In three days, St. Thomas played five games, of which three were against top 30 teams in Fort Myers, Fla. The Tommies were 5-1 as they dealt losses to both No. 1 Otterbein and No. 26 Salisbury.

On Monday 18th-ranked St. Thomas ran its win streak to five with a 7-2 victory over Salisbury.

In the nightcap, coach Dennis Denning worked his 1,000th game as a head coach spanning the high school and collegiate levels as St Thomas defeated Finlandia 21-0. Eric Fleming was the star of the game when joined a select group of NCAA players to hit three triples in one game.

Tuesday, Eric Fleming homered and freshman Tom Wippler had three hits as St. Thomas scored a 5-3 victory against St. Lawrence. Freshman Eric Schuld pitched seven innings for the victory as Denning got within one of his 800th lifetime win.

Two top 5 ranked teams were on the schedule for St Thomas on Wednesday. In the first game No. 5 UW-Stevens Point pounded 14 hits and cruised to an 8-1 win. All-American Jordan Zimmerman held the Toms to one unearned run and five singles in seven innings. Erik Olson struck out eight in six innings for the Toms but allowed eight hits and five. This was the second loss to the Pointers in the last two weeks.

on Wednesday afternoon, Louie Salmen's two-run single in the top of the ninth scored the tying and go-ahead runs as St. Thomas edged top-ranked Otterbein 8-7. The Toms (9-4) led 6-1 before the Cardinals rallied to take a 7-6 lead. Chris Bullis took the win in relief of starter Dan Leslie.

The victory was No. 800 in the 30-year coaching career for Denning. He won 378 games at Cretin-Derham Hall high school in St. Paul and has 422 victories in 13 seasons at St. Thomas. His overall baseball record is 800-202.

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (Mar. 17, 2007) – Fog filled the air and little "Kingsmen" and "White Sox" joined the CLU Kingsmen, wearing green socks, to run out onto George "Sparky" Anderson Field for the starting lineups and national anthem at Ullman Stadium today.

Two local youth baseball teams, the Simi Valley Pony League "Kingsmen" and the Moorpark Little League "White Sox" jogged alongside the CLU starting lineup as their names echoed through the speakers on St. Patrick's Day.

The excitement of sitting in the dugout before the game and getting autographs from players coupled with the thrill of having their names announced in the stadium was a memorable experience for all involved.

It was a great day to come out to the ballpark as the marine layer lifted and clear skies prevailed. The kids and parents alike saw CLU defeat Rutgers-Newark 6-3 and 19-4 in day two of the California Invitational.

The first game of the day was a total team effort as CLU, playing as the visiting team, rallied back from a 3-0 deficit. The Kingsmen cut the lead to one run in the sixth and tied it up in the eighth. Three runs in the top half of the ninth left an opportunity for Peter Birdwell to close things out and earn a save, which he did.

Cal Lu's offense pounded out 22 hits, scoring 19 runs in game two. Steven Page hit two two-run jacks in the second game, Mike Young and Justin Bogoyevac each scored four times, Young and DJ Milonas drove in three runs apiece, Lee Ellis scored three times and Kevin Graham doubled twice on the day.

Josh Gagne and Mike Roe got the wins on the mound.

St. Patrick's Day on the campus of California Lutheran University left the opportunity for a new tradition to begin in a brand new stadium.

Today was the first time that the CLU Kingsmen were accompanied by the future of baseball and it will not be the last time.

Also, in future years, CLU baseball will wear the green socks with their pant legs lifted to their knees to show St. Patty's Day spirit.

Dominican senior Jeff Thorson threw the first no-hitter in the history of the Dominican baseball program in a 8-1 win over Milwaukee School of Engineering on Monday afternoon.

Thorson, a 5'11" right-hander, scattered six walks and one hit-by-pitch around three Dominican University errors to pick up his first win of the season, improving his record to 1-2. Thorson allowed just one runner to reach base through the first four innings. Three walks, a hit batter, and an error in the fifth inning allowed MSOE to score its lone run of the ballgame.

Offensively, Dominican was led by senior third baseman Mark Higgins. Higgins drove in three runs, going 2-for-4 at the plate with a double. Higgins broke a scoreless tie in the third with a double to double to right field that scored two runs. Higgins then scored on an RBI single by Rich Sullivan as the Stars jumped out to a 3-0 lead. Dominican added to its lead with four runs in the bottom of the fifth inning.

The win capped a doubleheader sweep for Dominican over the MSOE Raiders. Junior Mike Eifel picked up the win in game one. Eifel scattered three hits and four walks over 6.1 innings while striking out eight before sophomore George Hickey came on to pick up the save in the Stars' 5-2 win.

