By: Jamal Smith Sports Editor
A little over two weeks ago, Western’s baseball team found themselves in an unfamiliar position, with a record of 10-13; a few more losses would have put the Wolves in jeopardy of not finishing at the top of the GNAC. But that was then and this is now.
Fast-forward two weeks and 14 consecutive conference victories, and the Wolves are at the top of the mountain again. To say that the month of April has been good to the Wolves is an understatement; it has been tremendous.
After hitting the road for their first 27 games of the season, a six game home-stand was a welcomed change from the stress of traveling on the road.
Western opened up their six-game home series April 9 with a doubleheader against Concordia University. The Wolves easily defeated the Cavaliers 11-1 in the first matchup, and squeaked out a 5-4 victory in the second.
Senior infielder Brandon Oliver had an incredible day hitting the ball. Oliver, who is ranked in the top 15 for hitting percentage in the GNAC, finished the doubleheader with five hits, three runs, and three RBIs in nine at-bats.
Concordia looked for revenge the following day, but the Wolves played with a supreme level of confidence, and blanked the Cavaliers 10-0 in the first matchup of the doubleheader. The Wolves also came ahead victorious in the second matchup with a score of 6-3.
In the first game, junior infielder Erik Long went four-for-four with four runs batted in, while senior infielder Trevor Podratz had a pair of doubles. In the second game, Podratz hit a perfect three-for-three. Podratz leads the Wolves in hitting percentage and is ranked fifth in the GNAC with a batting average of .350.
The final two games of the Wolves’ six game home-stand pitted the red-hot Wolves against Saint Martin’s University in a doubleheader on April 13. Western jumped all over the Saints in their first matchup, winning easily by the score of 11-1. The second game was closer than the first, but the Wolves found a way to come away with the 8-4 victory.
Freshman pitcher Jacob Fricke got his first collegiate start and threw six shutout innings. Senior outfielder Cody Sullivan had seven hits for the day.
The Wolves’ next home game is on April 27 at 2 p.m. against Montana State University of Billings. The matchup against the Yellowjackets is the first game in a nine game home-stand to finish out the regular season.
Western has won the last 13 GNAC conference titles but still, the Wolves want to add more hardware to their trophy case.
Contact the author at jsmith15@wou.edu or on Twitter @journalsportWOU
