Mavericks Meet Mastodons in Fort Wayne
May 2, 2013 | Baseball, General
Complete Release
Live Stats
Leading Off
The league-leading Omaha baseball team continues conference action this weekend, traveling to Fort Wayne for four games, May 3-5. The series starts with a single game on Friday at 11 a.m. (CT), followed by a Saturday doubleheader at 1 p.m. (CT) and a single-game finale on Sunday at 11 a.m. (CT). Links to live stats will be available on OMavs.com.
Omaha 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 436-298-2.
Quick Hits
•UNO sits atop the conference standings with a record of 10-2 in Summit League play. The Mavericks had back-to-back weekend sweeps, taking doubleheaders from Fort Wayne (April 5) and Oakland (April 7), followed by four wins at Western Illinois (April 12-14). They then split a four-game series with North Dakota State (April 26-28).
•Omaha totaled 24 hits in Sunday's series finale against North Dakota State, the most of any squad coached by Bob Herold in the last 14 seasons.
•Fort Wayne leads the all-time series against Omaha, 3-2. The Mastodons swept three games in 2012 in Fort Wayne, Ind., but UNO swept a doubleheader last month at the Ballpark at Boys Town, 6-3 and 2-0.
•Omaha's sweeps of Fort Wayne, Oakland and Western Illinois have highlighted the Mavericks' official Summit League debut as a member of the conference. All-time, UNO is now 95-81 against the five other teams in the league.
•Sophomore Alex Mortensen ties for ninth nationally with 0.45 doubles per game, and he leads the Summit League with a .352 batting average and 15 doubles. He is also second in slugging percentage (.492) and third in hits (44) and total bases (62).
•Junior Brett Bass has 46 hits this season, which tops the conference.
•Senior Cory Buckley's .488 batting average in conference play ranks second among league hitters, and he also leads the league with 12 runs and 21 hits in conference games.
•Junior Josh Bullock is second among Summit League hurlers with six saves this year.
•The Mavericks' eight-game win streak from April 5 to April 14 was snapped with a 3-0 loss to Iowa on April 16. The streak was Omaha's longest since an 11-game stretch from March 18 to April 2, 2011.
Scouting the Fort Wayne Mastodons
Fort Wayne is 18-21 (6-10 Summit League) after defeating Western Illinois, 7-3, on April 28 to snap a five-game losing skid. Steve Lowden went 3-for-4, while Kristian Gayday was 2-for-3 with two RBI and two runs scored. Steve Danielak picked up the win, giving up two runs with four strikeouts over 7.0 innings. Kyle Sorensen earned the save with the final two innings of relief, fanning two and scattering four hits.
Head coach Bobby Pierce (New Mexico State, 2001) is in his fifth season at IPFW with a record of 81-171. He also holds a career mark of 136-225 over seven years.
Last Time Out
The Omaha and North Dakota State baseball teams combined for 30 runs on 41 hits on April 28, with league-leading UNO capturing a 19-11 conference victory over the Bison at the Ballpark at Boys Town. With the win, the Mavericks improved to 16-18 (10-2 Summit League), while NDSU dropped to 17-17 (5-5).
Seven Mavericks had multi-hit performances, led by senior Tyler Splichal's 5-for-6 day with four runs scored and four RBI, as well as two solo home runs from senior Ryan Keele, who finished 3-for-6. Junior Caleb Palensky went 4-for-5 with three runs and two RBI, and redshirt freshman Clayton Taylor joined him at 4-for-5 with a run scored and five driven in.
Senior Cory Buckley (3-for-5, three runs scored), junior Brett Bass (3-for-5, three runs, two RBI) and freshman Alex Schultz (2-for-5, two runs) rounded out the multi-hit efforts. Splichal, Palensky, Taylor, Buckley and Bass all had career-high hit totals, and sophomore Alex Mortensen chipped in three RBI for the afternoon.
As a team, Omaha pounded out 24 hits, the most of any squad coached by Bob Herold in the last 14 seasons.
On the mound, the win went to reliever Dylan Casey (3-0), who limited NDSU to three hits over 2.0 scoreless innings, walking one and striking out a career-high-tying four batters. Starter Trevor Jaunich (2-4) took the loss, giving up 10 runs (eight earned) on 10 hits with a walk and a strikeout over 2.0 innings.
