The Muskingum baseball team was recognized in the latest NCAA Division III Baseball Coaches Poll and D3baseball.com/NCBWA Top 25 poll. The Muskies received 24 votes in the NCAA Division III Baseball Coaches Poll and 20 in the D3baseball.com/NCBWA Top 25 poll.
The Muskies have been dominant through the first half of the season. Through 18 games the Muskies have recorded an impressive 15-3 overall record. The Muskies have dominated from the beginning of the season where they bested Ohio Christian in a three-game series. Muskingum followed that up with a win over Westminster that was decided in extra innings. They then dismantled William Peace in a three-game series to improve to 7-0.
The Muskies continued to roll at the North Central College Tournament that was hosted at Marietta College. The Muskies went 3-0 at the event with wins over North Central, Ohio Wesleyan, and Hanover by a combined run differential of 41-20.
The Muskies went on and dominated with a 16-8 home-opener win over Oberlin and a two-game series sweep of Waynesburg by scores of 13-1 and 10-3.
In recent action the Muskies have bested the Bethany Bison by a score of 10-5.
At the plate, the Muskies have shown great awareness with a .331 team batting average while averaging 10.5 runs per game. They have tallied 54 doubles, 12 triples, and nine home runs.
Senior Weston Melick bats at an outstanding .424 average to lead the Muskies. He has tallied 28 hits, 10 doubles, one triple, and two home runs. Melick has an on-base percentage of .531 and currently shows a slugging percentage of .697. He has also added 25 RBI's which is tied for first on the team.
In the Ohio Athletic Conference Melick sits in second for batting average, leads the conference in doubles, is tied for second in RBI's, third in slugging percentage, fifth in on-base percentage, and in a tie for seventh in home runs.
On the mound, the Muskies combined rotation has posted a 4.90 ERA while restricting opponents to a dismal .280 batting average.
The trio of graduate student Erik Cover, sophomore Gavin Schultz, and sophomore Shoei Yamashita have led the Muskie rotation on the mound. Yamashita leads the trio with a 4-0 record on the season. Cover and Schultz have each added a 3-0 record. Cover has tallied a team-high 30.2 innings of action while handling a 3.52 ERA. Yamashita has added 28.2 innings of action on the mound and sits at a 1.88 ERA. Schultz has 16.2 innings on the mound and records 14.58 strikeouts per nine innings.
Yamashita has been impressive when compared to the Ohio Athletic Conference. He currently sits tied for first in wins and has the fourth best ERA in the conference at 1.88.
Muskingum will be back in action on Saturday, March 29 when they travel to John Carroll for an Ohio Athletic Conference doubleheader. The first pitch is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. in University Heights, Ohio at Schweickert Field.
The Muskies will be back at home on Tuesday, April 1 when they take on Marietta in doubleheader Ohio Athletic Conference action. The first pitch is set for 1:00 p.m. at Mose Morehead Field in New Concord, Ohio. The game will also be the Muskingum baseball team's One Love Game.
