Pacific University Athletics

Boxers Put Together A Season For The Ages

12/18/2012 11:06:00 AM

Baseball 2012 Season Review

ONCE, TWICE, THREE TIMES AN ALL-CONFERENCE SELECTION: Jared Van Hoon proved to be one of the most valuable parts of Pacific's run to the 2012 Northwest Conference championship.  So valuable, in fact, that he was named by coaches to the All-Northwest Conference Baseball Team three times.
 
Van Hoon was named to the first team as both a utility player and a relief pitcher and was also selected as an honorable mention at third base.  He was also selected to the D3Baseball.com All-West Region Second Team and the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Division III All-West Region Third Team as a utility player.
 
A starter in 36 games as an infielder, primarily at third base, Van Hoon batted .275 with 38 hits, 18 runs, 11 doubles and two triples.  He finished the season tied for fifth in the NWC in doubles and sixth in doubles.  On the mound, Van Hoon made eight appearances as the Boxers' closer, amassing a 3-0 record and a 0.63 earned run average.  His four saves ranked second in the NWC.  In 14.1 innings, he allowed one run on five hits with 13 strikeouts.
 
“Jared had a great senior season,” said Pacific Head Coach Greg Bradley.   “He was lights out as a relief pitcher and he played very well defensively.  He was in the middle of our batting order and produced, especially in the clutch.  Jared is a true competitor who makes those around him better.”
 
Van Hoon was honored multiple times during the course of the season for his work on the basepaths and on the mound.  He was named NWC Pitcher Student-Athlete of the Week and selected to the D3Baseball.com Team of the Week on May 1 for his work on the mound in the title-clinching PLU series.  He pitched a college career-high five innings in the Apr. 28 second game against the Lutes, allowing two hits as the Boxers went on to win 13-5.  Van Hoon earned the save in the Apr. 29 single game, pitching two innings without allowing a hit and striking out two to preserve the 9-5 win.  Earlier in the year, Van Hoon earned D3Baseball.com Team of the Week honors after going .462 in the Boxers' season opening NWC series against Linfield on Mar. 3 & 4.
 
 
Dittrick turned in another first-class season as the Boxers' No. 1 starting pitcher.  He finished the regular season with an 8-2 record and a 2.87 earned run average.  He led the NWC and ranked 18th among Division III pitchers in wins and ranked second in the NWC and 43rd in Division III with five complete games.  Pacific's No. 1 pitcher the entire season, Dittrick won seven straight games during the conference schedule.  In 75.1 innings, Dittrick allowed 28 runs on 67 hits, struck out 54 batters (fifth best in the NWC) and allowed just 11 walks while compiling a .242 opponent's batting average.
 
Dittrick earned NWC Pitcher Student-Athlete of the Week honors three times, most recently on Apr. 17 after he threw a complete-game six-hit shutout against Puget Sound on Apr. 21.  He was selected to the D3Baseball.com Team of the Week on Mar. 22 after his one-hit, seven-inning performance in Pacific's 16-1 rout of Lewis & Clark on Mar. 17.  Last year, Dittrick earned First Team All-NWC honors and was named NWC Pitcher of the Year.
 
“We as coaches and his teammates have had extreme confidence in Rob on the mound to begin each series,” Bradley said.  “Rob continues to set and meet high standards and is very deserving of this award.”
 
Following the season, Dittrick signed a 10-day contract with the Corvallis Knights of the West Coast League.  He proceeded to stick with the squad for the entire season and was voted to the league's mid-season all-star game and to the WCL's Postseason All-Star Team.  He was the only Division III player elected to the team.
 
EIGHT OTHERS GARNER ALL-NWC LAURELS: In addition to the first team selections for Jared Van Hoon and Rob Dittrick, eight other Pacific players were recognized with All-Northwest Conference honors.  Outfielders Donnie Bradley and Nick Tasaka and starting pitcher Chad Fahey were named to the second team.  Infielders Mike Nagamine, Nate Rasmussen and Michael Arakaki, outfielder Kevin Schwartz and starting pitcher Mike Nagamine were tabbed as honorable mentions.  Fahey also earned honorable mention as a designated hitter.
 
 A SPECIAL SEASON: There are many words that can be used to describe the magical run that saw Pacific win it's first Northwest Conference championship since 1979.  Picked to finish fifth in the preseason coaches poll, the Boxers surpassed the expectations of many on the way to the 2012 title.
 
