Game Notes | Live Stats | Radio (Saturday Only) | FHSU BB Page WARM UPS...With four games to play, Griffon Baseball is clinging to fourth place in the MIAA standings which means they would host an opening round series in the MIAA Baseball Championship May 1-3. This weekend the Griffons will hope to lock up that spot as they host Fort Hays State in a pivotal four games series at the Spring Sports Complex. Action gets underway at 6 PM on Friday, followed by a 1 PM doubleheader on Saturday and a single game on Sunday also at 1 PM. Saturday's games will be broadcast live on the Griffon Sports Network, KFEQ 680 AM. Prior to the games on Saturday, we'll recognize the Griffon seniors who will play at the Spring Sports Complex in the regular season for the final time.
The Griffons are now 24-17 overall and 20-14 in MIAA play after falling in three out of four games last weekend to #21 Central Missouri in Warrensburg.
As schedules do tend to change at a moments notice, stay tuned to gogriffons.com for the most accurate updates.
KNOW THE OPPONENTS...
Record vs. Fort Hays State: Overall: 16-15 MWSU - Home: 9-6 MWSU - Away: 6-6 Tied - Neutral: 3-1 FHSU • MIAA Tournament: 3-2 MWSU• The Griffons and the Tigers have met 31 times since 2001 with MWSU leading 16-15. The Griffons had won six of the last eight games which includes last years two victories in the first round of the MIAA Tournament. With the victories last year in the tournament the Griffons are now 3-2 in the MIAA tournament and 9-6 in St. Joseph.
• This season the Gorillas are 17-25 overall and 14-22 in the MIAA which includes winning five of the last six games and winning their first series of the season last weekend against Lindenwood. The Tigers are 7-14 away from Hays and 10-11 in Hays.
• As a team they are hitting .309 with five players hittnig over .300. Clayton Garland leads the way with a .430 average. He has 65 hts, 12 doubles, three triples, four home runs and 31 RBI. Cooper Langley has hit a team high 19 doubles while Kevin Czarnecki has eight doubles, seven home runs and 40 RBI.
• On the bump they have struggled with a 7.91 team ERA. Tyler Patty leads the way in 10 starts with a 7.28 ERA in 50.2 inning pitched. He has giving up 86 hits and 41 earned runs. Austin Unrein has a 3-2 record with a 8.10 ERA in 11 games. Nick Hammeke is 3-0 in seven games. he has pitched just 10 innings with 12 strikeouts.
GRIFF NOTES...(About 2014)As a team the Griffons are on a bit of a role winning 16 of their last 22 games with includes winning nine of their last twelve. As a team the Griffons are hitting .300 with
Ryan Degner leading the way with a .372 average. Degner is tied for the team lead in hits with 55. He is second in home runs with 7 and RBI with 35. He is first on the team with 13 doubles and stolen bases with 14.
David Chew is second on the team hitting .347 and leads the team in RBI with 39 while
Jake Schrader leads the team with 11 home runs and 39 RBI. On the bump the Griffons have been led by
Grant Woods and
Jake Jones.
Grant Woods has pitched 41.2 innings with six starts in 11 games. He holds a 4-2 overall record with a 4.10 ERA.
Jake Jones has pitched in 13 games with seven starts. He had a 5-3 record with a 4.17 ERA in 41 innings pitched. He is second on the team in strikeouts with 32 only trailing
Mason Queen who has 44 in 43.0 innings pitched. As a team the Griffons have a 4.76 ERA.
GRIFFON HEAD COACH BUZZ VERDUZCO...• Charles "Buzz" Verduzco begins his 15th season at the helm of the Missouri Western baseball team in 2014. The Griffons had another solid season finishing First in the MIAA for the first time in school history. They also made their third consecutive trip to the MIAA Tournament and second ever trip the NCAA Division II Tournament. Verduzco was named MIAA Coach of the Year for the first time in his career and also had Player of the Year (
Michael Schulze) and Pitcher of the Year (
Brandon Simmons) for the first time in history. Verduzco has guided the Griffons to winning season in 12 of his 15 seasons.
• A native of Stockton, California, Verduzco came to Missouri Western from Washington State University where he was an assistant for the Cougar program for over 10 seasons. He served as the Cougars' hitting and outfield coach as well as the primary recruiting coordinator. Verduzco also directed the Cougar baseball camps and was the coordinator of alumni relations for the NCAA Division I program. Verduzco earned a bachelor's degree in Psychology from Washington State in 1985. Verduzco played and coached under legendary coach "Bobo" Brayton at Washington State.
• Buzz is 426-324 overall and 294-215 in MIAA play at Missouri Western.
• Verduzco won his 400th game on against the Central Oklahoma Bronchos on Central Oklahoma on May 9, 2013 by a score of 9-3 in the MIAA Tournament.
TID BITS ABOUT MISSOURI WESTERN...NON-CONFERENCE GAMES UNDER VERDUZCO:Under Verduzco the Griffons are 114-97 in non-conference games. The Griffons best non-conference record under Verduzco came in 2004 when they were 16-4 out of MIAA play. Griffons were 12-7 in non-conference games a season ago. They are 4-3 so far this season in non-conference game.s
MIAA GAMES UNDER VERDUZCO:MWSU is 294-215 under Verduzco since 2000 in MIAA play. Last season was Missouri Western's best season in school history as they won the MIAA Regular Season Title for the first time ever with a 28-5 overall record...Last season was the Griffons were 26-12 while in 2006 they went 21-9.
HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE: The Griffons are 197-114 under Verduzco since 2001 at home. The Griffons finished this season with a 18-3 home record which is its best home record dating back to 2001. MWSU has had only two losing seasons at home since 2001. They were 11-18 in 2010 and 10-12 in 2011. In 2012 the Griffons were 18-5 while in 2013 the Griffons were 18-3. Since the opening of the MWSU Baseball Field the Griffons are 59-24 at home. They were 10-12 in the first year but since they they went 18-5, 18-3 and are 13-4 this season.
ON THE ROAD:Missouri Western has done well on the road in the last few years being .500 or better in 10 of Verduzco's 14 seasons. Last season they were 15-5 and last season MWSU finished 15-10. Overall since 2001 they are 174-142. MWSU's best season on the road came this season. In 2013 they were 15-10 and in 2004 when they were 12-8. This season the Griffons are 10-12 on the road.
ON A NEUTRAL FIELD: Since 2001 the Griffons are 34-33 when playing on a nutral field. They were 7-4 a season ago and 5-1 in 2001. They have had seven seasons when they had a .500 record or better on a neutral field. This season they are 1-1 splitting with Southwest Minnesota State.
IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT:The Griffons are 1-4 all-time in the NCAA Tournament with their first appearance coming in 2006 in Emporia, Kan. The Griffons fell in their first game 16-5 against host Emporia State on May 18, 2006. The then rebounded for a 16-8 victory over the Central Missouri Mules on May 19, 2006 and then fell on May 20, 2006 against the Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks by a score of 10-3. The Griffons ended that season with a 31-25 overall record. Last season the Griffons fell to #10 Southern Arkansas 6-1 on May 16, 2013 and then fell to #5 and host school MSU-Mankato by a score of 4-1 in 10 innings.
UP NEXT:The Griffons are in the MIAA tournament but their seed is yet to be determined. The Griffons are currently 4th and would host a three game series in the first round of the tournament next weekend in St. Joseph. If they are unable to hold on to the 4th sport they would be on the road.
