Game Notes -- Tony Gwynn Legacy Tournament

Hawkeye Fan Shop — A Black & Gold Store | 24 Hawkeyes to Watch 2019-20 | Hawk Talk Monthly — February | WEEK 2 NOTES (PDF)

THIS WEEK
•  The University of Iowa baseball team travels to San Diego for the Tony Gwynn Legacy Tournament from Feb. 21-23.
• The Hawkeyes face San Diego State on Friday at 8 p.m. (CT), No. 24 Arizona on Saturday at 3 p.m., and San Diego at 4 p.m. on Sunday. Friday’s game will be played at San Diego State’s Tony Gwynn Stadium. The final two games will be played at San Diego’s Fowler Park.

FOLLOW ALONG
• All Iowa games will be available via the Hawkeye Radio Network with Morgan Hawk (play-by-play) and Steve Duncan (color) on the call. The games can be heard on Hawkeye All-Access, the TuneIn radio app (search Iowa Hawkeyes and it is on Iowa baseball channel), and stations across the state.  This week’s radio schedule is: 
Friday: KKFD 95.9 FM in Fairfield
Saturday: KKFD 95.9 FM in Fairfield, WDBQ FM 107.5 in Dubuque 
Sunday: KKFD 95.9 FM in Fairfield, WDBQ FM107.5 in Dubuque
• Friday’s game against San Diego State will be streamed live on the Mountain West Network. Saturday’s game against Arizona and Sunday’s game against San Diego will be available on Stadium, free of charge.
• Live stats are available on hawkeyesports.com and fans can follow along on Twitter @UIBaseball.

LEADING OFF
• The Hawkeyes opened the season with a 2-1 showing at the Snowbird Classic, with wins over Kent State (3-1) and Saint Joseph’s (7-2) and a 10-8, back-and-forth loss to Pitt. 
• Iowa is receiving votes in the latest NCBWA poll. The Hawkeyes are picked to finish fifth in the Big Ten Conference by Perfect Game and Baseball America and seventh by D1Baseball.
• Senior outfielder Ben Norman had a red hot opening weekend, batting .462 (6-of-13) out of the leadoff spot with four runs scored and four RBIs. Austin Martin is hitting .308 after three games.
• Seniors Grant Judkins, Grant Leonard, and Austin Martin were named to the Big Ten’s Preseason Honors List. Those three Hawkeyes along with senior Justin Jenkins were voted team captains in January. 
• Redshirt senior Grant Leonard is six saves from breaking Iowa’s career saves record set by Kurt Belger (1993-97). Fourteen of Leonard’s 17 career saves came last season to set a single season Iowa record. 
• Heller is only four wins shy of 900 career victories. He has posted 607 wins at the Division I level, including 205 at Iowa, with another 289 coming at Division II Upper Iowa. Heller is one of four coaches at the University of Iowa with at least 200 wins. 
• The Hawkeyes are coming off a 31-24 campaign in 2019, with 10 wins over ranked opponents and a streak of six straight series wins. It was head coach Rick Heller’s sixth straight 30-win season — Iowa’s longest stretch since 1979-85. Iowa has advanced to the postseason in each of Heller’s six seasons, which includes two NCAA Regional appearances (2015, 2017).
• The Hawkeyes will play 23 home contests at Duane Banks Field with its home opener set for March 3 against Grand View. Iowa is 91-27 at home since the start of the 2015 season. 

QUICK HITTERS
• Four Hawkeyes — Ben Norman, Austin Martin, Brendan Sher, and Zeb Adreon — hit safely in all three games to start the season. 
• Sophomore infielder Brendan Sher and senior outfielder Justin Jenkins lead Iowa in on-base percentage (.545). Sher leads the Hawkeyes in extra-base hits with two doubles. 
• Junior infielder Izaya Fullard hit Iowa’s first home run of the season via a three-run, go-ahead homer against Pittsburgh in the third inning. It was Fullard’s first hit of the season. 
• Three Hawkeyes — Peyton Williams, Dylan Nedved, and Brayden Frazier — made their Iowa debuts. Williams started three games at first base, recording three hits and two RBIs. Nedved made two starts at third base, hitting .286 with two RBIs, and made an appearance out of the bullpen. Frazier pinch-hit and saw two plate appearances. 
• Iowa’s .980 fielding percentage is third-best in the Big Ten. The Hawkeyes’ only two errors of opening weekend were throwing errors.

