Hawkeyes To Play 4 Games in 3 Days

Feb. 27, 2013

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Iowa Game Notes

THE MATCHUP
?The Hawkeyes will play four games in three days in Little Rock, Ark., playing single games on Friday and Sunday and a doubleheader on Saturday.

?Iowa will face Arkansas-Little Rock on Friday (3 p.m.), Western Illinois (11 a.m.) and UALR (3 p.m.) on Saturday, and Wichita State (10 a.m.) on Sunday. All times are Central.

?The Hawkeyes will play all four games at Gary Hogan Field on the campus of Arkansas-Little Rock. Iowa last played at the venue in 2007.

?Head coach Jack Dahm enters the weekend one win shy of 500 career wins.

ON THE WEB
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.

THE SERIES
The Hawkeyes have faced Arkansas-Little Rock, Western Illinois, and Wichita State previously in program history.

?Iowa is 1-1 all-time against Arkansas-Little Rock. The teams played two games in Little Rock in 2007.

?The Hawkeyes own a 68-25-2 all-time series record against Western Illinois. The teams met once in 2012, as Iowa rallied to win, 8-7. The Hawkeyes have won 10 of the last 11 meetings, including the last four.

?Iowa has never defeated Wichita State, falling in all 10 meeting against the Shockers. The clubs last met in 2003. Head coach Jack Dahm coached against Wichita State 39 times while at Creighton from 1994-2003, winning his last four games over the Shockers.

SCOUTING UALR
Arkansas-Little Rock enters the weekend with a 5-2 record. The Trojans have played all seven of their games at home.

John Clark paces UALR with a .409 batting average, while Bryson Thionnet leads the team in home runs (2) and RBIs (14).

The Trojans will pitch Chance Cleveland on Friday and Blake Huffman on Saturday. Cleveland has made two starts this season, posting a 1.17 ERA with 16 strikeouts in 15.1 innings. Huffman is 1-0 in two starts, posting a 1.69 ERA in 10.2 innings. Both Cleveland and Huffman are right-handed.

Arkansas-Little Rock is coached by Scott Norwood, who is in his fifth season at the school.

SCOUTING WESTERN ILLINOIS
Western Illinois is currently 2-4, playing all its games away from home.

The Leathernecks are led offensively by Manny Reyes, Dan Dispensa, and Jake Moore. All three players are hitting at a .308 clip or better this season. Reyes is tied for the team-lead with three RBIs, while Dispensa and Moore have accounted for both of WIU’s home runs this season (one apiece).

Righthander John White will start on the mound for the Leathernecks on Saturday. White has made two relief appearances this season, allowing zero earned runs in 6.2 innings.

Western Illinois is led by first-year head coach and former Hawkeye assistant Ryan Brownlee.

SCOUTING WICHITA STATE
Wichita State is 1-3 this season. The Shockers were swept at home against Pittsburgh to open the season before winning at Oral Roberts.

Wichita State is balanced offensively, as five players share the team-lead with three RBIs. Tanner Dearman boasts a team-best .364 (4-11) batting average.

The Shockers have not yet announced a starting pitcher for Sunday’s game.

Wichita State is coached by Gene Stephenson. Stephenson, who is in his 36th season at WSU, has won 1,799 career games.

DAHM 1 WIN AWAY FROM 500
Iowa head coach Jack Dahm is one victory shy of 500 career wins. Dahm is in his 20th season as a head coach, winning 283 games at Creighton from 1994-2003 and 216 games at Iowa, beginning in 2004. His 216 wins at Iowa rank third in program history, trailing Duane Banks (810 wins) and Otto Vogel (440 wins).

1-RUN GAMES UNDER DAHM
During Jack Dahm’s 10-year tenure at Iowa, the Hawkeyes have played 123 one-run games. Iowa is 57-66 in such contests. The Hawkeyes went 10-7 in one-run games in 2012, winning their final five.

FAMILIAR FACES
The Hawkeyes will see two familiar faces in the opposing dugout when they face Western Illinois on Saturday, as head coach Ryan Brownlee and assistant coach Dusty Napoleon are both former members of the Hawkeye program.

Brownlee was an assistant coach at Iowa for nine seasons, serving as the Hawkeyes’ hitting coach, infield instructor, and recruiting coordinator. Brownlee’s father, Jim, is currently Iowa’s interim pitching coach.

Napoleon was an undergraduate assistant coach for the Hawkeyes in 2012. Napoleon also played at Iowa from 2006-07, appearing in 105 games before being drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the 19th round of the 2007 Major League Baseball Draft.

