Riding on a productive offense in the past two weeks, Ball State rolls on through northern Indiana this week to face in-state rivals Valparaiso today and Notre Dame on Wednesday.
With a three-game sweep over Northern Illinois last weekend, the Cardinals find themselves on an eight-game winning streak. The Cardinals (16-9 overall, 6-0 Mid-American Conference) have started MAC play riding on its offense, which has improved from a .265 team batting average to .307 since the win streak began. The pitching staff has also done its part during the streak, lowering its team ERA from 6.14 to 5.52.
Jason Bucholtz, Chris Pestle and Matt Singleton are all on eight-game hitting streaks, while Kyle Dygert is on a seven-game hitting streak. Within the eight-game span, C.J. Webb has led the team with a .424 batting average, raising it to .333 for the season for second-best on the team. Marc Franz remains first with a .371 average and is tied with Singleton for first on the Cardinals with 21 RBI.
Despite the offensive improvement, coach Greg Beals said there is still work to be done in all aspects of the game.
"We're getting close to playing the way we're capable of playing," Beals said. "I don't think by any means we've peaked. We're not playing our best baseball; we're playing good baseball. But I don't think we've gotten to the peaking point, yet."
Webb went 6 for 6 in the second game of Saturday's doubleheader against the Huskies, tied with three for most hits in a game in Ball State baseball history. He finished with 10 hits for the weekend.
"C.J., (last week) in practice, started to click," Beals said. "His swing is starting to come smoother, more fluid. He's just in sync now. His consistency wasn't there (earlier in the season), and I think it's just a rhythm thing."
The Cardinals face Valparaiso (7-11) today for a matchup that dates back to 1930. Ball State leads the series, 38-27-1, and has won the last five, including both games last year. The Crusaders defeated Indiana, 12-6, last Tuesday, before being swept in a three-game series over the weekend by Illinois-Chicago.
"We're playing with the attitude that we can beat anybody, and that's the kind of attitude you need to have," Beals said. "We have a solid ball club, a ball club we all felt good about early on in the season. I think we spent some time early in the season pushing, trying to get too good too fast. Now we're starting to play the way we're capable of playing."
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