IOWA BY THE NUMBERS
• Iowa returns five starters, its designated hitter, 2/3 of its starting rotation, 11 total pitchers, and 22 letterwinners in 2020.
• Offensively, the Hawkeyes return 71.7 percent (180-251) of their RBIs, 69.5 percent (347-499) of their hits, 69 percent (20-29) of their home runs, 68.8 percent (64-93) of their doubles, 64.4 percent (38-59) of their stolen bases, and 63.7 percent (179-281) of their runs.
• Iowa returns its top returning hitter Izaya Fullard (.307 avg., 61 hits) and its top RBI producer (34), doubles hitter (12), and stolen base (14) threat in Ben Norman.
• The Hawkeyes have 94.4 percent (18-19) of the team’s saves, 67.9 percent (329 1/3-484 2/3) of innings pitched, 67.7 percent (21-31) of wins, and 67.4 percent (304-451) of strikeouts returning.

BACK IN CALI
• It will be Iowa’s first trip to California since 2007 when the Hawkeyes played six games. Iowa faced Fresno State four times and Dallas Baptist twice, going 2-4. 
• Senior infielder Matthew Sosa is Iowa’s only California native. From Whittier, California, Sosa played two years at East Los Angeles Community College. Sosa’s hometown is 110 miles from San Diego.

RISE TO THE OCCASION
• Four of Iowa’s next six games are against ranked opponents (Baseball America rankings).
• Iowa will face No. 22 Arizona in this weekend’s Tony Gwynn Legacy Tournament. The following weekend, the Hawkeyes will face No. 18 North Carolina State, No. 19 North Carolina, and No. 17 Duke at the CambriaCollegeClassic. 
• The Hawkeyes went 10-3 against top-30 opponents last season. 

NORMAN THE LEADOFF MAN
• In Ben Norman’s first three seasons, he spent most his time in the middle of the batting order. To start the season, the senior outfielder has moved to the leadoff spot and he has set the tone for Iowa’s offense.
• On top of hitting .462, Norman never struck out in 14 plate appearances and stole two bases during the opening weekend.
• Norman’s highlight was going 4-for-4 to tie a career high for hits and reaching base five times on his birthday in Iowa’s 7-2 win over Saint Joseph’s.

LOOK WHO’S BACK
• Redshirt sophomores Jack Dreyer and Ben Probst returned to the mound in a big way after missing a majority of last season with arm injuries.
• As Iowa’s Friday night starter, Dreyer pitched a dominant five innings, earning the win in Iowa’s 3-1 Opening Day win over Kent State. The southpaw from Johnston, Iowa, struck out eight batters and only walked one, while facing only three batters over the minimum. Early in the game, Dreyer sat down nine consecutive batters with six straight punch outs. 
• Probst made his first appearance in the ninth inning of Iowa’s 7-2 win over Saint Joseph’s. The right-handed pitcher from Urbandale, Iowa, didn’t allow a hit or run, while recording two strikeouts in his return. He also topped out at 97 MPH on the radar gun, making him one of 13 players nationally to throw 96 or higher during the opening weekend. 

ROTATION NOTES
• Iowa’s starting rotation, that lost Friday-night starter Cole McDonald (6-3, 3.54 ERA) to the MLB Draft last season, will feature LHP Jack Dreyer, RHP Grant Judkins, and RHP Duncan Davitt for the second straight week.
• The three starting pitchers combined to go 2-0, with 17 strikeouts in 13 innings, while limiting hitters to a .143 BAA over opening weekend. Dreyer and Judkins each went five innings to earn the win. Davitt lasted three innings in a no-decision. 
• LHP Cam Baumann, who made 14 starts in Dreyer’s absence, but missed practice time due to mono, RHP Drew Irvine, RHP Hunter Lee, and LHP Trenton Wallace, are the next starters in line. 

THE GRANT LEONARD FILE
• After going a perfect 14-for-14 in save chances with a 3.37 ERA in 34 2/3 innings as a junior, redshirt senior Grant Leonard racked up three preseason accolades: second-team preseason All-America by the NCBWA, third-team preseason All-America by Collegiate Baseball, and he is one of 70 players in the country selected to the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Watch List.  Leonard is rated as the 20th-best relief pitcher in the nation by D1Baseball.
• In his first appearance of the season, Leonard struck out two batters to earn his first save of the season, moving into a tie for fourth all-time in carer saves.
• Leonard’s 14 saves last season were a single season record. 

IOWA CAREER SAVES
1.    Kurt Belger (1993-97)    22
2.    Tim Gudex (2004-06)    20
3.    Reed Pawelk (2000-03)    18
4.    Grant Leonard (2017-pres.)    17
        Nick Hibbing (2012-15)    17    

A LOOK AT THE ‘PEN
• Iowa’s bullpen started opening weekend strong, allowing no runs over eight innings in the first two games.
• LHP Trenton Wallace pitched three innings of scoreless relief against Saint Joseph’s, striking out four and allowing only one hit.
• RHP Hunter Lee made his first appearance of the season in Iowa’s loss to Pitt, throwing two innings of relief. 
• Trace Hoffman, Ben Beutel, and Grant Leonard were the only Hawkeyes two appear in two games.

