It was an eventful week two, as we started to find out some of the "for real" teams in the world of Division II baseball this season. Most of the usual suspects remained, but some movement will most likely be happening around the middle and bottom of the Top 25 when polls are updated in the coming weeks. Let's take a look at what happened this past weekend.
As usual, first we take a look at the current PerfectGame.org Top 25 rankings. These are the pre-season rankings, and they won't be updated until, most likely, next week. Until then, we will keep using the pre-season rankings to recap and preview the Division II baseball schedule. Below the current Top 25 are a number of teams that we have taken notice of early on in the season, and should be among the first teams considered to enter the rankings when they are updated. So without further adieu...
1. Tampa (5-1): The Spartans dropped their first game of the season in the series finale against Georgia College, but they picked up the series victory with wins in the first two contests. Tampa downed Georgia College 8-1 and 6-5, before falling 8-7 in the finale. Garrett Cave was stellar yet again in the opener, allowing only one hit over five innings in the 8-1 victory.
2. Nova Southeastern (7-2): NSU was in danger of being swept heading in to Sunday, but picked up a victory in the series finale at North Georgia in one of the best series' of the weekend. The Nighthawks took games one (4-3) and two (8-7, 13 inn.), but the Sharks fought back for a 9-7 victory in the final game against a Top 15 opponent. The Sharks proceeded to pick up a single-game victory over Palm Beach Atlantic, on Tuesday, 14-5.
3. West Florida (3-4): The Argos found their footing a little more, picking up a series victory against a tough Rollins squad. UWF dropped game one 4-1, but picked up 5-1 and 20-15 (!) victories in the final two games of the weekend. In the football game, Justin Ambrosino went 5-for-7 with three runs, and four RBI.
4. Cal Poly Pomona (3-5): The Broncos are still struggling to get upright, as they have now lost four of their last five after dropping two-of-three to Point Loma over the weekend. The Broncos picked up a victory in the middle contest on the road, 14-12, but dropped the two bookend home game, 8-6 and 6-2.
5. USC Aiken (7-0): USCA remains one of the hottest teams in the country to begin the year, as they dominated Shepherd in a three-game sweep, 9-4, 8-3 and 17-5. Jose Bonilla (.483, 2 2B, 1 3B, 7 RBI) and Zach Moon (.346, 1 2B, 4 HR, 12 RBI) are leading an offense that is batting .360 as a team so far this season. Connor Riley (1-0, 1.93 ERA, 9.1 IP, 4 H, 14 K) is dominating on the mound.
6. Lubbock Christian (7-1): LCU is also staying hot, as they took three-of-four from Adams State, with 2-1, 13-6 and 14-4 victories and an 8-4 loss in the third game of the series. Jaime Bustamante (.438, 5 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 8 RBI, .844 SLG, .512 OBP) is crushing it at the plate for the Chaps.
7. Minnesota State (0-0): The Mavericks won't hit the field until February 25th, when they take on Minnesota-Crookston at U.S. Bank Stadium.
8. Colorado Mesa (3-1): CMU got their season started with a very impressive series victory in our D2 Diamond Series of the Week, as they took three-of-four from a hot Dixie State team on the road. The Mavericks won game one, 10-8, before dropping the second game of the first-day doubleheader 5-2. They rebounded for 13-2 and 7-6 victories in the final two contests to get themselves off to yet another great start. Kyle Serrano (.556, 6 R, 2 2B, 1 HR, 5 RBI, .833 SLG, .619 OBP) was the offensive superstar of the weekend.
9. Dixie State (5-3): On the flip side, Dixie State will now be trying to rebound after dropping three-of-four from Colorado Mesa in the D2 Diamond Series of the Week. The Trailblazers still have four regulars batting over .400 on the year, but they don't have a starting pitcher with an ERA below 3.70 right now through two starts each. They won't be going away from the top half of the rankings anytime soon, though.
10. Belmont Abbey (5-4): Abbey split their four games over the weekend and early week, as they lost two-of-three to Tusculum (3-0 loss, 4-2 win, 5-1 loss), but they picked up a 6-4 victory over Carson-Newman on Tuesday. Abbey is raking so far in the power categories, with their top three home run hitters notching a combined eight long balls through nine games. Nick Beinlich (.343, 7 R, 3 2B, 3 HR, 6 RBI), Kayden Krause (.344, 6 R, 3 HR, 8 RBI) and Colin Rosenbaum (.313, 6 R, 2 2B, 2 HR, 5 RBI) are the three-headed power monster reeling its head early on.
