The Kent State men’s golf team is set to tee off today at 12:35 as part of the NCAA Central Regional competition at the Ohio State University Scarlet Golf Course. The top 10 teams and two individuals will advance to the NCAA Championships May 28-31 at the Kampen Course in West Lafayette, Ind.

After coming in second place at the Mid-American Conference Tournament, the Flashes received an at-large bid marking the school’s 21st visit to regional competition. Kent State has moved onto the Championship round 12 of those times with the last visit coming in 2004.

This year’s team features a well-balanced mix with two seniors and two freshmen. MAC Golfer of the Year and Freshman of the Year John Hahn leads the team with a 72.4 stroke average.

While playing at the Boilermaker Invitational earlier this year, the site of the Championship round, Hahn tied the third lowest score in school history at 11-under 205 (70-68-67).

Joining Hahn as All-MAC First team selections are Senior David Markle and sophomore David Ludlow. Freshman Brett Cairns was a second team All-MAC selection. Senior Tom Ballinger competed in both the 2005 and 2006 regionals.

The Flashes have five straight top-three finishes and have finished in the top five of nine of the 12 events they have participated in this season.

Kent State grad John Van BenSchoten started his first game of the season monday for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Van BenSchoten gave up six earned runs in four plus innings of action. He was them promptly sent back to Triple A Indianapolis after the game.

The eighth overall pick of the 2001 draft was 0-2 with an 9.39 ERA in four appearances this season. Three of them were in relief. Van BenSchoten began the season at Indianapolis 4-0 with a 1.88 ERA, all in relief, before being called up.

Although Van Benschoten hasn't pitched particularly well at the major league level it is my opinion that the Pirates may have mismanaged a little bit. Van BenSchoten has pitched in relief the entire season, and pitched well in the minors doing so. He relieved in his first three appearances with the Pirates. So then the Pirates decide to start him out of nowhere?

Starting and relieving takes two completely different mindsets and it showed in Van BenSchoten's performance. Van Benschoten struck out two batters in the first inning and worked a perfect second inning. He gave up an RBI single in the third inning to Yunel Escobar and then struck out Chipper Jones.

In the fourth inning Greg Norton reached first base on an error by THIRD BASEMAN Doug Mientkiewicz, wasn't he a Gold Glove first basemen? Why is he across the diamond? When did he move across the diamond? That play opened the gates for a Mark Kotsay two-run double. it was all downhill from there.

Is it a surprise a reliever pitched well for three innings then struggled afterward? No, that is his job to pitch well in brevity. While I agree the Van BenSchoten didn't throw the best in his brief stint in the majors I also feel the Pirates didn't put him in any type of situation to do so. But then again it’s the Pirates. There is a reason they never win anymore and I feel it shows in this situation.

I realize this is a Kent State blog so obviously it is biased, but tell me what you guys think in the comments section.

Update…

Perhaps I was too hasty in chastising the Pirates on the move. According to Dejan Kovacevic, of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, The Pirates are very much interested in recalling Van BenSchoten soon. Matter of fact, they like what he has to offer, but want to "stretch" his arm out more in the minors.

"He has major league stuff," General manager Neal Huntington told Dejan Kovacevic. "It's just getting his location and command consistent."

For that entire story click here

It is really absurd how good Kent State sophomore pitcher Kylie Reynolds is at such a young age. As the Flashes head to Ann Arbor, Mich. to play Notre Dame Friday at 4:30 in the first round of the NCAA Regional play, Reynolds is already third in school history in strikeouts with 523.

Reynolds needs just 22 strikeouts to pass Kate Leary, who fanned 545 from 2001-2004, for second the school's all time list. Brittney Robinson, who pitched for the Flashes from 2004-2007, has the lead with 856 strikeouts.

Her 269 strikeouts this season set the school's single season record. If the Flashes have a successful tournament she could theoretically pass Robinson for wins in a season. Robinson recorded 31 victories on the 2006 team that won its first regional game since 1990. Reynolds has 24 wins this season.

Kent State softball coach Karen Linder does a tremendous job recruiting pitching talent. In her 12 years as head coach Linder has coached Leary, Robinson and Reynolds. Reynolds is now a two time Mid-American Conference Pitcher of the year. Reynolds won the award the season before that.

It would not be a surprise of any kind if Reynolds breaks nearly every pitching record at the University by the time she is done. She is already close to most of them and still has two years left to throw.

When I talked to Linder earlier this year she informed me that senior Gabe Burns could also win the Mid-American Conference Pitcher of the Year award. Burns actually has a lower ERA, at 1.09 than Reynolds doe at 1.23; Reynolds has pitched nearly 30 more innings. Burns also struck out 216 batters this year. How is that for pitching depth?

Hitting gets it done too…

While the pitching continues to get the accolades the offense is more than ready for a run at regionals as well. The Flashes have outscored their opponents 221-79 this season.

Seniors Jamie Fitzpatrick (36) and Jess Toocheck (29) sit a top the Kent State all-time leaders in home runs. Fitzpatrick was already the leader before hitting eight more home runs this season. Toocheck added 11 home runs this season to move into second place. Senior Kim Hamilton moved into a tie for third with 26 home runs. Denae Jones, who played from 1997-2000 also had 26.

Freshman Jess Carmichael, who led Dalton to back-to-back State championships in high school, may eventually join the list. She hit eight home runs this year while hitting .272 in her first year.

Linder's teams have continued to show improvement throughout her 12 years here. In all aspects of the game the Kent State teams have become more talented and competitive. It all adds up to what appears to be another fun ride in NCAA Regional competition.

I apologize for the lack of posts lately. In the final two weeks of school I must focus my energy on finals that make my head feel as if it may explode. But I'm back now and able to concentrate on what is really important: Kent State athletics.