HAWKEYES WIN 2-OF-3 IN TEXAS
The Hawkeyes posted a 2-1 record at the Kleberg Bank College Classic, hosted in Corpus Christi Texas on Feb. 22-24. Iowa suffered a 3-1 setback against No. 14 Oklahoma to open the tournament before bouncing back to defeat New Mexico, 6-2, in 10 innings, and host-Texas A&M Corpus Christi, 4-2.

Sophomores Kris Goodman and Taylor Kaufman led the Hawkeye offense, as both players recorded six hits, while Kaufman (New Mexico) and senior Ricky Sandquist (Texas A&M Corpus Christi) picked up wins on the mound.

ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Three Hawkeyes — sophomores Taylor Kaufman, Kris Goodman and Sasha Kuebel — were named to the Kleberg Bank College Classic All-Tournament team. Kaufman hit .545 with six hits and two RBIs, Goodman had six hits and an RBI, and Kuebel limited Oklahoma to two runs on eight hits over eight innings in the opener.

KAUFMAN HEATS UP AT THE PLATE
After going 0-for-9 at the plate in the first two games of the season, sophomore Taylor Kaufman has hit safely in a career-best four straight games. Kaufman is 7-for-15 (.467)over the four-game stretch, including 5-of-8 in the final two games of the Kleberg Bank College Classic (New Mexico, Texas A&M Corpus Christi).

Kaufman has also made two appearances pitching this season, throwing seven scoreless innings. Kaufman collected his first win of the season against New Mexico on Feb. 23, pitching four innings and striking out three. His first appearance came against Austin Peay on Feb. 16. The Glenwood, Iowa, native struck out a career-high four batters in three innings of work.

GOODMAN STAYS HOT
Sophomore Kris Goodman has hit safely in all six games this season, setting a career-best hitting streak. The Apple Valley, Minn., native followed a 5-for-10 performance in the Hawkeyes three-game series with Austin Peay (Feb. 15-17) by going 6-for-14 at the Kleberg Bank College Classic (Feb. 22-24).

Goodman has recorded a team-best three multi-hit games, posting a career-high three hits against Austin Peay (Feb. 16) and Oklahoma (Feb. 22).

In addition, Goodman scored three runs against Austin Peay on Feb. 16, setting a career-high.

Goodman currently leads the Hawkeyes in hits (11), runs scored (5), and total bases (11).

A WINNING SWITCH
Head coach Jack Dahm inserted sophomore Kris Goodman into the lead-off spot against New Mexico (Feb. 23) and Texas A&M Corpus Christi (Feb. 24). The switch resulted in a pair of Hawkeye victories, as they defeated New Mexico, 6-2, in 10 innings and Texas A&M Corpus Christi, 4-2. Goodman hit in the No. 9 spot during Iowa’s first four games.

BRAND STEPS UP IN 1ST START
Junior Keith Brand earned his first start of the season Feb. 24 at Texas A&M Corpus Christi, serving as the Hawkeyes’ designated hitter. Brand responded by delivering a double in the top of the eighth that plated the game-winning run.

DAY’S FIRST
Sophomore Nick Day has notched the first home run and multi-hit game of his collegiate career this season.

Day’s posted his first multi-hit game Feb. 23 against New Mexico, going 2-for-4 against the Lobos.

Day hit his first home run Feb. 17 at Austin Peay. The Solon, Iowa, native led off the fourth inning by hitting a solo blast over the left field fence.

CAN’T TOUCH THIS
Sophomore Eric Toole is a perfect 4-of-4 in stolen base attempts this season. The Council Bluffs, Iowa, native’s four steals lead the team.

THE CLOSER
Senior Andrew Hanse has finished three games on the mound this season, ranking tied for first in the Big Ten. The Marion, Iowa, native picked up his first save after throwing a perfect ninth inning on Feb. 24 against Texas A&M Corpus Christi. Hanse has tossed 5.1 innings in three appearances, posting a 1.69 ERA and three strikeouts.

YACINICH HIT STREAK
Sophomore Jake Yacinich hit safely in the Hawkeyes first five games this season, tying a career-best hitting streak. Yacinich is tied for the team lead with three multi-hit games and ranks second in hits (8).

KUEBEL AMONG B1G BEST
Sophomore pitcher Sasha Kuebel ranks in the top-five in the Big Ten in two statistical categories. The St. Louis native ranks second in batters struck out looking (5) and fourth in innings pitched (13.0).

DON’T RUN ON SHEPPARD
Through six games, senior Dan Sheppard has caught five baserunners attempting to steal. The mark is tops in the conference, as no one else has thrown out more than three baserunners. Sheppard threw out four baserunners in Iowa’s season-opening series at Austin Peay (Feb. 15-17).

