-game shutout. Binkley improves to 1-2 (two saves) with a 3.58 earned run average in 32.2 innings pitched this season.
Masters led all players going 3-for-4 with two runs scored and five RBI. Sophomore third baseman Austin Roff went 2-for-2 with two runs and a RBI while Hansen finished 1-for-3 with three RBI.
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Keegan Morrow
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Austin Terhune
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In game two, the Busters grabbed their only lead of the day scoring on a Saints’ throwing error in the first inning to take the 1-0 lead.
SCCC regained the lead for good in the bottom of the first inning manufacturing three runs on two base hits and two players reaching base on a walk. Sophomore Will Gowdy and Hansen each collected RBI singles in the inning.
Seward’s offense batted .434 on the afternoon and recorded 12 base hits in the game-two victory. The Saints also scored a run in the third and fourth innings, three runs in the fifth and a run in the sixth inning.
Saints’ lead-off hitter Keegan Morrow finished the game 2-for-4 with a double, triple and two RBI. Roff tallied his second-straight multi-hit game going 2-for-4 with two runs scored, and freshman Caleb Nine went 3-for-3 with a double, triple and two RBI for Seward County.
Terhune, who also tossed a complete game against Dodge City last weekend, allowed seven hits, three runs (one earned) and struck out five in the victory. The Saints pitching staff has lowered its team ERA to 3.73 while allowing only one earned run on Monday.
The Saints will play their final road non-conference doubleheader on Wednesday, April 16, traveling to Clarendon College (31-6) for a 1 p.m. scheduled first pitch.
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Tomas Cruz
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Christian
Kowalchuk
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NOTES:
Throughout recent years the Saints baseball program has typically hit their stride during the middle of March through the middle of April. Going back to the 2000-20001 season, Seward County has a record of 146-55 (.726) in games played between March 15-April 15. This season has been the Saints best among those years with a 21-3 record during that time span.
Seward County had its 16-game winning streak snapped on Sunday during a 4-1 loss in game two verses Garden City… It was the Saints second-longest winning streak in the past five seasons, dating back to the longest streak in the program’s history during the 2004 season (21-game winning streak, March 10-April 9).
The Saints recorded their 20th Jayhawk West Conference victory in game two on Monday, marking the 10th time in the last 12 years they have won at least 20 conference games… Seward County is also nearing its 30th overall victory of the season… With their next victory, head coach Galen McSpadden will have guided SCCC to 16 straight seasons with at least 30 wins, and to 19 seasons overall with at least 30 victories in his 27 years as head coach of the Saints.
Saints’ pitchers Christian Kowalchuk and Tomas Cruz have moved into the top 10 all-time in SCCC history for career strikeouts with 115 and 109, respectively… Kowalchuk currently ranks ninth while Cruz is six strikeouts behind at 10th all-time… Cruz has also cracked the Saints’ all-time top 10 list in career winning percentage (13-4 - .765, sixth place), career wins (13, tied for eighth place), career complete games (8, tied for seventh place) and career innings pitched (118, sixth place)… Kowalchuk has also entered several career record books ranking in career winning percentage (13-5 - .722, ninth place), career wins (13, tied for eighth place) and innings pitched (122.1, fifth place).