At the beginning of the year, however, it did not look as if the Boxers would be the dominant team that they proved to be.  The Boxers went 1-6 on their season-opening road trip to Hawaii against Division II teams, dropping three of four games to Hawaii Hilo and three games to Hawaii Pacific.  Pacific returned home to win two of three games at the NWC-Cascade Challenge, posting a 2-1 win over Oregon Tech and a 17-3 drubbing of Puget Sound. 
 
But it was the beginning of the NWC season, however, that made head's turn.  Pacific hosted then No. 2 ranked Linfield at home on Mar. 3 and 4.  Rob Dittrick opened the series with a complete-game five hitter that led the Boxers to a 7-1 win over the Wildcats.  Linfield took the second game of the doubleheader, but Jared Van Hoon's clutch single with two outs in the bottom of the ninth capped a four-run rally in the final three innings that gave the Boxers a 7-6 win and their first series win over Linfield since 2001.
 
A deluge of March rain played in the Boxers' favor, with all three games of the George Fox series and two games in the Willamette series moved to Chuck Bafaro Stadium.  Pacific went on to take two of three games from the Bruins, with the victory in the last game of the series starting a 10-game win streak and an 11-game NWC win streak.  The run included series sweeps over the Lewis & Clark, Willamette and Whitman.
 
The next NWC series was the first conference road series for the Boxers and saw the team travel to Spokane for a showdown with Whitworth.  Pacific took the opener in the three-game set 6-2, with Dittrick earning his seventh win in his fourth complete game.  The Pirates, however, took control of the title chase by taking the final two games by scores of 3-1 and 7-2.
 
Pacific did their part to keep pace, sweeping Puget Sound at home in their final home series.  In the season finale series, Pacific needed a sweep of Pacific Lutheran to guarantee a spot in the NCAA Tournament and two wins to secure a share of the title.  The Lutes put the Boxers' backs against the wall by handing Dittrick his first conference loss of the season, beating Pacific 12-3 in the opener.  Pacific responded with gusto, pounding 18 hits in the second game en route to a 13-5 win.  Jared Van Hoon earned the win with five innings of relief where he allowed just two hits.
 
The Boxers scored at least once in five of the first six innings, including a four-run fourth inning, to help Pacific to a 9-5 win and secured the co-championship with Whitworth.  Chad Fahey earned the win and Van Hoon the save.  Logan Moen and Donnie Bradley each had two hits.
 
The Boxers completed the season with a 22-15 overall record and a 19-5 NWC mark.  The 19 conference wins is a school season record.
 
NOT THE ENDING THEY WANTED: Sharing the Northwest Conference title was not enough to convince regional raters that Pacific deserved a spot in the NCAA Division III Baseball Tournament.  The Boxers were passed up for the west region tournament, which was contested at Linfield College.  Whitworth was the only NWC representative in the tournament, with the remainder of the spots going to teams from the American Southwest Conference, Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.  Despite their 22-15 record and convincing series win over Linfield and George Fox, Pacific was never regionally ranked.
 
As things worked out, the surprising Whitworth squad managed to stun the field to win the regional title and advanced to the Division III World Series.
 
HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE: What in the past was a hindrance to Pacific's ability to get games in, the Boxers benefitted greatly from the heavy spring rains that drenched the Pacific Northwest.  Pacific saw five NWC games moved from away sites to Chuck Bafaro Stadium.  Pacific never played an away game in the month of March and played just one road game between Mar. 3 and Apr. 7.
 
And the friendly confines were certainly that.  Pacific finished with a 15-3 record at Chuck Bafaro Stadium, including a 15-2 record in conference games.  The Boxers compiled just a 5-12 record on the road and a 2-0 record in neutral site games in the NWC-Cascade Challenge.
 
 
Chad Fahey was named a second team pitcher for the second straight year, but also earned recognition for his hitting ability as an honorable mention designated hitter.  Fahey finished with a 6-2 record as the Boxers' No. 2 starter, which ranked third in the NWC, and compiled a 3.27 earned run average to rank seventh in the NWC.  In 74.1 innings of work, Fahey allowed 30 runs on 67 hits with 54 strikeouts (fifth best in NWC).  He was named NWC Pitcher Student-Athlete of the Week in back-to-back weeks with a six-hit complete game shutout of George Fox on Mar. 11 and a complete game shutout of Lewis & Clark on Mar. 18.
 
After not even being considered as a starter at the beginning of the season, Mike McGuire recovered from an injury-riddled junior year to become a factor in the Pacific rotation as a senior and earned honorable mention honors.  Working his way into the lineup at midseason, McGuire finished the year with a 3-2 record and a 4.10 earned run average with 20 runs on 42 hits and 26 strikeouts in 37.1 innings.  He earned three straight wins in series against Lewis & Clark, Willamette and Whitman, topped by six innings of four-hit shutout baseball against the Pioneers on Mar. 17.
 
