DeKALB | Two former NIU baseball players are continuing their baseball careers with a local team.Former Huskie pitchers Brian Smith and Chuck Lukanen found their way to play for the Joliet Slammers of the Independent Frontier League.Smith, who plays as...
A pair of one-run wins at Eastern Michigan over the weekend kept the NIU baseball team in the thick of a tight race for first place in the MAC West. The Huskies (24-22 overall, 12-9 MAC) took two of three in Ypsilanti, Mich., against a team that had won...
A night underneath the lights in Chicago ended well for the NIU baseball team, as the Huskies took down UIC 9-7 on Wednesday.An early onslaught of offense gave NIU (22-21 overall, 11-8 MAC) an 8-1 lead through three innings.UIC (22-19) loaded the bases...
Visiting Valparaiso turned out to be the best thing to cure a three-game losing streak for the NIU baseball team, as the Huskies walked off in the ninth with a 7-6 victory. Coming off a three-game sweep against Central Michigan, NIU (21-21 overall, 11-8...
There aren't many shortstops around the MAC that can do what Alex Jones does for the NIU baseball team. With nearly a fourth of the 2011 season left to be played, Jones is No. 7 on the list for his role on a Huskie team (20-21 overall, 10-8 MAC) that...
Jeff Zimmerman is just glad someone is paying attention to him. While playing for Victor J. Andrew High School in Tinley Park, pitchers would constantly pitch around the young slugger. That isn't the case anymore, playing on the Division I level with...
First place in the MAC West slipped from the grip of the NIU baseball team over the weekend, when Central Michigan swept the Huskies in Mount Pleasant, Mich. NIU (20-21 overall, 10-8 MAC) was on the losing side of two close games to start the series,...
Thanks to a team-leading 2.05 ERA and eight saves as NIU's closer this season, Kyle Glancy was named to the mid-season Stopper of the Year watch list by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers of America (NCBWA) late last week. The junior is the first...
Behind every head coach, there's always a continuously working staff that isn't too far behind. For NIU skipper Ed Mathey, his assistant coaches provide him input that's vital in his team's preparation. "It's a very open forum," Mathey said. "I always...
A coach knows his team is clicking when his fourth starter goes seven innings and strikes out nine. NIU head coach Ed Mathey joyfully watched on Tuesday night as his Huskies rolled over Bradley 14-1 in a game called after seven innings in Peoria. Both...
DeKALB | Zero and 10 seemed like such a long time ago on Sunday. The NIU baseball team won a weekend a series with Toledo at Ralph McKinzie Field, giving the Huskies first place in the MAC West. Winless in its first 10 games of 2011, NIU (19-18 overall,...
Pitching coach is Ray Napientek's only official title, but the fifth-year coach has a multitude of other jobs on the NIU baseball team. Napientek is the man behind the scenes responsible for coddling, scolding and joking with NIU's pitchers. Each pitcher...
