I thought the baseball team deserved their own thread, seeing as they currently have the nation's longest active winning streak! They take on the University of Hawaii this weekend. Good luck guys! :thumbsup:
I'm glad Okinawa started this thread. I believe the BB team started the season 1-17; they are now 15-21, including 9-3 in the Horizon. They have a couple of big conference series coming up, and if they do well, there is a possibility VU could snag its first conference championship. Think about that...from 1-17 to conference champs. The coach and the team should be congratulated for not throwing in the towel after the (consistently and surprisingly tough) spring break schedule.
Paul
The team is definitely doing well after a tough non-conference schedule. I think we did well enough in the non-conference side, though the record didn't show it. We played some good CA teams close for most of the games, and I think kept UNLV close. If we can take 1 of 3 from Hawaii in Hawaii, I would say that we did well! Hawaii only lost by 1 to Texas, who is always in the top 10 each year, and has played several other tough teams close. Congrats on the 9 game winning streak Coach Woodson! I have always been proud to contribute to the baseball program since I graduated/played, and I/other baseball alumni would love to be able to say that we are in the NCAA tournament some day :-).
Quote from: valpotx on April 20, 2011, 02:38:48 AM
The team is definitely doing well after a tough non-conference schedule. I think we did well enough in the non-conference side, though the record didn't show it. We played some good CA teams close for most of the games, and I think kept UNLV close. If we can take 1 of 3 from Hawaii in Hawaii, I would say that we did well! Hawaii only lost by 1 to Texas, who is always in the top 10 each year, and has played several other tough teams close. Congrats on the 9 game winning streak Coach Woodson! I have always been proud to contribute to the baseball program since I graduated/played, and I/other baseball alumni would love to be able to say that we are in the NCAA tournament some day :-).
Nice to have you back TX! You haven't posted in a while. My daughter and family just moved to Frisco so maybe when I'm down visiting we can connect!
Sure, Frisco is not far at all, maybe 40 minutes from the mid-cities where I live.
On the baseball front, I am glad that I don't have to go into work tomorrow, as we are beating Hawaii by 2 in the 8th right now!! This would be a good victory for us! Not to the level of when we beat Notre Dame when they were ranked #1 in 2001, but big nonetheless :-).
Wow, looked like quite an ending based on live stats, that ended in a W! Up by 2 in the bottom of the 9th and 1 out, runner on 2nd and third. Guy doubles to score one run, and we throw the second guy out at home for the second out. Last guy strikes out to take the win. Must have been quite a celebration to end like that. Congrats on 10 in a row and a great victory!
I went to bed in the 7th, shortly after Justin Frane ran out of gas, but he pitched a great game on the islands. Gaedele had a towering shot in 2nd, but it was cool to listen to the game with the Hawaii announcer actually showing interest in doing a great job by pronouncing Valparaiso correctly, and having all of his game preparation in order. I admit, I was upset that I missed the end of the game, but it was fun to listen and chat with fans on the chat feature Ryan Wronkowicz was providing for some fun in game commentary. Check it out tonight or tomorrow night, if you're able to stay up that late.
Great weekend guys! 2 out of 3 from Hawaii is an awesome accomplishment!
Uh...most of you probably know this, but right now our baseball team is in first place in the league. A couple of big series coming up! We can win this thing!
Paul
ps I have heard down through the years that our team in the early to mid 60s had a chance to advance to the final round of the college baseball championships, but lost 1-0 on a steal of home in the 9th inning. Do you any you older guys know whether this is true or not? Thanks
I hate to throw "cold water" on your enthusiasm but the mens basketball team was in first place late in the season and looked what happened. Don't get too over excited by a first place team. Remember this is Valpo, the last place school in the Horizon League all-sports standings.
Hopefully they can continue their success down the stretch. Maybe some nice weather for home games will keep them inspired.
Drove by the field and caught a glimpse of the scoreboard from 30, looked like an 11-4 victory today in the late game!
Here is the key for the baseball team. Today, Sunday 5/1/11, they take on 9-30 (2-14 in the HL) last place Cleveland State Vikings in a double header at Em Bauer Field. Then next Saturday/Sunday, 5/7 and 5/8/11 they take on Wright State in Dayton/Fairborn, OH, who currently hold first place in the HL by a half game over Valpo, in a 3 game series. Then the Saturday after that on 5/14/11 they play Milwaukee in a 2 game series in Valpo Then 2 games against UIC in Chicago on 5/15/11. The Crusaders finish against Milwaukee in Milwaukee with 3 games on Saturday/Sunday 5/19 and 5/20/11. There is a non-conf. game against N.Illinois on Tuesday, 5/3/11 in DeKalb, IL. Milwaukee and UIC are tied for third 2.5 games behind Wright State and 2 games behind Valpo.
