Friday, March 29
Mount Pleasant, Mich.
1 p.m.
Central Michigan University
vs
Northern Illinois
CMU junior Zach Gilles ranks second in the MAC with a .402 batting average.
Baseball Home For Big MAC Series
3/28/2019 6:46:00 PM | Baseball
Northern Illinois, one of three unbeaten league teams, comes to town for three-game set
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – With wins in four its last five games, the Central Michigan baseball team looks to remain hot for three-game Mid-American Conference home series at home with Northern Illinois.
Game one is scheduled for 3 p.m. on Friday at Keilitz Field at Theunissen Stadium, with games two and three, respectively, slated for 2 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.
After playing their first 22 games on the road, Friday's game will be the Chippewas' second consecutive at home. They defeated Grand Valley State, 6-2, on Tuesday in their home opener.
"Not having to get on a bus feels awesome," senior catcher Blake Cleveland said. "Nice to be home, sleep in my own bed, stuff like that. Playing at Theunissen is awesome."
The Chippewas are 16-7 overall, 2-1 MAC. The Huskies are 7-17, 3-0 MAC. They share first place with Ball State and Bowling Green. The Chippewas are tied for fourth with Miami (Ohio).
"It's going to be a big series for us right away," CMU coach Jordan Bischel said. "Our guys are going to be really fired up to be out here."
AT THE PLATE
The Chippewas boast conference bests in team batting average (.305), runs (197), hits (255), slugging percentage (.443), walks (133), on-base percentage (.415), and are tied with Western Michigan for the MAC's best fielding percentage (.973).
Junior outfielder Zach Gilles is second in the MAC and leads CMU with a .402 batting average and has stolen 11 bases in 12 attempts. Griffin Lockwood-Powell, the reigning Co-MAC Player of the Week, owns a .349 batting average and he leads the MAC with five home runs and is second with 29 RBI.
Also for the Chippewas, Zavier Warren owns a .376 batting average while leading the conference with 13 doubles, a .500 on-base percentage, and he is tied for the lead in walks with 21; Jacob Crum, who is hitting .341, shares the national lead with five triples and tops the MAC with a .682 slugging percentage.
ON THE MOUND
Three Chippewa starters – Pat Leatherman, Cameron Brown and Tyler Hankins – each are 4-0. Those three are CMU's scheduled Friday, Saturday and Sunday starters, respectively.
Leatherman, a senior right-hander, owns a 2.45 ERA, best among CMU starters, with a team-high 33 strikeouts against just nine walks in 33 innings; Hankins, a junior left-hander, sports a 3.90 ERA with 16 strikeouts in 27 2/3 innings; Brown, a junior right-hander, has struck out 24 while issuing just nine walks in 34 1/3 innings.
The Chippewas have issued a league-low 72 walks, and they rank fifth in the league with 172 strikeouts. The Chippewas are allowing just 2.78 walks per nine innings, and they are tied with No. 1 UCLA for 11th place nationally in that category.
Sophomore reliever Cameron Miller has a team-high three saves with a 1.08 ERA. He has struck out 14 and has not walked a batter in 16 2/3 innings.
SCOUTING
The Huskies swept a three-game series from Eastern Michigan last weekend, and then dropped an 8-3 nonleaguer at Illinois-Chicago on Tuesday.
The Huskies rank sixth in the league with a 5.82 team ERA and are ninth with a .238 batting average.
Jake Dunham leads the Huskies with a .317 batting average and 17 RBI. The junior catcher shares the team lead in home runs with first baseman Jordan Larson with two.
Last week against Eastern Michigan, sophomore right-hander Michael Lasiewicz (4-2, 4.73) started the series opener; freshman southpaw Erik Hedmark (1-2, 3.16) drew the Saturday start; and William Anderson (0-3, 8.38) started the series finale. Anderson is a 6-foot-8 senior right-hander.
