4/15/2005 - Baseball
Baseball to Play Host to Lafayette this Weekend

Files associated with this release:
Notes (Lafayette & George Mason)

Leading Off For Navy...
Games #31-35 - Lafayette & George Mason

Who: Lafayette (9-18) at Navy (8-21-1)
Sat., April 16, 12 p.m.
Lafyatte (9-18) at Navy (8-21-1)
Sat., April 16, 2:30 p.m. (approx.)
Lafayette (9-18) at Navy (8-21-1)
Sun., April 17, 12 p.m.
Lafayette (9-18) at Navy (8-21-1)
Sun., April 17, 2:30 p.m. (approx.)
Navy (8-21-1) at George Mason (18-10)
Wed., April 20, 3 p.m.

What: Navy Senior Appreciation Day before Saturday's doubleheader

Where: Max Bishop Stadium (5,000); Annapolis, Md.
Raymond H. ?Hap? Spuhler Field; Fairfax, Va.

Coaches: Navy -- Steve Whitmyer (102-158-2 in his sixth season overall;
87-131-2 in his fifth season at Navy)
Lafayette -- Joe Kinney (93-149 in his sixth season overall
and at Lafayette)
George Mason -- Bill Brown (659-582-5 in his 23rd season overall
and at George Mason)

Quick Hits
* Navy leads the all-time series with Lafayette by a count of 43-19-2.
* The Leopards took three out of four from Navy in their series last season in Easton, Pa.
* Navy leads the all-time series with George Mason by a count of 13-9.
* The Colonials swept the Mids in both games last season, including a 12-11 slugfest in Navy's season finale on April 29.
* Lafayette remains the only winless team in Patriot League play (0-4). The Leopards were one of the three teams to qualify for the Patriot League Tournament last season.


Pennsylvania Ties
Junior D.J. Faldowski (Washington) and freshman Donnie Horner III (State College) are the two mids who hail from the state of Pennsylvania.

Virginia Ties
William Burke (Annandale), Mark Guadagnini (Virginia Beach), Renaldo Hollins (Virginia Beach), Jeff Lange (Springfield) and Sam Travis (Virginia Beach) are the five mids who hail from the state of Virginia.

Homer Happy
Navy has smacked four home runs in its last four games after totaling just one in the first 26 games of the season. Three of those four homers came in the second game of Sunday's doubleheader versus Holy Cross. Ryan McGinn went 5-for-5 with two homers, while Mitch Harris blasted his first collegiate home run.

Whitmyer Earns 100th Career Win
Navy head coach Steve Whitmyer earned his 100th career coaching win in Navy's 3-2 win over Bucknell in the second game of a doubleheader on April 3 in Annapolis. He is 102-158-2 during his six-year career, including an 87-131-2 mark in his five seasons in Annapolis.

Navy Baseball Head Coaches With 100 Career Wins
Name... Years... Career Record
1. ...Joe Duff... 1962-93... 595-332-11
2... Max Bishop... 1937-61... 317-161-7
3... Bob MacDonald... 1994-00... 178-152-3
4... Steve Whitmyer... 2001-Present... 102-158-2

Whitmyer Closing In On 50 Patriot League Wins
Steve Whitmyer is also closing in on 50-career wins in Patriot League play. He is 49-39 in his four-plus seasons of league competition.

Two-Out Magic
Navy, as a team, has collected 51 of its 93 RBIs with two outs. The Mids are batting .287
(101-for-352) in those situations.

First Inning Scoring
Navy's opponents have scored 35 times in the first inning this season, while the Mids have only been able to push across five runs.

Runners On, Bases Empty
Navy, as a team, is batting .303 (10-for-33) with the bases loaded, while hitting just .257 (135-for-526) with the bases empty.

Two Mids Batting Over .300
Only two midshipmen are batting over .300 in all games this season. The two include Trevor Thompson (.333) and Lewis Hobbs (.333).

Six Mids Batting Over .300 In League Action
Six midshipmen are batting over .300 in Patriot League play this season. The six include Ryan McGinn (.385), Trevor Thompson (.370), Matt Lukevics (.333), Thomas Hamilton (.321) and Renaldo Hollins (.318).

Other Quick Batting Notes
* Navy batters are hitting .340 (87-for-256) leading off an inning.
* Twelve of Jonathan-Matthew Johnston's 18 RBIs have come with two outs.
* Johnston is batting .444 (12-for-27) with two outs.
* Trevor Thompson is batting .462 (6-for-13) with four RBIs with two outs.
* Lewis Hobbs is batting 3-for-5 (.600) with an RBI with two outs. Hobbs is also 4-for-9 (.444) this season with runners on base.
* Hobbs leads the team with two pinch hits (2-for-3).
* Matt Lukevics is batting .458 (11-for-24) versus lefties, but hitting just .208 (15-for-72) against righties.