Basically the Crusaders play the 3 teams they are battling for first in the HL 9 times before the end of the season with Butler, Cleveland State and Youngstown playing key games against our opponents also.
So if you really want to cheer the baseball team on to first place in the Horizon League get out today and see them take on CSU in 2 games and then the 2 games against Milwaukee on 5/14/11 at Em Bauer Field. You could also drive to Dayton and see the 3 games against 1st place Wright State on 5/7 and 5/8/11 and then to Chicago for 2 games against UIC on 5/15/11 and Milwaukee on 5/19 and 5/20/11 for 3 big games if you feel the fever. Go Valpo! A championship is in reach.
Good hard fought wins today! I think we are in first again by 1/2 a game, as WSU split with Butler. You are definitely correct that we have some key series coming up. It is times like these I wish I was located closer, as I would love to see the 3 game set at WSU. It is just amazing that not too long ago we were 1-17, and now 20-23! If, and this is a big if, we get to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1977 (D-2 I believe), I am there!
Just to put into perspective the wins against Hawaii, they have won the first 2 games against Fresno State in their 4 game set, which is a team with a recent NCAA championship, and current rpi of 25...
I understand Wright State had a runner on third when the Butler relief pitcher got the final out in the bottom of the 7th inning. The final score was 6-5 Butler so it was a real close game. Butler scored 5 runs in the 2nd inning while WSU scored 3 runs in the 6th inning to make the game close. The second game WSU won 5-3. There was no scoring after the top of the 4th inning and this one they decided to play as a nine inning game. Butler scored all 3 of their runs in the 1st inning. WSU scored in the 1st, 2nd & 4th innings.
Valpo with the double header wins takes over 1st place again 1/2 game ahead of WSU. UIC won 2 games from Youngstown and stay 2 games behind Valpo. Milwaukee did not play on Sunday and moves to 3 games back of Valpo.
Cleveland State decided to drop baseball next year. I wonder if Coach Woodson saw any players he wants and is trying to recruit them now. The announcement was made on the Tuesday after Valpo played CSU on Sunday.
I wonder how this impacts the NCAA auto-bid, with only 6 teams going to be playing? I thought you needed 7 to be able to keep it....
Quote from: valpotx on May 06, 2011, 01:36:29 AM
I wonder how this impacts the NCAA auto-bid, with only 6 teams going to be playing? I thought you needed 7 to be able to keep it....
This is the NCAA rule for most sports. Basketball has different rules due to the amount of money that is generated by the tournament.
For NCAA championship qualification in a sport, 6 of the member institutions must have played together for at least the last 2 years. But, this only applies to playing in a championship and not the regular season. In other words, they could play and would be recognized by the NCAA, but they wouldn't be able to participate in an NCAA championship or post-season tournament until they meet the 2 year requirement.By the way the Valpo at Wright State doubleheader was moved up 2 hours and begins at 11:00 am EDT/10:00 am CDT today.
EDIT: The game is being lived streamed and the Crusaders lead 3-0 in the top of the first inning as I write this.
Watching both games today, and for the first time actually getting to see Gaedele, he is pretty impressive. Even his outs are hard hit baseballs, and he dropped a nice bomb to take the lead in this one. Our starting pitchers are work horses, as they seem to go 7+ innings every game! Coach Woodson must take the MLB approach (makes sense having played pro ball) in getting the most out of your starters even if they struggle early.
So in your interpretation, does the Great West conference (or whatever Chicago State is in now) get a bid in baseball now? I believe those teams have played together for a few years.
Quote from: valpotx on May 07, 2011, 03:14:49 PM
So in your interpretation, does the Great West conference (or whatever Chicago State is in now) get a bid in baseball now? I believe those teams have played together for a few years.
This is the Great West Conference's 2nd year as an 8 team baseball conference so next year, 2011-2012, they will have had at least 6 schools together for 2 years and they will qualify for the NCAA tourney. I think 20-20 (12-1 in Great West) Utah Valley qualifies for an NCAA tournament birth just as much as 23-17 (12-5 in Summit League) Oral Roberts or 22-19 (10-4 in OVC) Austin Peay.
OR 21-25 (13-5) ValpoI think the fact that the Great West Conference carries Chicago State 7-33 influences how you feel about the Great West. The Summit League carries Oakland 12-25 and the Ohio Valley carries Morehead State 7-33.
