Baseball Hawks eye Banks opener
Ryan Young - The Daily Iowan
Issue date: 3/25/08 Section: Sports
They weren't able to open in Iowa City over the weekend, but Iowa's boys of summer will signify the arrival of spring when the Hawkeye baseball team plays Western Illinois today at Banks Field. The first pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.
Freshman right-hander Tony Manville is the probable starter for the Hawkeyes, coming out of the bullpen to face the Leathernecks - a club that went 31-26 last season and earned the No. 2 seed at the Mid-Continent Conference tournament.
At present, Western Illinois stands 1-13, while Iowa is 6-8 with a signature win against then-No. 4 Vanderbilt.
But after going 3-2 since being shut down by Missouri State earlier in March, Hawkeye head coach Jack Dahm is looking for better mound appearances out of his pitchers. He noted that while his rotation is filled with talent, the members haven't been able to throw successfully for five, six, or seven innings.
"We just need to get some quality starts from our starters," Dahm said. "All of our starters have had some good starts, we just haven't been as consistent and long enough. And some of that is going to come."
The Hawkeyes enter tonight's contest without having played in nearly a week. The team's last matchup was against Stetson on March 19, when Dahm and company traveled to DeLand, Fla.
Iowa was originally slated to play Grand View College for its home opener on March 22, but the game was canceled because of inadequate field accommodations. The contest is not expected to be made up.
Dahm said leftover snow wasn't what delayed Iowa's first game in Iowa City, though. He noted that the true cause for the cancellation was soggy sod.
Frost underneath the playing surface combined with melted ice, leaving the field unplayable.
On Monday, the field was clear of snow as players practiced in uniform while the grounds crew primed the diamond.
"We would have liked to played the game just to get a little continuity in what we're doing," Dahm said. "But you know what - that's out of our control. We can't worry about, and we just have to get ourselves ready to play.
Freshman right-hander Tony Manville is the probable starter for the Hawkeyes, coming out of the bullpen to face the Leathernecks - a club that went 31-26 last season and earned the No. 2 seed at the Mid-Continent Conference tournament.
At present, Western Illinois stands 1-13, while Iowa is 6-8 with a signature win against then-No. 4 Vanderbilt.
But after going 3-2 since being shut down by Missouri State earlier in March, Hawkeye head coach Jack Dahm is looking for better mound appearances out of his pitchers. He noted that while his rotation is filled with talent, the members haven't been able to throw successfully for five, six, or seven innings.
"We just need to get some quality starts from our starters," Dahm said. "All of our starters have had some good starts, we just haven't been as consistent and long enough. And some of that is going to come."
The Hawkeyes enter tonight's contest without having played in nearly a week. The team's last matchup was against Stetson on March 19, when Dahm and company traveled to DeLand, Fla.
Iowa was originally slated to play Grand View College for its home opener on March 22, but the game was canceled because of inadequate field accommodations. The contest is not expected to be made up.
Dahm said leftover snow wasn't what delayed Iowa's first game in Iowa City, though. He noted that the true cause for the cancellation was soggy sod.
Frost underneath the playing surface combined with melted ice, leaving the field unplayable.
On Monday, the field was clear of snow as players practiced in uniform while the grounds crew primed the diamond.
"We would have liked to played the game just to get a little continuity in what we're doing," Dahm said. "But you know what - that's out of our control. We can't worry about, and we just have to get ourselves ready to play.
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