Baseball squad posts 9-3 record that includes win over nationally rankedMassasoit.
The DCTC baseball team plunged into the 2008 season with a successful road trip to Cocoa, Fla. The Blue Knights won nine out of 12 games, including an impressive 8-2 victory over the Massasoit Warriors, a Brockton, Mass., team ranked seventh nationally in NJCAA Division III baseball.
Freshman Evan Lucius batted .387 and smacked in a team-leading 12 RBIs.
Solid pitching highlighted the trip. Blue Knights starters logged excellent outings. The team ERA currently stands at an imposing 2.30.
Leading the charge, freshman Jeremie Kruse went 2-0, nailing down a 1.08 ERA with a team-high 13 innings pitched. Freshman Marcus Fitzgerald also went 2-0 for the week.
Brad Lawson and Jared Thies notched outstanding performances. Between them, the two freshmen allowed only one run on three hits over 15 innings. Lawson picked up a win and a save. Thies also nabbed a win, hurling seven innings of no-hit baseball fueled by 11 strikeouts.
Sophomore catcher Spencer Braun stood out offensively, going 13 for 28 in nine games with a batting average of .464. Sophomore Will Dahlgren batted .394, going 11 for 28 with six stolen bases and nine RBIs, also in nine games.
Batting .387, freshman Evan Lucius led the team with 12 RBIs on 12 hits. Sophomore infielder Adam Stuessel hit .375, knocking in 11 runs, also on a dozen hits. Sophomore infielder Chase Brown lit up the base paths, stealing nine bases in 11 games.
The games scheduled on Mar. 20 at North Iowa Area Community College in Mason City, Iowa, have been postponed due to weather. The Blue Knights will be back in action on Mar. 21 in Boone, Iowa, taking on the Itasca Community College Vikings, ranked 13th nationally, and Des Moines Area Community College. The team then travels to Estherville, Iowa, for a Mar. 26 doubleheader against Iowa Lakes Community College.
The Blue Knights play their home games at Alimagnet Park , a 178-acre community park in Burnsville. Winter and early spring practice sessions are held in the Irish Sports Dome, a premier indoor facility in Rosemount.
Head Coach Tim Huber enters his fourth year managing the team, coming off a school record 25-win season and three straight appearances in the Minnesota Community College Conference State Tournament. Huber’s assistant coaches include pitching coach, Randy Briesacher, who’s also an associate scout with the Atlanta Braves, hitting and outfield coach Jake Swartout, and volunteer assistant coach, Garrett Retka.
Sophomore infielder Chase Brown (3) swiped nine bases.
