Hawkeyes Travel North to Face Gophers

April 25, 2012

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Complete Release

THE SETTING:
Iowa returns to Big Ten action when it travels to Minnesota for a three-game set at the Metrodome in Minneapolis this weekend. The Hawkeyes (16-20, 5-7) and Golden Gophers (23-19, 7-5) will open the series at 6:35 p.m. Friday. Iowa and Minnesota will also play at 2:05 p.m. Saturday and at 3:05 p.m. Sunday.

ON THE NET:
Iowa baseball fans can follow the Hawkeyes with live stats (Gametracker) on hawkeyesports.com. Click on the GT link found on both the front page and the baseball schedule page.

ON THE AIR:
Fans can catch this weekend’s three-game series against Minnesota online at hawkeyesports.com and on the radio at AM-800 KXIC (Saturday) and AM-1360 KMJM (Friday – Sunday). The radio voice of the Iowa baseball team, Brent Balbinot, and former Hawkeye Jeff Pacha, will call the action.

ON THE TUBE:
Sunday’s game at 3 p.m. will be televised live by BTN. Matt Shephard and J.T. Bruett will call the action.

A HIPPEN GEM:
Iowa lost its series opener at Minnesota last year (April 29) at Target Field, 1-0, despite starter Jarred Hippen throwing a one-hit gem. It marked the first one-hitter thrown by a Hawkeye since Troy Wulf one-hit Southwest Missouri State in a 3-0 victory on March 14, 1998. Hippen, a two-time second team All-Big Ten honoree, took the hard-luck loss, despite allowing only one Minnesota base runner. The Rock Falls, Ill., native allowed one run on one hit while striking out two Gophers.

METRODOME MEMORIES:
The last time Iowa and Minnesota met in the Metrodome was in 1988. The Hawkeyes defeated the Gophers, 7-6, in the Pillsbury Classic (now the Dairy Queen Classic). The price of a stamp was 22 cents and a gallon of gas cost 91 cents. Die Hard and Big were a couple of the movies that debuted that year, while Cheers won an Emmy for Best Comedy Series. Fox TV was only in its second year of existence.

FAMILIAR FOES:
The Hawkeyes have played Minnesota more times than any other opponent. It also marks the most games an Iowa team has played against any opponent in any sport. The Hawkeyes and Gophers have met 280 times on the diamond, with Minnesota holding a 173-107 advantage in the all-time series. The two teams first met in 1892. Iowa downed the Gophers that year, 5-3. The Hawkeye are 10-22 against the rivals from the north under head coach Jack Dahm. Minnesota won 2-of-3 last year in Minneapolis. The Gophers won the opener, 1-0, and the middle game, 5-4, in 12 innings. Iowa won the series finale, 7-1.

SCOUTING THE RIVALS FROM THE NORTH:
Minnesota is coached by John Anderson. Anderson is in his 31st year. The Gophers are 23-19 overall and 7-5 in Big Ten action, tied for second in the league standings with Michigan State. Minnesota has played 32 of its 42 games at home. They are 21-11 in those games. The Gophers lost 2-of-3 at Michigan State last weekend. Minnesota plays at North Dakota State Wednesday night.

IOWA QUICK HITS:
– Iowa is 10-3 when scoring six or more runs.
– The Hawkeyes are 14-2 when leading after eight innings.
– Iowa’s pitching staff has yielded two or fewer runs 10 times this year (8-2).
– The Hawkeyes are 11-4 when out-hitting their opponent.
– Senior Nick Brown has six career saves, all coming this season. The former starter ranks fourth in the Big Ten in saves.
– Iowa is 9-4 when playing errorless baseball.

DAHM EARNS WIN NO. 200:
Iowa won at Indiana on March 31, 4-0, giving head coach Jack Dahm his 200th win at the helm of the Hawkeye program. He ranks third all-time in victories at Iowa behind Duane Banks and Otto Vogel with 206 career wins.

TOPPING THE CHARTS:
A pair of Hawkeye seniors, Mike McQuillan and Jarred Hippen, are moving up the Iowa baseball career rankings. McQuillan tallied two singles at Bradley Tuesday, ranking him tied for first all-time in singles (183) in program history. The infielder ranks fourth all-time in hits with 224. McQuillan is two hits away from tying Brad Carlson who ranks third with 226. Hippen owns the Iowa record for innings pitched (325.0) and ranks second in strikeouts behind Allen Rath with 226. Rath recorded 246 from 1987-90.

