Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Baseball Opens NCAA Regional Play Friday at 7 p.m. at South Carolina
6/2/2010 8:00:00 AM | Baseball
June 2, 2010
What: Bucknell Baseball at NCAA Regionals
Where: Carolina Stadium, Columbia, S.C.
When: Friday, June 4 - Monday, June 7
Radio: WVBU 90.5 FM
Internet Audio: Columbia\ Regional\ Central
NCAA Columbia Regional Schedule
Friday, June 4
Game 1 – No. 2 Virginia Tech vs. No. 3 The Citadel - 2 p.m.
Game 2 – No. 1 South Carolina vs. No. 4 Bucknell - 7 p.m.
Saturday, June 5
Game 3 - Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2 - 2 p.m.
Game 4 - Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2 - 7 p.m.
Sunday, June 6
Game 5 – Winner of Game 3 vs. Loser of Game 4 - 2 p.m.
Game 6 – Winner of Game 5 vs. Winner of Game 4 - 7 p.m.
Monday, June 7
Game 7 – If Necessary
About the NCAA Regionals
Bucknell is making its second appearance in the NCAA Regionals in three years, and its fifth in program history, all since 1996. The Bison are the fourth seed in the four-team field that also includes No. 1 South Carolina (43-15), No. 2 Virginia Tech (38-20) and No. 3 The Citadel (42-20). The four teams will play a double-elimination tournament with the winner earning a berth in the Super Regionals against the winner of a regional that includes Coastal Carolina, College of Charleston, North Carolina State and Stony Brook. Two games are scheduled for Friday (June 4), Saturday (June 5) and Sunday (June 6) at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m., with an if necessary contest slated for Monday (June 7). All games will be played at South Carolina's Carolina Stadium in Columbia, S.C.
Listen to the Bison at the NCAAs
All of Bucknell's games at the NCAA Regionals will be broadcast live on WVBU 90.5 FM in Lewisburg and on SportsJuice.com. Links will be available on BucknellBison.com.
How Bucknell Got Here
The No. 4 seed in the Patriot League Tournament, Bucknell defeated top-seeded Army and third-seeded Holy Cross in a pair of road best-of-three series to claim its record-tying fifth Patriot League title and earn the league's automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament.
Bucknell's PL Regular Season Titles
Outright: 1996, 2003
Shared: 1999, 2001, 2006, 2009
Bucknell's PL Tournament Titles
1996, 2001, 2003, 2008, 2010
Bucknell's NCAA Berths
1996 (Gainesville, Fla.), 2001 (Coral Gables, Fla.), 2003 (Austin, Texas), 2008 (Tallahassee, Fla.), 2010 (Columbia, S.C.)
Repeat of 2008?
In 2008 Bucknell won the Patriot League title as the No. 4 seed and then faced Florida State, the No. 4 national seed, in its opening NCAA game. The Bison defeated the host Seminoles, 7-0, behind a complete-game, six-hit pitching performance by then-senior Mathew Wilson. Current senior infielders Ben Allen and Ben Yoder each posted two hits in the victory, the first NCAA win in program history.
No. 4 Seed Success
Bucknell, last month, continued the success of No. 4 seeds in the Patriot League Tournament. Since a new postseason format was adopted in 2008, No. 4 seeds have claimed five of six series. The Bison went 2-0 in 2008, Lafayette went 1-1 last year and Bucknell was 2-0 this year for a combined 5-1 series record.
Patriot League Tournament Series Records by Seed (since 2008)
No. 1 Seed: 0-3
No. 2 Seed: 3-2
No. 3 Seed: 1-3
No. 4 Seed: 5-1
Bucknell vs. No. 1 South Carolina
• First meeting
Bucknell vs. No. 2 Virginia Tech
• Virginia Tech leads 3-0
• Virginia Tech swept a three-game series in February 2009, outscoring Bison 22-12
• Bison held leads in two of the three games
Bucknell vs. No. 3 The Citadel
• Potential first meeting
NCAA Veterans
Ten current Bison have NCAA experience, having appeared in at least one game in 2008. Seniors Ben Allen and Andrew Brouse each started all three games in the field, while juniors Eric Jarrett and Dylan Seeley earned starts on the mound.