STINGY PITCHING STAFF
The Iowa pitching staff has been among the best in the Big Ten so far this season, ranking in the top-three in six statistical categories. The Hawkeyes rank second in ERA (1.70), runs allowed (18), and earned runs allowed (10) and third in opposing batting average (.230), hits allowed (45), and walks allowed (22).

BULLPEN DOES ITS JOB
The Iowa bullpen has been stellar this year, allowing one earned run in 19.1 innings and collecting two of the team’s three wins.

Seniors Andrew Hanse and Ricky Sandquist, and sophomore Taylor Kaufman allowed one earned run in nine innings at the Kleberg Bank College Classic on Feb. 22-24, as Kaufman (New Mexico) and Sandquist (Texas A&M Corpus Christi) both picked up wins.

The bullpen did not allow an earned run in the Hawkeyes’ three-game series at Austin Peay on Feb. 15-17. Hanse, Sandquist, Kaufman, sophomores Andrew Hedrick and Nick Hibbing, and freshman Josh Martsching combined to pitch 10.1 innings without allowing an earned run out of the bullpen against the Governors.

GETTING PLUNKED
The Hawkeyes rank second in the Big Ten with 10 hit by pitches in their first six games. Freshman Blake Hickman has been plunked by three of those pitches, ranking first on the team and second in the conference.

UNSELFISH HAWKEYES
Iowa has laid down eight sacrifice bunts this season, the second-most among Big Ten teams. Sophomore Eric Toole leads the effort, as he has posted a team and conference -best three sacrifice bunts.

SHEPPARD OPENS SEASON IN STYLE
Senior Dan Sheppard was impressive in the Hawkeyes season-opening series against Austin Peay on Feb. 15-17. Sheppard hit .364 (4-of-11) and batted in a team-best four runs in the three-game set, including a 3-of-4, four RBI game on Feb. 16. Sheppard’s three hits in a game tied a career-best, while his four RBIs set a new career-high. His four RBIs were the most by any Big Ten athlete during the opening weekend of play.

HAWKEYE DEBUTS
Five Hawkeye newcomers made their Iowa debuts at Austin Peay. Freshman Blake Hickman made his collegiate debut Feb. 15, and started all three games at first base against the Governors. Junior Trevor Kenyon, a junior college transfer, and freshmen Nick Roscetti and Josh Martsching saw their first action as a Hawkeye on Feb. 16. Freshman Calvin Mathews made his debut on Feb. 17, starting on the mound.

A LINEUP FULL OF YOUTH
Nine of the 10 positional players, including the designated hitter, in Iowa’s opening day on Feb. 15 against Austin Peay were underclassmen.

Sophomore Sasha Kuebel opened the contest on the mound for the Hawkeyes.

Freshman Blake Hickman started at first base, while sophomores Jake Mangler, Nick Day, and Jake Yacinich started at second base, third base, and shortstop.

In the outfield, sophomores Kris Goodman, Eric Toole, and Taylor Kaufman started from left to right, while sophomore Ryan Rumpf was Iowa’s designated hitter.

Senior Dan Sheppard, who started at catcher, was the lone upperclassman in the lineup.

PRESEASON AWARDS
Two Hawkeyes earned preseason All-Big Ten honors. Sophomore Sasha Kuebel was a Preseason All-Big Ten pick by College Sports Madness and Perfect Game. Fellow sophomore Jake Yacinich joined Kuebel on College Sports Madness’ Preseason All-Big Ten list.

Kuebel, Yacinich and senior Dan Sheppard were named to the Big Ten Watch List.

NO STRANGER TO THE BIG TEN
Senior Matt Dermody has made 17 career Big Ten starts, including Big Ten Tournament play, ranking third among active Big Ten pitchers. Dermody trails Illinois’ Kevin Johnson and Penn State’s Steven Hill, who have both started 24 career Big Ten games. The Norwalk, Iowa, native has made eight Big Ten starts in each of the last two seasons.

BREAKDOWN OF THE 2013 SCHEDULE
?The Hawkeyes will play 52 regular season games in 2013, including 24 home games.

?Iowa will play its first 13 games away from Iowa City.

?Iowa’s first five games will be against 2012 NCAA Tournament teams, as it opens the season with a three game series against NCAA qualifier Austin Peay before facing Oklahoma, a NCAA Super Regional squad, and New Mexico, who played in the NCAA Regionals, at the Kleberg Bank College Classic in Corpus Christi, Texas.

