Is Grace Baseball Team On Upswing?

WINONA LAKE - 11-24.

The above record of the Grace baseball team wouldn't exactly make too many people green with envy (unless you play for the Cubs), but it does show a marked improvement for the Lancers' program.

In fact, it marks the first time in recent memory that Grace has had wins in the double digits and the first time in over a decade the Lancers have won 11 games.

Maybe even more importantly for the Lancers is that they are competitive in most games. Gone are the 20-0 losses. Grace is now getting to play the full games and is not the victims of the 10-run rule as often as in the past.

"We haven't won all that many games, but we have been in a lot of games," third-year Grace coach Glen Johnson said. "They can see they are at the place where they are turning the corner. They are not intimidated by the teams we have played. They don't feel like they are out of place any more."

Grace, with a 10-5 win over Purdue-North Central Thursday, has won three in a row and with a little luck the streak could have been around six or seven with closes losses to Bethel and Marian in the last week.

"Maybe the kids are starting to understand what it takes," Johnson said. "It takes intensity from the time you walk on the field until the time you walk off the field.

"They don't feel like they are going into places and get the tar beat out of them," he said. "They feel like they can stay with teams. They may not win, but they feel like they can stay competitive. It builds confidence when you don't get blown away every time you go out there."

The Lancers' resurgence has been keyed by an improved defense as well as a smal, but talented pitching staff that includes staff ace Terry Aukeman, Eric Gonzalez, Steve Babinski and Mark Butcher, who threw a no-hitter on Tuesday at Goshen College.

"Defensively, we have been playing much, much better," Johnson said. "We don't have a lot of depth with our pitchers, but the guys who have been pitching in the conference have been doing a good job. That has made a lot of difference with the pitchers being able to keep batters off balance and not be able to load up and swing for the fences."

With the continued solid play and a little luck, the Lancers could put themselves in a position that the program has not seen in some time - playing in the Mid-Central Conference tournament. The top four teams make the tourney and the Lancers (6-14) are wavering around the sixth or seventh spot.

But if Grace could make some noise in its final eight MCC games, the Lancers have a legitimate shot at the No. 4 spot. Most MCC teams in the middle of the pack have at least eight losses. Johnson said a 6-2 record in those eight games would probably be what it takes. And none of those games will come against the top three teams in the conference.

"It is not impossible by any means," Johnson said. "It would be a big boost for these kids. It just means they have to go out and be consistent and play good defense. They have shown they are capable of winning games."

Johnson, who has seen the program get better in each of his three seasons, would like to see the trend continue and be able to attract some top baseball recruits to Miller Field.

"If we can be consistent, it is also going to build on next year," Johnson said. "Recruiting-wise, it doesn't hurt you either. You have to sell that program that is much better than it was, it is getting better and it is going to be competitive. We are a lot more competitive than we were last year or the year before."

Grace hosts Huntington Saturday for a doubleheader in its final home games of the season.