APPROACHING THE HOME STRETCH:
Iowa has played 36 games this season. The Hawkeyes, 16-20 overall, have 14 regular season games remaining. Iowa has seven home games left and seven road games remaining. The schedule features four more Big Ten series and two non-conference games. The Big Ten Tournament begins May 23 in Columbus, Ohio.

BRADLEY DOWNS IOWA:
The Iowa baseball team dropped a 7-3 decision at Bradley on Tuesday night. Andrew Hedrick started for Iowa and took the loss (2-2). The freshman tossed four innings, allowing six runs on six hits. He struck out three. Seniors Mike McQuillan and Phil Keppler, and freshman Jake Yacinich, led the Hawkeye offense. All three recorded multi-hit games.

PENN STATE RECAP:
Last weekend, Iowa dropped 2-of-3 at home to Penn State. The Hawkeyes out-hit the Nittany Lions, 10-9, Friday night in the series opener, but fell, 5-2. Penn State’s Steven Hill outdueled Matt Dermody Saturday afternoon in a 2-0 Nittany Lion victory. Hill retired just two batters over the minimum in recording the first Penn State no-hitter since 1995. The Hawkeyes defeated Penn State in the series finale Sunday, 4-2. Iowa scored three first inning runs and never looked back behind a strong start by Sasha Kuebel. Kuebel earned his fourth win of the year to remain perfect (4-0). The freshman threw seven and a third solid innings, yielding just two runs, striking out two, while scattering seven hits.

THE SECOND FRAME:
Iowa has outscored its opponents this season, 183-177. The Hawkeyes have scored 25 runs in the second inning, while limiting opponents to 12 runs.

CLOSE CALLS:
Iowa is 5-5 in one-run decisions, 4-3 in two-run games and 1-1 in extra innings. The Hawkeyes are 14-2 when leading after eight innings.

ROAD WARRIORS:
Iowa hits the road again this weekend after playing their first Big Ten home series last weekend in nearly a month (Northwestern, March 23-25). Iowa’s first 16 games to start the season were away from Iowa City. Iowa is 7-8 this season in neutral site games, 2-7 in true road games, and 7-5 at Duane Banks Field.

STEALING HOME:
Mike McQuillan stole home on April 3 in the win over South Dakota State as Iowa executed a double steal. It marked the first time a Hawkeye stole home since Trevor Willis accomplished the feat at Mississippi State on March 25 of last year. McQuillan leads Iowa with nine stolen bases this season. He has 12 attempts. Freshman Jake Yacinich ranks second with eight steals.

PLUNK:
Iowa has been hit-by-pitch 55 times, marking the most of any Big Ten team, and 47th-most nationally. Nebraska is second with 51. Senior Sean Flanagan ranks second in the Big Ten with 10 HBPs. The Hawkeyes have been hit six times in one game twice (March 2 vs. Akron and March 4 vs. Youngstown State). Flanagan was hit three times against Youngstown State.

STRIKING FIRST:
Iowa has scored first 19 times this season (9-10). In addition, the Hawkeyes are 6-6 when scoring in the first inning. Iowa opponents have scored in the first frame 11 times (4-7).

BIG HITS:
The Hawkeyes are 11-4 when out-hitting their opponent. Additionally, Iowa is 6-3 when scoring 6-9 runs and undefeated (4-0) when tallying 10 or more runs.

ONE THOUSAND:
Iowa’s first game of the season against Pittsburgh, a 7-5 victory, marked the 1,000th career game for head coach Jack Dahm. He is 489-544-2 all-time (286-278-2 at Creighton, 206-268 at Iowa).

IF IT’S FAIR, IT’S GONE:
Sean Flanagan became the second Iowa player this season to launch two home runs in a single game in the 20-1 win over Grand View on March 21. The senior finished 2-for-2 with five RBI and two runs. Classmate Chett Zeise also recorded two long balls in a 17-3 win over Akron on March 2. Sophomore Taylor Zeutenhorst registered his first career home run in the win over Grand View as well.

IN THE RANKINGS:
Freshman Jake Yacinich leads the Big Ten with 11 sacrifice bunts. He ranks 23rd nationally in sacrifices per game. Senior Mike McQuillan owns an on base percentage of .479, which ranks second in the league and 44th nationally.

