Mavs Host K-State, Creighton at Werner Park
Mar 31, 2014 | Baseball
For complete notes, refer to the PDF version.
Leading Off
The Omaha baseball team hosts two midweek games at Werner Park this week, welcoming Kansas State on Tuesday, April 1 and Creighton on Wednesday, April 2. First pitch for both games is set for 6:30 p.m., and links to live stats and audio will be available on OMavs.com. Student broadcasters Paul Dobler and Ryan Matheny will have the call on the MavRadio.fm broadcast.
Quick Hits
•Omaha last took the field on Sunday, March 30, sweeping a doubleheader from South Dakota State, 10-2 and 7-6, to start 2-0 in Summit League play. Game two saw a 6-6 tie broken in the bottom of the ninth inning, as senior Dylan Casey keyed a two-out RBI single to score senior Caleb Palensky for the walkoff win.
•The Mavericks return 20 letterwinners from 2013, including eight who saw the field as position starters and three returning starting pitchers. Fifteen newcomers are also on the 2014 roster, 11 of whom have seen the field.
•Sophomore righty Tyler Fox leads the Summit League with four wins this season.
•Sophomores Alex Schultz and Clayton Taylor have a team-leading eight multi-hit games apiece this season. Taylor also has eight multi-RBI efforts.
•Schultz has gotten on base in all 20 games he has played, now carrying with him a team-leading 20-game streak of reaching base. Schultz also had a team-long 12-game hitting streak that lasted Feb. 21 to March 19.
•After going 20-6 in Summit League play last year, UNO is 102-84 all-time against the four other teams in the league.
Scouting the Kansas State Wildcats
Entering Tuesday's game at Omaha, defending Big 12 Champion Kansas State holds a record of 17-10 (1-2 Big 12). K-State went 2-1 in a series at Creighton last weekend, falling 4-3 on Friday before an 8-5 win on Saturday and an 8-2 triumph on Sunday. All-American Ross Kivett was named Big 12 Player of the Week on Monday after hitting for the cycle last week in a 12-6 home win over Nebraska.
Tuesday's game between Omaha and Kansas State will be the seventh meeting between the schools. The Wildcats lead the all-time series 7-0, having last taken a 6-5 victory on a walkoff wild pitch on March 12 in Manhattan, Kan.
Scouting the Creighton Bluejays
Creighton is 12-9-1 (0-0 BIG EAST) through games of March 30, having dropped a weekend series to Kansas State, 2-1. The Bluejays hosts UNLV on Monday, March 31 before facing Omaha on Wednesday.
CU leads the all-time series against Omaha, 48-29. The two teams last played on CU's home field on Sunday, March 31, 2013, with the Mavericks picking up a 4-2 win to close the three-game weekend series. Creighton and Omaha will play one more time this season on Tuesday, April 22 at TD Ameritrade Park at 6:30 p.m.
On the Hill: Notables About the Midweek Rotation
Sophomore Marcus Ethen (2-1) is set to start Tuesday against K-State. The Omaha native last took the mound against Air Force on March 15, earning the win with a 6.0-inning outing in which he allowed one run on three hits and two walks with two strikeouts . Earlier this season, Ethen struck out a career-high-tying five batters with no walks against St. Bonaventure.
Senior lefty Steven Schoonover (0-0) will make his third appearance of the season on Wednesday against Creighton. Schoonover last threw against Dartmouth on March 12, allowing one run on four hits with a strikeout in 4.0 innings of work. He made his season debut on March 12 at Kansas State, holding the Wildcats to one unearned run on one hit with a strikeout in his first appearance since the 2013 season.
Schultz, Fox, Palensky Earn Summit League Weekly Awards
Senior infielder Caleb Palensky was named Summit League Player of the Week for his performance March 24-30, the conference office announced Monday. He becomes the third Maverick to earn a weekly conference award this year.
