Defensive pressure, solid pitching boosts St. Joseph baseball over Lakeshore
By DARREN PHILLIPS - H-P Sports Writer
Published: Wednesday, May 9, 2012 1:00 PM EDT

ST. JOSEPH - St. Joseph's baseball team used the same formula it's used much of the season to post a doubleheader sweep of Lakeshore on Tuesday.

The Bears stole six bases in an opening 6-4 win over the Lancers and rode the solid pitching of Charlie Fleenor to win the second game 3-1. The Bears improved to 9-1 in the Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference West Division and 18-6 overall.

"We kept coming after them," said St. Joseph coach Eric Danapilis. "We've got to understand that our identity is to be an aggressive team. We want to throw strikes, play good defense, move the ball around and try to be aggressive on the bases."

Lakeshore (5-5, 14-9) matched St. Joseph with six base hits in the opening game and had seven hits to the Bears' five in the second game.

The Lancers didn't convert on their chances as often, however. Lakeshore put its leadoff batter on base in five of seven innings in the second game but only got that player across home plate once.

Lakeshore has dropped six of its last seven games after starting the season 13-3.

"Those two-out hits are huge," said Lakeshore coach Mark Nate. "We're not getting them. I've got to compliment by second pitcher, Josh (Foster) pitched a great game. We've got to score more. One run is not going to win many games."

St. Joseph took advantage of two Lakeshore errors and pulled off a double steal of second base and home in the first inning of the opener to take a 2-0 lead.

Lakeshore tied it with a two-run double by Jordan Avery in the third inning, but St. Joseph regained the lead in the bottom of the third. Zach Kirkpatrick walked, stole second and scored on a one-out single by Nick Lawrence.

The Bears pushed the lead to 6-2 before Lakeshore rallied in the seventh. Jordan Avery drove in two runs with a single just inside the first-base line to make it 6-4 but St. Joseph catcher Riley Johnson threw him out trying to steal second to end the game.

In the second game, Lakeshore took an early lead when Jordan Avery to lead off the second inning, took third on a wild pitch and scored on a grounder by Joey Nate.

The Lancers didn't score again, leaving the bases loaded in the sixth inning and stranding two runners in the seventh.

"We're not having a problem getting on first and second," Nate said. "We've got a problem scoring them."

St. Joseph took the lead with two runs in the bottom of the second inning.

One out after AJ Montoya drew a walk, Taylor Hatfield reached on an infield single. Both runners advanced on a wild pitch and scored on a single to left by Fleenor.

The Bears added a run in the fifth when Kirkpatrick doubled to drive in Dylan Hammond.

"Anytime you beat Lakeshore, and sweep them, those are good wins," Danapilis said. "But they're a young team and they're still figuring out how to play. They're going to be a good team at the end of the year."

First game

St. Joseph 6, Lakeshore 4

Lakeshore 002 000 2 - 4 6 2

St. Joseph 201 021 x - 6 6 2

WP - Jake Fratzke. LP - Jeff Narregan. Sv - Joe Fratzke.

Top hitters - Lakeshore: Austin Forsythe 3 1b; Jordan Avery 2b, 1b, 4 RBIs. St. Joseph: AJ Montoya 2b, 3 RBIs.

Second game

St. Joseph 3, Lakeshore 1

Lakeshore 010 000 0 - 1 7 1

St. Joseph 020 010 x - 3 5 2

WP - Charlie Fleenor. LP - Josh Foster.

Top hitters - Lakeshore: Ryan Avery 2 1b; Jordan Avery 2b. St. Joseph: Zach Kirkpatrick 2b; Charlie Fleenor 2 RBIs.

Records - Lakeshore 5-5 SMAC West, 14-9; St. Joseph 9-1, 18-6.

By BEN SANDERS - H-P Sports Writer
Published: Wednesday, April 18, 2012 1:03 PM EDT

BENTON HARBOR - St. Joseph dominated most of Tuesday's Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference West Division baseball doubleheader against Benton Harbor, but both teams left with some reasons for optimism.

The Bears needed just four innings to win the opener 18-0, but the Tigers played much better in the second game, losing 8-4.

