
Omaha Starts Big Ten Roadtrip at Minnesota
Mar 11, 2013 | Baseball, General
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Leading Off
The Omaha baseball team hits the road for two Big Ten series this week, first traveling to Minnesota for a pair of midweek contests at the Metrodome in Minneapolis. Action begins on Tuesday, March 12 at 6:35 p.m., followed by a second game on Wednesday, March 13 at 3:05 p.m. Links to live stats, audio and video will be available on OMavs.com, and both games will also be broadcast live on KVNO 90.7 HD2 with student broadcasters Jared Meyer and Paul Dobler on the call.
UNO is in its second year as a reclassifying Division I school in 2012-13 and officially joined The Summit League in July 2012 with a full regular-season conference schedule ahead. The Mavericks are led by head coach Bob Herold, who is in his 14th year at the helm of the UNO program with a career record of 421-286-2.
Quick Hits
•Minnesota leads the all-time series against UNO, 2-0, after taking a pair of games at the Metrodome last season, 8-4 and 1-0, April 17-18.
•The Mavericks have committed just two errors over their first seven games.
•When leading off an inning, Omaha batters are hitting a combined .484. Junior Brett Bass is 7-for-10 (.700) when leading off.
•Sophomore Brett Miller has come through when UNO runners are in scoring position, going 3-for-4 (.750), and he is 5-for-7 (.714) when trying to advance runners.
•Omaha's 13-2 win over North Dakota on Sunday was the Mavericks' first of the 2013 season. UNO's run total was its highest since a 13-1 win over Bucknell on March 16, 2012 in Lakeland, Fla.
•The Mavs return four position starters and 12 total letterwinners from the 2012 squad that went 12-36 in its first year of reclassifying to Division I. UNO's roster also includes 19 newcomers and three redshirt freshmen.
Scouting the Minnesota Golden Gophers
Minnesota is 10-5 (0-0 Big Ten) and carries a four-game win streak into Tuesday, having swept Western Illinois last weekend at home. The Gophers used a three-run fourth inning to erase a 3-1 deficit and defeat the Leathernecks, 5-3, on Sunday. UM had 10 hits and struck out 11 batters for the win. Andy Henkemeyer went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and a run batted in. Connor Schaefbauer was 2-for-3 with two RBI, while Michael Handel went 2-for-3 with a walk. Troy Larson also had a multiple-hit game when he went 2-for-4.
Lance Thonvold came in relief and picked up his first win of the season. Thonvold went 3.2 innings pitched, did not allow a hit, struck out six and walked two.
Head coach John Anderson (Minnesota, 1977) is in his 32nd year at Minnesota and holds a career record of 1,102-731-3.
Last Time Out
Omaha exploded for 17 hits on Saturday, defeating North Dakota, 13-2, in the weekend series finale at Westside High School. Every position starter tallied at least one hit for the day, led by sophomore Brett Miller's 3-for-4 day with three doubles, three runs scored and two driven in. Sophomore Alex Mortensen also had a pair of doubles to finish 2-for-4 with two runs scored, and freshman Cole Gruber was 2-for-3 with a triple, two RBI and one run.
Junior Caleb Palensky also broke through for two hits with three RBI, and redshirt freshman Connor Messinger was 2-for-4 with a run driven in and another scored. Junior Brett Bass also went 1-for-5 and scored once while driving in three more runs.
Freshman Tyler Fox earned his first career win, allowing two runs (one earned) on three hits. Fox struck out three and walked two over five innings of work. UND's Ben Clark took the loss in relief, giving up three runs on four hits with two walks and a strikeout over 3.2 innings.
Rewind with Minnesota
UNO last met Minnesota on April 18, 2012, falling in a 1-0 shutout at the Metrodome. Caleb Palensky tallied a double on the day, while Colby McCord, Mark Waldron, Connor McCrite and Alex Mortensen each had one single. As a team, UNO outhit UM, 5-4.
Minnesota was led by Andy Henkemeyer's 2-for-3 effort at the plate, while Kurt Schlangen was 1-for-4 with a run scored.
