Highlighted by sweeps of North Carolina A&T and Duke, Ball State's baseball team put together a 6-2 record over Spring Break to boost its season record to 8-6.
Following weekend victories of 5-2, 15-1 and 11-8 over hapless A&T, the Cardinals dropped a pair to North Carolina. The first game was a 12-0 shutout, and the Cards held a 5-1 lead in the second one before the Tar Heels scored eight unanswered.
"It was a good week; the guys played well," said head coach Greg Beals. "I didn't think we competed well that one day (against North Carolina), but we came back hard the next day."
Wednesday saw senior designated hitter Adam Metzler slam a two-out, ninth-inning home run to tie things against Duke. Kyle Dygert's sacrifice fly then scored fellow freshman Brad Miller in the tenth for an 8-7 win. BSU downed the Blue Devils 11-5 on Friday before squeaking past Radford, 9-8, on Saturday.
Dygert moved into the lineup during the week as the second baseman and responded by hitting 14 of 30 (.467). For his efforts, Dygert was named Monday as the Mid-American Conference West Player of the Week.
Metzler slammed four homers and batted in 12 runs. Metzler and shortstop Jason Bucholtz stroked 10 hits apiece. Outfielders Ben Schroeder (nine runs, five stolen bases) Brad Snyder (eight runs, four stolen bases) added nine each. Catcher Lucas Fry batted .333 in taking over that position.
"Lucas has won that job," Beals said. "He provides great leadership."
On the mound, Jason Paul won both of his starts. The senior (3-1) allowed just two earned runs in 12 2/3 innings, lowering his season's ERA to 1.93. Joe Ness and John Pettibone picked up both a save and win. Brian Lynch and Andy Anderson added wins, while Dustin Ruhl recorded a save.
"Our first three starters are clear (Lynch, Paul and Johnston)," said Beals, who added that Anderson and Ness are possibilities for the fourth spot. "The bullpen's been solid. Kory Bucklew and John Pettibone had good trips. John's kind of solidified the closer's role, and Kory's the crafty left-hander who can pitch about every game."
Beals said he likes the direction his team as a whole is heading going into Wednesday's game at Valparaiso and Saturday's home opener.
"We've definitely made some improvements," said the first-year coach. "Most importantly, we learned how to win; we won some close games."
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