March 29, 2004
Baltimore, MD -
The Johns Hopkins baseball team is ranked No. 1 in the American Baseball Coaches Association/Collegiate Baseball NCAA Division III Poll released Monday.
The Blue Jays have reached the top spot for the first time in school history and are the only team at Hopkins other than men's lacrosse to be ranked No. 1 in its sport.
Hopkins, which is 18-0 this season following an 8-4 win at No. 20 College of New Jersey on Monday, received 233 points and three first-place votes. Emory, which is 27-1 on the year, is ranked second with 230 points and three first-place votes. Carthage is third with 213 points and one first-place vote, while Wisconsin-Oshkosh and Trinity (Texas) each received 212 points to tie for fourth place. Eastern Connecticut State (195 points), Wooster (194), Rowan (186), Virginia Wesleyan (159) and Mississippi College (159) round out the top 10.
Senior Rob Morrison (Malibu, CA/Loyola) leads Hopkins with a .458 batting average, while senior Tim Casale (West Hempstead, NY/Chaminade) has posted team-highs of 24 hits and 17 runs scored to lead an offense that is averaging 8.0 runs per game. Junior Mike Durgala (Annandale, VA/Thomas Jefferson) is batting .447 with 14 RBIs and 13 runs scored, while junior Paul Winterling (Glenelg, MD/McDonogh) is hitting .349 with a team-best 23 runs batted in.
Senior Matt Righter (Clarion, PA/Lawrenceville Prep), the current Centennial Conference Pitcher of the Week, is 2-0 with a 0.82 earned run average to lead a Blue Jay staff that has a 2.25 team ERA. Senior Jeremy Brown (Baltimore, MD/McDonogh) is 4-0 with a 1.55 earned run average and a team-best 36 strikeouts, while senior Russ Berger (Owings Mills, MD/Owings Mills) and junior Ryan McConnell (Lancaster, PA/Penn Manor) are each 3-0 on the season.
Hopkins, which is also 4-0 in the league and has tied the school record with 18 consecutive wins, returns to conference play Tuesday when the Blue Jays travel to Dickinson for a 3 p.m. game with the Red Devils.
Rank School Record Points Preseason Rank
1. (3) Johns Hopkins (Md.) 17-0 233 6
2. (3) Emory (Ga.) 27-1 230 12
3. (1) Carthage (Wis.) 10-1 213 9
4t. (1) Wis.-Oshkosh 9-1 212 2
4t. Trinity (Texas) 25-3 212 nr
6. Eastern Connecticut State 8-5 195 1
7. Wooster (Ohio) 13-3 194 10
8. Rowan (N.J.) 16-2 186 19
9t. Virginia Wesleyan 13-5 159 17
9t. Mississippi College 18-4 159 18
11t. St. Thomas (Minn.) 14-2 157 nr
11t. Marietta (Ohio) 14-2 157 nr
13. Cortland (N.Y.) State 8-8 144 8
14. Trinity (Conn.) 11-3 140 5
15. Chapman (Calif.) 18-7 137 4
16. Lynchburg (Va.) 19-4 103 nr
17. Augustana (Ill.) 13-3 96 nr
18. Ithaca (N.Y.) 9-4 87 nr
19. Denison (Ohio) 12-3 80 21
20. New Jersey 10-3 71 nr
21. Cal State-Hayward 18-5 68 nr
22. Ferrum (Va.) 21-4 64 nr
23. Rose-Hulman (Ind.) 18-2 62 nr
24. Wis.-Whitewater 7-4 60 26
25. Suffolk (Mass.) 11-4 43 nr
26. Salisbury (Md.) 18-6 39 nr
27. Millsaps (Miss.) 21-6 28 nr
28. Mary Washington (Va.) 18-6 25 23
29. Rensselaer (N.Y.) 9-6 24 30
30. Wartburg (Iowa) 11-8 21 20
Also receiving votes and named on more than one ballot (alphabetically): Heidelberg (Ohio), Linfield (Ore.), St. Scholastica (Minn.), Texas Lutheran, Texas-Dallas.
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