2008 Woodie Awards
Five straight against Raiders marks pivotal series
Andrew Berry, Sports Editor
Issue date: 5/1/08 Section: Sports
There is a lot of baseball still to go in the 2008 campaign, but the Youngstown State University baseball team has come to one of the more crucial portions of its regular season schedule.
The Penguins have the tall task of playing the same opponent five straight times against the Wright State University Raiders. The five game series begins Friday at Eastwood Field with first pitch scheduled for 7 p.m., followed by a doubleheader Saturday. The five game haul will conclude April 9 with the second doubleheader of the series at Wright State.
With the Raiders coming into the weekend as the No. 2 team in the Horizon League standings, the Penguins will look to gain some ground on Wright State after the team's series loss with Cleveland State, which allowed the Raiders to jump further ahead.
Head coach Rich Pasquale said that despite losing two out of three games to the Vikings in the team's most recent league series, the Penguin squad is playing competitively and he likes what he sees out of his players.
"Every conference weekend is huge and this weekend is very crucial if we want to stay ahead of the pack," Pasquale said. "It's going to be difficult but I like the way we're playing."
Pasquale admits that Saturday's ninth inning loss to Cleveland State was a tough pill to swallow, but knowing that his team has the ability to fight all the way to the end is encouraging.
"For us to come back and then lose in the bottom of the ninth was tough, but it's encouraging to see that we have the ability to come back," Pasquale said.
The Penguin skipper was quick to point out his team's success when they jumped on the opposition early. The Penguins are 11-2 this season when leading after the eighth inning.
Unfortunately as Pasquale noted, the team is not so successful when trailing after the eighth, an aspect the head coach feels must be changed before the tournament.
But the Penguins did not get a chance to work on ninth inning heroics Sunday as starting pitcher Aaron Swenson delivered a complete game where the sophomore hurler stifled the Viking offense just enough to allow his offense to put the crooked numbers on the board for the win.
The Penguins have the tall task of playing the same opponent five straight times against the Wright State University Raiders. The five game series begins Friday at Eastwood Field with first pitch scheduled for 7 p.m., followed by a doubleheader Saturday. The five game haul will conclude April 9 with the second doubleheader of the series at Wright State.
With the Raiders coming into the weekend as the No. 2 team in the Horizon League standings, the Penguins will look to gain some ground on Wright State after the team's series loss with Cleveland State, which allowed the Raiders to jump further ahead.
Head coach Rich Pasquale said that despite losing two out of three games to the Vikings in the team's most recent league series, the Penguin squad is playing competitively and he likes what he sees out of his players.
"Every conference weekend is huge and this weekend is very crucial if we want to stay ahead of the pack," Pasquale said. "It's going to be difficult but I like the way we're playing."
Pasquale admits that Saturday's ninth inning loss to Cleveland State was a tough pill to swallow, but knowing that his team has the ability to fight all the way to the end is encouraging.
"For us to come back and then lose in the bottom of the ninth was tough, but it's encouraging to see that we have the ability to come back," Pasquale said.
The Penguin skipper was quick to point out his team's success when they jumped on the opposition early. The Penguins are 11-2 this season when leading after the eighth inning.
Unfortunately as Pasquale noted, the team is not so successful when trailing after the eighth, an aspect the head coach feels must be changed before the tournament.
But the Penguins did not get a chance to work on ninth inning heroics Sunday as starting pitcher Aaron Swenson delivered a complete game where the sophomore hurler stifled the Viking offense just enough to allow his offense to put the crooked numbers on the board for the win.
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