Baseball Returns to No. 6 in ABCA Poll
CLU jumps two spots
ALLENTOWN, Pa. –A two-spot slide in theAmerican Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) poll released last week had no effect on the success of the baseball team or the outcome of the 2013 SCIAC Baseball Post Season Tournament as Cal Lutheran swept through the weekend to earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Playoffs while jumping back into the No. 6 spot during week eight of the poll.
At the Inaugural SCIAC Baseball Post Season Tournament, CLU earned 4-3, 5-2 and 10-6 victories over Occidental, Redlands and Pomona-Pitzer, respectively, to punch a playoff ticket.
The pitching-catching tandem of Aaron Roth and Spencer DuBois was recognized this week. Roth earned SCIAC Athlete of the Week honors while DuBois landed on the D3baseball.com Team of the Week, garnering national recognition.
Cal Lutheran continues to boast a country-leading team batting average of .360 with a nation-leading 544 hits, including 111 doubles, the most of any squad. CLU is second in runs (396), triples (26) and on base percentage (.436). Additionally, the Kingsmen are fourth in slugging percentage (.504).
The pitching staff is ranked eighth in strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.01) boasted by Roth, who is third in the nation with a 14.0 ratio. He is also ranked third in WHIP (.75), fourth with an ERA of 0.99 and seventh with 10 saves. Tyler Hebda is fifth with nine victories.
Nick Boggan continues to lead the country in RBIs (65) and total bases (122). He is second in homeruns with 12 and tenth in hits (69). Jake Petersen holds the both the fifth best batting average and fifth most runs scored. The lefty is hitting at a .466 clip and has scored 56 times for the Violet and Gold. He is also14th in hits with 68. Nicho DellaValle is currently 12th with six triples.
Cal Lutheran (34-7-1) won the 10th SCIAC title in school history with a 24-4 record in 2013 and will appear in the West Regionals for the twelfth time since joining the NCAA in 1992. Sunday, May 12 the NCAA will release the official bracket for the 2013 NCAA Division III Baseball Playoffs. The Kingsmen will travel to Austin, Tex. for the West Regionals next week with play scheduled for May 15-19 at Concordia University Texas.
Poll: ABCA Poll – May 7
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