UNO Faces Fort Hays State for Road Series
Apr 21, 2011 | Baseball, General
Weekly Release
Live Stats
Live Audio
The UNO baseball team hits the road for a four-game series at Fort Hays State, April 22-23, at Larks Park in Hays, Kan. First pitch for Friday's doubleheader is set for 1 p.m., while Saturday's doubleheader will begin at Noon. Nebraska Omaha is 25-12 on the season after splitting two games with Northwest Missouri State on Tuesday, winning 7-0 before falling 4-3.
Earlier this year, the Mavericks enjoyed an 11-game win streak from March 18 to April 2. UNO ranks third in the MIAA with a 21-11 conference record, ahead of the fourth-place Tigers (17-13, 20-16 MIAA).
FHSU enters this weekend's doubleheader on a five-game win streak, as the team swept Southwest Baptist in four games last weekend. The Tigers rank third in the MIAA in triples with nine on the year, and Sloan Soulia has 14 doubles -- which is third in the league -- to his credit. David Geiger was named MIAA Co-Pitcher of the Week after going 2-0 last week.
On the Air
This weekend's four-game series at Fort Hays State will be available via free live audio online at OMavs.com. Yano Mangiameli returns for another year of play-by-play and commentary for all UNO baseball out-of-town contests.
Last Time Out
UNO leads the all-time series with Fort Hays State, 13-12. The two teams last squared off on May 6, 2010 at the MIAA Tournament in Kansas City, Mo., where the Tigers earned a 4-1 first-round win.
League Leaders
UNO leads all MIAA teams with a .337 team batting average through games of April 17, just ahead of nationally-ranked Emporia State (.329) and Central Missouri (.319). The Mavericks have the second-fewest strikeouts (164) of any squad in the conference.
The pitching staff is also third in the MIAA with a 4.45 combined ERA, while defensively the Mavs are second with a .968 fielding percentage.
Individually, Jed Hanson is tied for fourth with six homers. Caleb Palensky (.402), Connor McCrite (.397) and Brady Hohl (.386) are sixth, seventh and eighth, respectively, for batting average, while Tyler Splichal's 11 doubles are sixth.
Holtmeyer Eclipses Career Strikeout Record
Junior Joe Holtmeyer had his most dominant strikeout performance of the season at No. 1 Emporia State on April 2, striking out 12 batters in a seven-inning, complete-game performance for the 5-2 win. The victory also marked an important milestone for Holtmeyer, as he became UNO's all-time career strikeout leader. He has now amassed 291 strikeouts in two and a half years, ahead of former Maverick Tim Huber (2005-08), who had 277 in his four-year career.
Holtmeyer leads the Mavericks and the MIAA with 54 Ks on the year. He had three consecutive outings with double-figure strikeouts against Washburn, Lincoln and Emporia State.
Mavs Rank Among Nation's Best
UNO ranks 11th nationally in team batting average in the NCAA's most recently released statistical rankings through games of April 17. The Mavericks, who have a team batting average of .337, are also 20th in home runs per game (0.89), 24th in total home runs (31), 15th in slugging percentage (.489) and 21st in fielding percentage (.968). In addition, the Nebraska-Omaha pitching staff is 29th in strikeouts per nine innings (8.1).
Individually, junior Joe Holtmeyer, the defending Division II strikeout leader, rates 10th with 12.13 strikeouts per nine innings. Freshman Caleb Palensky comes in at 62nd with a .402 batting average, and sophomore Tyler Splichal is the 18th most-difficult batter to strike out.
Going Streaking
Sophomores Tyler Splichal and Connor McCrite are tied for the Mavericks' longest individual hitting streak this season, as both players went 12 consecutive games with a registered hit. Splichal saw his streak snapped in the series finale against Lincoln, and it had been in place since March 11 at Pittsburg State. In that span, he helped the Mavs to a record of 10-2 and accounted for a team-leading 17 hits, 10 runs scored, four doubles, two home runs and six RBI.
McCrite's streak lasted from March 22 to April 12, during which time he hit .447 (17-for-38) with five doubles, two triples and a team-leading 12 runs. He also had seven straight games with at least one run scored.