Palensky collected his first career Player of the Week honor after leading Omaha to a pair of league wins over South Dakota State and a 2-0 start in conference play. In the first game, the Papillion, Neb., native had a double and home run, two RBI and two runs scored. He followed that with a 4-for-4 performance in the second game. For the week, Palensky batted .857 (6-of-7) with three RBI, three runs scored, two doubles and a homer. He added one walk with no strikeouts or errors and recorded a 1.571 slugging percentage and .875 on-base percentage.
Sophomore Alex Schultz was honored as Summit Player of the Week on March 3, while sophomore Tyler Fox was named Summit League Pitcher of the Week on March 10.
Taylor's Tops
Sophomore Clayton Taylor tops the Mavericks with 23 runs driven in this season, and his team-leading slugging percentage sits at .644. He also leads the team with seven doubles, two triples and four home runs.
In 2013, Taylor was named a Freshman All-American Louisville Slugger/Collegiate Baseball. He finished third in the league with a .352 batting average and added 20 runs scored, eight doubles, 18 RBI and eight stolen bases. His 23 walks drawn were also fifth among conference players.
The 1-2 Punch
Sophomore outfielders Cole Gruber and Alex Schultz have provided quite the 1-2 punch for Omaha to start the 2014 season. Schultz leads the team in batting average (.364), runs scored (22), walks drawn (nine) and on-base percentage (.449). Gruber is second on the squad with a .354 average and has a team-best 7-for-9 effort on the basepaths.
In eight games at the season-opening Snowbird Classic, the duo batted an identical .364 (12-for-33). Schultz, who was named Summit League Co-Player of the Week on March 3, had two doubles, scored five runs, drove in three more and drew three walks. Gruber had one double, six runs scored, six RBI and two walks while going 1-for-2 in stolen bases.
The pair fueled Omaha's hit parade in UNO's Feb. 28 doubleheader with Villanova and Chicago State, combining for 14 hits. Both had seven hits in the two games, including five apiece against CSU in game two alone.
Herold at the Helm
Head Coach Bob Herold is in his 15th year as the skipper of the Nebraska Omaha baseball program in 2013, having compiled a career record of 459-311-2. 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 (464-273) and Virgil Yelkin (439-196) in the prestigious club, and Herold needs eight 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 four conference championships. In 2013, he was honored as Summit League Coach of the Year.
Herold's most recent draft pick was right-handed 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 15th year, and Evan Porter, in his second year, as well as volunteer pitching coach Dan McGinn, who is in his 14th year.
Home Sweet Home
The 2014 season will see the Omaha baseball team play 20 home contests, including 14 conference tilts. UNO will play at two venues, with 17 games at the Ballpark at Boys Town and three premier games at Werner Park with Kansas State (April 1), Creighton (April 2) and Nebraska (April 30). The trio of KSU, NU and CU all finished in the top 65 for RPI in 2013, ranking 16th, 31st and 64th, respectively.
After a sweeps of Air Force and South Dakota State, the Mavericks hold a perfect 5-0 record at home this year.
Mixed Schedule Takes Mavericks Around the Nation
Omaha's 2014 schedule includes 50 games against 18 different Division I opponents, and the team will play in seven states across the country. UNO will match up with opponents from 10 different conferences: the Atlantic 10, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Horizon League, Ivy League, MAC, Missouri Valley, Mountain West and WAC.
Two foes -- South Dakota State and Kansas State -- were 2013 NCAA Tournament qualifiers. SDSU, which finished second to UNO in the Summit League's regular-season standings and went on to win the tournament championship for a berth to the NCAA Tournament, lost to Oregon and San Francisco in the Eugene Regional. K-State nearly knocked off Oregon State in game three of the Corvallis Super Regional, rallying for two runs in the eighth inning before the Beavers snagged a 4-3 win.
The Mavericks have never faced six of their 2014 opponents -- Milwaukee, St. Bonaventure, Villanova, Western Michigan, Grand Canyon and Dartmouth -- and they hold a combined all-time record of 183-203 against all teams on the slate this season.
Next Up
Omaha returns to action on Friday, April 4, hosting Fort Wayne for a league doubleheader at the Ballpark at Boys Town. First pitch is set for Noon, and links to live stats and audio will be available on OMavs.com.