11. Point Loma (4-3): PLNU's record isn't gaudy, but they were certainly impressive this past weekend, taking two-of-three from Cal Poly Pomona in a split series. The Sea Lions dropped the middle game, the only home contest, 14-12, but picked up two victories on the road around that, 8-6 and 6-2.
12. North Georgia (6-1): UNG may have had the best weekend of any team, nearly sweeping the defending champions. The Nighthawks picked up 4-3 and 8-7 (13 inn.) victories in the first two games of their series against Nova Southeastern, but were unable to complete the sweep as the Sharks claimed a 9-7 win in the final contest. UNG is crushing it at the plate, with Trevor Sams (.481, 2 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 13 RBI, .741 SLG, .543 OBP), Michael Gouge (.429, 13 R, 6 2B, 3 HR, 15 RBI, .964 SLG, .543 OBP) and Connor Hoover (.419, 11 R, 3 2B, 2 3B, 2 HR, 11 RBI, .839 SLG, .500 OBP) capitalizing on almost every run-scoring opportunity so far.
13. Emporia State (5-1): The Hornets dominated Metro State in a three-game series over the weekend, sweeping the Roadrunners, 22-6, 10-5, 3-0. Tate Kastens had a big 3-for-5, 3 R, 7 RBI game in the 22-6 contest, and is one of the leading hitters on the team so far (.438, 2 HR, 11 RBI, 1.000 SLG) along with Mason Brown (.565, 12 R, 4 HR, 10 RBI, 1.130 SLG, .688 OBP) and BJ Dean (.391, 10 R, 3 HR, 13 RBI, .870 SLG, .483 OBP). The Hornets have a penchant for producing some sluggers, and this year appears no different.
14. Franklin Pierce (0-0): As one of the dreaded non-Southern or non-Western teams, the Ravens will have to wait until the weekend of Feb. 23-26 for their first competition, when they head to Myrtle Beach, S.C. for the Ripken Experience against Felician, Queens (N.Y.), Wilmington and LIU Post.
15. Southern Indiana (0-0): Just like the last few seasons, the Screaming Eagles will begin their season down South against Tampa, when they take on the Spartans in a three game series, Feb. 17-19.
16. Mercyhurst (0-0): The Lakeshow will begin their season on Feb. 18 with a doubleheader against West Virginia State.
17. St. Mary's (4-3): St. Mary's picked up a series-opening, 8-7 victory at home against Tarleton State, but were upended in the doubleheader the next day, falling 9-4 and 9-8 in the contests. Donnie Perez (.483, 9 R, 4 2B, 2 HR, 12 RBI, .828 SLG, .516 OBP) is still raking, though.
18. Millersville (3-0): Millersville was off this past weekend, but is heading to North Carolina for four games this weekend against Charleston and Pitt-Johnstown.
19. Wayne State (Mich.) (0-0): One of the GLIAC favorites, the Warriors will begin their season in Nashville on Feb. 17 and 18 with three games against Trevecca Nazarene.
20. Florida Tech (6-1): The Panthers swept their fellow Top 25 opponent, Lincoln Memorial, in a three-game series, 7-2, 6-4 and 9-3. Led by ace Ty Cohen (1-0, 0.77 ERA, 11.2 IP, 1 ER, 13:2 K:BB), the pitching staff is tallying a 2.10 team ERA so far in the young season. Tyler Deel (2-0, 1.50 ERA, 12.0 IP, 6 H, 12:2 K:BB) might be even better.
21. Angelo State (5-1): Angelo picked up a three-game sweep of SE Oklahoma State, 4-2, 7-2, 14-1 en route to a dominating effort. Jacob Boston (.458, 6 R, 4 HR, 11 RBI, 1.083 SLG) has been one of the biggest bats in the country so far, while Kenton Schroter (2-0, 1.69 ERA, 10.2 IP, 8 H, 14:3 K:BB) is anchoring the staff currently.
22. Augustana (1-4): Augie will be back in action this weekend when they head to Lindenwood for a three-game series.
23. Azusa Pacific (6-1): APU has continued their impressive start to the year, sweeping a four-game set from Cal State San Bernardino, 15-4, 8-5, 7-2 and 10-1. The Cougars are raking at a .320 clip as a team, led by Nick Estrella (.429, 10 R, 4 HR, 10 RBI, .893 SLG) and Pablo O'Connor (.393, 11 R, 3 2B, 4 HR, 11 RBI, .929 SLG) in the power categories. On the mound, Michael Fairchild (1-0, 0.82 ERA, 1 SV, 11.0 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 9:0 K:BB) is holding hitters to a .108 BAA so far.