SCOUTING SAN DIEGO STATE
• San Diego State is 3-1 to start the season with wins over Virginia Tech (7-5), Coastal Carolina (3-1), and Cal State Fullerton (8-4). The Aztecs committed six errors in their latest win over Fullerton. 
• San Diego State went 32-25 last season, missing the NCAA Tournament for the first time in three years. 
• The Aztecs are hitting .298 as a team with a .365 on-base percentage, averaging 5.5 runs per game. Three hitters are hitting over the .375 mark. 
• On the mound, the Aztecs have allowed 21 runs (13 earned) in 35 innings. Opponents are hitting .261 off their pitching staff. 
• Sophomore RHP Michael Paredes (0-0, 8.10 ERA) will start against the Hawkeyes on Friday night. 

SCOUTING NO. 22 ARIZONA
• Arizona is 3-1 after opening weekend with a sweep of Albany at home and a 5-2 loss to Minnesota in a neutral site game. Prior to the Minnesota loss, Arizona had won 13 straight games and 16 of its last 17. 
• The Wildcats are hitting .341 with four home runs and 16 doubles in four games, while averaging 10 runs per game. Five Wildcats are hitting over .300 with Ryan Holgate (.667) and Austin Wells (.538) hitting over .500. 
• Arizona’s pitching staff owns a 3.00 ERA with 54 strikeouts in 36 innings, while holding opposing hitters to a .188 average. 
• Sophomore Quinn Flanagan is the expected Wildcat starter.  The right-hander pitched seven innings of two-hit ball with 10 strikeouts in his season-opening start against Albany.
• Both of Arizona’s catchers — Austin Wells and Matthew Dyer — earned multiple Preseason All-America nods. 

SCOUTING SAN DIEGO
• The Toreros dropped their season opener, 5-4, to Pepperdine, but have won three straight games over Oregon (6-5), Minnesota (7-3), and UC Irvine (9-1). San Diego was 32-21 last season. 
• The Toreros are slashing .280/.407/.364 and are averaging 6.5 runs per game. Twelve different position players for the Toreros have started at least one game.
• The San Diego pitching staff sports a 3.09 ERA over 35 innings, limiting opposing hitters to a .214 average. 
• LHP Grady Miller (1-0, 2.00 ERA) will start against Iowa. The senior pitched six innings, scattering two hits and fanning six in a win over UC Irvine.

THE SERIES
• Iowa and San Diego State have met twice all-time, with each side taking one game. 
• Arizona is 89-19-2 all-time against Iowa.
• Iowa is 1-2 against San Diego in three all-time meetings.
• The Hawkeyes played San Diego State and San Diego during a five-game stretch during the 1988 season.  Iowa last met Arizona during the 1974 season. 

SCHEDULE BREAKDOWN
• Iowa will play 23 home contests at Duane Banks Field with its home opener scheduled for March 3 against Grand View. 
• Iowa will travel the first five weekends of the regular season, playing tournaments in Florida (Snowbird Classic), California (Tony Gwynn Legacy Tournament), Minneapolis (CambriaCollegeClassic), Florida (Snowbird Classic 2), and a three-game series at Cal-State Northridge.
• The Hawkeyes will play eight games against 2019 NCAA Tournament teams, including two games against  Super Regional teams and three games against the defending NCAA runner-up (Michigan). 
• Iowa will play three NCAA Tournament qualifiers at the CambriaCollegeClassic at U.S. Bank Field in Minneapolis from Feb. 28-March 1 against preseason top-25 teams Duke, North Carolina, and NC State.
• Iowa will play midweek games against teams from the Big 12 (Kansas), SEC (Missouri), and Missouri Valley (Bradley) conferences, while also facing defending Horizon League champion UIC.

2019 RECAP
• Highlighted by series wins over No. 19 Oklahoma State, No. 23 Illinois, No. 30 Nebraska, and No. 18 UC Irvine, the Hawkeyes finished last season with a 31-24 overall record to mark Iowa’s and head coach Rick Heller’s sixth straight 30-win season. Iowa’s six straight seasons of 30 or more wins is the longest stretch since posting seven straight 30-win seasons from 1979-85.
• Finishing sixth in the Big Ten at 12-12, Iowa qualified for the Big Ten Tournament for a record sixth straight season. Iowa upset top-seeded Indiana in the first round, before bowing out of the conference tournament with losses to Nebraska and Minnesota. 
• Iowa’s six straight series wins from March 29 to May 4 were the most consecutively since 2015. 