Ty McDevitt earned the win, limiting UNO to a trio of hits over four innings with three strikeouts and a walk. Cole Volkers took the loss, surrendering one unearned run with three hits over his six-inning outing. Volkers walked three and struck out two. UM's Kevin Kray was credited with the save after giving up two hits in the final two-thirds of the ninth inning.
On the Hill
•True freshman Tyler Fox has served as UNO's game three weekend starter over the first two weekends of play, and he earned his first career win over North Dakota State on Saturday. Fox allowed two runs (one earned) on three hits, striking out three and walking two over 5.0 innings of work. He threw an identical 5.0 innings against Penn State the week before, which is the longest outing of any Maverick pitcher this year.
•Senior lefthanded pitcher Cory Buckley, who has been UNO's game two weekend starter, returns after being granted a medical redshirt in 2012. Buckley suffered a season-ending injury in a collision while playing in the outfield at the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational. On Saturday, Buckley fanned five North Dakota batters, which ties sophomore Zach Williamsen and senior Matt Tew for the most of any pitcher on the UNO staff
•Tew had the most starting appearances of any pitcher on the 2012 staff. The senior right-hander had 13 starts over 14 appearances in his junior season, and he had a team-leading 38 strikeouts. This season, Tew leads the staff again with nine Ks in two starts.
Going Streaking
Two Mavericks -- sophomore Alex Mortensen and freshman Alex Schultz -- carry a team-best three-game hitting streak after the weekend series against North Dakota. Mortensen batted .545 (6-for-11) for the weekend with three doubles against UND, scoring three times, driving in another run and drawing three walks. In Friday's opener, he went 3-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI, and in Saturday's series finale, he finished 2-for-4 with two doubles and scored twice.
Junior Brett Bass and freshman Cole Gruber tie for UNO's longest individual hitting streak this year, as each previously held a five-game stretch.
In addition, senior Tyler Splichal has reached base at least once in all seven games this season, the longest streak of any UNO player.
Fresh Faces
Twenty-nine Mavericks have seen the field in the first two weeks of the season, 16 of whom are newcomers. Six true freshmen were part of the lineup: Cole Gruber, Alex Schultz, Collin Leif, Sam Murphy, Marcus Ethen and Tyler Fox.
Redshirt freshman Clayton Taylor leads all Maverick hitters with a .444 batting average, three doubles and four walks drawn, as well as a .615 on-base percentage. Sophomore transfer Brett Miller matches Taylor and sophomore Alex Mortensen for the team lead with three doubles on the year.
Palensky, Mortensen Earn Preseason Recognition from College Sports Madness
Junior Caleb Palensky and sophomore Alex Mortensen earned preseason all-league recognition from College Sports Madness, the online publication announced on Jan. 21. Both players were named to the All-Summit Second Team.
In 2012, Mortensen's .292 batting average as a freshman was fourth on the team, and he finished with a squad-leading 26 RBI, nine doubles, one triple and a team-best four home runs. Palensky hit .250 in his sophomore year with nine doubles, two triples, two homers and 17 RBI, and he drew a team-leading 19 walks.
Herold at the Helm
Head Coach Bob Herold is in his 14th year as the skipper of the Nebraska Omaha baseball program in 2013, having compiled a career record of 421-286-2. Herold earned his 400th career win on April 22, 2011 against Fort Hays State, becoming the third coach in school history to reach the milestone. He joined Bob Gates (464-473) and Virgil Yelkin (439-196) in the prestigious club, and Herold needs 44 more wins to pass Gates as the all-time winningest coach in UNO history.
Over his Maverick career, Herold has guided Omaha to seven NCAA Division II postseason appearances and three conference championships.
Herold's most recent draft pick was righthanded pitcher Joe Holtmeyer, who was taken in the 22nd round (No. 682 overall) of the 2011 Major League Baseball amateur draft by the Boston Red Sox. Holtmeyer was the fifth Maverick drafted under Herold and the second-highest pick of any player during the Herold era.
Herold is assisted by assistant coaches Chris Gadsden, in his 14th year, and Evan Porter, in his first year, as well as volunteer pitching coach Dan McGinn, who is in his 13th year.
Home Sweet Home
After playing just five games at home last year, the 2013 season will see the Omaha baseball team play 24 home contests, including 14 conference tilts. UNO will play at three different venues around town: Westside High School for its first home series last weekend, followed by time split between Werner Park and the Ballpark at Boys Town.
