Lawrence University

    APPLETON, Wis. -- The Lawrence University baseball team, fresh off winning its second regular-season league title in three years, will host the Midwest Conference Tournament on May 10-11.
    The four-team, double-elimination tournament takes place at Whiting Field and Don Hawkins Field on Friday and shifts exclusively to Whiting Field on Saturday. The tournament winner receives an automatic berth in the NCAA Division III Tournament. The tournament field is announced on Monday, May 13, at 11 a.m. Central time.
    Here's a look at the four teams ...
Lawrence (30-9)
    >>The 2022 Midwest Conference regular-season and tournament champions are primed for another run at reaching the NCAA Division III Regional Tournament. Lawrence set a season record with 30 victories, topping the mark of 26 set in 2022. The Vikings have won the league title six times, which ranks third among the conference's current members (Ripon 21, Monmouth 14).
    >>Lawrence is one of the top offenses in all of NCAA Division III. The Vikings are 22nd in the nation with a .331 team batting average and 14th with 372 runs scored. Lawrence ranks third with 66 home runs and third at 1.69 home runs per game.
    >>Senior outfielder Jacob Charon ranks second in the nation with a .486 batting average, but he is far from a singles hitter. Charon has 12 doubles, two triples, 14 home runs and 61 runs batted in. The 61 RBIs ties his Lawrence season record set in 2022, and he ranks 18th in the nation at 1.46 RBIs per game. Charon has put together a monster career with a .389 batting average, 38 doubles, eight triples, 45 home runs and 195 RBIs. 
    >>Lawrence's prolific offense is a little like the Hydra of Greek mythology because it's a monster with many heads. Up and down the lineup the Vikings have produced. Left fielder Edan Perez is at .405 with 12 doubles, two triples, 13 homers and 53 RBIs. Center fielder Parker Knoll is at .403 with 12 doubles, one triple, 15 homers and 50 RBIs. Second baseman Taylor Freeman is at .342 with 13 doubles, 15 homers and 48 RBIs. First baseman Zach Leslie is at .343 with seven doubles, one triple, five homers and 31 RBIs. 
    >>The Vikings' defense got a boost with the return of rookie shortstop Tate Hartlaub this past weekend. Hartlaub had been sidelined by injury for several weeks, and Freeman slid over from second base to fill in superbly. Hartlaub is hitting .299 with four doubles, one triple, one homer and 28 RBIs. 
    >>Lawrence's pitching is strong in both the starting rotation and in the bullpen. All-conference and all-region pitcher Quinn Berglin is the ace with a 9-0 record and 1.87 earned run average. Berglin has 72 strikeouts against just 18 walks. Elden Santana has been on a roll recently and is now 5-2 with a 3.67 ERA. He's the reigning Midwest Conference Pitcher of the Week. The third starter is Nick Katz, who is 5-2 with a 4.04 ERA, and is a multi-time Pitcher of the Week this season. 
    >>The bullpen has been led by the 1-2 punch of Cam Ruth and Brandon Brust. Ruth is 1-1 with three saves and a 0.76 ERA. Brust is 4-0 with three saves and a 3.48 ERA. The Vikings have also received major contributions from Conner Robertson, Nathaniel Johannes, Nate Leonard and Jonah Palmer.
University of Chicago (17-22)
    >>Chicago is looking for its first Midwest Conference Tournament title as a member of the league. The Maroons are the only team in the field that won its conference series against Lawrence.
    >>Chicago's offense is led by sophomore outfielder Braden Jirovec, who leads the team with a .417 average. He has 11 doubles, two triples, three homers and 30 RBIs. The Maroons are hitting .270 as a team.
    >>The Maroons' bullpen ace has been junior Kirk Waller, who is 5-0 with a 3.62 ERA over 37 innings. The main starters for Chicago have been Phil Hogan (2-3, 4.25 ERA), John Butka (3-4, 4.44 ERA) and Hayden Leiderman (2-5, 6.17 ERA).
Beloit College (21-15)
    >>Beloit is looking for its second consecutive Midwest Conference Tournament title and brings a veteran squad to the fray. The Bucs are led by fifth-year seniors Matt O'Leary and Brett Kiger. O'Leary is hitting .351 on the season with nine doubles, one triple, six homers and 24 RBIs. Kiger is at .344 with five doubles, three triples, 17 homers and 50 RBIs. Kiger and Lawrence's Jacob Charon are tied for the Midwest Conference career lead with 45 home runs. Sophomore Jack Alport leads the team with a .354 batting average. 
    >>Beloit's pitching staff is led by Aiden Phipps, who is 7-3 with a 4.28 ERA. Harvey Pena has been superb out of the bullpen with a 3-1 record and four saves to go with with a 3.79 ERA.
    >>The Bucs enter the tournament struggling just a bit as they have lost six of their last 10.
Cornell College (23-16)
    >>Cornell comes to Appleton as the hottest team in the league. The Rams have won 10 of their last 11, including taking two of three at Chicago on the final weekend of the season.
    >>Junior infielder Kale Rose leads the Cornell offense with a .392 average to go with seven doubles, five triples, eight homers and 41 RBIs. Junior outfielder Sean Alvarez is close behind at .381 with 15 doubles, three triples, seven homers and 33 RBIs. The Rams are hitting .307 as a team.
    >>Cameron Anderson leads the starting pitching staff with a 2-3 record and 3.61 ERA over 10 starts. Vince Tinajero is 5-0 with a 0.00 ERA over five appearances and 25.2 innings. 

Tournament Schedule
Friday, May 10
Game 1, 10 am -- Lawrence (30-9) vs. Cornell (23-16), Whiting Field
Game 2, 10 am -- UChicago (17-22) vs. Beloit (21-15), Don Hawkins Field
Game 3, 2:30 pm -- Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2, Don Hawkins Field
Game 4, 2:30 pm -- Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2, Whiting Field 
Saturday, May 11 
Game 5, 9 am -- Winner Game 3 vs. Loser Game 4, Whiting Field
Game 6, noon -- Championship Game, Winner Game 4 vs. Winner Game 5, Whiting Field
Game 7, 3 pm -- If necessary, Second Championship Game, Whiting Field

Fan Information
Whiting Field
    Parking will not be allowed inside Lawrence's "horseshoe" in front of Alexander Gymnasium due to construction at the site. Parking is available on the surrounding streets (parking behind the buildings across from Alexander Gymnasium is only allowed after 5 pm and on weekends). Concessions will be available on site. Restrooms for fans are available inside Alexander Gymnasium.
Don Hawkins Field
    Parking is available immediately to the west of Don Hawkins Field. Please follow parking directions on the signs in the parking area. Concessions and restrooms are available on site. 
Shuttle Information
    A campus shuttle will be available for games at both Whiting Field and Don Hawkins Field. Pickup for the shuttle will be the turnaround next to the Wriston Art Center.