VANCOUVER - The UBC Thunderbirds wrap up the regular season at home this weekend against the College of Idaho in a possible preview of playoff action for the upcoming NAIA West Grouping Tournament.
Though the T-Birds are already a lock to finish first overall in the NAIA West at 22-6 in conference play, this year's tournament will be hosted by the winner of the South Division, which will be Menlo College in Atherton, California. UBC and Idaho are already guaranteed to finish one-two in the North and win the two automatic berths to the tournament from their division.
The teams will play four games at Nat Bailey Stadium this weekend, with a Saturday, April 23 doubleheader beginning at 12 p.m., and another doubleheader on Sunday starting at 11 a.m.
A Look at the Thunderbirds
The T-Birds dropped three of five games to Lewis Clark State last weekend, falling to 26-11 overall and No. 14 in the NAIA Coaches' Poll, but there was still plenty of silver lining to look at. The team's biggest concern heading into the weekend had to be its struggling offence, but the 'Birds scored six or more runs three times in the LC State series. They had only accomplished that once in their previous eight games.
Austin Fruson has struggled with the bat this year, but he broke out in the series finale with three hits, including a home run, and four RBIs. Blake Carruthers continued his impressive year with six hits and a pair of homers in the series. He leads the team with a .322 average and 30 RBIs. His five home runs tie him for the team lead with Kevin Nickel, who has 28 RBIs. Keaton Briscoe's .302 average makes him the only other T-Bird hitting better than .300, and he is also the primary threat on the basepaths. His 17 steals in 21 attempts are more than twice as many as any other UBC player this season. His team-leading .432 on-base percentage should keep giving him opportunities to run and stay in the minds of opposing pitchers.
Another bright spot from last week was ace starter Sheldon McDonald, who was strong in his first start back from injury. He won the series finale to improve to 6-1 on the year, allowing just one run and six hits over five innings of work. His ERA of 1.81 leads the team and is third in the NAIA West, and his strikeout-to-walk ratio is better than six-to-one. Fellow starter Eric Brown is having an equally impressive year with a 2.12 ERA and 7-1 record. He also leads the team with 69.1 innings pitched and three complete games.
UBC's pitching depth is the team's greatest strength, as the other three starters - Miles Verweel, David Otterman and Brandon Kaye, all have sub-3.00 ERAs and winning records too. Shawn Hetherington is the main reliever, with a 2.13 ERA in 25.1 innings of work. He also has five saves.
A Look at the Coyotes
The Coyotes have won seven of their last eight to improve to 26-14 overall, and they have three shutouts in that span. Mitch Dame is the ace of the staff, with a 7-0 record and a miniscule 1.09 ERA, but Jesse Vermillion is the only other starter with an ERA under 3.00, so the Yotes have to be happy about the recent strong showings by the pitching staff as they gear up for a playoff run.
The Coyotes have been solid all year at the plate though. Six starters are hitting above .300, including Gavin Gamboa, who is sixth in the NAIA West with a .352 average. Surprisingly, their big run-producer is nowhere near that list. Kyle Douglas leads the team with 33 RBI and has four homers on the year, but is hitting just .217 to put him at the bottom of all regular starters in batting average for the Coyotes. He's one of the team's best baserunners too, with 13 steals in 15 attempts, so despite his RBI total, his struggles to reach base regularly could be a big problem for Idaho.
His fellow slugger Isaac Garcez has had more consistent success though. Garcez has 25 RBIs and five home runs this year, and he his hitting .328 with a .422 on-base percentage. He is also a terror on the bases, leading the NAIA West by a mile with 27 steals in 33 attempts. The Coyotes are definitely a dangerous running team, leading the West with 82 steals on the year, with UBC checking in second at 48 steals.
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