Welcome to The Summit League
The 2013 season marks UNO's first year with a full regular-season Summit League schedule. UNO will play all five of its Summit League foes, once in Omaha and once on the road. Although the Mavericks will appear in the Summit League standings, they cannot qualify for the Summit League Championship or the NCAA Tournament until 2015-16.
Mixed Schedule Takes Mavericks Around the Nation
Omaha's 2013 schedule includes 56 games against 17 different Division I opponents, and the team will play in 12 states across the country. UNO will match up with opponents from eight different conferences: Big 12, Big Ten, Great West, Missouri Valley, Mountain West, Southland, the Summit League and Western Athletic (WAC).
Two foes were 2012 NCAA Tournament qualifiers: Missouri and Creighton. CU played in the Los Angeles Regional, while MU was sent to the Tucson Regional.
The Mavericks have never faced three of their 2013 opponents -- UTSA, Penn State and Western Illinois -- and they hold a combined all-time record of 195-195 over all teams on the slate entering this season.
MAVERICKS VS. OTHER CONFERENCES IN 2013
Big 12 -- 0-0
Big Ten -- 0-1
Great West -- 1-2
Missouri Valley -- 0-1
Mountain West – 0-0
Southland – 0-1
WAC – 0-1
Summit League Preseason Poll Announced
In its first year as a member of the Summit League, Omaha was picked to finish sixth in the preseason poll released by the conference office last month.
North Dakota State was favored to capture its first Summit League Baseball Tournament title in a preseason vote among the league's six head coaches. The Bison received five first-place votes and a total of 25 points. South Dakota State placed second with 17 points, followed closely by Oakland who received the final first-place vote and 16 points. Western Illinois (15 points), Fort Wayne (nine points) and league newcomer Omaha (eight points) rounded out the poll.
Former Maverick Cloyd Makes MLB Debut With Philadelphia Phillies
Former Omaha baseball player Tyler Cloyd made his Major League debut on Aug. 29, as he was called up by the Philadelphia Phillies. Cloyd debuted against the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park, giving up three runs on seven hits over six innings of work, striking out five and walking two. Cloyd became just the second Maverick to play in the Majors, joining Bruce Benedict, who played 12 seasons with the Atlanta Braves.
A native of Bellevue, Neb., and the Phillies' 18th-round pick in the 2008 Draft, Cloyd also went 15-1 overall in the Minor Leagues last season. His stint with the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs resulted in a 12-1 record with a 2.35 earned-run average, which led all pitchers the International League.
Cloyd lettered two seasons at UNO (2006-07), earning third-team All-America honors and first-team all-region recognition in his final season. A two-time All-NCC honoree, he was twice named NCC Most Valuable Pitcher.
Senior Trio Named Independent All-Conference
Three former Maverick players were named to the 2012 Independent Baseball All-Conference Teams, College Sports Madness announced last May. Colby McCord was a first-team honoree, while Brady Hohl and Mark Waldron were second-team selections.
McCord batted a team-leading .366 with 18 doubles, three home runs, 20 RBI and 27 runs scored. He topped the Mavericks with 18 multi-hit games and finished his career ranked ninth in school history for career games played (163) and 11th in doubles (33).
Hohl capped his senior campaign with a .297 batting average, 12 doubles, two home runs, 22 RBI and 24 runs scored, as well as a team-high 14 stolen bases. He also completed his career among the best in school history in multiple categories: third in hits (218) and at-bats (632), fifth in games started (159) and runs scored (140), sixth in games played (181) and seventh in doubles (37).
Waldron hit .272 for the season with eight doubles, a home run, 24 runs scored, 21 driven in and 16 walks drawn.
On to the Next One
Omaha returns to action this weekend, traveling to a second Big Ten foe with Iowa, March 15-17, at Duane Banks Field in Iowa City, Iowa. Friday's game is set for 4:05 p.m., followed by first pitch at 1:05 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday. Links to live stats, audio and video will be available on OMavs.com, and the game will also be broadcast live on KVNO 90.7 HD2.
