UNO Meets Mizzou for Midweek Game
Mar 26, 2013 | Baseball, General
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Leading Off
The Omaha baseball team plays its 10th straight game on the road this week, traveling to Missouri on Wednesday, March 27. First pitch is set for 2 p.m. at Taylor Stadium in Columbia, Mo., and links to live stats, audio and video will be available on OMavs.com.
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 425-291-2.
Quick Hits
•Mizzou leads the all-time series with UNO, 2-0, after the Tigers won 14-4 in Columbia, Mo., last season.
•The Mavericks' .974 fielding percentage through games ties for 35th nationally with North Carolina, TCU, Vanderbilt, California and Portland. They are also 40th in the country with 2.06 doubles per game.
•Individually, sophomore Alex Mortensen is 14th among Division I hitters with a .436 batting average and 21st with 0.47 doubles per game. Senior Tyler Splichal and freshman Cole Gruber are tied for 31st with 0.31 sacrifice bunts per contest.
•When leading off an inning, Omaha batters are hitting a combined .438. Junior Brett Bass is 12-for-26 (.462) when leading off. Mortensen tops UNO when trying to advance runners, going 17-for-26 (.571).
Scouting the Missouri Tigers
Missouri is 8-12 (2-4 SEC) after capping last weekend's road series at Tennessee with a 14-6 win. Dylan Kelly finished 3-for-6 with five RBI and two runs scored, and Logan Pearson was 3-for-3 with two runs and two RBI. Josh Lester also went 3-for-5, scoring twice and driving in another three runs. Alec Rash (2-1) earned the win, striking out five with no walks over 5.0 innings while allowing four runs (one earned) on seven hits.
Head coach Tim Jamieson (New Orleans, 1981) is in his 19th year at Mizzou and holds a career record of 612-454-2.
Last Time Out
Omaha finished its series at Northern Colorado last Thursday, falling 19-3 in seven innings at Jackson Field. A doubleheader was originally scheduled, but the second game was called off midway through due to snowy conditions.
The win went to Jake Johnson (2-2), who threw 6.0 innings and allowed three runs on seven hits with three strikeouts and two walks. Senior Matt Tew (0-3) took the loss, surrendering nine runs on 10 hits with three Ks and three walks over 3.0 innings of work.
Junior Brett Bass led Omaha with a 3-for-4 day at the plate and drove in two runs. Freshman Alex Schultz finished 1-for-2 with a run scored, and junior Caleb Palensky tallied a run and an RBI of his own.
Rewind with Missouri
UNO last faced Missouri on March 6, 2012, falling 14-4 at Taylor Stadium. MU's Brett Graves (1-0) threw four scoreless innings for the win, surrendering four hits while striking out four and walking two. UNO's Andrew Reck (0-3) took the loss, giving up four runs, of which three were earned, while allowing six hits in the first two innings. Reck fanned two batters while walking one.
A pair of Papillion, Neb., natives led the way at the plate for UNO, as Colby McCord went 4-for-4 and Caleb Palensky finished 3-for-4 with a run scored and two more driven in. Junior Tyler Splichal also went 2-for-3 and scored once.
Missouri's Conner Mach finished 3-for-4 with a run scored and four RBI, while Blake Brown went 2-for-2 with two runs and an RBI of his own. Dane Opel added a 2-for-4 effort with three runs driven in, and Eric Garcia went 2-for-5 with a run and an RBI.
More from Mort
Sophomore Alex Mortensen batted .600 (12-for-20) over five games last week for Omaha, helping the Mavericks to a pair of road wins against Iowa and Air Force. He also scored six runs and had five RBI, two walks, four doubles and UNO's first home run of the season. Mortensen achieved four multi-hit performances, including back-to-back games with four hits each.
Going Streaking
Redshirt freshman Clayton Taylor carries a team-best five-game hitting streak into Wednesday's game at Missouri, having batted .353 (6-for-17) over the five-game span.
Redshirt freshman Connor Messinger holds UNO's longest individual hitting streak this year, as he previously held a seven-game stretch. Junior Brett Bass has the Mavericks' longest streak of reaching base with 10 straight games.
Keele Named Summit League Player of the Week
Senior Ryan Keele was named Summit League Player of the Week for his performance March 11-17, the conference office announced March 18. The honor was the first of his Maverick career, and he became the first UNO player to earn a Summit League weekly award.
Over four games last week, Keele led UNO to a pair of wins over Big Ten opponents and a 2-2 record for the week. In the 9-6 win over Iowa, he went 4-for-5 with two RBI and two runs scored. The senior outfielder added four hits in the two-game midweek set at Minnesota, with two of those coming in the 10-9 extra-inning victory Wednesday, along with two RBI and two runs scored. For the week, Keele native hit .533 (8-for-15) with five runs scored, four RBI, two walks, a double and stolen base. The Bellevue, Neb., native also had a .600 slugging and on-base percentage in the four games.
Falcone Nearly Flawless
In UNO's 9-6 victory over Iowa, the win went to junior reliever Anthony Falcone, who threw 3.2 innings of hitless relief and allowed no walks. He entered the game in the sixth inning and was nearly flawless over 3.2 innings, holding the Hawkeyes to nine straight groundouts before the ninth-inning leadoff reached on an error and one batter was hit by a pitch in the last inning.
On the Hill: The Weekend Rotation
•True freshman Tyler Fox has served as one of UNO's weekend starters over the first month of play, and he earned his first career win over North Dakota on March 9. Fox allowed two runs (one earned) on three hits, striking out three and walking two over 5.0 innings of work.
•Senior lefthanded pitcher Cory Buckley, who has been UNO's game two weekend starter, returned this year 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. Against North Dakota, Buckley fanned five 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 14 Ks in five appearances.
Fresh Faces
Twenty-nine Mavericks have seen the field in the first month of the season, 16 of whom are newcomers. Six true freshmen have made their way into the lineup: Cole Gruber, Alex Schultz, Collin Leif, Sam Murphy, Marcus Ethen and Tyler Fox.
Redshirt freshman Clayton Taylor is second among all Maverick hitters with a steady .385 batting average, a team-leading seven doubles and eight walks drawn, as well as a .529 on-base percentage.
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 425-291-2. 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 42 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 earlier this month, 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 -- 3-3
Great West -- 1-4
Missouri Valley -- 0-1
Mountain West -- 1-1
SEC -- 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) round 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.
On to the Next One
Omaha returns to action March 29, traveling to Creighton. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. at TD Ameritrade Park, and links to live stats, video and audio will be available on OMavs.com. The game will also be broadcast live on KVNO 90.7 HD-2, with student broadcasters Jared Meyer and Paul Dobler on the call.
