Jacobs graduate Ben Albano producing offensively for Lewis
By Dan Chamness For Sun-Times Media May 27, 2012 5:08PM
Jacobs High School graduate Ben Albano has posted some lofty offensive numbers for the Lewis University baseball team. | PHOTO COURTESY LEWIS UNIVERSITY
Updated: July 3, 2012 9:59AM
Lewis University sophomore Ben Albano, a Jacobs High School graduate, simply wants the chance to hit the ball.
Albano recently earned three honors for his hitting. After hitting .591 in six games, he was named the Great Lakes Valley Conference Player of the Week, as well as the D2BaseballNews.com National Player of the week and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association named him their Midwest Region Hitter of the Week. He had 13 hits in 22 trips to the plate.
“They are throwing me a lot of off-speed stuff,” said Albano of the opposing pitchers. “They are pitching around me a little bit. The last two or three weeks, I have been seeing the ball real well.”
In the six games, Albano had three multiple hit games. His best game was in the 10-2 win over Wisconsin-Parkside. He was 4-for-4 with two homers. He smacked a solo homer and a two-run shot. Albano drove home four and scored three times.
He was 3-for-4 in a 14-4 over Wisconsin-Parkside and a 7-1 win over Southern Indiana. In the win over the Rangers, he scored twice and drove home one. In the win over USI, Albano crossed the plate three times.
“I was more of a surprise last year,” said Albano. “They would challenge me with fastballs. They are not doing that this year. Especially not the conference pitchers.”
Fellow LU player Drew Buddle (South Elgin) posted two or more hits in each of the wins over UWP. In the 14-4 triumph, Buddle was 2-for-5 with two doubles. He scored three times and drove home three. In the 10-2 win, Buddle was 2-for-4 with a double. He scored three times.
Illinois State pitcher Kenny Long (Dundee-Crown) worked one inning as ISU defeated Bradley 12-3. Long faced three batters and fanned two in the non-save situation. With the win, ISU snapped a four-game losing streak.
Illinois State’s Liz Andrews (Jacobs) and Elizabeth Kay (Bartlett) each homered as the Redbirds defeated Bradley 9-4. Andrews, a senior outfielder, was 4-for-5 and smacked a two-run homer. She drove home a pair and scored twice. Kay, a junior outfielder, smacked a solo homer. Kay, who finished 2-for-4, drove home three and scored once. It was Andrews’ fifth homer of the year, while Kay has smacked seven.
McKendree University sophomore outfielder Caitlin Stredde (South Elgin) has a .297 batting average this year. Stredde, who has started 35 games and played in 36, has 35 hits in 118 trips to the plate. Of her hits, 19 are doubles and one is a triple. She also has 20 runs scored, 13 walks and 11 RBI.
She has a .390 slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .371. In McKendree’s recent 4-0 win over William Woods University, Stredde was 1-for-3 with a double. She scored one of the Lady Bearcats runs.
Michael Sainz (Larkin) shot a 219 at the NYX Hoosier Golf Invitational, which was hosted by Indiana University and held at the IU Golf Course in Bloomington, Indiana. The Evansville senior, who shot two 74s before closing with a low round of 71, took 30th overall. Evansville took fifth with a stroke count of 867. Northwestern took first with an 841.
Bradley’s Katie Yohn (St. Edward) played in 30 basketball games and averaged 26.1 minutes per game. Of her games played, she started 25. Yohn scored 336 points and pulled down 101 rebounds this year. Besides her respective averages of 11.2 points and 3.4 rebounds per game, she also had 68 assists, 39 steals and 18 blocked shots.
She scored her points by nailing 116-of-292 field goals and 47-of-57 from the charity stripe. She hit 57-of-137 from beyond the arc. Her three pointers made and three-pointers attempted were both team leading. Yohn was one of three Bradley athletes to average in double figures. She was second in steals and assists.
As a team, Bradley advanced to the second round of the Women Basketball Invitational. They were 18-16 overall and 7-11 in the Missouri Valley Conference.
