Sports
Pointers limp into the postseason with battle wounds
Sports Reporter
Having just completed a rigorous regular season in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, the University of Wisconsin- Stevens Point baseball team is preparing for the postseason with plenty of battle scars to show for it.
The number 23-ranked Pointers wrapped up their regular season against the No. 8-ranked UW-Whitewater Warhawks at Prucha Field last weekend.
The Pointers finished third in the WIAC with a 16- 8 record and conference, and are currently 25-14 overall.
Although the regular season may not have finished as the Pointers had hoped, they remain optimistic about the postseason where they have been successful in recent years.
The Pointers have won three consecutive WIAC tournament titles which grant the winner an automatic berth into the NCAA tournament. They will need to keep up that success this weekend at Witter Field in Wisconsin Rapids once again if they look to make it into the tourney.
They will take on number 10-ranked UW-Oshkosh Friday at 1:00 p.m. UW- Whitewater and UW-Lacrosse also qualified for the double- elimination tournament.
Although Stevens Point had their share of struggles this year, they also have plenty to hang their hats on.
They led the conference with 66 home runs and 367 runs scored. They finished second in the conference with a .333 batting average and third in the league with a 4.36 ERA.
Seniors Doug Coe and Brandon Scheidler led the way offensively for the Pointers. Coe led the league with 13 home runs and 51 RBI’s to go with a .426 batting average which was good for second in the conference. Scheidler leads the league with 62 hits, is third in the conference with a .416 batting average, and currently on a 16-game hitting streak.
On the hill for UW-SP, Travis Kempf was the team’s ace as he went 5-0 with a 2.98 ERA. Closer Jeff Zielke is second in the league with six saves.
The achillies heel for the Pointers has been their defense. The sub .950 fielding percentage will have to improve, and the costly errors will have to be avoided if they plan on making a second consecutive trip to the NCAA Division II World Series.
The Pointers are also suffering from several injuries and team issues which have hampered them recently. But Coach Pat Bloom will do his best to circle the wagons and have to team focused for another postseason run.
The adversity that has faced the team this year could be a positive though, as they can learn from their mistakes and build on their recent postseason success.
If the Pointers do take home the WIAC championship, they would move on to the NCAA regional tournament at a site to be determined. If the Pointers advance from there, they would play in the World Series which is held at Fox Cities Stadium.
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