STREAKERS:
Mike McQuillan enjoyed a 14-game hitting streak earlier this season, marking the longest for Iowa this year. Ryan Rumpf enjoyed a 10-game streak earlier this season as well. McQuillan leads the Black and Gold with 14 multi-hit games. Jake Yacinich has registered 12 multiple-hit contests while Chett Zeise has notched 10. Yacinich, McQuillan and Phil Keppler lead Iowa with four multiple RBI contests. McQuillan has reached base in 12-straight games.

A LITTLE SMALL BALL:
The Hawkeyes lead the Big Ten, and rank 47th nationally, with 42 sacrifice bunts. Jake Yacinich ranks first in the league with 11 sacrifices and Chett Zeise is tied for fifth with seven.

KEPPLER EARNS BIG TEN WEEKLY HONOR:
Phil Keppler was named Big Ten Player of the Week on April 9. It marked the senior’s first career weekly honor. The Manchester, Iowa, native collected 11 hits in 15 at-bats (.733) over five games against South Dakota State and Nebraska from April 3-8, while driving in seven runs and scoring five. He notched his first triple and home run of the season. In addition, Keppler registered three walks and a sacrifice fly while posting an on-base percentage of .778 and a slugging percentage of 1.067.

FRESH STARTS:
Eleven Hawkeye freshmen have seen action to open the season. Andrew Hedrick, Nick Hibbing, Taylor Kaufman and Sasha Kuebel have seen action on the mound, and Jake Yacinich, Ryan Rumpf, Jake Mangler, Kris Goodman, Anthony Torres, Nick Day and Eric Toole have seen action in the field.

HAWKEYE SENIORS:
The Hawkeyes have 11 seniors on the roster: LHP/DH Patrick Brennan, RHP Nick Brown, SS Kasey Carling, UT Andrew Ewing, RHP Tim Fangman, OF/IF Sean Flanagan, LHP, Jarred Hippen, IF/RHP Phil Keppler, RHP Patrick Lala, IF Mike McQuillan and IF Chett Zeise.

GOOD START OUT OF THE GATE:
The Hawkeyes took 2-of-3 from Northwestern from March 23-25 at Duane Banks Field in their Big Ten opening series. It marked the first time Iowa won a conference opening series since 1998 when it took three-of-four from Michigan State.

RUMPF GARNERS ACCOLADE:
College Sports Madness named Ryan Rumpf its Big Ten Baseball Player of the Week on March 6 for his efforts in the Austin Peay Tournament. The freshman went 7-for-17 with two runs, two triples, a double, six RBI and 12 total bases in the three games. In addition, Rumpf earned the win for Iowa on March 4 against Youngstown State. He opened the game as the Hawkeyes’ designated hitter before moving to the mound in the 10th. Rumpf pitched two-thirds of an inning and allowed no hits. He struck out two while recording his first career victory.

6 NAMED TO AUSTIN PEAY ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM:
Six University of Iowa baseball student-athletes were named to the Riverview Inn Classic All-Tournament team after Iowa won 2-of-3 games in Clarkesville, Tenn. (March 2-4). Shortstop Jake Yacinich, outfielder Kris Goodman, pitchers Matt Dermody and Jarred Hippen, designated hitter Ryan Rumpf and utility player Jake Mangler were recognized. Four of the six honorees were freshmen. Yacinich had five hits, two of which were doubles, scored five runs and had four RBI. Rumpf combined for a team-best seven hits in the three games, collecting two triples and a double to go along with six RBI. Mangler had four hits, a team-best seven RBI and scored three runs. Goodman had six hits and scored four runs. Hippen got his first win of the season in the win over Akron on March 2, throwing eight strong innings, allowing three runs while scattering 10 hits. Dermody got a no-decision on March 3 at Austin Peay, throwing six and two-thirds, striking out seven batters, and allowing only two runs.

SPRING TRIP RECAP:
The Hawkeyes played seven games in seven days in Winter Haven, Fla., at the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational for their annual spring trip. Iowa opened with losses to Georgetown (6-1) on March 10 and Illinois State (10-6) on March 11 before winning two-straight against Eastern Illinois (2-1) on March 12 and Bucknell (8-6) on March 13. On March 14, Iowa staged a late-inning rally but ultimately fell to Long Island, 5-3. The Hawkeyes closed the trip with a 6-3 win over Jacksonville State on Thursday and a 5-1 loss to Army on Friday.

