May 9, 2001

NKU MEETS INDY IN GLVC 1ST ROUND

Norse to play top-seeded Indianapolis in GLVC Tournament

HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - The Northern Kentucky University baseball team will meet top-seeded University of Indianapolis at 1:15 p.m. Thursday in the first round of the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament, which will be held at Edwardsville, Ill. NKU, 36-19 overall, finished 13-14 in the GLVC. The Norse are the No. 6 seed in the GLVC Tournament and will meet Indianapolis (43-12) in the first round. Indianapolis enters the GLVC Tournament ranked No. 10 nationally in the NCAA Division II poll. NKU is 1-2 against Indianapolis this season. The Norse defeated the Greyhounds, 7-4, on April 4 at Highland Heights. The two teams met in a doubleheader on April 18 at Indianapolis, and Indianapolis won a pair of one-run games, 4-3 in 13 innings, and 7-6. This is the first time since 1992 that NKU has qualified for the GLVC Tournament. NKU has never won a GLVC Tournament championship. NKU clinched a berth in the GLVC Tournament by sweeping a doubleheader from IPFW last Saturday. Junior catcher Jason Martin drove in four runs in the second game Saturday to lead the Norse. Martin now has 76 hits this season and needs just two in the GLVC Tournament to break the NKU single-season record of 77 (set by Alan Hayden in 1985). Martin enters the GLVC Tournament batting .400 with seven home runs and 51 runs batted in. Senior first baseman Matt Mason leads the GLVC with 11 home runs, and he has added 50 RBI. Mason also has 15 doubles and five triples this season. Junior outfielder Steve Walton is batting .362 with eight home runs. The Norse pitching staff features junior right-handers Lenny Bays (7-2 overall, 3.19 earned run average) and Josh Whaley (8-4, 3.62 ERA). Bays has 78 strikeouts this year, and he needs eight during the GLVC Tournament to set the NKU record for strikeouts in a season. Mike Kichler, who had 85 strikeouts in 1997, is the current NKU leader in that category. Whaley enters the GLVC Tournament with 74 strikeouts and is also challenging the NKU single-season record.