The Kent State baseball team was all smiles yesterday as it survived the rain and the Zips to win the three game set. The Flashes averaged more than 12 runs a game against the Zips and were powered by the long ball…. a lot.
The Flashes had two home runs in Friday's 15-7 loss. Freshmen Ben Klafczynksi (eighth of the season) and Brett Weibley (first) each hit homers. Saturday Junior first basemen Greg Rohan blasted two over the left field fence. Sophomore Jared Humphreys and junior Ryan Mitchell also went back-to-back in the fourth inning as the Flashes won 11-2.

Sunday it was Rohan again, hitting his conference leading 17th home run of the year. Senior Doug Sanders, Anthony Gallas, Conor Egan and Jared Bartholomew also tagged the Zips with home runs in the 19-5 win.

The Flashes have now won 21 of their last 25 games and really field a lot of talent. Watching Saturday's game it was quite obvious that the Flashes are one of the top teams in the Mid-American Conference. I mean that as no slight to the Zips, who field a very solid MAC team. It is just that Kent State gets upper echelon talent and continues to show it on the field.

As I wrote in my game story in Sunday's paper, Junior Chris Carpenter worked ahead of most of the batters he faced. The only run he gave up came on an "excuse me" swing by Akron's Matt Roberts in the fourth inning.

Carpenter booted the slow roller back to himself allowing outfielder Brandon White to score. White was Carpenter's only walk two batters earlier. The run was unearned.

"I was just focusing on getting ahead of people and staying ahead and getting in good counts," Carpenter said after Saturday's game.

The junior flame thrower used that mentality and worked off of his above average fastball as he mixed in his off-speed stuff to strike out eight in the contest.

He has now been drafted twice in the Major League draft. As a high school senior the Detroit Tigers plucked him in the seventh round of the 2004 amateur draft. Last year, Carpenter was selected by the New York Yankees in the 18th round, but he did not sign. Carpenter has no idea where he may be selected this season and said he is just pitching and focusing on what he can do.

"Wherever I go. I go," he said.

With having such a marquee player like Carpenter, who Baseball America ranked as 43rd best college prospect, on the roster; the Flashes have the luxury of more scouts attending their games, Kent State coach Scott Stricklin said.

That gives a greater opportunity for players like Rohan, reliever Reid Lamport, shortstop Chris Tremblay, second baseman Doug Sanders a better chance of getting drafted. Stricklin believes all four of them could be drafted.

It will be interesting to see where Rohan eventually goes. The junior first baseman obviously hits with pop and has a short, compact body that reminds me of Jeff Bagwell.

When talking about the draft, the one guy that must be mentioned is Ben Klafczynksi. The freshman out of Medina Highland High school would have been a high draft pick last season, but made it known he wanted to play for the Flashes. This year her hit .338 with nine home runs, third on the team.

I know this is a Kent State blog, but I can't help it if my slight obsession with major league baseball shines through. After all, I am at least discussing Kent State guys right? That is enough to justify it.

A few weeks back I posted a blog about Tampa Bay Rays pitcher and Andy Sonnanstine throwing a three-hit shutout against the White Sox. That isn't all the Wadsworth and Kent State grad has accomplished this month.

Sonnanstine has become the only pitcher in Ray's history to win four games in the month of April. He is now 4-1 on the year with a 4.42 ERA and riding a three-game winning streak that started with that shut out of the White Sox.

For the first time in forever the Rays, or Devil Rays, or American League East forgottens (however you know them as), have a surplus of pitching. It is one of the major reasons the Rays are contending this year.

Ace Scott Kazmir is supposed to retun this week from the disabled list, which means one of the Rays pitchers could be sent down.

Sonnanstine made a case to stay last night with eight strong innings, writes Carter Gaddis of The Tampa Tribune. Sonnanstine allowed just one run in eight innings against the Orioles. The Rays won 8-1.

Other Notes…

– Yesterday's blog post about John Van Benschoten possibly picking up a bat and returning to the field got me thinking a little and I decided to e-mail Pittsburgh Tribune Review beat writer Rob Biertempfel with the question.

"I talked to JVB about that during spring training," Biertempfel said in an e-mail. "The Pirates have no plans on trying him as a position player, and JVB seems to be down with that decision."

It doesn't mean that decision couldn't happen, but Van Benschoten is 28 years old now. The Arizona DiamondBacks drafted pitcher Micah Owings with the intent to use his bat as well. Rick Ankiel was still a pup when he lost his mind on the pitching mound and converted back to a hitter. It is not impossible, but the more I think about it, it does seem unlikely.

– The San Francisco Giants are a sinking ship, but they are finally letting the kids come up and play, which benefits two former Kent State players. I wrote a few weeks back about Emmanuel Burriss seeing his fist Major League action.

While I can't really say he is setting the world on fire with his .200 average (4-20), he is tearing up the base paths. Burriss has reached base five times this season (three singles, a double, and a walk) and has already swiped three bags. Perhaps more impressive is the fact that Burriss has only struck out once in those 20 at bats. It will be interesting to see how Burriss is used, if at all, when Omar Vizquel returns from the disabled list.

The other former Flash that could possibly benefit as the Giants turn away from employing senior citizens is third base prospect Andrew Davis. Davis was a 12th round pick by the Giants in 2007 and currently plays for the Augusta GreenJackets of the Class A South Atlantic League. His numbers are pedestrian so far, but the Giants organization lacks a solid third base prospect at this time.

Currently, Baseball America projects the Giants No.1 rated Prospect Angel Villalona as the future third basemen, but Villalona has been playing first base for the GreenJackets. If Villalona makes the switch across the diamond, like it appears he has, Davis could get an opportunity down the line at the Giants third base position. That decision remains in the future though.