Game Details:
Opponent: Claremont-Mudd-Scripps
First Game: March 17
Mascot: Stags
First pitch: 9 a.m.
Venue: Arce Field
City, State: Claremont, CA

Game Details:
Opponent: California Lutheran
First Game: March 18
Mascot: Kingsmen
First pitch: 2 p.m.
Venue: Sparky Anderson Field
City, State: Thousand Oaks, CA

Looking Ahead: The Oaks travel to Southern California this weekend to compete in the California Invitational.

Scouting the Bulldogs: The Redlands baseball team is currently 12-4 this season with a 3-2 victory over No. 8 Cal Baptist on Tuesday February 20th. Leading the Bulldogs at the plate is junior college transfer Billy Lavelle who has a .549 batting average, 13 runs and 15 RBI on the year so far. Senior Kyle Gardner, the 2006 SCIAC Player of the Year, pulls double duty as a member of the starting rotation as well as batting fifth in the batting order. Gardner is batting .386 and has a 4.91 ERA after four appearances on the mound.

Scouting the Stags: CMS is entering the Cal-Invite with a 9-9 record with a 5-3, 8-7 sweep over Cal State East Bay on February 10th. Freshmen Alex WeberShapiro and Max Rose are leading the Stags offensively batting .413 and .382 respectively along with having four homeruns each. Rose is also part of the CMS starting rotation, having made three appearances and accumulating a 4.01 ERA.

Scouting the Kingsmen: Cal Lutheran has collected a 9-6 record this season and collected a doubleheader sweep (19-0, 11-0) over Cal Tech last weekend. Junior Mike Young is currently leading the Kingsmen offense with a .377 batting average and 20 hits along with 15 RBI. Junior Danny Caldwell is dominating on the mound, posting a 3-0 record and an 1.83 ERA after 19.2 innings.

Scouting the Oaks: Menlo (5-10) is currently on a nine-game road trip and will be returning home after the California Invitational. Junior college transfer Chris Budelli is .351 in 57 at bats and has a team-high five doubles along with two homeruns on the season Excelling on the mound for Menlo is senior Ben Hicks with a 2-2 record and a 4.07 ERA.

Menlo History: The Oaks baseball team is affiliated with the NCAA III and participates in the Independent Conference. In the past two years, two Menlo College graduates have signed with major league teams. After graduating in 2005, Jimmy Goethals signed with the Houston Astros and has spent time with their Single A minor league team, the Tri-City ValleyCats. 2006 graduate Derek Kinzler, a four-year shortstop for the Oaks, signed a free agent contract with the Colorado Rockies and was assigned to the Rockies rookie-level in Casper, Wyoming.

National Leader: The 2006 Menlo College baseball team was the statistical leader in the most double plays per game for a season. With a total of 35 double plays in 25 games, the Oaks recorded an average of 1.25 per a game. The infield team of Garrett Rogers, Derek Kinzler and Brandon Woolard were the main contributors to accomplishing this achievement.

Last Meeting: The Oaks loss the first game 4-5 on February 14, 2004 to the University of Redlands then came back in the nightcap to clinch a 17-15 victory. Menlo crushed the Stags of Claremont Mudd-Scripps 12-4 on March 13, 2005. The Oaks split a doubleheader (3-2,0-7) against Cal Lutheran on March 24, 2006 on Cartan Field.

About the Coaches: The most successful head coach in the 19-year history of the Menlo College baseball program, Ken Bowman finished his fourth season as manager of the Oaks in 2006. A Bay Area native, Bowman holds the program record for winning percentage (.533) and victories in a season (26). In Bowman’s inaugural year, the 2003 Oaks posted a 25-12-1 mark – the program’s first winning season. The Oaks dipped to 13-20-1 the following year but rebounded for a 26-16-1 finish in 2005.

Since taking the helm at Redlands nine years ago, Scott Laverty has helped the Bulldogs climb up the conference ladder, culminating in the program’s first SCIAC title since 1991 during the 2006 season. With a school-record 30 wins, he led the team to its first NCAA playoff appearance since 1993.

Coach Randy Town is entering his 20th campaign as the head baseball coach for the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges. During his tenure the Stags have captured two league championships, each time making postseason appearances. His baseball philosophy encompasses the belief that sound hitting fundamentals, strong pitching, and great defense will win ball games.