Game Notes -- at Snowbird Classic

Hawkeye Fan Shop — A Black & Gold Store | 24 Hawkeyes to Watch 2019-20 | Hawk Talk Monthly — February

THIS WEEK
• The University of Iowa baseball team returns to Port Charlotte, Florida, from March 6-8 for the second time this season to play in the Snowbird Classic. 
• The Hawkeyes open the weekend against Western Michigan on Friday at 2 p.m. (CT) before playing Georgetown on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. Iowa wraps up the weekend with Army at 10 a.m.
• All games will be played at the North Charlotte Regional Park. Friday’s game will be played on field #9, with Saturday and Sunday’s games on field #10. 

FOLLOW ALONG
• All three games will be streamed live on FloBaseball, a paid subscription service.
• All Iowa games will be available via the Hawkeye Radio Network with Morgan Hawk 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, KJAN-AM/FM 1220/101.1 in Atlantic
Saturday: WDBQ FM 107.5 in Dubuque, KKFD 95.9 FM in Fairfield, KJAN-AM/FM 1220/101.1 in Atlantic
Sunday: WDBQ FM 107.5 in Dubuque
• Live stats are available on hawkeyesports.com and fans can follow along on Twitter @UIBaseball.

LEADING OFF
• Head coach Rick Heller won his 900th career game in Iowa’s 15-2 midweek victory over Grand View on March 3. Heller has posted 611 wins at the Division I level, including 211 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. 
• Last weekend at the CambriaCollegeClassic, the Hawkeyes posted two wins over ranked ACC opponents in comeback fashion. Iowa trailed No. 20 North Carolina, 4-0, heading into the bottom of the ninth, but scored four runs to tie the game, and ended up winning on an Austin Martin walk-off home run in the bottom of the 10th. The following day, Iowa overcame two deficits against No. 14 Duke to win 7-5. 
• Senior outfielder Zeb Adreon, who was named to the CambriaCollegeClassic All-Tournament team, leads Iowa in batting average (.333) and on-base percentage (.442). 
• Junior Izaya Fullard has hit safely in six of his last seven at-bats with a home run, a double, a triple, and three singles. He leads Iowa in slugging percentage (.568) and RBIs (11). 
• Iowa is 3-1 against ranked opponents this year and owns the sixth-best RPI in the nation according to WarrenNolan.com.
• The Hawkeyes are picked to finish fifth in the Big Ten Conference by Perfect Game and Baseball America and seventh by D1Baseball.
• 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 this season. Iowa is 92-27 at home since the start of the 2015 season. 

QUICK HITTERS
• The Hawkeyes posted season highs in runs (15), hits (14), triples (3), walks (11), and tied season-highs in stolen bases (3), and strikeouts (14) in their 15-2 midweek win over Grand View on March 3. 
• Junior Trenton Wallace hit his first career home run in the eighth inning of Iowa’s 15-2 win over Grand View. It’s the fifth time in the last six games Iowa has hit a home run. Freshman Peyton Williams and junior Izaya Fullard are tied for the team lead, which are tied the seventh in the Big Ten.
• Williams has a team-best six-game hitting streak and leads Iowa in multi-RBI games. 
• Fullard ranks top-15 in four offensive categories in the Big Ten; tied for sixth in runs scored (11), tied for seventh in RBIs (11) and home runs (2) and 11th in slugging percentage (.568). 
• Senior Zeb Adreon has hit safely in eight of 10 games with three multi-hit games in his last four. He’s hitting .500 (7-for-14) in his last four games with a 1.231 OPS. 
• Starting pitchers Grant Judkins (t9th; .167) and Jack Dreyer (12th; .173) rank in the top 12 of the Big Ten in opposing batting average. 
• In his first career start, redshirt junior Hunter Lee recorded his first career win, pitching three scoreless innings, allowing only two hits with six strikeouts. 
• Freshmen Jacob Henderson and Tyler Snep made their Hawkeye debuts against Grand View.

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
• Iowa owns the second best fielding percentage (.975)in the Big Ten, committing only nine errors in 363 chances. 
• Offensively, the Hawkeyes rank fifth in the conference in batting average (.266) and slugging percentage (.399), and seventh in on-base percentage (.363). Iowa’s four triples are tied the second most, and Iowa’s seven home runs are tied for the fourth most. 
• Iowa’s pitching staff ranks fourth in the Big Ten in opposing batting average (.227)

COMEBACK KIDS AT THE CCC
• At last weekend’s CambriaCollegeClassic, the Hawkeyes squared off against three ACC teams, going 2-1 with wins over No. 20 North Carolina and No. 14 Duke.
• The Hawkeyes had to rally in all three contests, allowing a run in the first inning to all three opponents, but scored 14 of its 18 runs in the seventh inning beyond. 
• Iowa’s wins over Duke and North Carolina were the first time the Hawkeyes succesfully overcame deficits this season in six tries. 

