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WPU Baseball second in NJAC

Special Back Page Tribute!

A Salute to the Captain

April 16, 2008
By Nick Dimichino
Production Manager

The Pioneers baseball team is really hitting the cover off the ball and are currently on a seven-game winning streak.

They collected 31 hits in a sweep double-header of Rutgers-Camden on Saturday.
The Pioneers (19-9, 9-2 NJAC) probably go to bed at night praying for good pitching, as that is the only aspect holding this team down. The team is hitting .330 as a whole, while the pitching staff has a combined 5.34 ERA.

Bright spot in the pitching staff? Sophomore right-hander Scott Zirul of Cedar Grove. Zirul improved his record to 5-0 with a complete game in the first game of the double-header.
Zirul would have probably been taken out had it not been for the 12 runs of support. The lineup racked up 17 hits and really allowed Zirul to go the distance giving up four earned runs.
MVP of the double-header was Vin Ganz who went 5-for-7 with five RBI in the two game set, raising his batting average to .313.

It is hard to single-out players in a lineup that is absolutely punishing the opposition, but Mike Guadango's .735 slugging percentage is unreal.

To put that into perspective, in 2007, Alex Rodriguez had one of the best seasons in recent history, hitting 54 homeruns and driving in 156. His slugging percentage was .645.

The baseball team currently has a six-game winning streak entering Tuesday, and sit second in the NJAC, looking up to only TCNJ. The NJAC regular-season championship could come down to the double-header between the two teams on April 19 at Pioneer Baseball Park. The Pioneers lost both meetings with the Lions in 2007.