Junior Brady Hohl now has UNO's longest hitting streak at 11 games, dating back to April 8 against Central Missouri. Sixth of those contests have resulted in multiple-hit performances, including a trio of three-hit games. Hohl most recently went 3-for-4 in the second game of a doubleheader against Northwest Missouri State on Tuesday.
Mavs Welcome 20 Fresh Faces to Roster
UNO's 2011 roster features 20 newcomers, made up of nine true freshmen and 11 transfers. Fifteen are Nebraska natives, while 13 hail from the Omaha metropolitan area.
The list also includes multiple former teammates who have been reunited, as Derek Landis, Brandon Winkelmann, Scotty Donner and Ben Brown played together at Iowa Western to begin their collegiate careers. Brown, Kyle Kruger, Anthony Falcone and Zach Williamsen are all products of Millard West, while Caleb Palensky and Beau Suponchick played together at Papillion-LaVista South.
2011 UNO NEWCOMERS
Player -- Hometown (High School) Player -- Hometown (High School)
Ben Brown -- Omaha, Neb. (Millard West) Derek Landis -- Ralston, Neb. (Ralston)
Cody Brown -- Yorktown, Va. (Tabb) Sean Mascia -- Woodbury, Minn. (St. Thomas Academy)
Cory Buckley -- Bellevue, Neb. (Bellevue East) Connor McCrite -- Topeka, Kan. (Hayden)
Reid Carter -- Castle Rock, Colo. (Rock Canyon) Caleb Palensky -- Papillion, Neb. (Papillion-LaVista South)
Tyler Davies -- Papillion, Neb. (Papillion-LaVista) Martin Sartin -- Hamburg, Ark. (Hamburg)
Scotty Donner -- Crofton, Neb. (Crofton) Beau Suponchick -- Papillion, Neb. (Papillion-LaVista South)
Anthony Falcone -- Omaha, Neb. (Millard West) Mark Waldron -- Omaha, Neb. (Creighton Prep)
Landon Fall -- Kansas City, Mo. (Lee's Summit North) Rob Wheeler -- Elkhorn, Neb. (Elkhorn)
Mitch Kracl -- Omaha, Neb. (Burke) Zach Williamsen -- Omaha, Neb. (Millard West)
Kyle Kruger -- Omaha, Neb. (Millard West) Brandon Winkelmann -- Omaha, Neb. (Gross Catholic)
Mavericks in Professional Baseball
Player 2011 Team (Organization) Level Pos. At UNO Year Drafted -- Team (Round)
Tyler Cloyd Clearwater Theshers (Philadelphia) A RHP 2006-07 2008 -- Phillies (18th)
Notes: Cloyd previously played for the Threshers, a Class A Advanced team in the Florida State League, in early 2010. He is 0-0 with a 4.00 ERA in 2011, having made one start over three appearances and 9.0 innings. Cloyd has 10 strikeouts to one walk for the year.
Chris Kessinger Everett AquaSox (Seattle) A RHP 2008-09 2009 -- Mariners (37th)
Notes: Kessinger is on the roster for the Everett AquaSox -- a Class A short-season team in the Northwest League -- for the second straight year. The AquaSox do not begin play until June.
Swiping Bags
Senior Jed Hanson and junior Brady Hohl have been the Mavericks' leading base-stealing duo in the first half of the season, both swiping eight bags on 10 tries. Hanson's senior year total marks a jump in his performance from 2010, when he finished the year 7-for-8 on stolen base attempts, while Hohl was 6-for-8 on the basepaths.
Holtmeyer Named to Tino Martinez Award Watch List
Junior right-handed pitcher Joe Holtmeyer was named to the Tino Martinez Award's initial 2011 watch list, the award committee announced in mid-February. The returning All-American is among 91 student-athletes nominated for the honor, which is given annually to the most outstanding player in NCAA Division II baseball.
The award is named for former University of Tampa Spartan, Olympian, first-round draft pick and MLB All-Star, Tino Martinez. Nominations are made by baseball sports information contacts and members of the media. Omission from the initial list does not exclude additional players from future consideration.
