Fall baseball closes with loss
The fall baseball season ended with a double-header loss to the University of St Francis, leaving the Apaches with a final record of 6 – 5 – 1.
According to coach Bob Koopmann, the season was a success.
"We were able to go over things that will no longer be foreign to us in the spring," he said, mentioning the fact that the team played 12 games plus an intra-squad series.
The Oct. 12 – 16 intra-squad series, called the Purple vs. White World Series, was won by the Purple team 3 – 1 (13 – 9, 9 – 10, 9 – 8, 6 – 4).
"Even though the series was high scoring, it was well played," Koopmann said.
The series started with a leadoff home run by Luke Swiskoski for the Purple. Josh Lettiere added a home run in game three for the only other bomb in the series.
Swiskoski and Eric Markey were named Co-MVPs of the series with Swiskoski going 8 – 13 with 4 BBs, and Markey going 7 – 10 with 2 HVPs.
"It (the intra-squad series) was meant to have fun yet have a pressurized setting on the playing field," the coach said.
Now that the fall season has concluded, Koopmann said the outlook for the spring is good.
"We are going to score runs and play defense," he said. "We also have good team speed."
Apache outfielders are Jesse Arjes, Brent Allen, Lettiere, Seth Chambers, Jason Grubar, Jeff Sczupai, Mike Fulkerson, Josh Reeder and Frank Duttlinger.
Middle infielders are Heath Tepovich, Swiskoski, Garrett Dinges, Nick Dzierzynski and Tony Orlandi. Rounding out the infield and the team are corner men Tony Nelson, Markey, Corey Harper, Tom Wiesbrock and Charlie Riva.
Pitching is a question mark for the spring, however.
"Although we have depth at pitching," Koopmann said, "the overall quality of the staff would be considered our weakness at this point."
The Apaches will be spending their spring break in Orlando, Fla. where they will play eight games, and they will stop in Chattanooga, Tenn. for four games.
The men will also play a double-header against a junior college team from Montana in the Metrodome in St. Paul, Minn. at 8 a.m. March 16.
10/29/98 the Apache