HIPPEN GARNERS PRESEASON ATTENTION:
Jarred Hippen, a senior left-hander, is a two-time second team All-Big Ten honoree and a 2010 All-Big Ten Tournament team selection. He was one of three pitchers named to the 2012 Big Ten Preseason All-Conference First Team by College Sports Madness. Hippen has been Iowa’s ace since his freshman campaign. He ranks sixth in the Big Ten this season with 65.2 innings pitched. A year ago, Hippen started 14 games. He tossed four complete games and one complete game shutout. Hippen nearly threw a perfect game, allowing only one hit at Minnesota (Apr. 29). The outing marked Iowa’s first one-hitter since Troy Wulf one-hit Southwest Missouri State on March 14, 1998. Hippen tossed 94.2 innings and recorded an ERA of 3.14, finishing with a 4-6 record.

`Q’:
Mike McQuillan, known as `Q’ by his teammates and coaches, returns for his senior season in 2012. The Evergreen Park, Ill., native has hit over .300 in each of his first three seasons in the Black and Gold. McQuillan, who has started 133 career games in his first three seasons, led Iowa in batting average (.330), hits (66), at-bats (200), RBI (31), walks (27) and on-base percentage (.410) a year ago. He is batting .344 this season and leads the team with 45 hits. McQuillan, who has started all 36 games, registered a team-leading 14-game hit streak earlier this season.

NEWCOMER ON THE MOUND:
Freshman LHP Sasha Kuebel is the third starter in the Hawkeye rotation, joining Jarred Hippen and Matt Dermody. The St. Louis native was selected by the Oakland Athletics in the 31st round of the 2011 MLB Draft. He was the Missouri State Pitcher of the Year as a senior. Kuebel was named Big Ten co-Freshman of the Week on Feb. 27. The left-handed starter garnered his first career weekly honor. Kuebel (6-1, 200) started and took a no-decision despite a stellar outing against Virginia Tech on Feb. 26 in the Caravelle Resort Baseball at the Beach Tournament. In his second career start, the rookie pitched seven and a third, allowing one run on three hits. He struck out three Hokies. Kuebel has made nine appearances, all starts. He is undefeated and leads the team with four victories (4-0). Kuebel, who holds an ERA of 3.05, ranks second in the Big Ten in walks allowed (eight) and eighth in opposing batting average (.244).

HAWKEYES SCORE SEASON-HIGH 20 IN HOME OPENING WIN:
Iowa defeated Grand View on March 21 in its home opener at Duane Banks Field, 20-1. The Hawkeye offense scored a season-high 20 runs and belted out 15 hits. It marked the first time Iowa scored 20 or more runs since March 18, 2009, when it won at Tennessee-Martin, 25-6. It also marked Iowa’s largest margin of victory since the win over Tennessee-Martin. Thirteen Hawkeyes tallied hits. Sean Flanagan became the second Iowa player this season to launch two home runs in a single game (Senior Chett Zeise recorded two in a 17-3 win over Akron on March 2). The senior finished 2-for-2 with five RBI and two runs. Sophomore Taylor Zeutenhorst registered his first career home run as well. Mike McQuillan, Phil Keppler and Ryan Rumpf each tallied two RBI. Freshman Jake Yacinich tallied his fifth multi-hit game of the season, going 2-for-5 with a run scored. Yacinich was playing against his grandfather Lou, who is Grand View’s head coach. Andrew Hedrick started and earned his first career win. The freshman pitched five innings in his second career start, allowing one run while scattering seven hits. He struck out three Vikings.

DUANE BANKS FIELD:
In 2010, the Hawkeyes added 500 chair back seats behind home plate of Duane Banks Field. The chair backs allow Hawkeye fans to purchase season tickets. Last year, Duane Banks Field underwent a facelift, with a complete resurfacing of the field. New sod, dirt and drainage system were installed. Additionally, new batting cages were put in place down the right field line. In 2009, the UI Recreation Building underwent a complete makeover. Improvements included: a new locker room, lounge, training room and weight room for the baseball program. The Hawkeyes opened their home schedule against Grand View on March 21. Iowa opens the Big Ten slate March 23-25 with a three-game set against Northwestern. The Hawkeyes have not played the Wildcats since 2009.