McCoy's ERA Heading South
Freshman hurler Mark McCoy has lowered his earned run average by 12 points (16.80-to-4.50) in his last four starts by giving up just five runs. However, he is 0-2 with two no decisions in those starts due to the offense only producing six runs and the bullpen giving up two leads. He has a 0.69 ERA in two starts in league action.

ERA In The Threes In Patriot League Play
Four Navy pitchers have posted ERAs in the threes or lower following two weekends of Patriot League play. The four include Mark McCoy (0.69), Burgess Nichols (3.00), Ryan Hefner (3.86) and Joe Koessler (3.86).

Strikeouts and Walks
Navy pitchers have combined for 51 strikeouts while issuing just 18 walks in league play.

The Opposition & Double-Digit Hits
Navy pitchers have combined to allow the opposition to collect double-digit hits in 20 of 30 games. The Mids are 4-15-1 in those contests.

Leadoff Hitters
Opposing hitters are batting .452 (113-for-250) when leading off an inning this season.

Other Quick Pitching Notes
* Left-handed batters are 0-for-6 against Navy starter Daniel Kovalcik.
* Right-handed hitters are batting just .154 (2-for-13) versus freshman hurler Mark Guadagnini.
* Lefties are hitting just .143 (1-for-7) versus Navy reliever Spencer Suarez.
* Reliever Joe Koessler is averaging six strikeouts per one walk issued.
* Jeff Lange is averaging 4.9 strikeouts per one walk allowed.

Errorless
Navy has not committed an error in a game four times this season. The four games include Boston College (March 20), Georgetown (March 29), Bucknell (April 3) and Holy Cross (April 10). The Mids are 2-2 in those contests.

Caught Stealing
Jonathan-Matthew Johnston has thrown out 38 percent (14-of-37) of base stealers this season after throwing out only 28 percent all of the 2004 campaign.

Other Quick Defensive Notes
* Eight mids have posted a 1.000 fielding percentage this season.
* Right fielder Ryan McGinn tops the list with a perfect fielding percentage in 28 chances.
* Navy has turned 25 double plays this season.
* Second baseman Matt Lukevics has committed just three errors in 131 chances for a .977 fielding percentage. He has recorded 56 putouts with 72 assists.
* Lukevics has been a part of 19 double plays this season after helping to turn just 13 all of last season.

Lukevics Receives Patriot League Recognition
Senior second baseman Matt Lukevics was named the Patriot League Player of the Week April 5, for his performance during Navy's six games last week. Lukevics hit .421 last week as the Mids went 3-3, including wins over Big East-foe Georgetown (3-0) and two over league-foe Bucknell (11-0 and 3-2). In the Mids' 3-2 win over Bucknell in the second game of a doubleheader Sunday, Lukevics led off the bottom of the ninth with a double to the wall in left-center field to spark Navy's rally. That win gave head coach Steve Whitmyer his 100th career victory. Two of Lukevics' eight hits went for extra bases, including a pair of doubles. He scored a run in all but one of Navy's games, totaling six overall. He also hit safely in all six games, with two multi-hit outings, while chipping in one run batted in.

Home Run
Jonathan-Matthew Johnston's 344-foot blast in the first game of a doubleheader versus East Carolina (March 12) was the first one hit by a midshipman this season. Navy's previous home run came on a grand slam by Craig Candeto in the 2004 season finale at George Mason. The homer was also the first of Johnston's career.

Johnston Earns National Recognition
Navy junior catcher Jonathan-Matthew Johnston was named to the College Baseball Foundation National Honor Roll March 9 for his performance at the 2005 Service Academies Spring Classic on Feb. 25-27. Johnston helped lead Navy to a 2-1 record at the Classic, as the Mids tied three other teams for the best record in the tournament. He batted .385 with three doubles and five runs batted in during the three games, including a 2-for-5 effort with four RBIs in Navy's 6-5, 12-inning win over Indiana on the tournament's final day. Johnston was one of just four catchers named to the list of 29 players honored.

Johnston Named Patriot League Player of the Week
Johnston was named the Patriot League Player of the Week (March 1) for his performance in the 2005 Service Academies Spring Classic in Millington, Tenn. (Feb. 25-27). In the three-game tournament, Johnston went 5-for-12 (.417) with five RBIs, three doubles and a run scored. He capped the tournament with a four-RBI performance in Navy's 6-5 win in 12 innings over Indiana.