Lasiewicz ranks fourth in the MAC with 38 strikeouts, while Nate Thomas, a junior right-hander, is second in the league with four saves.
NEXT
The Chippewas travel to South Bend, Ind. on Tuesday, April 2 (6 p.m.) to face Notre Dame in a nonconference game.
Game one is scheduled for 3 p.m. on Friday at Keilitz Field at Theunissen Stadium, with games two and three, respectively, slated for 2 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.
After playing their first 22 games on the road, Friday's game will be the Chippewas' second consecutive at home. They defeated Grand Valley State, 6-2, on Tuesday in their home opener.
"Not having to get on a bus feels awesome," senior catcher Blake Cleveland said. "Nice to be home, sleep in my own bed, stuff like that. Playing at Theunissen is awesome."
The Chippewas are 16-7 overall, 2-1 MAC. The Huskies are 7-17, 3-0 MAC. They share first place with Ball State and Bowling Green. The Chippewas are tied for fourth with Miami (Ohio).
"It's going to be a big series for us right away," CMU coach Jordan Bischel said. "Our guys are going to be really fired up to be out here."
AT THE PLATE
The Chippewas boast conference bests in team batting average (.305), runs (197), hits (255), slugging percentage (.443), walks (133), on-base percentage (.415), and are tied with Western Michigan for the MAC's best fielding percentage (.973).
Junior outfielder Zach Gilles is second in the MAC and leads CMU with a .402 batting average and has stolen 11 bases in 12 attempts. Griffin Lockwood-Powell, the reigning Co-MAC Player of the Week, owns a .349 batting average and he leads the MAC with five home runs and is second with 29 RBI.
Also for the Chippewas, Zavier Warren owns a .376 batting average while leading the conference with 13 doubles, a .500 on-base percentage, and he is tied for the lead in walks with 21; Jacob Crum, who is hitting .341, shares the national lead with five triples and tops the MAC with a .682 slugging percentage.
ON THE MOUND
Three Chippewa starters – Pat Leatherman, Cameron Brown and Tyler Hankins – each are 4-0. Those three are CMU's scheduled Friday, Saturday and Sunday starters, respectively.
Leatherman, a senior right-hander, owns a 2.45 ERA, best among CMU starters, with a team-high 33 strikeouts against just nine walks in 33 innings; Hankins, a junior left-hander, sports a 3.90 ERA with 16 strikeouts in 27 2/3 innings; Brown, a junior right-hander, has struck out 24 while issuing just nine walks in 34 1/3 innings.
The Chippewas have issued a league-low 72 walks, and they rank fifth in the league with 172 strikeouts. The Chippewas are allowing just 2.78 walks per nine innings, and they are tied with No. 1 UCLA for 11th place nationally in that category.
Sophomore reliever Cameron Miller has a team-high three saves with a 1.08 ERA. He has struck out 14 and has not walked a batter in 16 2/3 innings.
SCOUTING
The Huskies swept a three-game series from Eastern Michigan last weekend, and then dropped an 8-3 nonleaguer at Illinois-Chicago on Tuesday.
The Huskies rank sixth in the league with a 5.82 team ERA and are ninth with a .238 batting average.
Jake Dunham leads the Huskies with a .317 batting average and 17 RBI. The junior catcher shares the team lead in home runs with first baseman Jordan Larson with two.
Last week against Eastern Michigan, sophomore right-hander Michael Lasiewicz (4-2, 4.73) started the series opener; freshman southpaw Erik Hedmark (1-2, 3.16) drew the Saturday start; and William Anderson (0-3, 8.38) started the series finale. Anderson is a 6-foot-8 senior right-hander.
Lasiewicz ranks fourth in the MAC with 38 strikeouts, while Nate Thomas, a junior right-hander, is second in the league with four saves.
NEXT
The Chippewas travel to South Bend, Ind. on Tuesday, April 2 (6 p.m.) to face Notre Dame in a nonconference game.
Players Mentioned
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