Series Preview
- Friday: 6:30 p.m., Hammons Field
- Saturday: 2:00 p.m., Hammons Field
- Sunday: 1:00 p.m., Hammons Field
Creighton heads to Springfield for the Bluejays’ final MVC road series of the season. Sixteen of CU’s remaining 18 regular season games take place in Omaha. That’s a good thing, despite Ed Servais’ team’s struggles at the CU Sports Complex and Rosenblatt Stadium so far. The Jays have been more effective away from home, though, winning their first two Valley road series (2-1 @ SIU and 2-1 @ Bradley) and beating Nebraska in Lincoln two weeks ago. Creighton is 11-4 overall this season in true road games, and 3-6 at home.
Missouri State enters the weekend series against CU fresh off two non-conference mid-week wins and a mid-season weekend off. The Bears occupy last place in the Valley standings, with just one conference win in six games. The Bluejays are tied with SIU at 5-7 in a battle for fifth place in the MVC.
Weather Forecast
April showers bring rain delays and rescheduled college baseball games. Judging by this weekend’s forecast for Springfield, fans should pack their ponchos and their patience before heading to the ballpark.
Last weekend… Creighton captured wins in two of its three road games against Bradley in Peoria. Jonas Dufek threw 7 innings of 5-hit, 2-run ball to lead CU to a 7-5 win on Friday night. The Braves tried to battle back in the 9th inning, scoring three times off Jack VanLeur, but the veteran reliever was able to eventually shut the door and give the Jays a game one victory.
On Saturday, Brandon Koenigstein started smoothly for the Jays but ran into trouble as the game wore on. He suffered his second straight loss after not losing a game in his first 23 appearances to start his collegiate career. Creighton held a 2-0 lead heading into the home half of the 6th inning, but the Braves put up 3 runs in the 6th, 2 more in the 7th, and 3 in the 8th to win 8-4.
With the series on the line Sunday, the Bluejays struck early and often behind a dominant pitching performance from freshman Ty Blach. Creighton scored 5 runs in the 1st inning and led 9-0 heading into the home half of the 6th inning. The Jays left Peoria with a 12-3 victory and two Valley road series wins.
I’m not sure what the Bears did last weekend. They weren’t playing baseball, though. After getting swept by Bradley the previous weekend and then splitting mid-week home games against Kansas (a 6-4 loss) and Missouri (a 5-4 win), MSU’s schedule came to a screeching halt. But wins this week against Saint Louis and SIU Edwardsville has the Bears entering the series with CU on a 3-game win streak.
Last year… the Bears came to Omaha and snapped Creighton’s 7-game winning streak in dramatic fashion. MSU posted a late-inning comeback win in game one of the series (6-5) and then pounced on the Jays in games two and three to sweep CU.
Creighton limped into the MVC Tournament on the heels of conference sweeps by MSU and Wichita State. But the Bluejays got another crack at the Bears, and CU came out on top in one of last season’s more exciting games, a 7-6, 10-inning victory that ended Missouri State’s year.
Historically… This all-time record between these two teams is about as close as could be, with MSU holding a slight 35-34 lead.
On the Mound
- Friday: CU’s Jonas Dufek vs. MSU’s Mike Kickham
- Saturday: CU’s Brandon Koenigstein vs. MSU’s Pat Doyle
- Sunday: CU’s Ty Blach vs. MSU’s Aaron Meade
Creighton and Missouri State both feature pitching staffs in the top half of the Valley in earned run average — MSU is 2nd in the league with a 4.62 ERA, CU is 4th with a 4.78 ERA. The Jays limit opposing hitters to a .270 batting average, second-best behind Indiana State’s .253.
For the Bluejays to be successful this weekend their hitters need to put the ball in play. That will be tough, considering MSU pitchers lead the Valley in strikeouts (302); 100 of the Bears’ Ks have been of the backwards variety. Creighton hurlers are dead last in the MVC with 178 punch outs.
CU pitchers lead the league in the fewest walks issued (87), while MSU’s staff shows the next best control (122 walks allowed).
Individually, two of the Bears’ three weekend starters are among the top strikeout pitchers in the Valley this season. Kickham is 2nd in the MVC with 57 Ks, while Doyle is 4th with 48 Ks. MSU’s Sunday starter Meade is in the top 10 in ERA (3.40, 7th) and opposing batting average (.245, 9th).
The Bluejays’ Sunday starter Blach isn’t too shabby, either. He is 5th in the Valley in ERA (2.79) and 2nd in opposing batting average (.211).
At the Plate
The only team with a worse batting average than Creighton (.280) on the season is Missouri State (.274). The two teams have almost exactly the same on-base percentages (CU’s is .365, MSU’s .363), which are the two lowest in the Valley (along with Bradley’s .365). CU and MSU are in the bottom half of the league in runs scored, hits, RBI, doubles, and total bases. That’s in part because of a lack of plate appearances and at bats compared to the rest of the Valley teams, but also because these teams are better on the mound than in the batter’s box.
Don’t tell that to MSU’s Kevin Medrano, though. The 2009 MVC Freshman of the Year has improved on his first-team All-MVC first season. He is 2nd in the league in hitting (.423 average), 3rd in on-base percentage (.484), and 2nd in total hits (58).
Medrano’s infield partner on last year’s all-MVC first team, Elliot Soto, is starting to turn his season around offensively. Soto went 3-4 with 4 runs scored against Nebraska on Tuesday, after posting 2 hits in each of the games against Bradley last weekend. That effort followed a low point for Soto, having gone hitless in the home series against Illinois State. The junior shortstop has raised his average to .289, and his bat is one key to Creighton’s continued success as the Bluejays prepare for the second half of their season.
In the Field
The Bluejays (.979) still lead the Valley in fielding percentage; Missouri State is 5th in the MVC (.961). Creighton has committed just 25 errors on the year, about half of the Bears’ total mistakes (53). MSU has allowed more than twice the number of stolen bases (56) as CU (24).
Facts, Figures, and Fodder
Last week the Bluejays beat Bradley during the Braves’ basketball night at O’Brien Field, and this week the Bears have something special planned for Creighton’s trip to Springfield. It is Alumni Night at Hammons Field… Creighton overcame a 4-run deficit against Nebraska Tuesday to beat the Huskers 8-5, marking the Bluejays’ biggest comeback this season… Missouri State ranks 15th nationally in strikeouts per 9 innings, through games played April 18. The Bears feature six pitchers with at least 8 strikeouts in one game this season…Creighton is 6-2 in games played on Fridays, with T.J. Roemmich leading the way with a .394 Friday batting average and 9 RBI… If the game goes extra frames, it could spell bad news for the Bears. MSU has dropped five straight extra-inning games going back to the 2008 season… Ian Dike leads the Valley in striking out, but he has become one of Creighton’s hottest hitters lately. He has hit safely in 13 of the team’s last 14 games, with a .360 average during that stretch…In a stat that is sure to jinx the freshman, Ty Blach hasn’t allowed a home run in 42 innings pitched this season. According to the CU Sports Information Department, the only CU hurler during Servais’ time as head coach to throw more than 42 innings without allowing a dinger was Brandon Bird, an all-MVC reliever who threw 43.2 homerless innings in 2005.
Media Menu
John Bishop and Dave Gustafson once again will bring all the Creighton baseball action back to Omaha via local radio. All three games will broadcast live on Omaha’s 1620 AM station, with live streaming available for free at www.gocreighton.com. Live stats are also available at the Creighton site.
