Bryant University Bulldogs BULLDOGS HIT THE ROAD TO PLAY NORTHEASTERN, FLORIDA ATLANTIC THIS WEEK

April 13, 2009

BULLDOGS HIT THE ROAD TO PLAY NORTHEASTERN,
FLORIDA ATLANTIC THIS WEEK

Live Stats vs. Northeastern
Video vs. Northeastern
Live Stats vs. Florida Atlantic
Audio vs. Florida Atlantic

SMITHFIELD, R.I. - After winning three out of four games last week, including two wins at home, the Bryant baseball team will hit the road for five games this week, taking on Northeastern on Tuesday before making the trip to Florida Atlantic for a four game series starting on Friday. The Bulldogs improved to a perfect 6-0 at home with wins over Harvard and UMass Lowell last week, while picking up another impressive win against URI and falling to Brown on the road.

THE HITS JUST KEEP ON COMING
The Bulldogs are hitting .322 as a team so far this year and have outscored their opponents 248-152 on the season. Seven of the nine regular starters for Bryant are hitting .300 or better on the year. Jeff Vigurs (South Windsor, Conn.), who has reached base in 34-straight games including compiling a 12-game hitting streak, leads the team with a .382 average and 49 RBI. He boosted his average last week, going seven-for-15 in four games with six RBI. Sophomore Tim Norton (Barnstable, Mass.) has also caught fire, racking up nine hits in his last 16 at-bats over the last four games while hitting in his last five-straight including back-to-back three-hit games against Brown and UMass Lowell.

ATTACKING THE RECORD BOOKS
Nick Campbell (Raynham, Mass.) and Pat McKenna (Orange, Conn.) both joined the 200-hit club earlier this season, becoming the sixth and seventh players in the history of the program to accomplish such a feat. Campbell enters the week with 228 hits, which ranks him fourth all-time and puts him just six behind BJ Gagnon for third on the list. McKenna sits at seventh on the charts with 212 hits, approaching Mickey Ryan's 216 hits in the sixth spot. McKenna is also tied for fifth all-time in runs scored for a career with 138 and has played in 204 total games in his career, putting him on track to pass Jason Alexander's mark of 210 for most games played in a career.

SOME RELIEF
Junior Nick Laude (Wells, Maine) made two appearances out of the bullpen last week, going three innings allowing just one hit and no runs. He came in with the bases full and one out in the sixth against UMass Lowell, getting a strikeout and a pop-up to shortstop to end the jam. Laude was dominant against Harvard in 2.1 innings of work giving up one hit while striking out one, retiring eight of the nine batters he faced including the first six in a row. This season, Laude has entered games with a total of ten runners on base, not allowing a single runner to cross the plate.

TIMELY HITTING
The Bulldogs are hitting an incredible .327 with runners in scoring position and two outs this season, driving in 83 runs while hitting seven home runs. Vigurs leads the way, getting hits in 14 of his 28 at-bats with runners in scoring position and two down. Bryant put together one of their patented two out rallies against UMass Lowell on Friday, tallying eight times with two outs in the bottom of the fifth. Vigurs had the big hit with a bases loaded triple to bring home three runs, but the Bulldogs got four-straight singles after that to score five more times in the frame. Jordan English (Windsor Locks, Conn.) had one of those singles, giving him nine hits in 20 at-bats with runners on and two outs, while also extending his hitting streak to eight-straight.

FOR STARTERS
Bryant starting pitchers have won 22 of the 25 total games for the Bulldogs this season. Kevin Cobb (Acton, Mass.), Dan Lozeau (Pelham, N.H.) and Eric Polvani (Wallingford, Conn.) have combined to go 15-2 on the year, with Cobb leading the way with his six wins in seven starts. Cobb, Lozeau and Chris Foundas (Needham, Mass.) have all managed to keep perfect records on the year, as Lozeau sits at 5-0 and Foundas at 3-0. Polvani has been masterful in his last three appearances, going 2-0 with a save while allowing only two earned runs and striking out 19.

WE'RE GOING STREAKING!

Pat McKenna enters this week with a 15-game hitting streak. He is hitting .391 in that stretch with five home runs and 24 RBI.
Jeff Vigurs has reached base safely in 34-straight games while riding a 12-game hitting streak. He leads the team in average (.382) and RBI (49) for the year.
Jordan English and Pat O'Connor each enter the week with eight game hitting streaks.
Tim Norton has hit in five-straight games, including going for back-to-back three hit games against Brown and UMass Lowell last week.
Mark Andrews is nine for nine in save opportunities. The sophomore has a 2.45 ERA in 14 appearances out of the bullpen with 15 strikeouts.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
Northeastern
The Huskies enter play this week with a 17-11 record after winning two out of three against Dallas Baptist over the weekend. Northeastern plays in the Baseball Beanpot finals on Monday afternoon as they take on UMass for the bragging rights of Massachusetts at historic Fenway Park before hosting the Bulldogs on Tuesday.

The Huskies have posted a 12-7 record against non-conference opponents so far this year and are 2-2 at home. Mike Tamsin has been the catalyst for the offense, hitting a team-best .391 while driving in 25 runs. Jeff Thomson leads the team in wins on the mound with his 4-3 record in seven starts. Head coach Neil McPhee, who is in his 24^th season at the helm of the Huskies, won his 600^th game with the program over the weekend with a 7-4 victory over Dallas Baptist. The 600 wins are the most for any coach in any program in the history of Northeastern athletics.

Florida Atlantic
The Owls are 17-15 coming into this week, posting a 6-11 record against the Sun Belt Conference. The team has lost five-straight games, including a tough one-run loss at fifth ranked Miami, 8-7. The team was then swept in a three-game set against conference rival Troy, and will play a pair of games this week before welcoming the Bulldogs to Boca Raton, Florida, heading to play Miami for the second-straight week and taking on Bethune Cookman.

Travis Ozga is one of four Owls who has driven in at-least 20 runs this season, leading the team with 27 RBI while Colby Gratton has a team-best .351 average. Chris Schmitt leads the pitching staff in wins, going 4-2 out of the bullpen in 17 appearances. Barry Rooks has been the top starter with a 4.95 ERA in eight starts, giving him a record of 3-1.

FOLLOW THE BULLDOGS
Follow the Bryant baseball team as they take on Northeastern and Florida Atlantic this week. Live stats and video are available at Northeastern while live stats and audio will be available for the Florida Atlantic series.