University of Connecticut Athletics
Baseball Will Finish 2009 Regular Season at Villanova
5/13/2009 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 13, 2009
UConn Game Notes vs. Villanova 
Games #54-56: at Villanova Wildcats
Thursday, May 14 - 3:45 p.m.
Friday, May 15 - 3:45 p.m.
Saturday, May 16 - 12:15 p.m.
BIG EAST CONFERENCE BATTLE
UConn will take on Villanova in a three-game series on the road to finish out 2009 regular season play. The Huskies are .500 in the BIG EAST with a 12-12 record this season as the Wildcats are 5-18 in conference play in 2009.
DID YOU KNOW?
UConn is 25-23 all-time against Villanova, dating back to their first match-up in 1941, when the Huskies finished the year with a 4-10 overall record under head coach J.O. Christian. UConn's current baseball field is named after J.O. Christian as the head coach finished his career at UConn with an overall record of 254-170-7 and a .599 winning percentage.
THE JIM PENDERS FILE
Alma Mater: Connecticut, `94, `98
Career Record: 191-146-2/6 yrs.*
Record at UConn: 191-146-2/6 yrs.*
* - includes 2009 season
Honor Roll:
2006 BIG EAST Coach of the Year
NEIBA Coach of the Year
MR. CLUTCH
Freshman John Andreoli has come up big in game-changing situations this season as he is leading UConn by batting .600 (9-for-15) with runners in scoring position. With a runner on third and less than two outs, Andreoli is 2-for-3, while he is 20-for-31 in successfully advancing runners. Matt Burnett leads UConn batting .600 (6-for-10) with the bases loaded.
IN THE RECORD BOOK
Peter Fatse has recently earned his way amongst the top-20 all-time UConn players in career hits (175), stolen bases (43), home runs (22), runs scored (122) and runs batted in (125). David Erickson has 17 career saves as a Husky, ranking him third on UConn's all-time career saves list.
BATTLE OF THE BATS
UConn recorded a season-high 21 hits in the Huskies' 17-5 win over Bryant in non-conference action on April 28.
FIVE IN A ROW
LEADING SLUGGER
George Springer leads the Huskies with 62 hits this season in 182 at-bats as he has a .709 slugging percentage with a team-high 16 home runs, 64 runs scored and 54 RBI. Mike Nemethand Springer have recorded over 20 multiple hit games this year while Nemeth has a team-high 67 hits and 19 doubles.
SPRINGER EARNS FIRST HONOR OF SEASON
George Springer was tabbed the BIG EAST Conference Player of the Week for the week ending on May 3, earning the Huskies' first conference weekly award this season and just the second in the last two years.
LAST TIME OUT FOR THE HUSKIES
The Huskies defeated Boston College on Tuesday, May 12 in non-conference play in Chestnut Hill, Mass. by a score of 3-2. Mike Olt came up big for the Huskies, finishing the day 2-for-4 with one run scored and two RBI, while Pierre LePage recorded three hits on the afternoon.
Dusty Odenbach earned the win, his second of the year, as the Huskies picked up their 31st victory of the season.
WHAT'S ON DECK
The BIG EAST Baseball Championship will be held at Bright House Field for the third time in championship history and the second consecutive year. The stadium is home to the Clearwater Threshers, the Class-A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies.
The top-eight teams, based on regular-season finish in the league standings, will qualify for the championship, a double-elimination tournament. The winner of the tournament will receive the BIG EAST's automatic bid to the 2009 NCAA Division I Baseball Championship.
After the BIG EAST Conference three-game series against Villanova, the Huskies will wait to receive a berth into the 2009 BIG EAST Baseball Championship in Clearwater, Fla. on May 19-23. Currently, the Huskies are battling with four other teams for the last four open spots in the tournament. South Florida, Louisville, West Virginia and St. John's have already clinched a spot in the championship next week.
The Huskies recorded a five-game winning streak, their longest this season before a 5-2 loss to Georgetown in BIG EAST action on April 19.
HOME SWEET HOME
The Huskies are currently 12-9 at J.O. Christian Field this season with another loss at Dodd Stadium. In the last 15 home games, UConn was 9-6 against its opponents.
MAKING HISTORY
Freshman George Springer is leading the way with 16 homeruns in his first season with the Huskies.
His 16 long balls is the new UConn record for most home runs in a single-season by a freshman. He is currently in a tie for third on the UConn single-season home runs list.
SEEING DOUBLE
UConn has recorded double-digit runs in 17 games this season, including seven in a span of nine games.
IT'S ALL IN THE STREAK
Nick Ahmed recorded a season-best 16-game hiting streak for the Huskies before being stopped by St. John's in late April. Pierre LePage put together a 14-game hitting streak, tying the second-longest this season, before the series against Pittsburgh.
Matt Burnett had a 14-game hitting streak going this year as he recorded a hit in the Huskies' first 14 games of the 2009 season. Mike Nemeth is currently on a seven-game run.