THE ASSISTANT COACHES:
Head Coach Jack Dahm is assisted by coach Ryan Brownlee and pitching coach Chris Maliszewski, along with volunteer assistant coach Brian Miller and undergraduate assistant coach Dusty Napoleon. Brownlee is in his ninth season at Iowa. Over the past 11 seasons, Brownlee has had 28 players he coached or recruited drafted; two more signed free agent contracts. In the past three years, Kurtis Muller, Patrick Schatz, Steve Turnbull, Kyle Heim, Mike Schurz and recruits Matt Dermody, Dan Sheppard, Patrick Lala, Taylor Zeutenhorst, Derrick Loveless, Sasha Kuebel and Nick Hibbing were drafted by major league teams. In six years of coaching summer collegiate leagues, he has seen 33 of his players sign pro contracts, including Khalil Green of the Padres and Kevin Cash of the Yankees, Joe Thatcher of the Padres, Dan Meyer of the Marlins and Luke Scott of the Astros. Last season, Brownlee coached Trevor Willis and Tyson Blaser to third team all-conference honors and helped freshman outfielder Taylor Zeutenhorst earn Big Ten All-Freshman accolades. Blaser led the Hawkeyes and tied for second in the Big Ten with 18 doubles, which ties for the fourth most in a single season in Iowa history. Additionally, Willis led the league and ranked second nationally with a career-high nine triples, which established a new school single-season record.

Maliszewski is in his fourth season as the Hawkeye pitching coach. In addition to his role as pitching coach, Maliszewski is also responsible for the team’s travel arrangements and assists with the youth summer camps. In 2011, Maliszewski guided his pitching staff to one of the best seasons on the mound in Hawkeye history. Iowa registered an ERA of 4.22, the lowest since 1980 (4.14). Starting lefty Jarred Hippen earned second team all-conference laurels for the second consecutive year. Starting LHP Matt Dermody and Hippen, ranked first and third in the Big Ten, respectively, in strikeouts during the regular season. Hippen, who has thrown eight complete games in the last two seasons under Maliszewski’s tutelage, nearly threw a perfect game against Minnesota, allowing only one hit. In addition, Maliszewski helped guide newcomers Tim Fangman and Patrick Lala to successful first years in the Black and Gold. Fangman finished in the top ten in the Big Ten in numerous categories, including ERA, opposing batting average, games finished, hits allowed, runs allowed and walks allowed. Maliszewski had three players he coached or recruited drafted in 2011. Junior starting left-handed pitcher Matt Dermody was selected by the Colorado Rockies in the 29th round (888th pick) and incoming recruits Sasha Kuebel and Nick Hibbing were also selected. Kuebel was picked by the Oakland Athletics in the 31st round (946) and Hibbing was selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 42nd round (1262).

Miller and Napoleon are each in their first seasons on the Hawkeye staff. Miller has worked as a baseball coach since 1992, including serving as the head baseball coach at Mid-Prairie High School from 2000 to 2010. He served as the Kirkwood Community College pitching coach from 2006 to 2011. Miller also coached the Iowa City High School sophomore baseball team from 1993 to 1999 and was an assistant baseball coach at Iowa City Regina High School in 1992. Napoleon played at Iowa from 2006-07 before being drafted by Oakland in the 19th round of the 2007 Major League Baseball Draft. He played at all four minor league levels from 2007-2010 and made it to the Triple A level in 2010. As a Hawkeye, Napoleon appeared in 105 games and made 100 starts. The former catcher and first baseman led the team with 34 RBIs and tied for the team lead with two home runs in 2006 as a freshman. In 2007, Napoleon ranked third on the team with a .354 batting average. He ranked first on the team in RBI (56), walks (50), on-base percentage (.506) and was second with 12 doubles, 44 runs scored and 62 hits.

HEADSHOTS AVAILABLE:
Up-to-date head shots of all Iowa players and coaches are available on the internet at pics.hawkeyebaseball.com. Contact the Iowa Athletic Communications office if you are in need of additional photos.

ON THE HORIZON:
The Hawkeyes will host Milwaukee Tuesday at Duane Banks Field. First pitch is scheduled for 6:05 p.m. The Black and Gold resume conference play next weekend, hosting Michigan in a three-game series. Game one first pitch is set for 6:05 p.m. on Friday night. The Wolverines and Hawkeyes will also meet at 1:05 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. All four contests can be seen on BTN.com.