The list will be updated with a mid-season release later this month, and semi-finalists are scheduled to be announced on May 7. Finalists will be named on May 19, after which fans will be invited to vote online at TinoAward.com to help determine the winner. The award will be announced after the conclusion of the Division II Baseball Championship in Cary, N.C., May 28 to June 4.
Mavericks Return Division II Strikeout Leader
Junior right-handed pitcher Joe Holtmeyer had a stellar sophomore season in 2010, fanning 152 batters, the most of any pitcher in NCAA Division II. The Creighton Prep product was honored as a first-team All-American and was the Rawlings/ABCA South Central Regional Pitcher of the Year. He also earned MIAA Pitcher of the Year plaudits and was a first-team all-conference selection after going 9-2 with a 2.89 ERA over 87.1 innings of work.
All-MIAA Trio Leads Mavs Into 2011 Season
UNO returns a trio of all-conference performers from 2010 on this year's squad in junior right-handed pitcher Joe Holtmeyer, sophomore infielder Tyler Splichal and junior infielder Brady Hohl. Holtmeyer, the MIAA Pitcher of the Year, was a first-team honoree, while Splichal and Hohl garnered second-team honors.
Holtmeyer led the conference in nearly every major pitching category, compiling a 9-2 record, a nation-leading 152 strikeouts and a 2.89 ERA over 87.1 innings on the mound.
Splichal batted .410 in his inaugural campaign with 22 doubles, five home runs and 42 RBI. En route to MIAA Freshman of the Year plaudits, he started all 51 games he played in and had a team-leading 200 at-bats, scoring 35 runs with 82 hits.
Hohl also started all 51 of his appearances, hitting .354 with 10 doubles, two triples and a home run as a sophomore. He led the Mavericks with 45 runs scored and had 42 RBI while drawing 16 walks and stealing six bases Hohl was also second on the team in hit-by-pitches, as he was plunked 15 times over the year.
Next Up for the Mavs
UNO returns to action on Wednesday, April 27, hosting in-state rival Nebraska-Kearney. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. at Werner Park, and it marks the first collegiate game played at the new facility.
Live Stats
Live Audio
The UNO baseball team hits the road for a four-game series at Fort Hays State, April 22-23, at Larks Park in Hays, Kan. First pitch for Friday's doubleheader is set for 1 p.m., while Saturday's doubleheader will begin at Noon. Nebraska Omaha is 25-12 on the season after splitting two games with Northwest Missouri State on Tuesday, winning 7-0 before falling 4-3.
Earlier this year, the Mavericks enjoyed an 11-game win streak from March 18 to April 2. UNO ranks third in the MIAA with a 21-11 conference record, ahead of the fourth-place Tigers (17-13, 20-16 MIAA).
FHSU enters this weekend's doubleheader on a five-game win streak, as the team swept Southwest Baptist in four games last weekend. The Tigers rank third in the MIAA in triples with nine on the year, and Sloan Soulia has 14 doubles -- which is third in the league -- to his credit. David Geiger was named MIAA Co-Pitcher of the Week after going 2-0 last week.
On the Air
This weekend's four-game series at Fort Hays State will be available via free live audio online at OMavs.com. Yano Mangiameli returns for another year of play-by-play and commentary for all UNO baseball out-of-town contests.
Last Time Out
UNO leads the all-time series with Fort Hays State, 13-12. The two teams last squared off on May 6, 2010 at the MIAA Tournament in Kansas City, Mo., where the Tigers earned a 4-1 first-round win.
League Leaders
UNO leads all MIAA teams with a .337 team batting average through games of April 17, just ahead of nationally-ranked Emporia State (.329) and Central Missouri (.319). The Mavericks have the second-fewest strikeouts (164) of any squad in the conference.
The pitching staff is also third in the MIAA with a 4.45 combined ERA, while defensively the Mavs are second with a .968 fielding percentage.
Individually, Jed Hanson is tied for fourth with six homers. Caleb Palensky (.402), Connor McCrite (.397) and Brady Hohl (.386) are sixth, seventh and eighth, respectively, for batting average, while Tyler Splichal's 11 doubles are sixth.