24. Henderson State (5-2): The Reddies split four games at their home tournament this past weekend, defeating Nebraska-Kearney (7-0) and Truman State (10-6) to begin and end the weekend, but fell to NW Missouri State (10-6) and Central Missouri (7-2) in the middle.
25. Lincoln Memorial (1-6): Despite the very tough schedule so far this year, the Railsplitters have to have been hoping for a better performance so far. After beginning the year on the road against USC Aiken, they got stuck traveling to Florida Tech this past weekend as well, getting swept in the series, 7-2, 6-4 and 9-3.
Here are some teams of note we want to talk about, because there are going to be quite a few Top 25 spots up for grabs when the first update of the season takes place, and we feel like these teams may get some looks at those spots.
Barton (10-0): The Bulldogs are the first team in the country to get to double digit wins, as they have rolled through the first 10 games on their schedule. They haven't faced much tough opposition yet, but 10-0 is 10-0. One of those wins was 34-4 over Salem International (!!!). They're hitting .429 as a team (!!!!!) and cleaning up where they should. Andrew Webster, in 10 games, is batting .459 with three doubles, seven home runs (!) and 24 RBI (!!!). Insane. All of it.
Lenoir-Rhyne (9-0): In case you forgot, L-R started last year 12-2, and started 2015 10-0. They are incredible early-season teams. This year has been no different. The Bears are undefeated through nine contests, with a couple quality victories over Belmont Abbey (6-1) and Tusculum (4-1). They also have their own lopsided victory, a 32-2 win over Emmanuel. Zach Jacobs (.429, 11 R, 12 RBI), Alex Reynolds (.417, 15 R, 3 HR, 15 RBI) and David Newcomer (.333, 10 R, 6 2B, 1 HR, 16 RBI) are stroking so far.
Francis Marion (7-0): The Patriots are another team which has feasted on some lesser competition, but they have gotten the job done no matter what. FMU has posted three shutouts in its seven games, leading to a team ERA of a remarkable 0.84. That is a *team* ERA. The highest ERA on the team so far is 2.19. I'm not going to list them all, because it is ridiculous. On offense, Reese Cooley (.417, 6 R, 3 HR, 12 RBI, .833 SLG) has been the highlight so far.
Flagler (6-1): Flagler swept away an over-matched Paine (22-0, 10-0, 9-0) to start the year, dropped a single game to Embry-Riddle (5-2), but then swept Eckerd (2-1, 9-5, 11-3) this past weekend to boost their schedule a bit. Predictably, that first series of the year has boosted the pitching numbers, as they carry a 1.68 team ERA so far, including Cooper Wallace (2-0, 0.00 ERA, 11.0 IP, 6 H, 10 K) and Michael Maiocco (2-0, 2.25 ERA, 12.0 IP, 19 K) mowing people down.
Central Oklahoma (6-1): UCO has shown themselves decently well so far this year, taking two from Arkansas-Monticello (2-1 and 4-3), one from Southern Nazarene (20-2), dropping one to SW Oklahoma State (3-2) and sweeping East Central (12-5, 7-2, 3-2). The pitching staff has been the story so far, carrying a 1.77 team ERA, including their three starting pitchers all tallying an ERA below 2.50 so far.
Lee (6-1): We thought Lee was a team that was going to make the jump last year, but we may have been a year early. The Flames took two-of-three from Catawba to start the year (6-0 W, 2-1 L, 8-7 W), beat Albany State 15-0, and then swept away Saint Leo this past weekend (3-2, 5-4, 9-4). Lee has a stacked schedule this year, both in and out-of-conference, so if they put up a respectable record, they should have a good shot at the regional tournament.
UNC Pembroke (6-1): The Braves frequently have one of the best offenses in Division II, and they are off to that kind of start yet again this season. UNCP is riding a five-game winning streak right now after sweeping Concord this past weekend (15-4, 15-4, 14-10), and if those scores look high, they are not isolated incidents. UNCP has scored double digit runs in five of their seven games and four of their five victories. They're hitting .354 as a team, and have four regulars batting over .440 so far this season.