Live Stats (Tues | Wed)
Live Video
Live Audio
Radio: KVNO 90.7 HD2
Leading Off
The Omaha baseball team hits the road for two Big Ten series this week, first traveling to Minnesota for a pair of midweek contests at the Metrodome in Minneapolis. Action begins on Tuesday, March 12 at 6:35 p.m., followed by a second game on Wednesday, March 13 at 3:05 p.m. Links to live stats, audio and video will be available on OMavs.com, and both games will also be broadcast live on KVNO 90.7 HD2 with student broadcasters Jared Meyer and Paul Dobler on the call.
UNO is in its second year as a reclassifying Division I school in 2012-13 and officially joined The Summit League in July 2012 with a full regular-season conference schedule ahead. The Mavericks are led by head coach Bob Herold, who is in his 14th year at the helm of the UNO program with a career record of 421-286-2.
Quick Hits
•Minnesota leads the all-time series against UNO, 2-0, after taking a pair of games at the Metrodome last season, 8-4 and 1-0, April 17-18.
•The Mavericks have committed just two errors over their first seven games.
•When leading off an inning, Omaha batters are hitting a combined .484. Junior Brett Bass is 7-for-10 (.700) when leading off.
•Sophomore Brett Miller has come through when UNO runners are in scoring position, going 3-for-4 (.750), and he is 5-for-7 (.714) when trying to advance runners.
•Omaha's 13-2 win over North Dakota on Sunday was the Mavericks' first of the 2013 season. UNO's run total was its highest since a 13-1 win over Bucknell on March 16, 2012 in Lakeland, Fla.
•The Mavs return four position starters and 12 total letterwinners from the 2012 squad that went 12-36 in its first year of reclassifying to Division I. UNO's roster also includes 19 newcomers and three redshirt freshmen.
Scouting the Minnesota Golden Gophers
Minnesota is 10-5 (0-0 Big Ten) and carries a four-game win streak into Tuesday, having swept Western Illinois last weekend at home. The Gophers used a three-run fourth inning to erase a 3-1 deficit and defeat the Leathernecks, 5-3, on Sunday. UM had 10 hits and struck out 11 batters for the win. Andy Henkemeyer went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and a run batted in. Connor Schaefbauer was 2-for-3 with two RBI, while Michael Handel went 2-for-3 with a walk. Troy Larson also had a multiple-hit game when he went 2-for-4.
Lance Thonvold came in relief and picked up his first win of the season. Thonvold went 3.2 innings pitched, did not allow a hit, struck out six and walked two.
Head coach John Anderson (Minnesota, 1977) is in his 32nd year at Minnesota and holds a career record of 1,102-731-3.
Last Time Out
Omaha exploded for 17 hits on Saturday, defeating North Dakota, 13-2, in the weekend series finale at Westside High School. Every position starter tallied at least one hit for the day, led by sophomore Brett Miller's 3-for-4 day with three doubles, three runs scored and two driven in. Sophomore Alex Mortensen also had a pair of doubles to finish 2-for-4 with two runs scored, and freshman Cole Gruber was 2-for-3 with a triple, two RBI and one run.
Junior Caleb Palensky also broke through for two hits with three RBI, and redshirt freshman Connor Messinger was 2-for-4 with a run driven in and another scored. Junior Brett Bass also went 1-for-5 and scored once while driving in three more runs.
Freshman Tyler Fox earned his first career win, allowing two runs (one earned) on three hits. Fox struck out three and walked two over five innings of work. UND's Ben Clark took the loss in relief, giving up three runs on four hits with two walks and a strikeout over 3.2 innings.
Rewind with Minnesota
UNO last met Minnesota on April 18, 2012, falling in a 1-0 shutout at the Metrodome. Caleb Palensky tallied a double on the day, while Colby McCord, Mark Waldron, Connor McCrite and Alex Mortensen each had one single. As a team, UNO outhit UM, 5-4.
Minnesota was led by Andy Henkemeyer's 2-for-3 effort at the plate, while Kurt Schlangen was 1-for-4 with a run scored.
Ty McDevitt earned the win, limiting UNO to a trio of hits over four innings with three strikeouts and a walk. Cole Volkers took the loss, surrendering one unearned run with three hits over his six-inning outing. Volkers walked three and struck out two. UM's Kevin Kray was credited with the save after giving up two hits in the final two-thirds of the ninth inning.
