Baseball Explosion and other OGL roundup items!

Baseball season starts with a bang: To say Bucknell Bison baseball may have some issues to work out when it comes to pitching and defense is like saying Chainsaw Dan Synder “might” have a Napolean complex and some public relations challenges (or maybe like saying JMU Football has some off-field problems right now, cough, Scott Noble, cough).  I give you the following paragraph pulled right from the JMU Sports story on the Dukes sweep of Bucknell to start the season:

JMU improved to 4-0 on the season while Bucknell dropped to 0-4.  The win followed a Friday score of 37-7 and a Saturday doubleheader with scores of 9-2 and 26-15.  The series featured 23 JMU home runs, a team slugging mark of 1.056, a team on-base percentage of .588, and a perfect 16-for-16 on stolen base opportunities.  Overall, the Dukes’ offense saw 30 innings at the plate for an average of 27.3 runs per nine innings.

Needless to say, last year’s CAA Champion Dukes have to be feeling alright about this start, though it’s a long way between now and Omaha.

Once in a generation

Women’s Hoops:

Well, I enjoyed a rare government holiday yesterday when the Mrs. actually had to work in part by catching up on Sunday’s win over Delaware.  The Dukes almost fouled their way into trouble late but held on to beat the Blue Chickens and their own megastar Elena Della-Donne.  With the CAA women’s tourney moving to a neutral site at the ShowPlace Arena in Upper Marlboro it’s going to be an exciting (and nerve-wracking) conference finish.  “Nerve-wracking” because this team appears even better, and definitely deeper, than last year’s Big Dance squad, but the CAA is probably no sure thing to get more than one bid on the women’s side.  Also, great to see the Dawn Evans story about her work with the NephCure Foundation really getting out.  Here’s a great story from Sports Illustrated about quite possibly the greatest basketball player to EVER put on a Dukes uniform and her incredible story.  Or check out the video from USA Today. Seriously, don’t sell the women short.  If you get a chance to catch them in action this last month of Evan’s career, don’t poopoo it and pass it up.  Much like Rodney Landers senior year, you just can’t take this combination of greatness, grace, and leadership for granted.

Football: Stadium may be looking great, but the Dukes are going full Tark-era UNLV on the offseason “issues” this year.  Get it together, man!  For the most part, we stay away from getting into these issues, but let’s just say opening the new palace without five or more scholarship players isn’t exactly the way to go.

ODU game on ESPNU Thursday at 7: I’ll be at Bailey’s in Ballston for a Magoo-hosted official viewing party, but there are also three official parites in the RIC (Bailey’s Southside, Big Al’s West End, and Bandito’s Fan) and one in Va. Beach at ShoreBreak Sports Bar.  My guess is our old friends in Chicago will be back at Murphy’s Bleachers as well.  Time to break the television/big-game curse that seems to have afflicted the Dukes this season.  Senior Night in the ‘Burg for Julius Wells (Denzel too, but Wells has been the true beacon of light leading us out of the dark days of Keener/Dillard/Sauron). Denzel Bowles and Ben Louis.