Holtmeyer Eclipses Career Strikeout Record
Junior Joe Holtmeyer had his most dominant strikeout performance of the season at No. 1 Emporia State on April 2, striking out 12 batters in a seven-inning, complete-game performance for the 5-2 win. The victory also marked an important milestone for Holtmeyer, as he became UNO's all-time career strikeout leader. He has now amassed 291 strikeouts in two and a half years, ahead of former Maverick Tim Huber (2005-08), who had 277 in his four-year career.
Holtmeyer leads the Mavericks and the MIAA with 54 Ks on the year. He had three consecutive outings with double-figure strikeouts against Washburn, Lincoln and Emporia State.
Mavs Rank Among Nation's Best
UNO ranks 11th nationally in team batting average in the NCAA's most recently released statistical rankings through games of April 17. The Mavericks, who have a team batting average of .337, are also 20th in home runs per game (0.89), 24th in total home runs (31), 15th in slugging percentage (.489) and 21st in fielding percentage (.968). In addition, the Nebraska-Omaha pitching staff is 29th in strikeouts per nine innings (8.1).
Individually, junior Joe Holtmeyer, the defending Division II strikeout leader, rates 10th with 12.13 strikeouts per nine innings. Freshman Caleb Palensky comes in at 62nd with a .402 batting average, and sophomore Tyler Splichal is the 18th most-difficult batter to strike out.
Going Streaking
Sophomores Tyler Splichal and Connor McCrite are tied for the Mavericks' longest individual hitting streak this season, as both players went 12 consecutive games with a registered hit. Splichal saw his streak snapped in the series finale against Lincoln, and it had been in place since March 11 at Pittsburg State. In that span, he helped the Mavs to a record of 10-2 and accounted for a team-leading 17 hits, 10 runs scored, four doubles, two home runs and six RBI.
McCrite's streak lasted from March 22 to April 12, during which time he hit .447 (17-for-38) with five doubles, two triples and a team-leading 12 runs. He also had seven straight games with at least one run scored.
Junior Brady Hohl now has UNO's longest hitting streak at 11 games, dating back to April 8 against Central Missouri. Sixth of those contests have resulted in multiple-hit performances, including a trio of three-hit games. Hohl most recently went 3-for-4 in the second game of a doubleheader against Northwest Missouri State on Tuesday.
Mavs Welcome 20 Fresh Faces to Roster
UNO's 2011 roster features 20 newcomers, made up of nine true freshmen and 11 transfers. Fifteen are Nebraska natives, while 13 hail from the Omaha metropolitan area.
The list also includes multiple former teammates who have been reunited, as Derek Landis, Brandon Winkelmann, Scotty Donner and Ben Brown played together at Iowa Western to begin their collegiate careers. Brown, Kyle Kruger, Anthony Falcone and Zach Williamsen are all products of Millard West, while Caleb Palensky and Beau Suponchick played together at Papillion-LaVista South.
2011 UNO NEWCOMERS
Player -- Hometown (High School) Player -- Hometown (High School)
Ben Brown -- Omaha, Neb. (Millard West) Derek Landis -- Ralston, Neb. (Ralston)
Cody Brown -- Yorktown, Va. (Tabb) Sean Mascia -- Woodbury, Minn. (St. Thomas Academy)
Cory Buckley -- Bellevue, Neb. (Bellevue East) Connor McCrite -- Topeka, Kan. (Hayden)
Reid Carter -- Castle Rock, Colo. (Rock Canyon) Caleb Palensky -- Papillion, Neb. (Papillion-LaVista South)
Tyler Davies -- Papillion, Neb. (Papillion-LaVista) Martin Sartin -- Hamburg, Ark. (Hamburg)
Scotty Donner -- Crofton, Neb. (Crofton) Beau Suponchick -- Papillion, Neb. (Papillion-LaVista South)
Anthony Falcone -- Omaha, Neb. (Millard West) Mark Waldron -- Omaha, Neb. (Creighton Prep)
Landon Fall -- Kansas City, Mo. (Lee's Summit North) Rob Wheeler -- Elkhorn, Neb. (Elkhorn)
Mitch Kracl -- Omaha, Neb. (Burke) Zach Williamsen -- Omaha, Neb. (Millard West)
Kyle Kruger -- Omaha, Neb. (Millard West) Brandon Winkelmann -- Omaha, Neb. (Gross Catholic)
Mavericks in Professional Baseball
Player 2011 Team (Organization) Level Pos. At UNO Year Drafted -- Team (Round)
Tyler Cloyd Clearwater Theshers (Philadelphia) A RHP 2006-07 2008 -- Phillies (18th)
Notes: Cloyd previously played for the Threshers, a Class A Advanced team in the Florida State League, in early 2010. He is 0-0 with a 4.00 ERA in 2011, having made one start over three appearances and 9.0 innings. Cloyd has 10 strikeouts to one walk for the year.
