May 8, 2003
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EVANSTON, Ill. -
Three Meets Four
With two weekends remaining in the Big Ten season, every game becomes a battle as teams vie to finish in the top six of the Big Ten rankings. This week it doesn't get any easier as NU takes on the Michigan Wolverines, the team directly behind the 'Cats in the conference standings. NU does have a one-game advantage, holding a 13-9 Big Ten record compared to 12-10 for the Wolverines. Both NU and U-of-M are coming off 3-1 weekends, and NU has won seven of its last eight conference games.
In the 90th Percentile
With its 8-1 win over Chicago State on Tuesday, Northwestern moved six games above .500 at 23-17. But just 10 games ago, the Wildcats were 14-16 and coming off a 1-3 weekend at Penn State. Things got worse after a midweek loss Valparaiso seemed to knock NU off its feet; with a tough Illinois team coming to town, things did not look good. But a seven-game win streak, a couple of midweek wins, and before they exhaled the 'Cats had won nine of their last 10 games. In those 10 games, the Wildcats swept a four-game series from the Illini and moved up to third in the Big Ten standings. NU's sweep of Illinois was its first against any Big Ten team since 1998 and the first against Illinois since 1984.
And Down The Stretch They Come
It is that time of year again, as every run, every hit and every error has a huge impact on the stretch run for postseason play. Unlike the last two years, when NU needed some help from other teams, the 2003 squad controls its own destiny with a 13-9 third-place league mark. Michigan is not far behind, trailing the Wildcats by a game with a 12-10 record. The Wolverines are 8-4 in their last 12 conference games, and last weekend they became the first team to ever win a conference series against Ohio State in Columbus, taking 3-of-4 from the Buckeyes.
Happ Named Louisville Slugger National Pitcher of the Week
Sophomore left-hander J.A. Happ earned his first Louisville Slugger National Co-Pitcher of the Week honor, announced by Collegiate Baseball on Monday. Happ also was named Big Ten Pitcher of the Week, becoming the first Big Ten pitcher this season to garner the conference award three times. Happ previously received the conference award March 24 and April 7.
Happ tossed his fifth complete game of the season last Saturday, striking out a career-high 16 Iowa batters with only one walk in seven innings as the Wildcats downed the Hawkeyes 6-1. Happ struck out the side three times, twice in order. The Illinois native gave up only five hits and no earned runs while helping Northwestern win three of four games to hold onto third place in the Big Ten standings. Happ lowered his ERA to 2.53 and improved to 7-3 on the season with a team-high 80 strikeouts in only 67.2 innings of work.
Not Since
NU has not traveled to Ann Arbor to take on Michigan since 1997. The only people in uniform for either team was NU head coach Paul Stevens and his two assistants Tim Stoddard and Ron Klein.Volunteer coach Joe Keenan was also in attendance. (Michigan Sports Information contributed to this note)
Follow the Leader
As of May 6, three of the four lowest ERA's in the Big Ten belong to Northwestern pitchers. Junior Dan Konecny trails Ohio State's Scott Lewis (1.24, 72.2) for the conference's top spot with a 2.36 ERA in 76.1 innings pitched. Right on his heels are J.A. Happ at No. 3 (2.53, 67.2) and Dan Brauer (2.55, 42.1).
Production Level
Since April 15 (16 games ago), junior David Gresky has hit safely in 26 of his 60 at bats (.433), including six home runs and seven doubles. In those 16 games, the Ohio native has scored 17 runs, driven in 26 and stolen four bases. Not to mention the fact he raised his overall average from .253 to .327. Gresky leads the team with nine home runs and 42 RBI, and both are also among the conference bests.
NCAA History
Anthony Wycklendt's record-setting performance against Chicago State turned into a bit of a history lesson. After conferring with Sean Straziscar of the NCAA, Wycklendt's seven hits in one game is the third best single-game hit total in NCAA history. Wycklendt joins 14 others on the list, but is the first player to accomplish the feat since Jeff Davis of Campbell Univeristy on May 10, 2000. Wycklendt is also the only Big Ten player listed in the NCAA record book for having seven hits in a game.