Rewind with the Mastodons
Omaha last faced Fort Wayne on April 5, officially opening the Mavericks' Summit League era with a 6-3 and 2-0 doubleheader sweep at the Ballpark at Boys Town. Redshirt freshman Connor Messinger homered twice in the first game, and pitching starred in both contests for the Mavericks. Game one starter Tyler Fox and game two starter Zach Williamsen each finished with a career-high six strikeouts.
Going Streaking
Senior Cory Buckley carries a team-best 11-game hitting streak into the weekend, the longest of any Maverick this season. In that span, he has hit .524 with a team-leading 22 hits, three RBI and 12 runs scored.
On the Hill: Notables About the Weekend Rotation
True freshman Tyler Fox (4-1) has moved into Omaha's Friday starter role in his first season as a Maverick. He most recently earned a 4-2 win over North Dakota State on April 26, allowing two runs on seven hits over a season-long 6.1 innings while striking out five batters. Fox has 28 strikeouts in his inaugural campaign, ranking second on the squad.
Sophomore righthander Zach Williamsen (2-1) enters the weekend with a 3.44 ERA, the lowest of any starter on staff. His 27 strikeouts rank third on the team, and he has thrown a season-long 6.0 innings three times this year. Williamsen last took the mound against NDSU on April 27, allowing five runs on seven hits with a career-high-tying six strikeouts. For the season, opponents are hitting just .221 against Williamsen.
Senior righty Matt Tew (2-5) had the most starting appearances of any pitcher on the 2012 staff, totaling 13 starts over 14 appearances as a junior with a team-leading 38 strikeouts. This season, Tew paces Omaha's hurlers with 31 strikeouts in 10 appearances and seven starts. He threw a complete-game, one-hit shutout against Oakland on April 7 for his longest appearance of the year at 7.0 innings, then followed with a six-inning outing at Western Illinois on April 13, allowing one run on seven hits with three strikeouts.
Call on Casey
Junior reliever Dylan Casey has made a strong impression in his first season on the Maverick pitching staff, posting a 3-0 record with one save and a 2.40 ERA in nine appearances. Opposing batters are hitting just .246 against Casey, who has 19 strikeouts with just five walks for a 3.8 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He made two appearances last weekend against North Dakota State, picking up the win on Sunday. Over both games combined, Casey held the Bison to five total hits in 3.2 scoreless innings and tied his career best of four strikeouts in the last contest.
Splichal Named Summit League Player of the Week
Junior infielder Tyler Splichal was named Summit League Baseball Player of the Week for his performance April 22-28, the conference office announced April 29.
The honor was the first weekly league award of Splichal's career. He helped Omaha to a four-game series split with North Dakota State over the weekend, hitting .625 (10-for-16) with eight RBI, six runs, two walks, two doubles and a triple. He had a .667 on-base percentage and a .875 slugging percentage and had three multi-hit games for the weekend. Splichal capped the series with a 5-for-6 performance, finishing a home run shy of the cycle with four RBI and four runs scored. The Bellevue, Neb., native added a pair of hits in the first two games of the series and did not strike out in 18 plate appearances.
Omaha has had a total of four weekly conference award winners this season. Senior Ryan Keele was previously named Summit League Player of the Week on March 18, junior Brett Bass earned the same honor on April 8, and senior Matt Tew was honored as Summit League Pitcher of the Week on April 8.
Falcone Nearly Flawless vs. Hawkeyes
In UNO's 9-6 victory over Iowa on March 16, 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.
Fresh Faces Seeing the Field
Twenty-nine Mavericks have seen the field this 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.
Schultz is third among Maverick starters with a steady .333 batting average, while redshirt freshman Clayton Taylor (.329), junior Brett Bass (.315), senior Ryan Keele (.313) and sophomore Brett Miller (.313) also come in over the .300 mark.
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 436-298-2. 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 31 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 in March, 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 -- 0-1
Big Ten -- 3-4
Great West -- 1-4
Missouri Valley -- 1-3
Mountain West – 1-1
SEC – 0-1
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 last fall 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 on Tuesday, May 7, traveling to Iowa for its final non-conference game of the season. First pitch is set for 6:05 p.m. at Duane Banks Field in Iowa City, Iowa, and links to live stats and audio will be available on OMavs.com.
