Published: April 08, 2008 12:08 am            

Ramblin' Reck: Valley baseball products are off to hot starts

TERRE HAUTE — Waiting for the final game of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship to start, hoping Kansas makes me look good as a picker:

• Josh Phegley had a super day in college baseball on Saturday for the Indiana Hoosiers. The former Terre Haute North standout was 5 for 5, drove in two runs and scored twice as IU lost to Illinois 8-7 in Big Ten action.

That effort upped Phegley’s batting average to .453, best in the Big Ten and among the leaders in the country. IU and the Illini split a pair Sunday; Phegley had one hit in the first game.

In the pros, former Indiana State player Clint Barmes had his first start of the season Sunday for Colorado at second base. He was 0 for 2 against Arizona.

• A coach and a player from mid-majors were winners of two top awards in college basketball.

Mike Green of Butler was named winner of the Naismith Award, given to player 6 feet and under who excels in academics and athletics.

Keno Davis of Drake was named The Associated Press coach of the year.

• • •

• Coaching update — Terre Haute North could be naming a successsor to Jim Jones as boys basketball coach soon.

Athletic director Ron Clinkenbeard says first interviews have been concluded and follow-up sessions are scheduled this week.

He said a candidate could be submitted for approval at the April 14 meeting of the school board.

Last week was the deadline for applications to be submitted for the boys basketball position vacated by Mitch Lancaster at Northview.

At least two schools will be naming girls basketball coaches.

Kyle Kersey coached the Riverton Parke team last season. He now is assistant principal.

Chad Smith resigned the duties at Northview but will continue to coach track and cross country.

In Illinois, Andy Albrecht was named football coach at Lawrenceville. He has been assistant at Decatur MacArthur.

Lawrenceville is 24-68 in the past 10 years in football.

• • •

• Tom-Cattin’ It — Western Kentucky has named Texas assistant Ken McDonald as the new men’s basketball coach.

Purdue staffer Kent Williams has joined Cuonzo Martin at Missouri State.

Purdue will play five or six games in Australia this summer.

• Kristi Piepenbrink recently won the 130-player Northern Kentucky Spring Invitational in college golf with a career-best 146.

She plays for the University of Indianapolis where her dad, Terre Haute native Ken Piepenbrink, is the coach.

n St. Louis had sold out all baseball games in its new stadium until the second game of this season.

The Cardinals are doing better than some folks thought they would do while Detroit — the pick of many to win everything — was off to an 0-6 start.

Cincinnati players and coaches wore No. 41 on opening day in memory of Joe Nuxhall and a tribute to the military, specifically Matt Maupin, was part of the ceremonies at the opener.

• Jordan Lowry is a member of the South Vermillion boys golf team that had a fourth-place finish in the Northview Invitational.

He had a hole-in-one at Matthews Park last week.

• Tyler Zeller of Washington gained another honor in basketball last week.

The senior was named to the first unit of the Parade Magazine All-America team. He was the only Indiana player on the top three teams.

• As noted by the first line, this was written before Monday’s NCAA championship contest with my pick, Kansas, going against Memphis.

Bill Hodges, coach of the ISU team in the Final Four, was quoted in an article in Monday’s USA Today. He now is teaching in Roanoke, Va.



Tom Reck may be contacted by telephone at (812) 232-3231, by email at treck@ma.rr.com or by mail at 4276 South 5th Street, Terre Haute, IN 47802.

        

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