Bison with NCAA experience
Ben Allen - 3-13 (.231), 2 runs
Andrew Brouse - 2-8 (.250), 1 HR, 1 RBI, 4 runs
Andrew Clarke - 1 game, 27.00 ERA, 0.2 IP, 5 runs, 1 K
Drew Constable - 0-1 (.000), 1 game played
Trey Frahler - 1 game, 13.50 ERA, 2.2 IP, 5 runs, 1 BB
Eric Jarrett - 2 games, 9.00 ERA, 4.0 IP, 4 runs, 3 K, 3 BB
B.J. LaRosa - 0-1 (.000), 1 game played
Dylan Seeley - 1 game, 1 start, 32.40 ERA, 1.2 IP, 6 runs, 1 K, 3 BB
Doug Shribman - 1 game, 4.50 ERA, 2.0 IP, 1 run, 1 K, 2 BB
Ben Yoder - 2-3 (.667), 1 RBI, 1 run
Record Number of Games
The 2010 edition of the Bucknell baseball team has played the most games in school history (58). The 2008 squad held the previous record of 56. Bucknell has had just one game cancelled all year, and that came the opening weekend of the season when a four-game series at VMI was shortened to three.
Most Games in a Season
1. 2010 (58)
2. 2008 (56)
3. 1999 (53)
Powerful Team
Bucknell hit 17 home runs during its six-game run in the Patriot League Tournament. The Bison entered the tournament with a school-record 55 home runs and proceeded to break the one-year-old Patriot League record as well. Multiple Bison (Doug Shribman - 20, Andrew Brouse - 17, Ben Yoder - 10) have reached double figures in home runs for the first time in program history.
Home Run Outburst
Doug Shribman (20), Andrew Brouse (17) and Ben Yoder (10) have combined for 47 home runs this season. That figure is just three shy of the previous single-season team mark of 50 that had stood since 1997.
Home Run Outburst, Part 2
Doug Shribman and Andrew Brouse have both broken both the Bucknell and Patriot League records for home runs in a season this year. The previous mark was held by Frank Fresconi, whose 14 round-trippers had stood for a decade. Additionally, Brouse (30) and Shribman (26) rank one-two on the Bucknell career home run list. In fact, based just on his home runs this year, Shribman would rank tied for fifth on the list. The previous record was 24, which was held by current professional player Jason Buursma.
Patriot League Career Home Runs
1. Andrew Brouse, Bucknell (2007-10) - 30
2. Cole White, Army (2005-08) - 28
Jesse Novalis, Lehigh (2001-04) - 28
4. Doug Shribman, Bucknell (2008-10) - 26
Mike Scioletti, Army (1995-98) - 26
Home Runs by Teammates
The 37 combined home runs for Doug Shribman (20) and Andrew Brouse (17) are the most by a pair of Bison teammates in program history. The previous high was 21 by Jason Buursma (13) and John Avanzino (8) in 2008.
New Team Records
Bucknell has set no fewer than six new team records this year:
Statistic New Record Old Record
Runs 380 375 (2000)
Doubles 108 96 (2008)
Home Runs 72 50 (1997)
Total Bases 962 837 (2008)
RBI 346 328 (2008)
Field% .972 .960 (2001)
Winning Streaks
Bucknell enters the NCAA Tournament on a two-game winning streak. The Bison had not won two in a row since April 18, and their longest winning streak this year is four games (Feb. 27-March 5). On the flip side, Bucknell has just one losing streak of longer than four games all season.
Patriot League Tournament Records
Bucknell set a number of Patriot League Tournament records during its two three-game series victories over Army and Holy Cross:
Team
At bats, tournament: 230
Runs score, tournament: 49
Hits, tournament: 77
Individual
At bats, tournament - Ben Allen (29)
Runs scored, tournament - Doug Shribman (10)
Hits, tournament - Ben Yoder (12)
Home runs, tournament - Doug Shribman (7)
RBI, game - Doug Shribman (6)
RBI, tournament - Doug Shribman (16)
Patriot League Tournament to Remember
Bucknell hit .335 as a team with 17 home runs and 45 runs batted in during the six-game Patriot League Tournament. Highlighting the postseason was tournament MVP Doug Shribman, who hit .423 with seven home runs and 16 RBIs. Four Bison hit over .420 and seven different players hit at least one home run. The top five hitters in the Bucknell lineup, who were all All-Patriot League selections during the regular season, hit a combined .402 (53-for-132).