Career High For RBIs In A Season...ALREADY!
Johnston has already set a career high for RBIs in a season with 14. Johnston, who turned the trick in just six games in 2005, drove in a pair of runs during his freshman season and totaled seven in 2004. Johnston set the mark with a four RBI performance in Navy's 6-5 win in 12 innings over Indiana on Feb. 27.

Tournament Play
The Midshipmen opened their 2005 season with the first seven games coming in tournament play. Navy went 3-3-1 in the seven games, including a 1-2-1 mark in the Savannah State Invitational (Feb. 19-20) and a 2-1 record in the Service Academies Spring Classic (Feb.25-27).

Lots Of Runs
Navy scored 34 runs in its first-three games to open the 2005 season. The 34 runs scored are an exact opposite of how the Midshipmen opened the 2004 campaign when they pushed across just four runs in their opening three contests.

Double-Digit Runs
Navy has surpassed its number of double-digit run games in 2005 (3) than it produced during all of the 2004 season. It took the Midshipmen only three games to tie the mark this season.

Recapping The Holy Cross-UMBC Series
* Navy won its last two games of the five-game road swing after dropping the first three contests.
* Ryan McGinn went 5-for-5 with two home runs in Navy's 10-9 loss in the second game of Sunday's doubleheader versus the Crusaders.
* Freshman Mitch Harris blasted his first collegiate home run in the game -- a solo shot.
* Navy and Holy Cross played Sunday's doubleheader in Lowell, Mass., which was an hour away from Worcester. Fitton Field, the home for Holy Cross baseball, was not playable due to inclement weather.
* Jared Munde ripped his first home run of the season versus UMBC on Tuesday.

Recapping the Bucknell Series
Navy's 11-0 win over Bucknell in the first game of Sunday's doubleheader was the largest margin of victory for Navy this season ... Navy's 3-2 win over the Bison in the second game was the second victory of the season by a run ... the Mids held Bucknell scoreless in the first inning in all four games marking the first series this season an opponent has not scored in the opening frame.

Recapping the UMBC-Georgetown Mid-Week Series
Navy's 3-0 shutout victory over Georgetown was the first one since April 19, 2003, when the Mids defeated Lafayette 2-0 ... the win over Georgetown was the first one since April 24, 2003, when Navy pulled out a 10-9 victory ... Jeff Lange went a season-high 7 1/3 innings in the start versus Georgetown ... UMBC starting pitcher John Pavlis retired the first 11 batters he faced in the Thursday matchup with Navy.

Recapping The Boston College Series
Boston College outscored Navy in all three games by a total of 38-4 ... Navy scored first in both games of the doubleheader Saturday, but could not hold onto the lead either time ... the second game was tied 2-2 heading into the seventh inning (a seven inning contest), but BC broke it open with a seven-run frame to get the win ... Boston College pitchers limited Navy to just three hits in the Eagles' 16-0 series finale win Sunday.

Recapping The East Carolina and Duke Series
Navy fell to 0-6 all-time versus East Carolina, with four of those losses coming by a run each time ... the Mids allowed a run in the first inning in each of the four games played versus ECU and Duke ... Navy committed a total of 12 errors in the four games.

Recapping The VMI Series
VMI's two wins over Navy were its first victories over the Mids in the program's history ... Navy committed four errors in its 4-0 loss in the first game of Sunday's doubleheader ... the Midshipmen jumped out to a 5-0 lead midway through the third inning of the second game, but the Keydets pushed nine runs across the plate over the following three innings to take the lead for good in their 18-5 win ... freshman Renaldo Hollins collected the first RBIs of his collegiate career as he drove in a pair of runs in the second game ... sophomore J.P. Temperilli went 2-for-4 with an RBI, double and triple in the second game.

Recapping The Service Academies Classic
Navy tied with four other teams for the best record (2-1) at the Service Academies Spring Classic ... the Midshipmen's win over Air Force was just their fifth one in 16 tries versus the Falcons. Navy's last victory over Air Force was a 2-1 decision back in the 1998 season ... the win over Air Force also snapped Navy's five-game losing streak in the Classic ... Navy's 12th-inning 6-5 win over Indiana was the Mids first win over a Big Ten team since the 2000 season when they knocked off Ohio State, 4-3. It was also Navy's first win over the Hoosiers in three tries all-time ... the extra-inning victory was also the first for Navy in a regular nine-inning game contest since April 29, 2002, when it defeated Lehigh 8-7 in 11 frames ... Catcher Jonathan-Matthew Johnston and shortstop Thomas Hamilton were named to the All-Tournament team.