On the Hill
•True freshman Tyler Fox has served as UNO's game three weekend starter over the first two weekends of play, and he earned his first career win over North Dakota State on Saturday. Fox allowed two runs (one earned) on three hits, striking out three and walking two over 5.0 innings of work. He threw an identical 5.0 innings against Penn State the week before, which is the longest outing of any Maverick pitcher this year.
•Senior lefthanded pitcher Cory Buckley, who has been UNO's game two weekend starter, returns after being granted a medical redshirt in 2012. Buckley suffered a season-ending injury in a collision while playing in the outfield at the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational. On Saturday, Buckley fanned five North Dakota batters, which ties sophomore Zach Williamsen and senior Matt Tew for the most of any pitcher on the UNO staff
•Tew had the most starting appearances of any pitcher on the 2012 staff. The senior right-hander had 13 starts over 14 appearances in his junior season, and he had a team-leading 38 strikeouts. This season, Tew leads the staff again with nine Ks in two starts.
Going Streaking
Two Mavericks -- sophomore Alex Mortensen and freshman Alex Schultz -- carry a team-best three-game hitting streak after the weekend series against North Dakota. Mortensen batted .545 (6-for-11) for the weekend with three doubles against UND, scoring three times, driving in another run and drawing three walks. In Friday's opener, he went 3-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI, and in Saturday's series finale, he finished 2-for-4 with two doubles and scored twice.
Junior Brett Bass and freshman Cole Gruber tie for UNO's longest individual hitting streak this year, as each previously held a five-game stretch.
In addition, senior Tyler Splichal has reached base at least once in all seven games this season, the longest streak of any UNO player.
Fresh Faces
Twenty-nine Mavericks have seen the field in the first two weeks of the season, 16 of whom are newcomers. Six true freshmen were part of the lineup: Cole Gruber, Alex Schultz, Collin Leif, Sam Murphy, Marcus Ethen and Tyler Fox.
Redshirt freshman Clayton Taylor leads all Maverick hitters with a .444 batting average, three doubles and four walks drawn, as well as a .615 on-base percentage. Sophomore transfer Brett Miller matches Taylor and sophomore Alex Mortensen for the team lead with three doubles on the year.
Palensky, Mortensen Earn Preseason Recognition from College Sports Madness
Junior Caleb Palensky and sophomore Alex Mortensen earned preseason all-league recognition from College Sports Madness, the online publication announced on Jan. 21. Both players were named to the All-Summit Second Team.
In 2012, Mortensen's .292 batting average as a freshman was fourth on the team, and he finished with a squad-leading 26 RBI, nine doubles, one triple and a team-best four home runs. Palensky hit .250 in his sophomore year with nine doubles, two triples, two homers and 17 RBI, and he drew a team-leading 19 walks.
Herold at the Helm
Head Coach Bob Herold is in his 14th year as the skipper of the Nebraska Omaha baseball program in 2013, having compiled a career record of 421-286-2. Herold earned his 400th career win on April 22, 2011 against Fort Hays State, becoming the third coach in school history to reach the milestone. He joined Bob Gates (464-473) and Virgil Yelkin (439-196) in the prestigious club, and Herold needs 44 more wins to pass Gates as the all-time winningest coach in UNO history.
Over his Maverick career, Herold has guided Omaha to seven NCAA Division II postseason appearances and three conference championships.
Herold's most recent draft pick was righthanded pitcher Joe Holtmeyer, who was taken in the 22nd round (No. 682 overall) of the 2011 Major League Baseball amateur draft by the Boston Red Sox. Holtmeyer was the fifth Maverick drafted under Herold and the second-highest pick of any player during the Herold era.
Herold is assisted by assistant coaches Chris Gadsden, in his 14th year, and Evan Porter, in his first year, as well as volunteer pitching coach Dan McGinn, who is in his 13th year.
Home Sweet Home
After playing just five games at home last year, the 2013 season will see the Omaha baseball team play 24 home contests, including 14 conference tilts. UNO will play at three different venues around town: Westside High School for its first home series last weekend, followed by time split between Werner Park and the Ballpark at Boys Town.