?The schedule includes a 12-game home stand from March 27-April 13.

?The Hawkeyes open Big Ten play March 22-24 in Evanston, Ill., against Northwestern.

?During Big Ten play, Iowa hosts Indiana, Nebraska, Minnesota, and Michigan State at Duane Banks Field. The Hawkeyes go on the road to face Northwestern, Penn State, Michigan and Purdue. The top six teams will advance to the 2013 Big Ten Tournament at Target Field in Minneapolis.

ROSTER BREAKDOWN
?Of the 33-man roster, 24 are underclassmen. The Hawkeyes roster features 11 true freshmen, one redshirt freshman, 10 true sophomores, and two redshirt sophomores. Iowa has four juniors and five seniors.

?The Hawkeyes have 15 Iowa natives on its roster, the most of any state. Illinois is second with 10.

?Iowa boasts two sets of high school teammates. Senior Ben Bergman and sophomore Nick Day both prepped at Solon High School in Solon, Iowa, while freshmen Josh Martsching and Calvin Mathews both attended Davis County High School in Bloomfield, Iowa.

?The Hawkeyes return 19 letterwinners, seven starters, and six pitchers from their 2012 team.

NEWCOMERS
Iowa has 12 newcomers to its roster — 11 freshmen and one junior college transfer. Junior Trevor Kenyon (6-0, 200, 1B/C, Davenport, Iowa) joins the Hawkeyes after spending two years at Black Hawk College . Freshmen new to the roster include: John Barrett (6-3, 180, UTIL, Moline, Ill.), Quinten Conrad (6-3, 190, C/RHP, Elkhorn, Neb.), Jimmy Frankos (5-11, 200, C/UTIL, Park Ridge, Ill.), Blake Hickman (6-5, 210, C/1B, Chicago, Ill.), Jared Mandel (5-10, 150, LHP, Mundelin, Ill.), Josh Martsching (6-2, 185, SS/RHP, Bloomfield, Iowa), Calvin Mathews (6-4, 200, RHP, Bloomfield, Iowa), Devin Pickett (6-2, 190, IF, Flossmoor, Ill.), Jackson Raimo (6-4, 170, RHP, Albany, N.Y.), Jack Richmond (6-4, 189, LHP, Evanston, Ill.), and Nick Roscetti (6-3, 175, IF, Sherman, Ill.).

NEW LOOK COACHING STAFF
For only the second time in University of Iowa head coach Jack Dahm’s tenure, there has been a shake-up in the Hawkeye coaching staff. Iowa will have a new hitting and pitching coach in 2013.

Zach Dillon will be the team’s hitting coach. Dillon joins the Hawkeyes as a full-time assistant after serving the 2012 season as a volunteer assistant at his alma mater Baylor. The former West Des Moines Dowling standout served as a volunteer assistant at Iowa in 2010 and 2011.

Veteran head coach Jim Brownlee joins the Hawkeyes as the interim pitching coach, returning to the college game after retiring at Illinois State in 2009. During his 30 years as a head coach, Brownlee won 854 games.

Former Hawkeye Brian Furlong is also new to the program, as he enters his first season as Iowa’s director of baseball operations. In the newly-created role, Furlong will serve as the director of the Iowa Baseball Academy, while serving as the team’s video and travel coordinator and assisting with on-campus recruiting.

Brian Miller returns for his second season in the Hawkeye dugout, serving as a volunteer assistant coach.

DRAFTED PLAYERS ON THE 2013 ROSTER
Six current Hawkeyes have been drafted by in Major League Baseball’s First-Year Play Draft. The following players have been drafted:

Matt Dermody

• 2009 – Pittsburgh Pirates, 26th round (775th pick)
• 2011 – Colorado Rockies, 29th round (888th pick)
• 2012 – Arizona Diamondbacks, 23rd round (723rd pick)

Nick Hibbing

• 2011 – Pittsburgh Pirates, 42nd round (1,262nd pick)

Blake Hickman

• 2012 – Chicago Cubs, 20th round (614th pick)

Sasha Kuebel

• 2011 – Oakland Athletics, 31st round (946th pick)

Dan Sheppard

• 2009 – Chicago Cubs, 30th round (920th pick)

Taylor Zeutenhorst

• 2010 – Philadelphia Phillies, 41st round (1,251st pick)

HAWKEYES SIGN 5 FOR 2014 SEASON
Head coach Jack Dahm signed a five-player recruiting class on Dec. 13. The five player class consists of Zach Burdi (6-3, 195, RHP, Downers Grove, Ill.), Kendall Coleman (6-4, 195, OF, Rockwall, Texas), Will Kenny (6-3, 190, LHP, Fort Dodge, Iowa/Iowa Central CC), Jake Reinhardt (6-2, 180, RHP, West Des Moines, Iowa), and Juan Carlos (JC) Pena (6-1, 185, SS, Syracuse, N.Y.) will join the UI program prior to the 2013-14 season. Burdi, Coleman, Reinhardt, and Pena are all considered top 500 players in the country by Perfect Game.