Leading Off
The Omaha baseball team hosts two midweek games at Werner Park this week, welcoming Kansas State on Tuesday, April 1 and Creighton on Wednesday, April 2. First pitch for both games is set for 6:30 p.m., and links to live stats and audio will be available on OMavs.com. Student broadcasters Paul Dobler and Ryan Matheny will have the call on the MavRadio.fm broadcast.
Quick Hits
•Omaha last took the field on Sunday, March 30, sweeping a doubleheader from South Dakota State, 10-2 and 7-6, to start 2-0 in Summit League play. Game two saw a 6-6 tie broken in the bottom of the ninth inning, as senior Dylan Casey keyed a two-out RBI single to score senior Caleb Palensky for the walkoff win.
•The Mavericks return 20 letterwinners from 2013, including eight who saw the field as position starters and three returning starting pitchers. Fifteen newcomers are also on the 2014 roster, 11 of whom have seen the field.
•Sophomore righty Tyler Fox leads the Summit League with four wins this season.
•Sophomores Alex Schultz and Clayton Taylor have a team-leading eight multi-hit games apiece this season. Taylor also has eight multi-RBI efforts.
•Schultz has gotten on base in all 20 games he has played, now carrying with him a team-leading 20-game streak of reaching base. Schultz also had a team-long 12-game hitting streak that lasted Feb. 21 to March 19.
•After going 20-6 in Summit League play last year, UNO is 102-84 all-time against the four other teams in the league.
Scouting the Kansas State Wildcats
Entering Tuesday's game at Omaha, defending Big 12 Champion Kansas State holds a record of 17-10 (1-2 Big 12). K-State went 2-1 in a series at Creighton last weekend, falling 4-3 on Friday before an 8-5 win on Saturday and an 8-2 triumph on Sunday. All-American Ross Kivett was named Big 12 Player of the Week on Monday after hitting for the cycle last week in a 12-6 home win over Nebraska.
Tuesday's game between Omaha and Kansas State will be the seventh meeting between the schools. The Wildcats lead the all-time series 7-0, having last taken a 6-5 victory on a walkoff wild pitch on March 12 in Manhattan, Kan.
Scouting the Creighton Bluejays
Creighton is 12-9-1 (0-0 BIG EAST) through games of March 30, having dropped a weekend series to Kansas State, 2-1. The Bluejays hosts UNLV on Monday, March 31 before facing Omaha on Wednesday.
CU leads the all-time series against Omaha, 48-29. The two teams last played on CU's home field on Sunday, March 31, 2013, with the Mavericks picking up a 4-2 win to close the three-game weekend series. Creighton and Omaha will play one more time this season on Tuesday, April 22 at TD Ameritrade Park at 6:30 p.m.
On the Hill: Notables About the Midweek Rotation
Sophomore Marcus Ethen (2-1) is set to start Tuesday against K-State. The Omaha native last took the mound against Air Force on March 15, earning the win with a 6.0-inning outing in which he allowed one run on three hits and two walks with two strikeouts . Earlier this season, Ethen struck out a career-high-tying five batters with no walks against St. Bonaventure.
Senior lefty Steven Schoonover (0-0) will make his third appearance of the season on Wednesday against Creighton. Schoonover last threw against Dartmouth on March 12, allowing one run on four hits with a strikeout in 4.0 innings of work. He made his season debut on March 12 at Kansas State, holding the Wildcats to one unearned run on one hit with a strikeout in his first appearance since the 2013 season.
Schultz, Fox, Palensky Earn Summit League Weekly Awards
Senior infielder Caleb Palensky was named Summit League Player of the Week for his performance March 24-30, the conference office announced Monday. He becomes the third Maverick to earn a weekly conference award this year.
Palensky collected his first career Player of the Week honor after leading Omaha to a pair of league wins over South Dakota State and a 2-0 start in conference play. In the first game, the Papillion, Neb., native had a double and home run, two RBI and two runs scored. He followed that with a 4-for-4 performance in the second game. For the week, Palensky batted .857 (6-of-7) with three RBI, three runs scored, two doubles and a homer. He added one walk with no strikeouts or errors and recorded a 1.571 slugging percentage and .875 on-base percentage.