The Horizon carries Cleveland State 9-34 at least till the end of the year.
Actually, I wasn't implying anything about the quality of the team qualifying, it was just a curiousity if that conference finally gets a bid to something in NCAA lol.
Tough loss today in a game that we should have won. 4 errors that led to runs. Kind of confused by the bottom of the 9th inning, in that with one out and a runner on second in a tied game, we chose to pitch to the hitter rather than walk him to get a force situation. Guy hits it deep to CF for an out to move the runner to third with 2 outs (one of their better hitters), and then a dribbler up the middle wins it the next AB. Regardless, we have shown we can beat anyone in this league, and no one will be looking forward to playing us in the conference tournament no matter our seed.
Last home double header of the season today. Senior Day. 4th place Milwaukee comes to Em Bauer Field.
Currently Milwaukee is 2 games behind 2nd place Valpo which trails WSU by a half game. UIC has thrust themselves in the middle of the conference race by beating last place CSU twice. The Flames are currently a half game behind the Crusaders in third place.
So obviously Valpo must keep winning this weekend or they will quickly find themselves in 4th place similar to the mens basketball team this season. Valpo plays 2 against UIC tomorrow, Sunday.
Wright State plays 2 against CSU in Cleveland today and 2 against 6th place YSU in Youngstown Sunday. So don't expect much help catching up with the Raiders this weekend.
Milwaukee after todays 2 games against Valpo comes down to Indy to play 2 games against Butler on Sunday.
Go Valpo! Let's win a Horizon League championship THIS year!!!!
Just what you cautioned against happened lol. I believe we are now in 4th after leading both games for most of the time, and then losing it in the later innings. Oh well, let's win some on the road, and we can beat anyone in the tourney!
Valpo loses both games to Milwaukee by the same score of 7-3. Cleveland State did manage to beat Wright State in the 2nd game of their doubleheader, 13-11, and split. WSU stays in first, UIC is now in second 1 game back, Milwaukee and Valpo are tied for third 1.5 games back.
Apparently the Valpo defense was not very good today allowing 2 errors in each game. Beating UIC twice in Chicago would help make up some of the ground lost today.
Both doubleheaders, Valpo at UIC and Wright State at Youngstown State were rained out today. Milwaukee lost their first game to Butler 2-1. The second game was called with the score tied 11-11 so that game goes down same as a cancelled game. Therefore WSU stays in first place, 1 game ahead of UIC, Valpo stays in third, 1.5 games out and Milwaukee drops to 4th place with the one game loss. The Panthers are 2 games out.
Valpo will play one game at Milwaukee this coming Thursday and a doubleheader Friday.
Youngstown State plays one game at UIC Thursday and also plays a doubleheader Friday.
Butler also plays one game at Wright State Thursday and a doubleheader Friday.
EDIT: I did notice that the Horizon League website gave both Butler and Milwaukee a half of a win and a half of a loss for the 11-11 tie game.
Valpo drops third straight to Milwaukee 4-3 in 10 innings. No errors this game but not enough timely hitting. McCormick did a good job on the mound but didn't start the 10th. Valpo must win both games Friday, tomorrow in order to stay ahead of Milwaukee. Wright State is leading Butler 3-0 in the top of the 2nd.
Results from Thursday:
UIC 5, YSU 1
WSU 13, Butler 5
UWM 4, Valpo 3 (10 innings)
Not a good day for Valpo. They fall to 4th and need both wins to stay ahead of Milwaukee
WSU is in 1st, UIC is 1 game behind in 2nd, UWM is 2 games out in 3rd and Valpo is 2.5 games out in 4th.
We are not catching any breaks the last several weeks. I believe we have had a couple of last inning losses recently, including today. It seems we always jump on top early in the game, and cough up the lead as it progresses...
It seems to me that Woodson can bring a program to respectability but can't win the big ones when they count. Can you guys who follow the program address this a bit more?
Also, does Lasorda post here? I know he is a big VU backer and figured he might show up round these parts from time to time.
Quote from: dcvalpo on May 20, 2011, 11:19:06 PM
It seems to me that Woodson can bring a program to respectability but can't win the big ones when they count. Can you guys who follow the program address this a bit more?
Also, does Lasorda post here? I know he is a big VU backer and figured he might show up round these parts from time to time.
are coach woodson's days numbered? i mean, he may have bridged some gaps. but is he the long term answer? do we have anybody closer to the program who can affirm whether or not woodson will be the guy to trust the program with long term?