St. Joseph (4-0 SMAC West, 7-3) was nearly flawless in the first game. The Bears never struck out and hit the ball hard, with five doubles among their 13 hits. Jake Fratzke and Dylan Hammond each doubled twice and drove in three runs.

St. Joseph's pitching was just as dominant, with Kris Urrea striking out eight batters in three innings to get the win.

"The thing I liked that we haven't seen a lot is we came out and played with some enthusiasm," St. Joseph coach Eric Danapilis said. "Yesterday (in a pair of losses to South Haven) we were very, very flat, didn't have a lot of emotion out there. Today, at least the first game, we were aggressive and attacking it."

The Bears carried their good play into the beginning of the second game, building an 8-0 lead through four innings. Riley Johnson and Charlie Fleenor each singled and doubled to lead the offense. Nick Lawrence pitched the first three innings but didn't allow a hit or a walk, with Benton Harbor's only runner reaching base on an error.

St. Joseph then seemed to relax a bit with the eight-run lead, allowing Benton Harbor (0-4 SMAC West, 1-6) to get back into the game.

"Any time you beat a team 18-0, you kind of lose your drive a little bit," Danapilis said. "But every game's the same, they're going to throw the ball, hit the ball, catch the ball and you've got to do it. We didn't do a very good job of that, but also give Benton Harbor credit. They didn't roll over and give up. They played a lot better in the second game and they battled."

The Tigers scored two runs in the bottom of the sixth, and had the bases loaded when Marcus Alexander flied out to right center to end the inning.

They added two more runs in the seventh. Raymone Hayden hit an RBI single in both the sixth and the seventh to lead the offense.

"I'm proud of the way we came back and battled the second game," Benton Harbor coach Danny Jennings said. "We kind of laid down that first game, made a whole lot of mistakes, had walks and errors and didn't hit the ball hard at all.

"I feel good going forward that the guys are still coming out with a purpose. They didn't just say 'We lost 18-0, let's just go out here and get this second one over.' They came out and competed and tried and had an opportunity at the end to put some pressure on them."

Freshman Tommie Miller made his varsity pitching debut in the second game. He pitched all seven innings, allowing three walks and 10 hits.

"That's definitely a start of things to come with him, because he's full of potential," Jennings said.

First game

St. Joseph 18, Benton Harbor 0

St. Joseph 543 6 - 18 13 0

B. Harbor 000 0 - 0 1 4

WP - Kris Urrea. LP - Dalvin Pulliam.

Top hitters - St. Joseph: Zack Kirkpatrick 2 1b; AJ Montoya 2b; Riley Johnson 1b, 2 RBIs; Jake Fratzke 2 2b, 3 RBIs; Dylan Hammond 2 2b, 3 RBIs; Matt Peirce 2b, 2 RBIs.

Second game

St. Joseph 8, Benton Harbor 4

St. Joseph 025 100 0 - 8 10 3

B. Harbor 000 002 2 - 4 5 4

WP - Nick Lawrence. LP - Tommie Miller.

Top hitters - St. Joseph: Zack Kirkpatrick 2 1b, 2 RBIs; Charlie Fleenor 1b, 2b; Riley Johnson 1b, 2b, RBI. Benton Harbor: Raymone Hayden 2 1b, 2 RBIs.

bsanders@TheH-P.com

Division realignment may lead to tighter conference title race

By BEN SANDERS - H-P Sports Writer

Published: Saturday, March 31, 2012 12:52 PM EDT

The new eight-team Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference West Division has produced competitive races in many sports this season.

Local coaches are expecting the same in baseball, with Portage Northern, Portage Central and Kalamazoo Central joining St. Joseph, Lakeshore, Benton Harbor, Niles and Mattawan.

"I think you'll get a true winner now," Lakeshore coach Mark Nate said. "If you got a sweep of a doubleheader before, you were in the driver's seat."

St. Joseph won the West last season, going 7-1 in the division and 28-9 overall.

The Bears return several key seniors, led by a pair of all-state selections in outfielder Jake Fratzke and shortstop Nick Lawrence. Other seniors back include catcher Riley Johnson, an honorable mention all-conference selection, third baseman Connor Ross and first baseman Taylor Hatfield.