Sophomore Alex Schultz was honored as Summit Player of the Week on March 3, while sophomore Tyler Fox was named Summit League Pitcher of the Week on March 10.
Taylor's Tops
Sophomore Clayton Taylor tops the Mavericks with 23 runs driven in this season, and his team-leading slugging percentage sits at .644. He also leads the team with seven doubles, two triples and four home runs.
In 2013, Taylor was named a Freshman All-American Louisville Slugger/Collegiate Baseball. He finished third in the league with a .352 batting average and added 20 runs scored, eight doubles, 18 RBI and eight stolen bases. His 23 walks drawn were also fifth among conference players.
The 1-2 Punch
Sophomore outfielders Cole Gruber and Alex Schultz have provided quite the 1-2 punch for Omaha to start the 2014 season. Schultz leads the team in batting average (.364), runs scored (22), walks drawn (nine) and on-base percentage (.449). Gruber is second on the squad with a .354 average and has a team-best 7-for-9 effort on the basepaths.
In eight games at the season-opening Snowbird Classic, the duo batted an identical .364 (12-for-33). Schultz, who was named Summit League Co-Player of the Week on March 3, had two doubles, scored five runs, drove in three more and drew three walks. Gruber had one double, six runs scored, six RBI and two walks while going 1-for-2 in stolen bases.
The pair fueled Omaha's hit parade in UNO's Feb. 28 doubleheader with Villanova and Chicago State, combining for 14 hits. Both had seven hits in the two games, including five apiece against CSU in game two alone.
Herold at the Helm
Head Coach Bob Herold is in his 15th year as the skipper of the Nebraska Omaha baseball program in 2013, having compiled a career record of 459-311-2. 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 (464-273) and Virgil Yelkin (439-196) in the prestigious club, and Herold needs eight 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 four conference championships. In 2013, he was honored as Summit League Coach of the Year.
Herold's most recent draft pick was right-handed 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 15th year, and Evan Porter, in his second year, as well as volunteer pitching coach Dan McGinn, who is in his 14th year.
Home Sweet Home
The 2014 season will see the Omaha baseball team play 20 home contests, including 14 conference tilts. UNO will play at two venues, with 17 games at the Ballpark at Boys Town and three premier games at Werner Park with Kansas State (April 1), Creighton (April 2) and Nebraska (April 30). The trio of KSU, NU and CU all finished in the top 65 for RPI in 2013, ranking 16th, 31st and 64th, respectively.
After a sweeps of Air Force and South Dakota State, the Mavericks hold a perfect 5-0 record at home this year.
Mixed Schedule Takes Mavericks Around the Nation
Omaha's 2014 schedule includes 50 games against 18 different Division I opponents, and the team will play in seven states across the country. UNO will match up with opponents from 10 different conferences: the Atlantic 10, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Horizon League, Ivy League, MAC, Missouri Valley, Mountain West and WAC.
Two foes -- South Dakota State and Kansas State -- were 2013 NCAA Tournament qualifiers. SDSU, which finished second to UNO in the Summit League's regular-season standings and went on to win the tournament championship for a berth to the NCAA Tournament, lost to Oregon and San Francisco in the Eugene Regional. K-State nearly knocked off Oregon State in game three of the Corvallis Super Regional, rallying for two runs in the eighth inning before the Beavers snagged a 4-3 win.
The Mavericks have never faced six of their 2014 opponents -- Milwaukee, St. Bonaventure, Villanova, Western Michigan, Grand Canyon and Dartmouth -- and they hold a combined all-time record of 183-203 against all teams on the slate this season.
Next Up
Omaha returns to action on Friday, April 4, hosting Fort Wayne for a league doubleheader at the Ballpark at Boys Town. First pitch is set for Noon, and links to live stats and audio will be available on OMavs.com.
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