Recapping The Savannah State Invitational
Navy snapped its five-game losing streak in season openers with its 17-8 win over Savannah State in game one of the doubleheader last Saturday ... freshman first baseman Mitch Harris turned in a fine collegiate debut by going 3-for-5 with a double, triple, three RBI and three runs scored in game one of the doubleheader against the Tigers ... three freshmen combined to drive in nine of Navy's 29 RBIs in the four games. Thomas Hamilton drove in four runs, while Harris and William Maugeri drove in three and two runs, respectively ... the Midshipmen exploded for 10 runs in the seventh inning of the first game against the Tigers to expand a slim 3-2 lead into a commanding 13-2 advantage ... Doug Silverman collected two doubles and drove in three runs for Navy in the second game versus Savannah State ... Jared Munde ripped a two-out, two-run double in the seventh inning to pull Navy into a 10-10 with Villanova before the Wildcats needed to call the game in the eighth due to prior travel arrangements ... Virginia Tech pitchers combined to register 18 strikeouts in the Hokies' 9-0 win over Navy in the tournament's final game.

Navy Picked Fifth In The Patriot League
The Patriot League's coaches and sports information directors picked Navy to finish fifth according to the 2004-05 Preseason Patriot League Baseball Poll. The Mids posted a 14-36 overall record and a 7-13 league mark in 2004, and finished tied for fifth out of six teams in the league standings.

Senior Captain Trevor Thompson
Senior Trevor Thompson will serve as captain of the 2005 Navy baseball team. The Kent, Wash., native owns a career .269 batting average with two home runs and 19 RBIs. Thompson, who can play all three outfield positions, was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship in November.

Thompson Awarded Rhodes Scholarship
Navy baseball senior captain Trevor Thompson was one of three midshipmen to receive a Rhodes Scholarship, which was announced in November by a regional committee of the Rhodes Trust. The scholarship is a grant for American college students to attend the prestigious Oxford University in England. The 22-year-old Thompson intends to study economics and social history at Oxford.

Projects Thompson is a part of:
* 1st Regimental Commander (there are two regiments of 2,000 midshipmen each at the Academy)
* Plebe Summer Company Commander (summer of 2004)
* 2nd Battalion Sergeant Major (fall of 2003)
* Mini-BUDS Screener Boat Crew Commander (November of 2003)
* Moderator at the Academy's foreign affairs conference
* Led a service program for students to travel to Nicaragua

New Faces
Twenty-one (21) freshmen appear on the 2005 Navy baseball roster. A total of 49 players comprise the squad with just five of those being seniors.

Navy Adds Jason Ronai To Coaching Staff
Jason Ronai was added to the Navy baseball coaching staff during the 2004 fall practice. A Springfield, Ohio, native, Ronai was a four-year starter at UNC-Asheville. Ronai was named the team MVP his junior season and captained the squad during his senior campaign. He graduated from UNC-Asheville in 2001, ranking second all-time in total hits and stolen bases. Ronai played one season of independent professional baseball (2002) for the Alexandria Aces of the Central League.During that time, he began his coaching career as an assistant coach at Indiana State (2001-02). Ronai then moved on and spent a year as the Director of Onfield Sessions for the recruiting service "Baseball Factory" in 2003. He was promoted to Director of The Exclusive Program in 2004, where he helped guide high school players through the recruiting process.

Major Conference Opponents
Navy will be prepared for Patriot League-play this season as it will face several teams from major conferences in the non-conference portion of its 2005 schedule. The Mids will face teams from the ACC (Duke and Virginia Tech), Big East (Boston College, Georgetown and Villanova), Big Ten (Indiana) and Big 12 (Missouri). In addition to those conferences, Navy will face East Carolina from Conference USA, Buffalo from the MAC and Air Force from the Mountain West Conference.

Next Up
Navy will be back on the road Wednesday as it travels to Fairfax, Va., to face George Mason at 3 p.m. The Midshipmen will then travel to Bethlehem, Pa., for a weekend series with Lehigh. The series will feature a doubleheader on both Saturday and Sunday beginning at noon.

2005 Honors
National
Jonathan-Matthew Johnston (C)
**College Baseball Foundation National Honor Roll (March 9)

Patriot League
Jonathan-Matthew Johnston (C)
**Player of the Week (March 1)
Matt Lukevics (2B)
**Player of the Week (April 5)

Tournaments
Jonathan-Matthew Johnston (C)
**2005 Service Academies Spring Classic All-Tournament Team
Thomas Hamilton (SS)
**2005 Service Academies Spring Classic All-Tournament Team