Cameron (7-1): You may remember Cameron from last season, when the Aggies were among our last undefeated teams, reaching 11-0 to begin the year. This season, they are back at it again. The Aggies swept a four-game series with Southern Nazarene to start the year (7-4, 4-3, 5-4, 14-3) and took three-of four from SW Oklahoma (18-16 L, 9-7 W, 10-8 W, 13-3 W) in another story of offensive firepower. Cameron is hitting .386 as a team, led by Cody Bower, who is hitting .500 with 13 runs, five doubles, two triples, three home runs and 15 RBI.
Tarleton State (5-1): Tarleton is a little bit of a mystery still, as its first three games were against Arlington Baptist (9-0, 3-0, 13-6), but they did take a series victory against ranked St. Mary's to put them on the board (8-7 L, 9-4 W, 9-8 W).
NW Missouri State (6-1): We might be witnessing the football school becoming a baseball school! NWMS might be the most surprising team up here, considering they finished last season at 25-28 overall. So far this season, the Bearcats picked up wins in their first six games of the season, beating Fort Hays (4-2), NW Oklahoma State (15-0 and 8-3), Arkansas-Fort Smith (6-3), Ouachita Baptist (7-2) and an impressive 10-6 victory over Henderson State. They fell 6-2 in their most recent game against Truman State. So far, the pitching staff has been carrying the team, led by Anthony Caenepeel (2-0, 1.35 ERA, 13.1 IP, 5 H, 17 K, .114 BAA) and Joseph Hietpas (1-0, 2.25 ERA, 1 SHO, 12.0 IP, 6 H, 16 K, .140 BAA), who are sitting batters down at an alarming rate so far.
Florida Southern (5-2): Yea, a shocking discovery here, right? So be it. The Mocs have been impressive this year. They began the year with a three-game sweep at West Florida (5-2, 5-3, 7-3), and then hosted Delta State and Mount Olive in a very entertaining tri-team tournament this past weekend. The Mocs fell to Delta State (4-1) and Mount Olive (12-2) in their first two games, but avenged those losses in the next match-ups, beating Delta State (13-0) and Mount Olive (1-0) to return the favors. As usual, being in the SSC, the Mocs will have plenty of chances to move back up in to the usual spots of the rankings.
West Texas A&M (6-0): The Buffs are another team that has mopped up on some easy competition so far, sweeping New Mexico Highlands (9-1, 21-2, 9-5) and NW Oklahoma State (15-0, 8-0, 17-7), putting up huge numbers in the process. Four players on the team have 11 RBI or more through six games, helping to outscore their opponents 74-12 early on in the season. Not to mention...Marshall Kasowski may be the most impressive pitcher so far through two starts (albeit against questionable competition), going 2-0 with a flawless ERA, one shutout, and only two hits allowed with 21 strikeouts through 12 innings, a .054 batting average against.
Washburn (6-1): The 'Bods have been solid to start, with their only loss coming in the opening tournament of the year at the field of this year's national finals in Grand Prairie. Washburn did beat Newman (8-6), Oklahoma Christian (4-1) and East Central (3-0), but fell to Southern Arkansas (12-6). They avenged that loss in their first game afterwards, though, beating SAU 5-3, before taking a doubleheader from Arkansas-Monticello, 14-4 and 6-2. Riley Krane (.393, 6 R, 2 3B, 1 HR, 17 RBI) is monopolizing everything at the plate for the Ichabods, leading a team that is only hitting .249 so far, and he is the only player with more than six RBI thus far.
UC San Diego (6-2): The Tritons haven't been able to escape anyone named Concordia yet, going 6-2 in a pair of four game series'. UCSD took three-of-four from both Concordia (Oregon) (5-1 W, 14-2 W, 4-1 L, 9-8 W) and from Concordia Irvine (14-0 W, 5-2 L, 7-6 W, 5-4 W). Another usual suspect, we are sure to see the Tritons sneak in to the rankings at some point this season.
Stanislaus State (7-1): They find themselves in one of the best conferences in the country in the CCAA, but that also provides a lot of opportunity. So far, the Warriors took three-of-four from Fresno Pacific (4-1 W, 6-3 L, 7-4 W, 5-3 W) and then swept Holy Names in four games, 15-5, 6-1, 2-0, 1-0.
Delta State (5-1): Yet another usual suspect, the Statesmen have started the year on a great foot, sweeping Harding (9-7, 5-4, 1-0) to begin the year, before heading to Lakeland to split a pair of games with Florida Southern (4-1 W, 13-0 L) and pick up a victory against Mount Olive, 9-8.
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