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M&C| WEDNESDAY | 4.15.2015| MACEANDCROWN.COM
Josh Caudell | M&C
Monarchs Struggle on the Mound in 10-2 Loss to VCU Matt O’Brien Staff Writer On a cold, windy Wednesday Night, Monarch baseball took on rival Virginia Commonwealth University in a non-conference game at home. Head Coach Chris Finwood has faced the Rams 4 times since he was an assistant there in 2000. Old Dominion, who shares the same record as VCU (17-13), had a lot of difficulty on the mound,
using seven different pitchers throughout the night. The Rams offense got off to a quick start and, was able to get the 10-2 victory thanks to 12 hits. The loss snapped a three-game win streak for the Monarchs. Starter Nate Matheson found himself in trouble early. Matheson surrendered his only two earned runs in the first inning. Rams hitters capitalized on some of his control issues, forcing him to throw 37
pitches in his two innings of work. The Monarchs ‘offense struggled to provide any run support until P.J. Higgins came to the plate in the 5th inning. Higgins smacked a line drive that bounced to the warning track, scoring the Monarchs’ only two runs. While they only produced two runs, putting the ball in play was not an issue for ODU’s bats. Higgins, along with teammates Connor Myers and Nick Walker each
had two hits. Eleven hits overall was not enough as ODU left too many runners on base and missed their opportunities. Ultimately, the pitching of these two clubs was the deciding factor. VCU starter Sean Thompson only gave up two runs on six hits in five innings of work. Thompson successfully kept the ball down in the zone, forcing many ground balls and limiting ODU’s offense. ODU’s relievers really struggled
to get outs and combined for 8 runs. Behind two three-run innings, the Rams’ bullpen held the Monarchs scoreless, able to secure the victory. Players were not available for comment after the game. Finwood and his team travels to San Antonio for a 3 game conference series against the University of Texas San Antonio.
Meet the Herd: Monarch Football plays Marshall in week 5 Nate Budryk Sports Editor The Marshall Thundering Herd is coming off one of its best seasons in program history. They averaged the third-most points per game in the nation, and allowed the 18th fewest. They were also 8th in the country in rushing yards per game. Behind the play of star quarterback Rakeem Cato, the Herd was able to reel off 11 straight wins to start the year, garnering them a national ranking of as high
as 23, before losing to Western Kentucky in week 12 by a score of 67-66. Included in that 11-game win streak was a lopsided win at Old Dominion. Marshall played a near-perfect game, beating up on the Monarchs 56-14. However, like ODU, Marshall is looking for its next quarterback and leader. With Cato graduating, it appears as though the quarterback job will come down to one of two redshirt juniors—Gunnar Holcombe and Michael Birdsong. Holcombe, the only one of the two to see game action a
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year ago, was 12-20 passing on the year for 119 yards. However, alleviating the loss of Cato somewhat is the return of star tailback Devon Johnson. Johnson had a terrific season in 2014, racking up 1,767 rushing yards, good for 6th in the nation and adding 17 touchdowns. Johnson is coming off an injury, though and his effectiveness will have to be gauged throughout the spring and training camp. Their receiving corps, however, was dealt a blow. Leading receiver from
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2014, Tommy Shuler, whose 1,138 receiving yards were good enough for 17th in the nation, graduated, opening the door for several sophomores to step up. Deon-Tay McMannus and Angelo Jean-Louis look as though they will be the outside threats, with Hyleck Foster and Donquell Green being the options in the slot. On the defensive side of the ball, the Herd also will have to deal with the loss of graduated linebacker and leading tackler from 2014, Neville Hewitt, whose 123 tackles last year
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was good for 14th in the country. Second-leading tackler Jermaine Holmes also graduated, leaving two glaring holes in the middle of the defense that must be filled. The Herd has four games to play before ODU travels to Huntington, W. Va. and by then, the picture as to what kind of team Marshall will be in 2015 should be a little clearer.