No. 22 Louisville Opens BIG EAST Baseball Championship on Wednesday
May 22, 2012 | Baseball
May 22, 2012
GAMEDAY INFORMATION: #22 Louisville at 2012 BIG EAST Championship
Dates: May 23-27, 2012
Location: Bright House Field | Clearwater, Fla.
Radio: News/Talk 1570 AM (WNDA) in Louisville
Internet: CardsTV (Audio) at UofLsports.com
- Louisville Baseball Game Notes
- Video of the BIG EAST title celebration on the bus on CardsTV
- 2012 BIG EAST Baseball Championship Bracket
- 2012 BIG EAST Baseball Championship Central
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The 22nd-ranked Louisville baseball team enters the 2012 BIG EAST Conference Championship as the No. 1 seed after claiming the program's third BIG EAST regular season title in four years. The Cardinals will open the double-elimination tournament at Bright House Field against No. 8 Pittsburgh on Wednesday at 5 p.m., ET, while No. 4 USF and No. 5 UConn are also in Louisville's side of the bracket.
Live play-by-play of the Cardinals' games in Clearwater can be heard on News/Talk 1570 AM (WNDA) with live audio also available to subscribers of CardsTV online at www.UofLsports.com. Live video as well as live scoring for the entire event will be available online at www.bigeastbaseball.com.
BIG EAST CHAMPIONSHIP OVERVIEW
Making its seventh ever appearance at the BIG EAST Championship, Louisville is 18-8 all-time at the tournament and has the highest winning percentage (.692) of any league member. The Cardinals have two tournament titles (2008, 2009) and a third title game appearance (2006). U of L has advanced to the semifinal round in each of its previous six appearances and the Cardinals have never played less than four games in any single year of the event. Making its third appearance as the top seed, Louisville was the last No. 1 seed to win the BIG EAST Championship taking the title in 2009. The Cardinals are 5-1 all-time in first round games.
CARDINALS WIN THIRD BIG EAST REGULAR SEASON CHAMPIONSHIP IN FOUR YEARS
The Louisville baseball program won its third BIG EAST regular season title in four seasons in 2012 adding to its impressive resume as a league member. Along with league titles in 2009 and 2010, the Cardinals have the highest regular season winning percentage in conference games of any league member at .659 (124-64).
NOTES AND TRENDS TO FOLLOW...
The Cardinals are 17-6 all-time at Bright House Field... Louisville is 14-4 in night games... The Cardinals have outscored their opponents 83-12 in the first inning this season... The Cardinals are 37-2 when leading after the seventh inning... Louisville is 0-14 when trailing after six innings... The Cardinals are 20-2 this season when hitting at least one home run... Louisville batters have been hit by pitches 106 times this season, which ranks second in the nation... Nick Ratajczak leads the Cardinals with 23 HBPs, while Ty Young has 20 and both are among the best in the nation in that category... Adam Engel is one of the nation's top base-stealers swiping 32 in 34 attempts this season.
AMLUNG NAMED BIG EAST PITCHER OF THE WEEK TWICE IN 2012
Junior right-hander Justin Amlung was named BIG EAST Conference Pitcher of the Week for the second time this season on May 14 following his dominant performance in the Louisville baseball team's series-opening win over St. John's on May 11. He pitched 7.0 shutout innings allowing only three hits with six strikeouts to earn his eighth win of the season in Louisville's 5-0 victory against the Red Storm. Overall, he is 8-3 with a 2.16 ERA and 94 strikeouts in 96.0 innings this season. With his 23 career wins, Amlung owns sole possession of second on Louisville's career win list.
Amlung was first named BIG EAST Conference Pitcher of the Week on April 30 after his dominant outing in Louisville's series-opening win over Connecticut on April 27. Amlung pitched 7.0 shutout innings allowing only four hits with six strikeouts to earn his seventh win of the season in Louisville's 5-0 victory against the Huskies.
STURGEON NAMED TO JOHN OLERUD TWO-WAY PLAYER OF THE YEAR WATCH LIST
Sophomore outfielder/left-handed pitcher Cole Sturgeon was named to the initial watch list for the 2012 John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award on May 3. The award, named for the Washington State star who achieved success as both a first baseman and a right-handed pitcher, will be presented by the National Collegiate Baseball Hall of Fame as part of the annual College Baseball Night of Champions on June 30 in Lubbock, Texas. Sturgeon, a native of Owensboro, Ky., is hitting .325 with one home run, 39 RBI and 38 runs scored while starting all but one game in the outfield. On the mound, he is 0-1 with a 2.65 ERA in 13 relief appearances to go with two saves as one of the Cards' key lefties out of the bullpen.
AMLUNG NAMED TO GOLDEN SPIKES AWARD MIDSEASON WATCH LIST
On May 1, junior right-hander Justin Amlung was named to the midseason watch list for the 2012 Golden Spikes Award, which is awarded annually by USA Baseball to the top amateur baseball player in the country. USA Baseball officials will announce the 30 semifinalists for the 2012 Golden Spikes Award on Tuesday, May 29. The list of 30 will then be sent to a voting body consisting of past USA Baseball National Team coaches and press officers, members of media that closely follow the amateur game, select professional baseball personnel and current USA Baseball staff, representing a group of more than 200 voters in total.