The University Athletic Association does things differently. Brandeis, Case Western Reserve, Emory, Rochester and Washington (Mo.) returned to "Historic Sanford Memorial Stadium" for the 18th Annual UAA Baseball Tourney on March 13-17.

Jason Glushon pitched Emory (4-2) to its fifth UAA title as the Eagles defended their 2006 title. Glushon (2-0. ERA 0.00) gave up only one run in the 16 innings he pitched. The run was an unearned run on his own error in the first inning on Saturday, March 17th against Washington.

Glushon was not Emory's only star of the tourney. Shortstop Brandon Custer went 10-21(.476) over the games with 3 RBI and 3 doubles.

Washington, Brandeis and Rochester tied at 3-3. The Washington Bears received stellar performances on the mound from RHP Zach Richter (2-0), who yielded 4 hits in 8.2 innings of shutout ball, and LHP Andy Shields (1-1) who gave up 1 unearned run in his complete game 4-1 win over Rochester on Saturday.

Brandeis was led by Freshmen C/1B Ryan Healey and RHP Drew Brzozowski. Healey went 8-19 (.421) with 2 doubles and 2 RBI. Brzozowski went 1-0 in 10.0 IP for an ERA of 0.90. Brandeis' junior RHP Craig Letendre also went 1-0 in 6 IP for an ERA of 1.50.

Rochester competes for the crown in the Liberty League, so the Florida trip was a chance to get the season started. The Yellowjackets ended 5-4 in Florida and were led by OF Jim Bard, 9-22, for a BA of .422. Rochester hosts a a 3-game series with Skidmore next weekend to kick off Liberty League play.

Case Western Reserve finished the tourney with a 2-4 record, but Case OF David Adams went 11-22 (.500), scoring six runs on 11 hits including 3 doubles to lead all batters in batting average.

This five-team conference does not have the requisite seven members to earn an automatic bid, so the only thing on the line was conference pride and the crown. (Chicago chooses not to participate, while New York University and and Carnegie Mellon do not filed baseball teams.) Emory and Washington U. earned at-large Pool B bids last year (2006 playoff participants). NCAA playoff hopes lie in each team's success in the rest of the season.

The 2007 UAA Tourney stats are available on the UAA Tournament Site.

In a game that saw both teams combine for 36 runs, 35 hits and nine errors, the Wheaton College Lyons carried the day in route to a 23-13 triumph over The College of New Jersey in a battle of top five teams. Number two ranked Wheaton snapped its three-game losing skid, while the fourth-ranked Lions have two straight losses.

The Lyons overcame a 3-1 deficit in a big way after two innings, notching a run in the third before combining for 17 runs in the middle three innings to take a commanding 19-3 advantage. The College of New Jersey matched Wheaton's nine-run sixth frame to come within 19-12, but the Lyons plated two in the eighth and a pair more in the ninth to seal the win. Senior Adam Laplante belted a two-run homer over the left field fence in the top of the eighth.

Leading the Wheaton offensive onslaught were senior Travis Anthoine and sophomore Robert Foote. Anthoine, who was a home run shy of hitting for the cycle, went 4-for-6 with four RBI and three runs from his leadoff spot, while Foote was 4-for-6 with a three RBIs, three runs and a double. Anthoine also put down a perfectly-executed squeeze in the fourth, which ended up scoring two runs.

The Lions were unable to collect a win despite some strong offensive outputs. Sophomore short stop Vince Mazzaccaro was 3-5 at the plate with four RBIs a run scored and a double in the game. Junior Bill Kropp was 2-4 with three runs scored, three RBIs and a double as well for the Lions.

Junior southpaw Josh Moore, who won a team-high-tying eight games last spring, picked up his first victory of the 2007 season after allowing six runs on eight hits with three strikeouts and three walks in five innings of work. Sophomore Brian Hughes earned his first collegiate save, surrendering just one run on two hits with one strikeout and two walks in the final 3.1 innings.

For the College of New Jersey, junior Nick Amabile took the loss after four innings of work with six earned runs off six hits with three walks and a pair of strikeouts as he dropped to 0-1 on the season.

Shortstop Pete Moore of Moravian College and righthander Lee Boyse of Coe College have been named the NCAA Division III National Hitter of the Week and Pitcher of the Week for March 5-11, 2007, as chosen by representatives of the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.

Moore, a senior from Bogota, New Jersey, led Moravian to a 3-3 record during the team's spring trip to Arizona, hitting .609 (14 of 23) with 14 runs, 10 RBIs, three doubles, a triple, three homers, six stolen bases, four walks and a 1.130 slugging pct. He had 18 hits during the entire trip, giving him 136 for his career and breaking the previous Moravian career mark of 131. He began the week with a solo home run in a 10-6 victory over Beloit in the first game of a doubleheader, and was 2-for-3 in the second game, an 11-7 loss, with three runs scored and a double. He had his best game in a 19-7 win over Misericordia, going 5-for-5 with four runs scored, a homer, three RBIs and three stolen bases. He went 2-for-3 with two runs, two RBIs, a double and a home run in a 6-4 loss to Beloit in the first game of another doubleheader, and finished with a 3-for-4 performance, three RBIs, two runs scored, a double and a triple in an 8-0 win over Beloit.

