NAME DROPPING AND MANNING UP: TALES FROM DIRTBAGS AND TIGERS ON A MUST WIN WEEKEND
It is spring and on many college campuses back in my day a little streaking was a favorite with the kids. Then again, I suppose, it depends on what kind of streak you are on. For tonight’s guests from bucolic Stockton, the University of the Pacific baseball Tigers, color them unhappy streakers. The striped ones come in having lost six in a row and frankly are tired of opposing ranked teams like Cal, Fullerton and Long Beach.
Assembled in the other dugout, (assuming the plumbing works this weekend—if not on folding chairs out front) is a team that has seen the dark side of streaking up close and personal. On March 25 the Beach lost a 7-5 game to Pepperdine, the front end of a never to be repeated ten game road trip. Five more losses followed before an Andrew Liebel win at UCR, then another streak of four more beat downs. Unlike the contestants in that UFC deal, college teams can’t just “tap out” and go home. You play on. Fueled by some chicken soup for their Dirtbag soul (and no batting practice) last weekend LB pounded Northridge. They clearly need more of the same this weekend because the rest of the schedule has the three teams ahead of the Niners in the Big West, Davis, UCSB, and of course Fullerton. Toss in Cal Poly and mid week tests with Fresno, SDSU and the 2007 NCAA champs Oregon State, you gotta believe that every W is precious. End of sermon, now back to your regularly scheduled baseball game.
END DUST—In case you want to win a bar bet with one of those Joe Jost’s alumni mixologists coming in tomorrow (including old FBI guy Keith Cordes), ask them the last time UOP beat LB at Blair…it was a cool ten years ago in 1998, the last year the Niners made Omaha…back then the Tigers won 5-1 on a get-away Sunday in what would be a 43 win LBSU season which ended up in Rosenblatt with the elimination of Florida State and Miami…ASU ended the dream…in their last four contests UOP pitchers have been hit hard three times, 14, 15, and 11 runs allowed, then played CSUF tight in a 2-1 loss last Sunday…now some gems from the Pacific players blog done by Tiger BWC scholar athlete Brett Manning….”we couldn't get the hits we needed in key situations down the stretch…but the parents had another great BBQ after Sunday's game”…then before their fund raising golf tourney, “the weather was sunny, but a little chilly with the wind blowing. Bobby Wheeler had the big shot of the day getting a hole in one and a good chunk of change in his pocket for it”…then this note about playing at SLO, “our weekend was spent at gorgeous Shell Beach taking on Cal Poly…we stayed at The Cliffs Resort, right on the beach with breakfast every morning looking out over the ocean and the beach about 100 yards from our hotel. We went down in the mornings and explored the tide pools just below our hotel. We caught some crabs, saw a bunch of starfish and an eel” …now aren’t those kids a better read than BAs and ERAs?...required basketball note, Tricia Cullop, a popular LB women’s hoop assistant some years ago, continues to climb the coaching ladder and was just named head coach at Toledo…Joan Bonvicini, is a finalist along with Cori Close for the UCSB job and, if she gets it, expect Millikan’s star senior to switch from Arizona to Goleta…the volley lads wait until Sunday for a mercy vote after serving up a mess last night to Pepp
Now baseball and nothing else…UOP had no mid weeper but the Niners did losing to ninth-ranked San Diego…tomorrow is the Salute to the Services Day and Sunday the Salute to Animals Day…free admission tomorrow to any public safety worker or the military…in the BWC loss column the Niners are just one behind Fullerton (9-3), UC Santa Barbara (6-3) and UC Davis (6-3)…UCSB is at Cal Poly and Fullerton will host Davis…tonight’s mound match-up is Tyler Waldron (2-4, 4.74) challenging Andrew Liebel (4-2, 2.04) and hopefully his offense…LBSU's team ERA is 3.11, Pacific's 6.51 but the LB stats are eye-popping the third-best ERA in the nation and the fewest walks allowed per nine innings in the land…Liebel is 28th nationally in ERA and 23rd in strikeouts per nine innings (8.14)…in just BWC games resurgent Brandon Godfrey is hitting .379, Steve Tinoco, .364, Danny Espinosa, .343, and Peterson, the BWC POW leads the club in overall average (.373) and RBIs (39)…Jason Corder has nine home runs, a .325 average and 36 RBIs…our closing number is still pitching, LBSU is 18-1 when leading after six innings so score early and often—DR. DAN
Assembled in the other dugout, (assuming the plumbing works this weekend—if not on folding chairs out front) is a team that has seen the dark side of streaking up close and personal. On March 25 the Beach lost a 7-5 game to Pepperdine, the front end of a never to be repeated ten game road trip. Five more losses followed before an Andrew Liebel win at UCR, then another streak of four more beat downs. Unlike the contestants in that UFC deal, college teams can’t just “tap out” and go home. You play on. Fueled by some chicken soup for their Dirtbag soul (and no batting practice) last weekend LB pounded Northridge. They clearly need more of the same this weekend because the rest of the schedule has the three teams ahead of the Niners in the Big West, Davis, UCSB, and of course Fullerton. Toss in Cal Poly and mid week tests with Fresno, SDSU and the 2007 NCAA champs Oregon State, you gotta believe that every W is precious. End of sermon, now back to your regularly scheduled baseball game.