I think Woodson will see some recruiting success since he has taken the program over the .500 mark. It takes a while for high school and junior college players to notice the difference and start to make the committments once they see the consistency. I realize this year they are 22-30 so far but that is with an upgraded schedule. I really believe they will get better defense and more timely hitting in the future. The wins in Hawaii and at Cal St. Northridge will go a long way. I think you can say that the baseball team mirrored the MBB team in results this year. In first place late in the season and then a big dip in Wisconsin and they finished fourth. I think the baseball team takes enough positives into next season that we can look for improvement. Some players will leave but the coaching staff will replace them.
Quote from: bbtds on May 21, 2011, 09:28:08 PM
I think Woodson will see some recruiting success since he has taken the program over the .500 mark. It takes a while for high school and junior college players to notice the difference and start to make the committments once they see the consistency. I realize this year they are 22-30 so far but that is with an upgraded schedule. I really believe they will get better defense and more timely hitting in the future. The wins in Hawaii and at Cal St. Northridge will go a long way. I think you can say that the baseball team mirrored the MBB team in results this year. In first place late in the season and then a big dip in Wisconsin and they finished fourth. I think the baseball team takes enough positives into next season that we can look for improvement. Some players will leave but the coaching staff will replace them.
that win streak in the middle of the season was pretty awesome. a good positive highlight for the year.
Coach Woodson is bringing in the right people. We are in a more competitive league overall in baseball (ORU was the only stand-out in Summit when we were there), which can lead to some of these close losses. It is nice to have a chance to get to NCAA, because ORU has dominated the tourney in Mid-
Con/Summit. If we played a patsy non-conference schedule, we could easily be above .500, but Woodson realizes the value in playing Western and Southern teams. By playing the harder teams early on, it allows our players to get amped for competitive ball right away, so I approve.
Baseball just put together a dominant 9-0 win over Butler in the first game of the tournament. We had at least 18 hits in today's game, including 17 singles and a Steve Scooby triple. We'll play either Wright State or UIC next. Stay tuned to the Valpo website for details. Video of all the tournament games is available on the HLN site, although the video is choppy due to technical issues and weather in Dayton.
Baseball America just ranked Kyle Gaedele the 87th ranked prospect in the 2011 draft. I'm guessing he gets picked in the Top 5 rounds.
The baseball team will be playing UIC at 3PM. The video is available for this game on HLN. It could still be choppy, depending on the weather in Dayton. Otherwise, Ryan will have the live blog for questions, comments, and more in-depth play-by-play.
Quote from: valporun on May 26, 2011, 10:15:43 AM
The baseball team will be playing UIC at 3PM. The video is available for this game on HLN. It could still be choppy, depending on the weather in Dayton. Otherwise, Ryan will have the live blog for questions, comments, and more in-depth play-by-play.
VU website indicates it's been PPD. Rescheduled for tomorrow at 12:30, looks like.
Where's this blog you speak of located?
Baseballamerica has Kyle Gaedele listed as the 87th ranked player in the upcoming draft.
You're about 2 hours late there 75! But it's worthy of being restated.
Wow, that would be quite a feat if he is drafted in the first 5 rounds as they speculate. I believe our highest draft pick was in the 21st round, but that is only my knowledge since I was involved in the program from 1999-2004 (when was Lloyd Mc taken?). Brian Wolotka was taken by the TB Rays after 1 year at VU (transferred from Butler after 2 years).
Quote from: StlVUFan on May 26, 2011, 02:21:48 PM
Quote from: valporun on May 26, 2011, 10:15:43 AM
The baseball team will be playing UIC at 3PM. The video is available for this game on HLN. It could still be choppy, depending on the weather in Dayton. Otherwise, Ryan will have the live blog for questions, comments, and more in-depth play-by-play.
VU website indicates it's been PPD. Rescheduled for tomorrow at 12:30, looks like.
Where's this blog you speak of located?
Stl, the live blog is located in the story about the game, as it is going on. It's difficult to explain, but in the rotating window of stories on the athletic website, you'll see something about the game, and it will say something about Ryan live blogging the game.
So, for today's game, it's embedded at
http://www.valpoathletics.com/news/default/173/10850/ (http://www.valpoathletics.com/news/default/173/10850/)
Looks like the same service they use over at midmajority.
Quote from: agibson on May 27, 2011, 11:06:55 AM
So, for today's game, it's embedded at
http://www.valpoathletics.com/news/default/173/10850/ (http://www.valpoathletics.com/news/default/173/10850/)
Looks like the same service they use over at midmajority.
Thanks!
We've got some work to do down 9-8 in the 7th.
