AF Baseball

COACH: Mike Hutcheon
Mike Hutcheon wrapped-up his third year as the head coach of the Falcons. Prior to his stint at the Academy, Hutcheon spent the last four years at Bethel College in Mishawaka, Ind. and compiled a record of 130-78 during his tenure there. In 2002, Hutcheon was named the National Christian Collegiate Athletic Association (NCCAA) National Coach of the year after leading Bethel to the 2002 NCCAA national title. Prior to his stay at Bethel, Hutcheon coached at Belhaven College in Jackson, Miss., for five seasons where he went 109-62. Through 12 seasons as a head coach, Hutcheon has compiled a 264-271 record and is 25-131 at Air Force.

COACH: Mike Hutcheon

Mike Hutcheon wrapped-up his third year as the head coach of the Falcons. Prior to his stint at the Academy, Hutcheon spent the last four years at Bethel College in Mishawaka, Ind. and compiled a record of 130-78 during his tenure there. In 2002, Hutcheon was named the National Christian Collegiate Athletic Association (NCCAA) National Coach of the year after leading Bethel to the 2002 NCCAA national title. Prior to his stay at Bethel, Hutcheon coached at Belhaven College in Jackson, Miss., for five seasons where he went 109-62. Through 12 seasons as a head coach, Hutcheon has compiled a 264-271 record and is 25-131 at Air Force.

50 Years of Falcon Baseball

The Falcons concluded their 50th season of baseball in 2006. � The Falcons' fielded their first varsity team in 1957, going 6-9 in 15 games. � Air Force is 913-1,104-3 all time for a .453 winning percentage. � The Falcons' winningest season came in 1964, when the team went 22-5, good for an .815 winning percentage. � The 1979 team had the most wins ever, going 33-13 for a .719 winning percentage. � The Falcons have produced seven baseball All-Americans in addition to five freshman All-Americans.

Hitting/Offense

Air Force batted .249 as a team in 2006, the lowest team batting average in program history (.262 previous low in 1973)...junior Karl Bolt led the team with a .314 batting average...Bolt also led the team with 10 doubles, nine home runs, 30 runs and 30 RBI...Bolt also led the team with 28 walks, 48 hits, a .582 slugging percentage and .437 on-base percentage...sophomore Chay Derbigny led the team with 12 stolen bases...Bolt, Derbigny and Dustin Smith tied for the team-lead with two triples...Bolt led the team with a .375 batting average in MWC games, along with six homers and 19 RBI...junior Jon Polston led the team with four stolen bases in MWC play...Smith was the top senior hitter, batting .245...Josh Meents was the top sophomore hitter, batting .252...Brad Madison was the top freshman hitter, batting .286.

Pitching Notes

Air Force had a 10.69 team earned run average in 2006, which was a run and a half lower than the 12.18 ERA posted in 2005...junior Mitch Brown led the Falcons with a 3-10 record and a 5.65 ERA, the lowest total by a Falcon since Jesper Stubbendorff had a 5.53 ERA in 2002...Brown led the Falcons with 51 strikeouts in 71.2 innings pitched and had two complete games and one shutout...Brown struck out 11 batters each in his first two starts and tossed a one-hitter in the season-opener against Colorado Christian...senior Paul Vignola had six saves on the season, the fifth-highest single season total in school history and the most since Todd Ladd had nine in 1998...freshman Juan Perez led the team with 20 appearances...freshmen Casey Allen (54.1 IP) and Jake Petro (50.1 IP) finished second and third on the team in innings pitched...17 of the 22 conference starts were made by Allen, Brown and Petro.

Fielding Notes

Air Force fielded .949 in 2006, committing 90 errors...the .949 percentage is the second-best fielding percentage in the last 12 years for Falcon baseball...junior Karl Bolt led the team amongst regulars with a .987 fielding percentage...Bolt also led the team with 360 putouts...junior shortstop Geno Salazar led the team with 111 assists...sophomore Austin Ferreria was second with 79 assists...senior Dustin Smith fielded 1.000 with 65 perfect chances.

Team MVP

Junior first baseman Karl Bolt was named the team's MVP. Bolt rebounded from an 0-for-17 slump to start the season to lead the team in nearly every offensive statistical category. Bolt led the team in average (.314), homers (9), runs (30) and RBI (30). Bolt batted .375 in MWC play, smacking six homers and driving in 19 in 22 games. Bolt is steadily climbing up the Falcon record books, as he ranks among the top 10 all-time in walks and hit by pitches. With 25 career long-balls, Bolt needs just five more homers to crack the AFA top-10.

Small Ball

In 48 games, Air Force attempted 68 bunts, recording 21 hits and 22 sacrifices. Air Force batted .457 when bunting. Chay Derbigny led the team with 11 bunt hits and Dustin Smith was second with four bunt hits. Jon Polston had five sacrifice bunts. Against TCU on April 9, Air Force recorded five sacrifice bunts.