Week 1 Notes |
Atlantic Sun Weekly Release
HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – As the Northern Kentucky University baseball team prepares to take the field this weekend for its inaugural season as an NCAA Division I program and member of the Atlantic Sun Conference, head coach
Todd Asalon will turn to a solid group of returning players to lead the way during the transition.
NKU, which finished 35-22 overall a year ago (25-11 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference), returns seven pitchers this season. Four of those pitchers were listed as top players to watch in the Atlantic Sun Conference by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper: seniors
Brett Loeding and
Mike Nastold, junior
Matt Jefferson and sophomore
Cody Cooper.
Jefferson will continue to be in the starting rotation for the Norse this season, as will Nastold. Jefferson compiled a 6-2 record last season and finished with a 3.69 earned run average. He collected 40 strikeouts and pitched two complete games last season.
Nastold, who earned second-team All-GLVC honors last season, finished with a 3-1 record and a 2.19 ERA after making nine appearances and starting eight times. He accumulated 34 strikeouts in 37 innings, held opposing batters to a .182 average and only allowed nine earned runs.
Cooper returns to the mound for NKU after collecting a 6-3 record and a 4.17 ERA last season. He struck out 30 batters, including a career-high five strikeouts twice. Cooper earned his first victory as a Norse on March 4 in a 4-3 upset over then-No. 7 Columbus State.
Loeding became NKU's go-to man in the bullpen during the 2012 season. He was selected as a first-team All-GLVC honoree and second-team All-Region by Daktronics and the American Baseball Coaches Association after making a school-record 40 appearances and leading the team with a 1.75 ERA. He compiled a 7-4 record with 12 saves over 108 innings of work on the mound. Loeding also collected 95 strikeouts while only allowing 21 earned runs.
The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association recently named Loeding to the 2013 Stopper of the Year Award watch list. The award is given to the top relief pitcher in Division I. Loeding is one of 75 relief pitchers nationally to be listed and just one of five in the A-Sun.
Sophomore
Drew Campbell will appear on the mound again. Last season, Campbell posted a 4-2 record in 12 appearances, including eight starts, and collected 31 strikeouts.
Seniors
Tim Clark,
Blake Bagshaw and
Chuck Calhoun also return for their final season. Clark finished with a 4-4record and 5.27 ERA, while Bagshaw collected five strikeouts in 10 1/3 innings of work. Calhoun struck out two batters in four appearances.
Freshman
Alex Bolia could make an immediate impact this season as well. As a senior at Elder High School in Cincinnati, Bolia earned second-team All-Greater Catholic League South honors after posting a 2-1 record and 3.36 ERA.
Senior
Mike Derby, who sat out last season after transferring from Elgin Community College, and freshmen
Jake Cain,
Aric Harris,
David Mauerer and
Bela Perler will provide depth on the mound this season.
Senior
Pat Hyde is expected to start behind the plate for NKU. Hyde saw action in 24 games last season, earning 19 starts, and batted .246 with four doubles and eight runs batted in.
Cody Kuzniczci and
Logan Spurlin will provide relief at catcher. Kuzniczci maintained a .439 batting average and added eight home runs in 2011 for Madeira High School, while Spurlin batted .374 as a senior with 19 RBIs, 12 doubles and three home runs.
Several veterans return to the infield this season for the Norse. Senior
Bradley Vanderglas, junior
Brett Cisper and sophomore
Josh Myers are expected to get spots in the starting lineup.
Vanderglas finished the 2012 season with a .294 batting average, while collecting 25 runs, 15 RBIs and three doubles. He recorded a .960 fielding percentage and earned a Midwest Region Gold Glove for his defensive work from the ABCA.
Cisper batted .246 with four doubles, one triple and one home run in an injury-shortened season. He collected 20 runs, 14 RBIs and 13 stolen bases. Cisper had earned first-team All-Region and third-team All-GLVC accolades in 2011.
Myers earned 12 starts last season and finished with a .256 batting average. He collected two doubles, seven RBIs andscored 11 times.
Freshman
Quint Heady, who redshirted last season, could make an immediate impact for the Norse. He received honorable mention all-state honors from the Kentucky High School Baseball Coaches Association as a senior after helping North Oldham High School advance to the state tournament in 2011.
Seniors
Luke Greene and
Brandon Wood, sophomore
Caleb Lonkard and freshman
Hunter Morey will provide depth in the infield. Greene made six appearances, starting once, and recorded a .500 batting average, while Wood recorded 14 runs, 12 RBIs and three doubles in 33 gameslast season. Lonkard added three runs and one double for the Norse last season.
Morey, from Wellington, Fla., finished his senior season with a .291 batting average with 12 RBIs and five doubles, and he earned first-team all-conference honors for his performance in 2012.