Boyse, a junior from Alburnett, Iowa, went 2-0 with a 0.69 earned run average and 11 strikeouts in two games during the week. He pitched six innings in Coe's 13-1 win over Clark (Mass.), striking out four and allowing one run and four hits. He threw a complete-game shutout in a 2-0 win over 8th-ranked Carthage. He struck out seven batters in seven innings and did not walk a batter. Boyse was named the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Player of the Week.

Honorable Mention Hitters: Jason Hadley (Millsaps) - .818 (9-11), 3 doubles, 1 home run, 10 runs, 9 RBI, 1.364 slugging pct.; Brandon Isaac (Concordia-Ill.) - .448 (13-29), 1 double, 4 home runs, 11 runs, 12 RBI, .897 slugging pct.; Gabe Focke (Rose-Hulman) - .875 (7-8), 1 run, 3 RBI, .875 slugging pct.; Zachary Hess (DeSales) - .438 (14-32), 5 doubles, 1 triple, 9 runs, 15 RBI, .656 slugging pct.; Sean Anderson (Willamette) - .636 (7-11), 1 double, 2 home runs, 3 runs, 5 RBI, 1.273 slugging pct.; Anthony Mackow (New Jersey City) - .692 (9-13), 2 doubles, 5 runs, 3 RBI, .846 slugging pct.

Honorable Mention Pitchers: James Niesuchouski (DeSales) - 2-0, 0.56 ERA, 16.0 ip, 2 cg, 13 hits, 9 strikeouts; John Herbert (Centre) - 1-1, 0.61 ERA, 14.2 ip, 9 hits, 10 strikeouts

Founded in 1962, the NCBWA is dedicated to the advancement of college baseball. Membership is open to writers, broadcasters and publicists of the sport. Members receive a membership card, directory, newsletter updates and official votes in the Howser Award Player of the Year, Regional Player of the Year and NCBWA All-America voting. The NCBWA also sponsors preseason All-America awards, publication and writing contests.

2007 Winners:

Feb. 26-Mar. 4:
Hitter of the Week: Jake Shandri (Wartburg)
Pitcher of the Week: Bill Dictus (Edgewood)

Mar. 5-11:
Hitter of the Week: Pete Moore (Moravian)
Pitcher of the Week: Lee Boyse (Coe)

The Averett Cougars' last appearance in the NCAA playoffs was 2003 when they finished with a 27-14 record. Today the Cougars are only five wins from matching that total as they are 22-5, leading Division III baseball in wins and are three wins from leading all NCAA baseball divisions (Division II Lenoir-Rhyne has 24 wins). Their success lies with an influx of new talent as their everyday lineup features five freshmen "The talent level of our team has increased," said coach Ed Fulton. "We had a good recruiting class."

A key member of this freshman class is shortstop Jake Loye who leads the team in homeruns and RBIs and third with a.373 batting average. "Both shortstops in high school, Loye and second baseman Eric Sibrizzsi have solidified the middle both defensively and offensively," said Fulton. The three other freshmen who have found starting jobs are Jeremiah McMillian (.378, 15 runs), Ahmad Shelton (.349, 7 SB), and John Lesueur (.306, 19 runs). It is not only the freshmen class that has contributed to the Cougar's success. Seniors Pierce Steinruck (.391, 23 RBI), Larry Motherhead (.339, 15 Runs), and T. J. Bray (.352, 23 RBI) have helped Averett to one of their best start in school history.

Junior pitcher Travis Reynolds (4-0, 1.78 ERA) is the old man on the Cougars' pitching staff working primarily as a reliever and a spot starter. The starting rotation features a host of freshmen and sophomores. At the top of the starting rotation is Shelton (5-0, 2.25) and sophomore Jacob Walker (4-0, 3.11). Another freshman who has found early success at Averett is Chase Hall (2-0, 1.04) who leads the team with five saves. "It is exiting to see a young team play to their potential," said Fulton.

Fulton acknowledges that the easiest part of the season is behind him with eight conference games in the next month. "Top to bottom our conference stacks up to others," said Fulton. "You look at how many times a team from the USA South made it to the Championships". With a weekend series at N.C. Wesleyan this weekend and perennial top teams in Greensboro, Methodist and Ferrum still to come, the challenge to the team is to keep winning. Fulton has confidence in his team to continue improving. "Right now the team is playing to their talent level, not above it."