Good job guys! Just two more victories and we are to the promised land :-)
Followed it on the live blog while I worked and thoroughly enjoyed it, though for awhile I was having Sox-Twins flashbacks.
So, I assume they play the winner of the WSU-YSU game?
Yes, and if we beat that team, we are in the championship game(s)
Quote from: StlVUFan on May 27, 2011, 04:54:04 PM
Followed it on the live blog while I worked and thoroughly enjoyed it, though for awhile I was having Sox-Twins flashbacks.
So, I assume they play the winner of the WSU-YSU game?
We play Wright State tomorrow at 2PM.
During the Champions League final! Will have to check in now and then. Good luck!
Valpo is in the finals tomorrow against Wright State. We need to beat them twice now to win the championship. I believe that would be Valpo's first HL championship in any sport. The last two games with WSU have been tough 1 run heartbreakers for us maybe we are due to turn it around. WSU has the highest team batting average in NCAA D1 this year - can this be true? Nobody under .300 on the roster? Let's see if our guys and pull it out. Go Valpo!
Go Crusaders!
Quote from: valporun on May 27, 2011, 09:42:41 PM
We play Wright State tomorrow at 2PM.
The game is at 11 AM. If Valpo wins, a second game will be played at 3 PM.
Well, we went down 4-3 for the second time to Wright State so they win it and we get second. A very solid year.
This is our fourth second place finish in the Horizon, with Volleyball getting two, women's soccer one and now our first men's runner up.
We are getting there--we all knew it would be a step up-- but just wait till next year.... ;)
good progress and solid season as mentioned.
Great season by our team, especially after that 1-17 start! I will take a 25-32 and tournament runner-up finish any day with that kind of beginning. Big things to come in the coming years for baseball, and Woodson really understand the type of kids to recruit, and how to manage the pitching rotation. I really like how he applies our pitching like they do in the pros, with pushing the starter as long as he can, and then bringing up a set-up and closer.
Congrats to the baseball team on a fine result!
I did tune in to a bit of one or two of the tournament games. Was the camera work about average for the Horizon League? The picture quality was very good, in terms of streaming issues, etc.
But, it seemed to be one camera, shooting from behind the plate and to the left (OK) but from _behind_ the net! So, we had a grid superimposed on the picture.
Hardly an ideal setup for baseball. I suppose I'm spoiled by MLB. No question it was fun to have the live stream available. So, I don't intend it as a strong complaint - but I was a bit surprised by the net.
I also found that too much was happening off camera. Not enough movement (or not quick enough).
The netting didn't bother me.
Quote from: valpotx on May 29, 2011, 08:36:25 PM
Great season by our team, especially after that 1-17 start! I will take a 25-32 and tournament runner-up finish any day with that kind of beginning. Big things to come in the coming years for baseball, and Woodson really understand the type of kids to recruit, and how to manage the pitching rotation. I really like how he applies our pitching like they do in the pros, with pushing the starter as long as he can, and then bringing up a set-up and closer.
I just wanted to point out how much I appreciate your baseball insights tx! Not too often do we get a former player with a lot of sport-specific knowledge around here...you add a ton to this boarD!!
Quote from: vu72 on May 29, 2011, 12:15:22 PM
Well, we went down 4-3 for the second time to Wright State so they win it and we get second. A very solid year.
This is our fourth second place finish in the Horizon, with Volleyball getting two, women's soccer one and now our first men's runner up.
We are getting there--we all knew it would be a step up-- but just wait till next year.... ;)
Congrats to the team on a fine HL season. I'm looking forward to competing for a top 2-3 finish every season.
Bumb!! ;D
Quote from: dcvalpo on May 20, 2011, 11:19:06 PM
It seems to me that Woodson can bring a program to respectability but can't win the big ones when they count. Can you guys who follow the program address this a bit more?
Also, does Lasorda post here? I know he is a big VU backer and figured he might show up round these parts from time to time.
Hey, I never got an answer to this...anyone have any info????
I would doubt that Lasorda posts here, but you never know. He used to come by the field when he was in area when I was on the team the first two years, but stopped after that probably as he was getting older
I'm a new Valpo baseball fan and thought I'd post here to start to get a feel for this Forum. Hopefully I can pick up a little knowledge from the regulars here. The 2011-2012 baseball team has 35 on the roster. Of those 35, 18 are new to the program. Some are freshmen but many are transfers. I know the kids are having a great first week getting to know each other. The team is headed out to Gary for a Railcats game tomorrow night. Fall ball practices also start this week. Looking forward to a Horizon League championship run from this team in 2012....