Welcome to The Summit League
The 2013 season marks UNO's first year with a full regular-season Summit League schedule. UNO will play all five of its Summit League foes, once in Omaha and once on the road. Although the Mavericks will appear in the Summit League standings, they cannot qualify for the Summit League Championship or the NCAA Tournament until 2015-16.
Mixed Schedule Takes Mavericks Around the Nation
Omaha's 2013 schedule includes 56 games against 17 different Division I opponents, and the team will play in 12 states across the country. UNO will match up with opponents from eight different conferences: Big 12, Big Ten, Great West, Missouri Valley, Mountain West, Southland, the Summit League and Western Athletic (WAC).
Two foes were 2012 NCAA Tournament qualifiers: Missouri and Creighton. CU played in the Los Angeles Regional, while MU was sent to the Tucson Regional.
The Mavericks have never faced three of their 2013 opponents -- UTSA, Penn State and Western Illinois -- and they hold a combined all-time record of 195-195 over all teams on the slate entering this season.
MAVERICKS VS. OTHER CONFERENCES IN 2013
Big 12 -- 0-0
Big Ten -- 0-1
Great West -- 1-2
Missouri Valley -- 0-1
Mountain West – 0-0
Southland – 0-1
WAC – 0-1
Summit League Preseason Poll Announced
In its first year as a member of the Summit League, Omaha was picked to finish sixth in the preseason poll released by the conference office last month.
North Dakota State was favored to capture its first Summit League Baseball Tournament title in a preseason vote among the league's six head coaches. The Bison received five first-place votes and a total of 25 points. South Dakota State placed second with 17 points, followed closely by Oakland who received the final first-place vote and 16 points. Western Illinois (15 points), Fort Wayne (nine points) and league newcomer Omaha (eight points) rounded out the poll.
Former Maverick Cloyd Makes MLB Debut With Philadelphia Phillies
Former Omaha baseball player Tyler Cloyd made his Major League debut on Aug. 29, as he was called up by the Philadelphia Phillies. Cloyd debuted against the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park, giving up three runs on seven hits over six innings of work, striking out five and walking two. Cloyd became just the second Maverick to play in the Majors, joining Bruce Benedict, who played 12 seasons with the Atlanta Braves.
A native of Bellevue, Neb., and the Phillies' 18th-round pick in the 2008 Draft, Cloyd also went 15-1 overall in the Minor Leagues last season. His stint with the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs resulted in a 12-1 record with a 2.35 earned-run average, which led all pitchers the International League.
Cloyd lettered two seasons at UNO (2006-07), earning third-team All-America honors and first-team all-region recognition in his final season. A two-time All-NCC honoree, he was twice named NCC Most Valuable Pitcher.
Senior Trio Named Independent All-Conference
Three former Maverick players were named to the 2012 Independent Baseball All-Conference Teams, College Sports Madness announced last May. Colby McCord was a first-team honoree, while Brady Hohl and Mark Waldron were second-team selections.
McCord batted a team-leading .366 with 18 doubles, three home runs, 20 RBI and 27 runs scored. He topped the Mavericks with 18 multi-hit games and finished his career ranked ninth in school history for career games played (163) and 11th in doubles (33).
Hohl capped his senior campaign with a .297 batting average, 12 doubles, two home runs, 22 RBI and 24 runs scored, as well as a team-high 14 stolen bases. He also completed his career among the best in school history in multiple categories: third in hits (218) and at-bats (632), fifth in games started (159) and runs scored (140), sixth in games played (181) and seventh in doubles (37).
Waldron hit .272 for the season with eight doubles, a home run, 24 runs scored, 21 driven in and 16 walks drawn.
On to the Next One
Omaha returns to action this weekend, traveling to a second Big Ten foe with Iowa, March 15-17, at Duane Banks Field in Iowa City, Iowa. Friday's game is set for 4:05 p.m., followed by first pitch at 1:05 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday. Links to live stats, audio and video will be available on OMavs.com, and the game will also be broadcast live on KVNO 90.7 HD2.
Players Mentioned
Tuesday, September 01
Wednesday, August 26
Friday, August 21
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