SUMMER BALL EXPERIENCE
Three Hawkeye sophomores earned honors for their play this summer.

Jake Mangler was named to The Prospect League All-Star roster. Mangler batted .320 (81-of-253) for the Hannibal Cavemen with 13 doubles, one triple and one home run. He also had 43 runs, 34 RBIs and swiped five bases.

Andrew Hedrick earned a selection to the Northwoods League All-Star game for the South Division. Hedrick made 10 appearances for the Eau Claire Express, pitching 50.2 innings, striking out 41 and posting a 2.01 ERA.

Anthony Torres, playing for the Palm Springs POWER of the Southern California Collegiate Baseball League, was named to the All-SCCBL team. He was the only catcher named to the postseason team after finishing the summer with a .415 batting average.

Below is a complete list of Hawkeyes who competed in summer leagues:

Cape Cod League
Hyannis Harbor Hawks: Sasha Kuebel, Taylor Zeutenhorst

Coastal Plain League
Petersburg Generals: Ryan Rumpf, Eric Toole, Jake Yacinich, Trevor Kenyon

Midwest Collegiate League
Southland Vikings: Devin Pickett

Northwoods League
Eau Claire Express: Andrew Hedrick
Waterloo Bucks: Dan Sheppard

Prospect League
Hannibal Cavemen: Kris Goodman, Taylor Kaufman, Jake Mangler
Quincy Gems: Nick Day, Nick Hibbing

Southern California Collegiate Baseball League
Palm Springs Power: Bryan Niedbalski, Anthony Torres

UNITY COUNCIL
The Unity Council for the 2013 season consists of senior Ricky Sandquist, redshirt junior Keith Brand, redshirt sophomore Jake Mangler, sophomores Jake Yacinich and Kris Goodman and freshman Devin Pickett. Yacinich and Goodman are also members of Iowa’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.

SEASON TICKETS AVAILABLE
Hawkeye fans can purchase 2013 Iowa baseball season tickets now. Fans can reserve their own chair backs for the 2013 season by calling the UI Athletic Ticket Office at 1-800-IA-HAWKS. Reserved chair back season tickets are available for $25, while general admission season tickets are $15.

IOWA BASEBALL ACADEMY
The Iowa baseball program has expanded its camps and clinics through the offerings of the newly-created Iowa Baseball Academy.

The year-round training programs, camps and instruction will now be available to youth players ages 5-18. The academy will operate at Duane Banks Field and the Iowa athletic indoor facilities.

The Iowa Baseball Academy will strive to provide exceptional training programs to enhance player skills while teaching valuable lessons that strengthen the player’s lives. Year-round training programs provide an opportunity for players to build and develop baseball skills, while giving the Iowa baseball program a vehicle to add value to community programs and grow interest in the Hawkeyes.

For details about Iowa Baseball Academy, visit www.IowaBaseballAcademy.com.

THE HAWKEYES ON BTN
The University of Iowa baseball team will make 18 appearances on the Big Ten Network or BTN.com during the 2013 season.

The Hawkeyes will make their debut March 27 on BTN.com when they host Creighton at 6:05 p.m. (CT) at Duane Banks Field. Iowa’s three-game series against Indiana (March 29-31) will also be streamed on BTN.com.

Nonconference games against Western Illinois (April 2), Kansas (April 9-10), Kansas State (April 12-13) and Northern Illinois (April 24) will also be available online at BTN.com. Iowa will make its lone scheduled appearance on the BTN on April 26 beginning at 6:05 p.m.

In the month of May, seven games will be available on BTN.com, including games against Nebraska-Omaha (May 7), Michigan State (May 10-12), and at Purdue (May 16-18) to close out the regular season.

FOLLOW THE HAWKEYES
Iowa baseball fans can follow the Hawkeyes on Facebook by going to facebook.com/iowabaseball. Fans can also follow on Twitter @UIBaseball.

UP NEXT
The Hawkeyes play in the Snowbird Classic in Port Charlotte, Fla., on March 8-10. Iowa opens tournament play Friday against Maine, before playing Georgetown on Saturday and West Virginia on Sunday. All three games will begin at 10 a.m. (CT).