May 12, 2010
WYOMING, Mich. – On a cold and blustery day, the Hawkeyes (18-2, 9-0) took another step closer to the OK-Green championship as they defeated the last place Golden Hawks of Rogers 14-2. The Hawkeyes used some good pitching and consistent hitting to garner their ninth conference win.
Gaining the win on the mound was junior Nathaniel White. White (3-0) went three innings allowing three hits, 2 earned runs while striking out four and walking none. Senior Steve Durham worked the final two innings yielding one hit while fanning three and walking one.
Offensively, Carter DeBoe led the way by going 3 for 3 with a triple, 3 runs and 4 RBI. Adam Koning was 2 for 3 with two doubles, two runs and a stolen base. Jason Henrickson also went 2 for 3 with 2 RBI. R.J. Flowers added an RBI double while Todd Scholten added an RBI single. Collecting hits were Andrew DeGood and Connor Hagen.
The Hawkeyes are next in action of Friday when they host Unity Christian in a key OK-Green doubleheader. First pitch is scheduled for 4 p.m. at Hawkeye Field.
Check back Friday night for a recap of the Unity Christian doubleheader.
May 10, 2010
BYRON CENTER, Mich. – Heading into a vital week in the OK-Green conference race, the Hawkeyes knew that they would have to go through Byron Center ace Mitch Patterson in order to stay unbeaten in the league. The Hawkeyes (17-2, 8-0) answered the challenge by knocking Patterson out in the first inning en route to a game one 13-3 victory. Hamilton finished the sweep with a 9-3 win in the nightcap. The win keeps the Hawkeyes alone at the top of the OK-Green.
“We’ve got a couple of teams on our heels so it just keeps us ahead of those teams as we go down the stretch,” Hawkeye head coach Ken DeGood said. “To only make one error on the day while collecting 29 hits, you’re going to win a lot of games doing that. Our pitching was solid as well (18Ks and only 2BBs).
GAME ONE
HAMILTON 13, BYRON CENTER 3
Hamilton collected 18 hits to give senior pitcher Carter DeBoe all the support he would need in game one. Hamilton batted around off of Bulldog ace Mitch Patterson while scoring five runs in the first.
“We knew Patterson was going to be around the plate so we tried to be aggressive. The first good pitch we saw, our guys went after it and we got a lot of good swings in that first inning.”
DeBoe (5-1) went the distance while allowing three earned runs on five hits while striking out eight and walking only two.
Offensively, R.J. Flowers was 4 for 4 with an inside-the-park home run, a double, 4 RBI and 2 runs. Senior Luke Stafford was 3 for 4 with 3 RBI and one run. Jason Henrickson and DeBoe each added multi-hit games with Henrickson adding a double and DeBoe a triple. Adding hits for the Hawkeyes were Adam Koning, Andrew DeGood, Todd Scholten, Evan Mudd and Steve Durham.
DeGood spoke afterwards about the big games by Flowers and Stafford.
“Those guys came up big. R.J. broke the ice with that 2 RBI single and he just stayed hot the rest of the day. Luke just hits line drives and he’s been great this season.”
GAME TWO
HAMILTON 9, BYRON CENTER 3
The Hawkeyes welcomed senior pitcher Alex Tenckinck back to the mound and he kept an aggressive Bulldog team at bay en route to his third win of the season (3-1). Tenckinck worked five innings, allowing three runs on eight hits. He did not walk a batter while striking out six. Senior Evan Mudd collected his second save of the season working two innings of scoreless baseball.
“It was good to see Alex back on the mound. He had to work out some rust but he did a really solid job without walking anybody. He made them put the ball in play,” DeGood explained.
Offensively, the Hawkeyes were paced by Koning, Henrickson and DeBoe. All three seniors had two hits each, as did senior Todd Scholten, while each added at least one extra base hit. DeGood, Flowers and Stafford each collected a hit in game two. Flowers collected two more RBI. On the day, Flowers was 5 for 8 with a double, home run and 6 RBI.
“The top of our order really came through for us,” DeGood noted of game two, “by getting on base and driving each other in. That’s kind of the way it’s been. We get production from the entire lineup at different times.”
The Hawkeyes will have a quick turnaround as they travel to Rogers on Tuesday for a single game. First pitch is scheduled for 4:15 p.m.
Check back Tuesday night for the recap of the Rogers game.
May 4, 2010
HAMILTON, Mich. – On a beautiful day for baseball at Hawkeye Field, the host Hawkeyes (15-2, 6-0) got off to a quick start and didn’t look back as they defeated Holland Christian 12-1. Senior pitcher Evan Mudd and junior infielder R.J. Flowers led the way for the Hawkeyes.
“It’s hard to say anything with all of the fast starts that we’ve had,” DeGood noted. “For some reason, we’ve been able to do that here recently and we did it again tonight. We get down 1-0 in the first and there’s no panic. We get a runner on and our guys go from there. Holland Christian is a really good team and to be able to beat them twice in the league-that’s a great accomplishment.”
Mudd, who is now 5-0 on the season, went the distance holding the potent Maroons lineup to four hits. He struck out six and walked only one for his third OK-Green conference win.
“I thought he warmed up really well and the last four innings he was that pitcher,” DeGood noted “He got in a rhythm and was good for us tonight and has been all season. ”
Offensively, Flowers delivered the big blog with a three-run homer in the first. On the day, Flowers was 2 for 3 with 2 runs scored and 4 RBI. Collecting multi-hit games for the Hawkeyes were Jason Henrickson, Andrew DeGood, Luke Stafford and Mudd. Carter DeBoe, Todd Scholten and Steve Durham rounded out the offensive attack with one hit apiece. Adam Koning scored three runs and drove in one on a sac fly.
“With R.J. getting into a fender bender before getting to the park, I was worried about him,” DeGood explained. “But he has a great ability to focus on the task at hand. He had a great swing for the home run and hit an RBI single the next time up-he’s been unbelievable for us all year.”
The Hawkeyes are next in action on Friday when they travel to Byron Center for a key OK-Green doubleheader. First pitch is slated for 4:15 p.m.
Check back Friday night for a recap of the Byron Center doubleheader.