 
Mike Nagamine, was an Honorable Mention All-NWC selection and proved a solid presence for the Boxers at first base and at the plate.  Finishing sixth for the Boxers with a .282 batting average, Nagamine had 29 hits, 15 runs scored, 13 RBI and a team-high four home runs.  He capped his season with a 4 for 5 effort with three runs and a RBI against PLU on Apr. 28.
 
Nate Rasmussen repeated as an All-NWC selection after earning first team honors in 2011.  The Boxers' regular starting second baseman, he finished with a .284 average, 33 hits, 17 runs and a team high 12 doubles, which ranked third in the NWC.  Rasmussen posted a pair of three-hit games, most recently going 3 for 4 against Whitworth on Apr. 14.  Rasmussen also made three appearances as a pitcher in relief, earning a save against Hawaii Hilo on Feb. 16.
 
Michael Arakaki proved to be one of the most solid defensive infielders in the NWC, committing just seven errors in 118 total chances.  At the plate, he proved just as potent with a .305 average in 30 games, including 25 hits, 14 runs scored, five doubles and 10 RBI.  He topped the season by going 4 for 5 with three runs against PLU on Apr. 28.
 
 
Bradley transitioned from playing the infield in high school to becoming a regular starting outfielder for the Boxers with relative ease.  Finishing second for the Boxers with a .333 batting average, he had 28 hits, 21 runs scored, three doubles and a home run while batting as a second leadoff hitter in the No. 9 position.  The master of the bunt single, Bradley finished with seven multi-hit games, including a pair of two-hit efforts in the regular season ending series against PLU.
 
Tasaka led the Boxers with a .349 average and played 30 games as the Boxers' starting right fielder.  His offensive line included 37 hits, 21 runs, seven doubles a home runs and 18 RBI.  Tasaka registered 11 multi-hit games, which included a 3 for 5 performance against George Fox on Mar. 11.  Tasaka was named NWC Baseball Student-Athlete of the Week on May 1 after he led the Boxers in the series against PLU by going 4 for 6 with two doubles, three RBI and nine walks, including a pair of clutch bases loaded walks.  He also had the game-winning single that capped Pacific's 3-2 come-from-behind victory over Puget Sound on Apr. 21.
 
Schwartz finished his Pacific career by ranking third for the Boxers with a .327 average while playing in all 37 games.  His offensive line included a team-high 49 hits, 30 runs, seven doubles and 24 RBI.  Schwartz finished with 16 multi-hit games and punctuated the season by going 3 for 5 with two runs, five RBI and his first collegiate home run, a grand slam, against Willamette on Apr. 1.  Schwartz was named NWC Baseball Player of the Week on Apr. 24 after leading Pacific in their three-game sweep of Puget Sound by going 6 for 14 with six RBI.  Defensively, Schwartz finished with his third straight errorless season as he did not commit a miscue in 101 total chances.
 
SEASON SUMMARY
Overall Record: 22-15
NWC Record/Finish: 19-5 (tie 1st)
Home Record: 15-3  Away Record: 5-12  Neutral Site: 2-0
 
SEASON HONORS
ABCA All-West Region Third Team: Jared Van Hoon (Utility)
D3Baseball.com All-West Region Second Team: Rob Dittrick (P), Jared Van Hoon (Utility)
First Team All-Northwest Conference: Rob Dittrick (P), Jared Van Hoon (Relief P)
Second Team All-Northwest Conference: Chad Fahey (P), Donnie Bradley (OF), Nick Tasaka (OF)
Honorable Mention All-Northwest Conference: Mike Nagamine (1B), Nate Rasmussen (IF), Michael Arakaki (IF), Jared Van Hoon (IF), Chad Fahey (DH), Kevin Schwartz (OF), Mike McGuire (P).
Northwest Conference Baseball Student-Athlete of the Week: Nick Tasaka (Apr. 23-29), Kevin Schwartz (Apr. 16-22)
Northwest Conference Baseball Pitcher Student-Athlete of the Week: Jared Van Hoon (Apr. 23-29), Rob Dittrick (Feb. 27-Mar. 2, Apr. 2-8, Apr. 16-22), Chad Fahey (Mar. 5-11, Mar. 12-18)
D3Baseball.com Team of the Week: Rob Dittrick (Mar. 22), Nate Rasmussen (Mar. 13), Jared Van Hoon (Mar. 6 & May 1), Nick Tasaka (May 1)