People You Should Get to Know....

#25 Joe Turek

Junior 1B/DH, Joe Turek, chimes into "A Bloop & A Blast"...enjoy!
 

We all know that following this weekend's series vs. Carthage, perennial CCIW powerhouse, that it could have easily been a sweep 3-0 instead of losing the series 2-1. Sweeping them would have definitely been a statement but that is not the case. The mistakes that were made this weekend are ones that can be fixed with hard work on the practice field the next couple days. With a mid-week conference game and another weekend series on tap this week, it gives us a great opportunity to get right back on the right track. Coach Fitz always says that that is the best part about the game of baseball---you get to go out the next day and play again, and forget about what may have happened the previous few days.

C. Brown, M. Zemke, J. Turek, N. DeWolf

"Vandy" Vanderwall (Photo by S. Woltman)

There are positives that came out of this weekend's big series vs. Carthage and I think the biggest thing is the play by some of the guys who may not see their name on the everyday lineup. These guys put in the same effort as the starters do, if not more. To see these guys come in and succeed in different situations shows that we can call on them at any point and have the confidence that they are going to get the job done. Travis Vanderwall made his case to become a mainstay in the rotation with a 9-inning effort in his Game 2 start. "Vandy," a freshman, making only his 2nd conference start, showed that he has what it takes to take on anyone on any given day. Matt Zemke, another freshman, continues to show that he can make a difference on the basepaths with his speed late in the game. "Z" is definitely a better choice on the bases when we need some speed in the late innings, instead of someone like myself. Freshman infielder Alex Khoury came in this weekend and displayed that his glove is definitely ready whenever we made need him. "A.K." almost made a ridiculous, full extenstion, diving catch in the late innings of Game 2. Even though the ball grazed his glove and went into left field, his effort on that play alone showed everyone on the team that we can count on him. 

 

                                                                                                                                  

Brennan "Hags" Hagensee

Alex "A.K." Khoury

A special shoutout goes to senior Brennan Hagensee. Hags puts in the swings during practice and has been waiting his turn to get into the lineup again. He came in as a pinch hitter in a big situation in Game 2 and absolutely smoked a ball right at the left fielder. That ball was probably one of the hardest balls hit by our team all year. Following that quality at-bat, Hags was in the lineup for Game 3 and had himself a great day. Its great to see Hags on the field being a difference maker.

There is plenty of stuff for our team to work on as the season moves forward, and they will get fixed. For now, it is great to see the depth that our team has. We all knew that these guys can get the job done, but its added confidence when we see production on gameday.

By the way, it was awesome to see the turnout at the "Zimm" yesterday. The "Zimm" was alive and well, and we would all like to keep seeing everyone out there!

Joe T.