RISE TO THE OCCASION
• Four of Iowa’s first 10 games were against ranked opponents. 
• The Hawkeyes are 3-1 against top-25 teams with wins over No. 18 Arizona, No. 20 North Carolina, and No. 14 Duke. Iowa’s only loss to a ranked team came against No. 8 North Carolina State. The Hawkeyes trailed 5-0 after four innings, tied the game at four in the seventh, but ultimately fell, 10-6. 
• Iowa’s RPI is currently sixth-best in the country. 
• The Hawkeyes went 10-3 against top-30 opponents last season. 

ROTATION NOTES
• Iowa’s starting rotation of LHP Jack Dreyer, RHP Grant Judkins, and RHP Duncan Davitt, is 3-1 in nine starts with a 3.92 ERA and a .190 batting average against.  
• The trio has struck out 43 batters in 43 2/3 innings, issuing only 13 walks. 
• Judkins is 2-0 with a 2.65 ERA, registering back-to-back quality starts. Against North Carolina, he pitched six innings, allowing three earned runs on five hits with six strikeouts and no walks. 

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.
• Leonard is 3-of-4 in save chances this season.
• The Mokena, Illinois, native has earned a win and a save in his last two appearances. He worked around a bases-loaded, no-out jam in the 10th inning against North Carolina to earn the win, and induced a game-ending double play against Duke to earn his third save of the season. 
• Leonard’s 19 career saves rank third all-time and his 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.    Grant Leonard (2017-pres.)    19

SCOUTING WESTERN MICHIGAN
• The Broncos are 7-5 this season following their 17-16 slug-fest victory over Northeastern on Wednesday in Port Charlotte.  Western Michigan has won two straight — wins over Villanova and Northeastern. 
• Last weekend, the Broncos were swept by third-ranked Louisville, but they mtook a game from USC in their season-opening series in L.A. Western Michigan was 18-31 last season.
• Western Michigan’s offense is slashing at a mark of .266/.391/.403, scoring 9.8 runs per game. The Broncos scored 77 runs in a four-game series against Alabama A&M, including 32 runs in one game.
• Opposing hitters are batting .306 against Western Michigan pitchers as the Broncos’ pitching staff has a 6.73 ERA, allowing 98 runs on 123 hits and 61 walks over 99 innings.

SCOUTING GEORGETOWN
• The Hoyas are 3-9 this season and are on a three-game losing streak. 
• The Georgetown offense is hitting at a .234 clip, scoring  five runs per game. The Hoyas’ pitching staff owns a 6.66 ERA and a .257 BAA. Georgetown pitchers have struck out 97 batters and issued 65 free passes in 102 2/3 innings. 
• Iowa will face LHP Angelo Tonas, who is 0-1 with an 8.00 ERA. Tonas allowed 10 runs on 12 hits in his last start, spanning four innings. 

SCOUTING ARMY
• The Black Knights are 3-7 this season. Army won its first game of the season, 2-1, over Duke, but dropped the next two against the Blue Devils. Army was also swept by Texas A&M. Last season, the Black Knights were 35-26, won their second consecutive Patriot League championship, and qualified for an NCAA Regional.
• Army is hitting .249 in 10 games, averaging 4.7 runs per game. Four Army hitters are hitting .282 or better. 
• The Army pitching staff owns a 5.76 ERA and a .240 BAA. In 84 1/3 innings, Army has struck out 73 and walked 61 batters. 

THE SERIES
• Iowa is 10-19-2 all-time against Western Michigan, 3-2 against Georgetown, and 0-2 against Army. 

DON’T COUNT ‘EM OUT
• Iowa posted its first two comeback wins of the season in consecutive days. Trailing 4-0 through 8 1/2 innings against No. 20 North Carolina, the Hawkeyes stormed back, scoring four runs in the bottom of the ninth to tie the game. With two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Austin Martin hit a walk-off home run to cap the improbable comeback. The following day, Iowa trailed 2-0 through 4 1/2 innings, 4-2 through five innings, and 5-3 through six innings, before scoring three runs in the seventh, highlighted by an Izaya Fullard go-ahead, two-run home run in the seventh inning. The Hawkeyes won 7-5 over Duke for its second come-from-behind win of the season. 
• The Hawkeyes posted 16 come-from-behind victories last season, including four in walk-off fashion.
• The Hawkeyes have overcome deficits to win 51 games since the start of the 2017 season and posted 14 walk-offs.  Twenty-six of those victories have come with Iowa trailing or being tied entering or through seven innings.  Seventeen have come in the final at-bat.

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.

TEAM CAPTAINS
• Seniors Justin Jenkins, Grant Judkins, Grant Leonard, and Austin Martin were voted team captains prior to the season. 

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

BANKS MAGIC
• The Hawkeyes are 92-27 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
• Head coach Rick Heller recorded his 900th career win against Grand View in a 15-2 victory on March 3, 2020, at Duane Banks Field 
• 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.