RedHawks Open MAC Play at Western Michigan
3/19/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
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Miami RedHawks (2-14, 0-0 MAC)
Games 17-19 | March 20th-22nd
ON TAP: The RedHawks (2-14) open up their MAC schedule as they travel to Kalamazoo, Mich. for a three-game series against the Broncos (7-9, 0-0 MAC).
ABOUT WESTERN MICHIGAN (7-9, 0-0 MAC): The Broncos are coming off a 2-2 week at the Snowbird Classic in Port Charlotte, Fla., earning victories over Georgetown and Lehigh. Last season, the Broncos finished 24-31 (11-16 MAC), placing them in third in the MAC West standings at the conclusion of the season. They finished 2-2 in the MAC Tournament, losing to eventual champions Kent State in the semifinals.
SERIES HISTORY: The RedHawks are 64-86 all-time against Western Michigan. The two teams last met in 2014. The three-game series was a home one for Miami. The Red & White took two out of three from the Broncos, including an extra innings win in the series finale.
LAST WEEKEND: While the RedHawks seemed to rediscover their offensive potential this past weekend with 35 hits over three games, they were swept by East Tennessee State. Sunday’s game saw the ‘Hawks erase a five-run ninth inning deficit but eventually fall in the bottom half of the inning on a walk-off single. Junior shortstop Chad Sedio went .467 with four runs batted in, two home runs, two doubles, and one triple in three games. He was a triple away from hitting for the cycle Saturday.
The Red & White met the Xavier Musketeers for a two-game midweek series on Tuesday and Wednesday. The RedHawks dropped both games by a score of 10-5.
POWER UP: Senior Ryan Powers looks to continue his stride after his breakout season during the 2014 campaign. The 6-foot-5 right-handed pitcher appeared in 16 games, starting 13. He finished with a 9-3 record and a 4.25 ERA on the way to claiming Second-Team All-MAC Honors. As if that wasn’t enough, Powers was one of two RedHawks who had his name called in the 2014 MLB Draft. The righty was selected in the 22nd round (652 overall) by the Philadelphia Phillies. So far this season, Powers has a 1-4 record with a 5.79 ERA. Opponents are hitting just .216 against him. On February 20th, Powers started against USC Upstate and pitched six scoreless innings, allowed no hits and struck out a career-high eight Spartan batters.
SADA’S SUCCESS: Steve Sada had a freshman year to remember last season and the second-year player is slotted in as the team’s starting second baseman once again. Sada hit .309 while recording a .391 on-base percentage and drew a team-best 24 walks. Like Powers, Sada earned Second-Team All-MAC honors. In addition, he was tabbed a Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American. So far this season, Sada is hitting .266 with five runs, five runs batted in and three stolen bases. He has also had five multi-hit efforts.
HONCHEL RISING : Honchel has moved up the career batting average list and currently sits at sixth all-time with a .359 average. In addition, he enters the weekend six hits shy of tying Brandon Hillier (’04-’07) for fourth all-time in career hits at Miami (259). This season, Honchel is off to a hot start, boasting a .452 batting average with six doubles, ten runs and four runs batted in. In addition, he leads the RedHawks with nine multi-hit games and has reached base safely in all 16 games this season. He’s currently on a six game hit streak and has gotten at least one hit in 15 of 16 games this season.
SOLID SEDIO: While the offense has struggled to create noise so far this season, shortstop Chad Sedio joins Honchel as one of the guys the team has leaned on. The junior is hitting .304 and has a .418 on-base percentage. This past weekend at ETSU, he went 7-for-15, belted two home runs, earned four RBIs and notched two doubles and one triple. He is a career .306 hitter and has been a solid piece of the lineup during his time at Miami. He has reached base safely in 14 straight games and has six multi-hit games. He also leads the team with 11 runs scored.
CATCHING UP: Senior catcher Max Andresen started the season rather slow, earning just two hits in his first nine appearances. This past weekend, he hit .307 and scored three runs. In addition, he hit two doubles and one triple. While he has started slow, Andresen is a career .270 hitter and will surely be a key cog moving forward this season.