Brad Clement, who was also named to the Collegiate Baseball list and is expected to start as the designated hitter, was the only player to start every contest for NKU last season. He led the team in batting average (.350), hits (77) and RBIs (50). Clement earned first-team ABCA All-Midwest Region and second-team All-GLVC and Daktronics All-Region honors for his performance.
Senior
Zac Asman will be joined in the outfield with a pair of freshmen after losing
Max Colaner (an All-GLVC performer) and
Jake Morris to graduation. Asman, who saw a majority of his playing time last season in the infield, collected a .277 batting average with 15 doubles and 26 RBIs. He successfully stole 15 bases in 16 attempts for the Norse.
Freshmen
Ryan Hinz and
Ryan LeFevers could make immediate impacts in the outfield. Hinz, who sat out last season as a redshirt, recorded a .471 batting average as a senior at Brookfield Central High School. He also collected nine doubles, three triples and a team-high four home runs. Hinz successfully stole 11 bases in as many attempts in his final season.
LeFevers led Moeller to an Ohio state championship last season and finished with a .353 batting average, 26 runs and 14 RBIs. He broke the school record for stolen bases in a single season (29) and career (54). LeFevers earned first-team All-GCL South honors as a junior and senior.
Providing depth in the outfield will be freshmen
Barrett Arnold,
Conor Ledger and
Anthony Vagnier.
NKU will look to put together a successful first season in Division I, starting with this weekend's matchup against Lamar.
FIRST UP: NKU begins the season on Friday against Lamar in Beaumont, Texas. The two teams have never met in baseball, and Lamar is the first Southland Conference opponent NKU has faced.
The Norse will play a four-game series against the Cardinals with a single game scheduled for Friday and Sunday. The teams will take the field for a doubleheader on Saturday. First pitch on Friday is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
Live stats and broadcast information will be available at nkunorse.com.
ABOUT LAMAR: Last season, Lamar finished 22-30 overall and 14-19 in the Southland. The Cardinals return Brad Picha and Darian Johnson for the 2012 season and both were preseason all-conference selections.
Picha batted .320 and led the team with 38 RBIs and 17 doubles as a junior while Johnson led the team with a .344 batting average. He also collected 34 runs, 25 RBIs, 13 doubles and four home runs.
Jonathan Dziedzic returns to the mound for Lamar after posting a 3.47 ERA and a 5-4 record last season. He led the team with 68 strikeouts and was drafted in the 37th round of the 2012 MLB First-Year Player Draft by the Boston Red Sox.
LAST TIME AGAINST A DIVISION I OPPONENT: A four-run first inning keyed Indiana's 7-3 victory over NKU on March 29, 2011.
Jerrud Sabourin delivered the key hit in the first inning, a three-run double to left-center field off NKU starter
Brent Wagner. A pair of singles and a walk loaded the bases for Sabourin, who gave the Hoosiers a 3-0 lead.
T.C. Knipp later doubled to drive in Sabourin and extend Indiana's lead to 4-0.
NKU plated a run in the fourth inning after Shannon McCormick doubled, advanced to third on a grounder and scored on a sacrifice fly by Bryan Rose. Indiana, however, scored a run in the fifth to make it 5-1.
A pair of sixth-inning errors by Indiana helped NKU score twice and cut the Hoosier lead to 5-3. Indiana countered with runs in the sixth and seventh to extend its advantage to 7-3.
McCormick scored two runs for NKU.
Brad Clement went 2-for-4 for the Norse, who finished with five hits. Rose dove in a pair of runs.
DIVISION I OPPONENTS: The Norse hold a 121-172-2 all-time record against Division I opponents entering their first season as a Division I program. NKU's last victory over a Division I opponent came on April 2, 2003 when the Norse defeated Dayton, 16-13, before dropping the second game of the doubleheader to the Flyers.
The Norse held on for a 7-6 victory over SIU-Edwardsville on May 10, 2008 in the GLVC tournament. That season marked the Cougars final season as a Divsion II program.
The Norse hold winning records against members of the Summit League (20-11), Southern Conference (4-1) and Big Sky Conference (1-0).
OPENING DAY RESULTS: NKU is 16-24 all-time in season openers and has won two out of the last three. Last season, the Norse fell to North Georgia, 10-3, on Feb. 18. Prior to that, NKU defeated Montevallo two years in a row to start the season.
PRESEASON POLL: The Norse were picked to finish 10th by the A-Sun coaches. Mercer and Florida Gulf Coast tied for first place with 81 points. Mercer received three first-place votes, while FGCU collected two.
FGCU's Ricky Knapp was named the Preseason Pitcher of the Year, while Gaither Bumgardner, an outfielder from South Carolina Upstate, was selected as the Preseason Player of the Year. Both received the same postseason honors at the end of the 2012 season.