Junior outfielder Zack Kirkpatrick, an all-conference and all-district pick last season, is also back. The Bears also have a strong sophomore class led by utility player AJ Montoya and outfielder Charlie Fleenor.

Though St. Joseph returns a strong lineup of position players, coach Eric Danapilis expects his team's weakness to be pitching.

Danapilis and Nate named each other's teams, Niles and Portage Central among the contenders.

Lakeshore will be led by several returning seniors, including second baseman Austin Forsythe, center fielder Ryan Avery, first baseman Jordan Avery, right fielder Loren Johnson and pitcher Jeff Narregan.

Key juniors back are third baseman Nick Schultz, shortstop Johnny Nate, catcher Matt Glowacki and pitcher Josh Foster.

"We have three freshmen and two sophomores up," coach Nate said. "We also have some pretty good leadership with our juniors and seniors.

"If we keep learning we should be pretty good. We've got a really good group of minds. We're going to see where it takes us."

Benton Harbor graduated several key players from last season's 10-17 team, but the Tigers hope being strong up the middle will help them continue to improve and push for a winning season.

"We're pretty young, but we have experience in good places," Benton Harbor coach Danny Jennings said. "We do have experience in the middle of the field."

Two seniors, shortstop Roy Napier and second baseman Latrell Pryor, will lead the defense and bat at the top of the lineup. Junior Kenneth Britt will be the team's top pitcher.

Jennings also has high hopes for two young players, sophomore center fielder Raymone Hayden and freshman first baseman Tommy Miller.

The 2011 Bears return 11 guys from a roster that won 24 games a year ago. The Bears should have a very powerful line-up that can score runs at a high rate and a defense that can make all the plays. The Bears return almost their entire starting line-up from last year. They have a wealth of arms that pitched innings last year along with a few excellent young JV arms moving up. The team will have to find a way to replace ace Dave Brennan on the mound if they are to continue their success on the field that Coach Danapilis has started to build at St. Joe. However, in the game of baseball, experience is very important to the success of a team and the 2011 Bears will have it.

Seniors Steven Ross and Tyler Curtis will lead the way swinging the bats with help of many others such as Junior Nick Lawrence, Seniors Carter Nimtz and Ty Taylor. The team will feature speed at the top of the lineup with Junior Jake Fratzke and Sophomore Zack Kirkpatrick. Defensively the team will be led by Junior Riley Johnson behind the plate, Lawrence at SS, and a speedy outfield patrolled by Fratzke, Kirkpatrick, and Nimtz. On the mound the Bears will have several players that will pitch quality innings. The pitchers will be led by Seniors Steven Ross and Carter Nimtz, and Juniors Jake Fratzke and Charlie Kormanick. The Bears will also get big help on the mound from Seniors Tom Fry and Brian Knapp.

This year looks very promising and the Bears goal of winning a District and Regional Title is very possible for this team but they do not want to talk about it, they just want to play the game.

During the Aug. 31 Baseball Booster Meeting, many key volunteer lead positions were filled thanks to those in attendance. These include:

Wreath Sales -- Ann and Bob Kirkpatrick

T-Shirt Sales -- Lisa Reeves

Pancake Breakfast -- Chris Weiffenbach

Team meal coordinator -- Ellen Hatfield

Gear Purchase -- Kim Blanzy

Blissfield Tournament -- Keene Taylor

Meet the Team -- Ron Starks

End of Season Banquet -- Shari Holzapfel and Janet Trumbley

Although we have identified these folks as leads, each one will need assistance so we will continue to reach deep into the organization for support. In addition, there are still a couple key lead positions to fill. If you would like to volunteer, please contact the lead for the area you are interested in or contact Dave Lawrence at 208-5289.

If you would like to be included in future Booster emails, sign up online by highlighting the Booster menu button and selecting Join Baseball Boosters. Once you are on the list, you will get all of the latest Booster news, access to your players credits for fundraising, game updates due to weather plus much much more. Don't be the one missing out on the latest information. Sign Up Now!