By Jim Dixon
D3sports.com

FAIRBANKS, Alaska -- It is past midnight and still the lights remain off as Lake Erie Monarch's Alex Cowart gets his first at-bat of the game. It is a night game by the start time but you cannot tell by the light at 1 a.m., it is the Midnight Sun Game. With Cowart at the plate, the Alaska Goldpanners close out a 6-3 win but that does not dampen Cowarts enthusiasm about the game that many consider a must see for every baseball fan. "It is exciting," said Cowart. "There is a ton of people here, maybe 3,000." By the time the game started, Cowart's prediction was off by only 500 as 3,500 squeezed in Growden Field for the 104th Midnight Sun Game.

The Monarch's of the Great Lakes League, have traveled north to spend two weeks playing teams in the Alaska League and Fairbanks is their last stop on the tour. Joining Cowart are Heidleberg players Brian Koehl, Ricky Lizcano, as they test themselves against D-I and D-II competition and leaving the aluminum bats behind in favor of traditional wood bats. "It is a lot tougher than I am use to," said Cowart. The pitchers throw faster in this league."

Hampered by an elbow injury, the D3baseball.com All-American outfielder is spending less time in the field and more as the teams designated hitter. "It [the elbow] started hurting before the regional," said Cowart. "I have a little pain but everything is good. I just got to rest it."

As his elbow heals, Cowart is looking forward to next year and Adrian's chances for the 2010 National Championship trophy. "We have great expectations next year." "We are losing [Todd] Meyers, a great leader, but we have Ryan Domschot, Nick VanDike and Nate Sarkissian coming back and I think we can win it all." You can see the fire in his eyes when Cowart says, "It is not enough to finish in the top 25, we want to get back to the Championship and win it."

Around the Bases: Forest City right-handed pitcher and Lynchburg Hornet, Bryan Breedlove threw a complete game, four-hit shutout to earn his fourth win of the season as the Owls defeated the Martinsville Mustangs 2-0 on Tuesday night at Hooker Field in Coastal Plain League action.

Batting .324, Michael Moceri of the Paniolos in the Hawai'i Collegiate Baseball League is leading the league in RBIs with 13. Kean and Paniolos teammate, Nick Nolan is batting .348.

Tufts's Ian Goldberg, David LeResche and 11 other D-III players have Scott Laverty's Cheyenne Grizzlies in first place in the Mountain Collegiate Baseball League.

Alvenia's Chuck Nicholas is 2-2 with an ERA of 2.16 after 33 innings for the Butler Blue Sox. Equally impressive is his strike out total -- 22, compared only 5 walks. He also has three complete games under his belt in the early season.