END DUST—In case you want to win a bar bet with one of those Joe Jost’s alumni mixologists coming in tomorrow (including old FBI guy Keith Cordes), ask them the last time UOP beat LB at Blair…it was a cool ten years ago in 1998, the last year the Niners made Omaha…back then the Tigers won 5-1 on a get-away Sunday in what would be a 43 win LBSU season which ended up in Rosenblatt with the elimination of Florida State and Miami…ASU ended the dream…in their last four contests UOP pitchers have been hit hard three times, 14, 15, and 11 runs allowed, then played CSUF tight in a 2-1 loss last Sunday…now some gems from the Pacific players blog done by Tiger BWC scholar athlete Brett Manning….”we couldn't get the hits we needed in key situations down the stretch…but the parents had another great BBQ after Sunday's game”…then before their fund raising golf tourney, “the weather was sunny, but a little chilly with the wind blowing. Bobby Wheeler had the big shot of the day getting a hole in one and a good chunk of change in his pocket for it”…then this note about playing at SLO, “our weekend was spent at gorgeous Shell Beach taking on Cal Poly…we stayed at The Cliffs Resort, right on the beach with breakfast every morning looking out over the ocean and the beach about 100 yards from our hotel. We went down in the mornings and explored the tide pools just below our hotel. We caught some crabs, saw a bunch of starfish and an eel” …now aren’t those kids a better read than BAs and ERAs?...required basketball note, Tricia Cullop, a popular LB women’s hoop assistant some years ago, continues to climb the coaching ladder and was just named head coach at Toledo…Joan Bonvicini, is a finalist along with Cori Close for the UCSB job and, if she gets it, expect Millikan’s star senior to switch from Arizona to Goleta…the volley lads wait until Sunday for a mercy vote after serving up a mess last night to Pepp
Now baseball and nothing else…UOP had no mid weeper but the Niners did losing to ninth-ranked San Diego…tomorrow is the Salute to the Services Day and Sunday the Salute to Animals Day…free admission tomorrow to any public safety worker or the military…in the BWC loss column the Niners are just one behind Fullerton (9-3), UC Santa Barbara (6-3) and UC Davis (6-3)…UCSB is at Cal Poly and Fullerton will host Davis…tonight’s mound match-up is Tyler Waldron (2-4, 4.74) challenging Andrew Liebel (4-2, 2.04) and hopefully his offense…LBSU's team ERA is 3.11, Pacific's 6.51 but the LB stats are eye-popping the third-best ERA in the nation and the fewest walks allowed per nine innings in the land…Liebel is 28th nationally in ERA and 23rd in strikeouts per nine innings (8.14)…in just BWC games resurgent Brandon Godfrey is hitting .379, Steve Tinoco, .364, Danny Espinosa, .343, and Peterson, the BWC POW leads the club in overall average (.373) and RBIs (39)…Jason Corder has nine home runs, a .325 average and 36 RBIs…our closing number is still pitching, LBSU is 18-1 when leading after six innings so score early and often—DR. DAN
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