Chris Kessinger Everett AquaSox (Seattle) A RHP 2008-09 2009 -- Mariners (37th)
Notes: Kessinger is on the roster for the Everett AquaSox -- a Class A short-season team in the Northwest League -- for the second straight year. The AquaSox do not begin play until June.
Swiping Bags
Senior Jed Hanson and junior Brady Hohl have been the Mavericks' leading base-stealing duo in the first half of the season, both swiping eight bags on 10 tries. Hanson's senior year total marks a jump in his performance from 2010, when he finished the year 7-for-8 on stolen base attempts, while Hohl was 6-for-8 on the basepaths.
Holtmeyer Named to Tino Martinez Award Watch List
Junior right-handed pitcher Joe Holtmeyer was named to the Tino Martinez Award's initial 2011 watch list, the award committee announced in mid-February. The returning All-American is among 91 student-athletes nominated for the honor, which is given annually to the most outstanding player in NCAA Division II baseball.
The award is named for former University of Tampa Spartan, Olympian, first-round draft pick and MLB All-Star, Tino Martinez. Nominations are made by baseball sports information contacts and members of the media. Omission from the initial list does not exclude additional players from future consideration.
The list will be updated with a mid-season release later this month, and semi-finalists are scheduled to be announced on May 7. Finalists will be named on May 19, after which fans will be invited to vote online at TinoAward.com to help determine the winner. The award will be announced after the conclusion of the Division II Baseball Championship in Cary, N.C., May 28 to June 4.
Mavericks Return Division II Strikeout Leader
Junior right-handed pitcher Joe Holtmeyer had a stellar sophomore season in 2010, fanning 152 batters, the most of any pitcher in NCAA Division II. The Creighton Prep product was honored as a first-team All-American and was the Rawlings/ABCA South Central Regional Pitcher of the Year. He also earned MIAA Pitcher of the Year plaudits and was a first-team all-conference selection after going 9-2 with a 2.89 ERA over 87.1 innings of work.
All-MIAA Trio Leads Mavs Into 2011 Season
UNO returns a trio of all-conference performers from 2010 on this year's squad in junior right-handed pitcher Joe Holtmeyer, sophomore infielder Tyler Splichal and junior infielder Brady Hohl. Holtmeyer, the MIAA Pitcher of the Year, was a first-team honoree, while Splichal and Hohl garnered second-team honors.
Holtmeyer led the conference in nearly every major pitching category, compiling a 9-2 record, a nation-leading 152 strikeouts and a 2.89 ERA over 87.1 innings on the mound.
Splichal batted .410 in his inaugural campaign with 22 doubles, five home runs and 42 RBI. En route to MIAA Freshman of the Year plaudits, he started all 51 games he played in and had a team-leading 200 at-bats, scoring 35 runs with 82 hits.
Hohl also started all 51 of his appearances, hitting .354 with 10 doubles, two triples and a home run as a sophomore. He led the Mavericks with 45 runs scored and had 42 RBI while drawing 16 walks and stealing six bases Hohl was also second on the team in hit-by-pitches, as he was plunked 15 times over the year.
Next Up for the Mavs
UNO returns to action on Wednesday, April 27, hosting in-state rival Nebraska-Kearney. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. at Werner Park, and it marks the first collegiate game played at the new facility.
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