By Tim Stried
April 7, 2003

The Bluffton College baseball team used several key extra-base hits to top Urbana University 8-6 on April 2, but those key hits went against them over the weekend as host Defiance College took a double-header from the Beavers on April 6.

The schedule, in flux due to a recent storm front, has the Beavers playing at Earlham on Tues., April 8 before returning home on Wed., April 9 to conclude the Defiance series with a 9-inning game beginning at 4 p.m. at Sears Field. Bluffton will take on Anderson University this weekend, beginning with a 9-inning game at home on Fri., April 11 at 4 p.m. The series will conclude with a double-header at AU on Sat., April 12 at 1 p.m.

Offensive leaders include sophomore Brad Moore (.500 avg., 11-for-22) and junior Kyle Alberson (.458 avg), who leads the team in hits (27), RBI (25) homeruns (9), slugging percentage (.983) and on base percentage (.556). Juniors Bob Heitkamp (.442, 6 2b) and Jim Dwenger (.393, 5 2b, 11 RBI) upped their averages last week, as well.

The pitching staff's ERA leaders include three freshmen, Steve Hastings (3.13 ERA, 2-2), Casey Ray (4.50 ERA) and Randy Miller (5.03 ERA), while senior Wes Hall is 2-3 with a 7.62 ERA and leads the staff in innings pitched.

Against Urbana, freshman Riordan McClain hit a bases loaded triple in the bottom of the eighth inning to put BC up 8-5 and the Beavers hung on for an 8-6 win. Hall went 3-for-4 at the plate with a double and also picked up the save in relief of Hastings, who pitched 1 2/3 innings for his second win of the season. Miller went 6 1/3 innings in the start, striking out three. Dwenger and freshman Steve Bogner both hit 2-run homers in the sixth inning.

At Defiance, Hall and Hastings combined to allow just three earned runs in the double-header, but the Yellow Jackets prevailed in both contests, winning the opener 3-0 and the nightcap 4-3. Moore went 2-for-3 to lead the offense in game one, while Dwenger was a perfect 3-for-3 in game two.