By Eric Markey
The fall baseball exhibition-game record is 6 – 3 – 1, at press time, with two games remaining in the season, on Oct. 10 at the University of St. Francis in Joliet.
The last opportunity for fans to get a look at the Apaches in exhibition play will be during the week of Oct. 12 – 16 in intra-squad play that will begin at 3 p.m. each afternoon on the IVCC diamond.. The men will play a Purple vs. White World Series with the team split into two teams.
In recent play, the Apaches swept a double-header against Highland, tied and won one against Lincolnland College, and split with McHenry College.
Assistant coach Jon Drahos has been pleased with the way the fall season is going.
" Fall practices are going well from the standpoint that we are able to review essential fundamentals and introduce our routine to our players while the weather is still cooperative," Drahos said.
"We are still making some fundamental mistakes that need to be corrected," he said, "but overall we are steadily improving in every aspect of the game."
Drahos was cautious about making predictions on the spring season.
"We should be competitive with everyone we play," the assistant coach said. "Our level of success will be a direct reflection of how our pitching holds up."
The pitching staff includes left-handers Carl Taft, Brian Lewis, Tim Breuning, Jeff Eide and Charlie Riva, and right-handers Nick Schweickert, Brian Freese, Matt Kornick, Steve Hardman, Josh Reeder and Luke Swiskoski.
In exhibition games, the staff has pitched three full games with no walks, an accomplishment that has earned the pitchers and catchers banana splits each time courtesy of head coach Bob Koopmann.
Apache catchers are Jason Kearney, Kevin Hahn and Steve Kofoid.
After the exhibition season ends, the team will be making plans to travel to Florida, either Pensacola or Daytona, to play during spring break. Plans are also being made for the men to play a double header at the Metro Dome in Minnesota.
The baseball field will also be renovated. The field is playable now, but plans call for the pitching mound to be raised, the infield leveled, new sod put down, and the visitor dugout to be repaired. Other changes to be made within the next year include adding a warning track around the field and bringing water to the field.
Oct. 8, 1998 the Apache