May 04, 2008 12:24 am
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ANDERSON — Yeah, it was a bad idea. No way around it. But can you really blame them? With a loss on Saturday, Anderson University’s playoff hopes would literally have been sunk.
No mulligan. No tomorrow. No second chance.
Instead, the only thing dunked by late afternoon were the Ravens’ six senior baseball players, who collectively decided to celebrate a doubleheader sweep over Bluffton at Raven Field by hopping the left-field fence for a casual dip in the University Village retention pond.
Simply put, It was a display of camaraderie any Polar Bear Club member would have appreciated. As for the rent-paying residents at the neighboring private community, well, not so much, as evident by the visit from the local authorities afterward to see AU coach Don Brandon.
I guess it can’t go without saying, there’s always a wet blanket at every party.
But after pulling within one game of rival Transylvania in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference standings for fourth place and a secured playoff berth, nothing could ruin the mood.
“It’s exciting; our back’s against the wall,” said Brandon, whose program has one more crucial road game left with Bluffton today before the season ends.
“We have to win them all, and Transylvania has to lose at least two (of three). But our guys responded today. The truth is, we got one more. We got to respond again tomorrow.”
Getting some help from HCAC leader Rose-Hulman (28-10, 15-4) on Saturday after the Engineers split a doubleheader with the Pioneers (27-10,14-7), the Ravens did their part, improving to 23-14 overall and 13-8 in the conference.
“That’s all we’re worried about right now. We don’t think a day past (today),” said Brad Lantz, AU’s starting catcher and former Lapel High School standout. “We have nine innings against Bluffton (today), and if the chips fall right, we got next week. Once we’re in that tournament, anything can happen.”
With a chance at the final HCAC tournament spot where double-elimination greets those invited to attend, the Ravens would love to have that chance, and picking the opportune time to correct season-long woes it doesn’t seem too improbable.
Winning both games over Bluffton behind two strong pitching performances, the validity of the Ravens’ 5.03 team ERA prior to the first pitch hardly reflected what was.
And it was sophomore pitcher Brad Schnepp, a former Pendleton Heights standout that squashed the norm by limiting the Beavers to four hits for a 13-0 win in Game 1.
Imposing his will, the 6-foot-2 right-hander whiffed seven of 27 batters faced and, for good measure, added his first collegiate home run as AU ripped Bluffton for 15 hits.
Just players on the brink doing what they had to do.
“The coaches talked to us and stressed to us that we need to take care of what we can control,” said AU third baseman David Addington, who spent his high school playing days under Eric Hagan at Lapel. “We came out firing, and we knew what we had to do and did it.”
The second game required more grit and know-how, which the Ravens revealed on numerous occasions.
A key heads-up throw by AU first baseman Eric Smith with no outs in the top of the fourth to get Chris Bauman trickling off third base was a prime example.
AU starter Kyle Dillion provided the rest, striking out two in hocus pocus fashion. An inning later with the game locked at 2, AU right fielder Cody Young’s diving catch in foul territory further backed the seriousness of the day.
“That’s one of our strengths with this team; we just keep fighting,” Addington said. “We’ve had a couple of times where we’ve kind of given up, and you can tell. But we’ve come together. That’s what I like about this team.”
The hitting wasn’t anything to scoff at either.
Lantz’s RBI-double in the sixth put the Ravens in command, which Madison-Grant product Daniel Hiatt followed with an RBI-single.
In the eighth, Bluffton cut the lead to 4-3, but once again one of the 13 local kids came through as Hiatt’s RBI-triple with two outs and Schnepp’s third RBI of the day supplied a sigh of relief.
After a three-up, three-down ninth for Smith’s first save of the season, it was AU 6, Bluffton 3, and one more day. Alive and well.
“I’ve watched these guys for quite a while. I know they can play,” Brandon said. “But there’s no tomorrow. We have to win them all.”
Don’t fret University Village; you’re safe. If the Ravens do win today, they’ll have to find a another body of water ... somewhere in Ohio.
To contact THB sports reporter Richard Torres, e-mail richard.torres@heraldbulletin. com.
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