Saint Joseph's (Ind)
Pumas
Great Lakes Valley Conference |
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We'll be the first to admit it, when you
have hundreds of baseball teams to sort through week after
week you are bound to overlook a team staring you straight
in the eyes. Well, for the past couple of weeks we have done
just that. The Saint Joseph's (Ind) Pumas have played stellar
baseball for the first couple months of the season and have
got themselves on a roll. The Pumas are currently 25-4 overall
and are sitting at the top of the Great Lakes Valley Conference
at 11-1.
 Head
Coach Rick O'Dette enters his eighth season as the Pumas skipper
and has compiled a record of 236-176-2. With returning starters
at almost every position, O'Dette has had a positive outlook
since day one of the 2008 season. The writers also agreed
as they picked Saint Joseph's to finish second in the newly
formed seven-team East Division. The new GLVC format has also
given the Pumas a very favorable schedule.
Offensively Saint Joseph's is led by senior
outfielder Matt Wille (.393, 2, 23) and sophomore catcher
Mike Pericht (.302, 6, 31) and senior Mike Staehle (.367,
0, 11, 9 SB). The team isn't known for their power, as they
have only hit 13 combined homers so far this year. They do,
however, know how to get on base and what to do once they
get there. The Pumas are batting .313 as a team with 191 runs
scored and 44 stolen bases in 57 attempts. There are more
ways to get on base, though, and this team has mastered the
art with 102 walks and an incredible 49 trips to first base
via the hit batsman.
 On
the mound, the Pumas feature some of the best. A group of
upperclassmen have taken Saint Joseph's to a whole new level.
Juniors Chase Sonen (4-1, 2.67) and Gord Gateman (3-1, 3.53)
have been spot on this year, while senior Blaine Cravens (4-0,
1.21) has been better than expected. The big surprise, however,
has been the dominance of starter Chris Chojnowski. The 6-5
220 pound freshman is sitting at a perfect 4-0 in four starts
with a miniscule 0.75 ERA. As a team, the Pumas have only
given up 173 hits while striking out 176.
The Saint Joseph's Pumas are feeling good
and playing even better. There will be no more overlooking
this team in the Ping! Rankings. With only another couple
months left look for this team to be playing well into the
post season.
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