All-Tournament Team
Bucknell placed four players on the Patriot League All-Tournament Team. Headlining the group was MVP Doug Shribman. Andrew Brouse (.423, 3 HR, 4 RBI), Ben Yoder (.429, 12 hits, 5 RBI) and Ryan Ebner (3-0, 1.80 ERA, 10.0 IP, 5 H, 5 K) were also recognized. Ebner fired 7.2 scoreless innings in two appearances to help the Bison to a doubleheader sweep of Holy Cross to claim the title. Ebner did not win a game all season and picked up three of the team's four victories in the Patriot League Tournament.
Third Straight 20-Win Season
Bucknell has won 20 games for the third straight year, the first time it has accomplished that feat since reaching that milestone six consecutive years from 1996 to 2001.
Strong Defense
Bucknell's fielding percentage this year is a strong .972, a figure that easily paces the Patriot League and is the best in program history, eclipsing the .960 fielding percentage the 2001 squad posted. The Bison, who had 19 errorless games during the regular season, did not commit an error in five of six Patriot League Tournament outings. By contrast, Army and Holy Cross piled up a combined nine errors.
All-League
Bucknell had six All-Patriot League selections this year. The Bison tied Holy Cross for the most All-Patriot League players, while it equaled Army for the most first-team selections with four. Andrew Brouse was named Player of the Year, joining Kevin Silverman (1996), Frank Fresconi (2000) and Jason Buursma (2008) as Bison to earn that honor. Joining Brouse on the first team were B.J. LaRosa, Doug Shribman and Ben Yoder. Ben Allen and Dylan Seeley were second-team choices. Of the six All-Patriot League players only Seeley was a first-time honoree.
Academic All-District
Seniors Ben Allen and Andrew Brouse were recently named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District II First Team for the second consecutive year. It marked the fifth straight year at least two Bison baseball players have been recognized. The Bucknell baseball program has had at least one Academic All-District selection in 11 of the last 12 years. Overall, 39 Bison have been cited a total of 58 times since 1983.
That Hurts
Bucknell batters have been hit by a pitch a Patriot League-high 59 times this year. While that is 10 shy of the program record of 69 set last spring, it is the second-highest figure in school history. By comparison, Bucknell pitchers have hit opponent batters just 32 times.
Consecutive Starts
Ben Allen has started 141 consecutive games at shortstop. He and Andrew Brouse are the lone Bison to appear in all 58 games this year.
Outscoring Opponents
While Bucknell enters the NCAA Tournament with a 25-33 record, it is outscoring its opponents 380-361. The Bison have posted 14 games with at least 10 runs scored and recorded double figures in hits on 26 occasions.
Consistent Starters
Bucknell used just five different starting pitchers in its Patriot League games this year, including the postseason. Juniors Trey Frahler and Dylan Seeley, along with sophomore Jack Boehm, made seven starts apiece, including all six postseason starts. Junior Steve Carlin started in each of the first four Patriot League series, but sophomore Ryan Ebner replaced him in the final series at Army. Both were used out of the bullpen during the postseason tournament.
Bucknell Championship Teams
The Bucknell baseball team was the ninth Bison team to win a conference title in 2009-10. Bucknell teams also claimed conference titles in men's soccer, men's outdoor track & field, women's cross country, women's indoor and outdoor track & field, women's rowing, softball and women's water polo. Due to the across-the-board success, Bucknell earned the Patriot League Presidents' Cup for the 16th time in 20 years.
Up Next
The winner of this weekend's regional will advance to next weekend's Super Regionals. The winner of the best-of-three Super Regional earns one of the eight spots in the College World Series in Omaha, Neb.
