VANCOUVER - Five NAIA West baseball teams will clash at Thunderbird Park this weekend in a double-elimination tournament to determine the winner of the grouping's lone automatic bid to the next round of NAIA playoffs.
TOURNAMENT PAGESCHEDULE
May 2
10 a.m. Game 1: No. 4 College of Idaho vs. No. 5 Menlo
1 p.m. Game 2: No. 2 Concordia (Ore.) vs. No. 3 Corban
4 p.m. Game 3: Game 1 Winner vs. No. 1 UBC
May 3
10 a.m. Game 4: Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser
1 p.m. Game 5: Game 2 Winner vs. Game 3 Winner
4 p.m. Game 6: Game 3 Loser vs. Game 4 Winner
May 4
12 noon Game 7: Game 5 Loser vs. Game 6 Winner
3 p.m. Game 8: Game 5 Winner vs. Game 7 Winner
May 5
12 noon Game 9: Game 8 Winner vs. Game 8 Loser (if necessary)
No. 1 UBC Thunderbirds
29-11 overall, 20-8 conference
In addition to their home field advantage, the T-Birds, as the top seed in the tournament, get to play their first game against either the No. 4 or No. 5 seed as part of a doubleheader for that opposing team. But the parity in this field of teams is such that nobody can be taken lightly, and the 'Birds did have their struggles against both those potential opponents. They were 3-1 against Menlo in the regular season and 1-3 against the College of Idaho.
Conor Lillis-White emerged as the top story for UBC during the regular season, posting the NAIA's second-best earned run average at 0.57, with a 7-0 record in 10 starts. That included three complete game shutouts and a .144 opponent batting average. But the best news about the T-Bird pitching staff in the context of this tournament is the depth and balance they have, especially in the starting rotation.
Bryan Pawlina is 4-1 with a 2.08 ERA and
Sean Callegari is 4-2 and 2.73.
Jeremy Newton is 2-2 with a 3.49 ERA.
Bruce Yari finished the regular season on a tear at the plate, bringing his average up to a team-leading .372. He's also tops in slugging percentage (.490) and on-base percentage (.439), with very low strikeout numbers. Behind him is
Kevin Biro, who also finished the year hitting well after going through a midseason slump. He's at .350 with 30 RBIs to lead the team. UBC leads all teams in this tournament with a .297 batting average.
No. 2 Concordia Cavaliers
26-18 overall, 16-12 conference
The Cavs rode the rollercoaster through the last half of the regular season, dropping down in the standings with a six-game conference losing streak before shooting back up to the second seed by finishing on a seven-game winning streak.
Their offence doesn't have anybody with off-the-charts numbers, but the whole lineup is dangerous, and the Cavs rank second in this tournament with a .290 team batting average. Their top seven starters all hit .296 or better, and seven different players have at least 20 RBIs, but nobody has more than 28. Christian Lichtenhaler leads the pack with a .331 average and 28 RBIs. Blake Drake leads the All-Name Team with a .317 average and 20 stolen bases in 23 attempts.
On the mound, things are a little different, as the Cavs do have a clear ace in Harrison Mcghee, who has a 1.51 ERA in 77.2 innings of work, with 91 strikeouts. They have a lot of solid arms behind him and a strong team ERA of 3.66, but the next-best individual ERA is 3.28, so it will be interesting to see where they decide to deploy Mcghee in this tournament.
No. 3 Corban Warriors
28-24 overall, 16-12 conference
Corban had a shot at the top seed late in the season, but they could only split with UBC at home in their penultimate conference series before dropping three of four to Lewis-Clark State in the end. But with one of the best pitching staffs and a legitimate slugger highlighting their batting order, they are a team nobody is excited to play in this tournament.
Daniel Orr is the aforementioned slugger, leading the conference with 46 RBIs. He bats .376 and his .567 slugging percentage is second among players in this tournament. Thunderbird Park isn't an easy place to hit one out, but his 20 doubles suggest he knows how to use the gaps for extra bases.
The Warriors pitching staff is led by Jacob Kopra, Tony Davidson and Austin Guzzon, all of whom have sub-2.00 ERAs and sub-.200 opponent batting averages. Kopra leads the crew with a 9-0 record in 92.1 innings of work. The fourth rotation slot and bullpen haven't been quite as strong, but still effective enough to make the Warriors' staff a major obstacle in this tournament.
No. 4 College of Idaho Coyotes
25-20 overall, 16-12 conference
The 'Yotes have the lowest team batting average of any team in this tournament by a wide margin at .249, but the last time UBC prepared to square off against them that average was about the same, and the Yotes ended up racking up double-digit hit totals in each of their four games. So nobody is going to overlook this group based on the numbers.
Chase Miller leads the team with a .316 average. Mitch Skaggs provides the power, with five homers and 39 RBIs to go with a .306 average. Gregg Simonds is the only other player hitting over .300, also at .306.
The three main starters for the Yotes all have ERAs between 3.00 and 4.00, but their most effective pitchers have been Mitch Viydo and Eddy Ryan, both of whom have had seven starts an an approximately equal number of bullpen appearances. Viydo has a 6-1 record and a 2.68 ERA, while Ryan is 3-5 with a 2.82 ERA.
No. 5 Menlo Oaks
28-25 overall, 13-15 conference
The Oaks are a solid hitting team but their ERA is 4.90, more than a full run higher than any other squad in the tournament. However, they do have some very effective top-end pitching talent which will make for some interesting strategic choices this weekend.
Daniel Chavez is their ace with a 1.95 ERA and 6-3 record in 12 starts. He has four complete games, opponents hit just .193 off him and his strikeout-to-walk ratio is almost 4:1, so he will give the Oaks a great chance to win and rest the bullpen in whatever game he starts this weekend. Kyer Vega also had a strong season, with a 2.48 ERA in 16 appearances, seven of which were starts. He also has three complete games so he certainly looks like a candidate to go deep in this tournament.
Daniel Comstock leads the offence with a .339 ERA and a tournament-best .578 slugging percentage. He has seven homers and 37 RBIs. The Oaks hit 35 home runs this season, while the next highest total from any team in this tournament was just 10, but getting that power to translate to success in the climate and dimensions of Thunderbird Park is a big challenge.
