Thursday, April 9, 2009
Baseball is fun again for Zac Elgie. Or at least even more now.
Elgie, a freshman first baseman, once again provided the big hits, but this time he wasn’t alone in a 9-3 road victory against Iowa on Wednesday afternoon. The last two games for Elgie have made baseball a lot more enjoyable.
Photo by David Scrivner
Iowa freshman catcher Dallas Burke tags Jayhawk sophomore Greg Herbst during the first inning on Wednesday at Duane Banks Field. Herbst had two hits in Kansas' victory.
“It’s been fun lately, especially picking up these wins,” Elgie said.
Coming off Tuesday night’s game-winning single that drove in two runs in the top of the ninth, Elgie’s encore performance was, statistically, just as good.
The Minot, N.D. native tied his career high in hits from Tuesday with three. His first single was a two RBI job that put Kansas up early in the top of the first.
“He got that clutch base hit yesterday and follows it up today with a two run single in the first,” coach Ritch Price said. “It shows he’s making progress and it shows he’s getting closer to helping us on the weekend.”
After coming off a game that saw Kansas score on five runs on 17 hits on Tuesday, it increased its production by four runs with only three fewer hits on Wednesday. Elgie finally saw some other Jayhawks join in on the fun with six other players having at least one RBI.
Sophomore third baseman Tony Thompson provided the power again for Kansas. His team-leading ninth home run in the top of the ninth punctuated what was a successful series sweep and provided a much needed jolt in the Jayhawk lineup. On Tuesday, all 16 of Kansas’ hits were singles. While they only managed three extra-base hits on Wednesday, Thompson’s long drive was a sight for sore eyes. Specifically Price’s eyes.
“I don’t remember the last time I saw 16 singles in one game,” Price said. “It was nice to see him drive a ball the other way.”
The nine runs were plenty for junior right-hander Brett Bollman. After not starting a single game in his career for Kansas, Bollman has picked up his fourth win as a midweek starter. It wasn’t pretty as Bollman had to work around the seven hits he allowed in the five innings.
“He’s done a nice job,” Price said. “I was pleased he was able to find himself and get to the fourth and fifth.”
But with senior first baseman Preston Land getting a rest for this week and his season going back and forth between good and bad stretches, Elgie was glad to have perhaps gotten over his freshman hump with more playing time on the way.
“At first, even in the fall, it was a lot more swings that I was used to each day,” Elgie said. “I was a little tired before we even started the game. I’ve gotten used to that and starting to feel a lot more comfortable.”
— — Edited by Heather Melanson
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