30 WINS X 6
Since head coach Rick Heller’s first season in 2014, the Hawkeyes have reached the 30-win plateau six straight season. It is the program’s longest stretch since posting seven straight 30-win seasons from 1979-85.  
2014: 30-23
2015: 41-18 (2nd-most wins all-time)
2016: 30-26
2017: 39-22 (5th-most wins all-time)
2018: 33-20
2019: 31-24

COACHING STAFF CHANGES
• Second-year assistant coach Robin Lund will serve as Iowa’s pitching coach after working with hitters and outfielders during his first season. 
• Former Hawkeye catcher and University of Iowa graduate Jimmy Frankos will serve as the Hawkeyes’ hitting coach in a volunteer assistant coaching role, replacing Tom Gorzelanny, who was last year’s volunteer assistant. 
• Gorzelanny, who is in his second year with the Iowa baseball program, will move in a director of player development role. 

ROSTER BREAKDOWN
• Iowa’s 37-man roster features 10 seniors, eight juniors, seven sophomores, and 12 freshmen. 
• The Hawkeye roster is made up of student-athletes from nine different states: Iowa (24), Illinois (5), Kansas (2), Arizona (1), California (1), Indiana (1), Minnesota (1), Nevada (1), and Wisconsin (1).
• Iowa has two sets of junior college teammates. Zeb Adreon, Austin Martin, and Trace Hoffman were teammates at Southeastern Community College, while Izaya Fullard, Hunter Lee, and Adam Ketelsen were teammates at Kirwkood Community College. Junior Lorenzo Elion also played with Lee and Ketelsen at Kirkwood in 2017.
• The Hawkeyes also have four sets of teammates who played together in high school: Brendan Sher and Duncan Davitt (Indianola); Izaya Fullard and Connor McCaffery (Iowa City West); Trenton Wallace and Ben Beutel (Davenport Assumption); Andrew Nord, Jackson Vines, Peyton Williams, and Jack Dreyer (Johnston).

DON’T COUNT ‘EM OUT
• The Hawkeyes posted 16 come-from-behind victories last season, including four in walk-off fashion.
• The Hawkeyes have overcome deficits to win 49 games since the start of the 2017 season and posted 13 walk-offs.  Twenty-four of those victories have come with Iowa trailing or being tied entering or through seven innings.  Sixteen have come in the final at-bat.

BANKS MAGIC
• The Hawkeyes are 91-27 at home since the start of the 2015 season.  
• Iowa won 19 games last season, the third-most in a single-season in school history, trailing only the 22 wins in 1977 and 20 wins in 2018.
• Iowa has 16 walk-off victories at Duane Banks Field since the start of 2015.

#HELLERBALL
• UI head coach Rick Heller is one of nine coaches all-time to lead three different NCAA Division I teams to regional play.
• Heller recorded his 800th career win against Lehigh on March 12 at the Snowbird Classic in Florida.  Heller won his 200th game at Iowa on May 1 in a victory over Western Illinois.
• The Hawkeyes have won 30 or more games in each of
Heller’s six seasons as the helm of the program. It’s a first for the team since winning 30 or more in seven straight seasons from 1979-85.
• Heller has led the Hawkeyes to two NCAA Regional appearances; the program had three regional appearances in its history prior to his arrival.
• Heller is fourth in school history in career wins with 204 at Iowa, including the second (41) and fifth-most (39) in school history.
• Heller led Iowa to its first Big Ten Tournament title in 2017 — the first conference title since 1990 — and he guided the Hawkeyes to the Big Ten Tournament title game in consecutive seasons. Iowa has advanced to the league tournament in six straight years for the first time in program history.
• Heller has coached at least one first-team All-Big Ten
selection in five of his first six seasons, and has 21 Major League Baseball Draft picks in six seasons — the most in a six-year stretch in school history.
• Iowa had a school-record six All-Big Ten selections in 2015 and five in 2017. The Hawkeyes have had 23 All-Big Ten honorees in six seasons under Heller.
• Iowa has posted winning streaks of nine games (in 2015) and eight games (in 2017) — the longest streaks for the program since 2012.

FOLLOW THE HAWKEYES
Iowa baseball fans can follow the Hawkeyes on Facebook @iowabaseball, Twitter @UIBaseball, and Instagram @UIBaseball in addition to coverage on hawkeyesports.com.

SEASON TICKETS ON SALE
Season tickets for the 2020 season home schedule are on sale now through the UI Athletics Ticket Office online at hawkeyesports.com or at 800-IA-HAWKS. Reserved and general admission adult tickets are $75, while general admission youth tickets are $40. Fans can also purchase a “30-block” season ticket, priced at $99, where tickets can be used at any game or combination of games throughout the season. Iowa will play 23 home games in 2020.