Jackrabbits host league-leading ORU

BROOKINGS, S.D. — The second half of the Summit League baseball season gets under way Friday as South Dakota State hosts league-leading Oral Roberts in a three-game series at Erv Huether Field.
Friday's series opener is set for a 3 p.m. first pitch, with games Saturday and Sunday starting at 1 p.m. All three games will be broadcast locally on KJJQ 910 AM, with Tyler Merriam calling the play-by-by, and also streamed through the Jackrabbits All-Access media portal at GoJacks.com. Broadcasts begin 15 minutes prior to scheduled first pitch each day.
Live stats can be accessed at GoJacksLive.com, with further updates available on Twitter (@GoJacksBaseball).
SDSU enters the series 15-17 overall and 8-7 in Summit League play. The Jackrabbits will be playing at home for the first time since April 2, when they completed a three-game sweep of Fort Wayne. SDSU has played its last nine games on the road, compiling a 2-7 record in contests played across five different states.
This weekend's series kicks off an 11-game homestand for the Jackrabbits, who play at home four of the last five weekends of league play.
Oral Roberts, meanwhile, is well on its way to securing another Summit League regular season title. The Golden Eagles completed the first half of the league slate with a 14-1 mark and are 26-10 overall following a 7-6, 11-inning loss at Oklahoma State on April 18.
ORU swept a three-game series at Omaha last weekend, outscoring the Mavericks by a 31-4 margin.

THE SERIES: South Dakota State and Oral Roberts will play for the 54th time, when the two squads meet in Friday's series opener. The Golden Eagles hold a 41-12 advantage in the series that dates back to 1971.
Oral Roberts has won the last 10 meetings dating back to last season. The Golden Eagles held a 7-1 series advantage during the 2016 season. SDSU won the first meeting of the season, 3-2 in 12 innings, in the two squads' Summit League opener last season at J.L. Johnson Stadium in Tulsa, while the Golden Eagles reeled off victories in the next seven games, including two on their home field at the Summit League Baseball Championship by respective scores of 6-5 and 5-2.
In the first series between the two teams this season, Oral Roberts carried the momentum from an extra-inning win in the opening game of the series March 24 in Tulsa to a series sweep. The Golden Eagles came away with a 7-6, 13-inning victory in an opener that was played over two days as the game was suspended by inclement weather after 11 innings, then posted wins of 11-5 and 6-2 to close out the series.

PRESEASON POLL: The South Dakota State University baseball team has been picked to finish second in the 2017 Summit League race, according to a poll conducted among league coaches and announced by league officials on Feb. 9.
The Jackrabbits return six position starters from a squad that finished the 2016 season with a 22-35 overall record and fourth-place finish in the league standings at 13-17.
Defending Summit League champion Oral Roberts received five first-place votes en route to earning the top spot in the poll with 25 points. SDSU received the other first-place vote and 18 points, and was followed by North Dakota State (17), Omaha (13), Western Illinois (9) and Fort Wayne (8).
Oral Roberts will host the four-team Summit League Baseball Championship May 24-27 at J.L. Johnson Stadium in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

JOHNSON AND JOHNSON: Starting corner infielders Matt Johnson and Newt Johnson have been two of the most consistent offensive players for the Jackrabbits in 2017.
A senior first baseman, Matt Johnson recorded a hit in each of the team's first 17 games of the season and has reached base safely in 29 of 32 games in 2017. The Ankeny, Iowa, native leads the Jackrabbits with eight home runs, 11 doubles, 26 runs batted in and a .610 slugging percentage, while sharing the team lead with a .417 on-base percentage. He also ranks second with a .325 batting average.
A second-team all-Summit League honoree in 2016, he matched the program best of 19 consecutive games with a hit last season. He also leads active Jackrabbit players with 22 career home runs, and has homered in each of SDSU's last two games. His 45 career doubles also are the most among active SDSU players and rank ninth on the SDSU career charts.
A junior third baseman from Rapid City, Newt Johnson ranks second on the team with 10 doubles and 22 runs batted in. He has driven in three runs in a game four times thus far in 2017, including the second game of an April 15 doubleheader at Western Illinois.
Newt Johnson was named Summit League Player of the Week on March 20 after batting .500 (7-for-14) in the three-game series at Omaha, scoring eight runs and driving in four. He recorded three hits in each of the final two games of the series, extending his hitting streak to seven games. He also notched a double and two runs batted in in each of the first two contests.

RINGHOFER STREAK ENDS, STARTS ANOTHER: Jackrabbit catcher Luke Ringhofer had his school-record streak of reaching base safely in 52 consecutive games come to an end in the Jackrabbits' loss to Maine on Feb. 25, when he went 0-for-4 at the plate.
Ringhofer's streak began March 4, 2016, when he recorded a hit in the series opener at Sacramento State. A junior from Cotttage Grove, Minnesota, Ringhofer had a hit in 43 games during the streak, and drew at least one base on balls in 30 contests.
Since his streak was broken, Ringhofer has reached base safely in 28 consecutive games, meaning he has reached base in 80 of the Jackrabbits' last 81 games. Ringhofer's most recent streak includes a 16-game hitting streak that ended in the series opener at North Dakota State on April 7. Ringhofer has put together a hitting streak of at least 13 games in each of his three seasons at SDSU.

SMITH RACKING UP THE HITS: Leadoff hitter Nick Smith has gotten hits in bunches during the 2017 season. A?sophomore from Chanhassen, Minnesota, Smith has tallied a team-high 49 hits, while posting a team-best 16 multi-hit games. Smith has recorded at least two hits in four of the Jackrabbits' last five games, including going a combined 8-for-11 in an April 15 doubleheader at Western Illinois. Smith notched three hits in the opener, then went 5-for-6 in Game 2, becoming the first Jackrabbit player with a five-hit game this season.

PITCHERS OF THE WEEK: South Dakota State University right-hander Ethan Kenkel was honored as Summit League Pitcher of the Week, league officials announced on April 10.
A senior from Storm Lake, Iowa, Kenkel pitched six-plus shutout innings, allowing only two hits as the Jackrabbits claimed the series finale from North Dakota State, 1-0, on April 9. Kenkel's six innings pitched and six strikeouts both set new career highs in recording his first win of the season.
Kenkel is the second Jackrabbit to be honored as Summit League Pitcher of the Week in 2017. Fellow senior right-hander Ryan Froom was honored both Feb. 20 and March 20.

EVEN-ING THINGS OUT: After a rough outing in his collegiate debut in late February, freshman Hunter Even pitched effectively in three recent mid-week starts to earn a spot in the starting rotation for this weekend's series against Oral Roberts.
In SDSU's March 29 home opener against Dakota Wesleyan, the right-hander from Chanhassen, Minnesota, limited DWU to five hits over five scoreless innings in his first collegiate start. He struck out seven and did not walk a batter in a game SDSU won 1-0.
Even did not factor into the decision in starts April 4 at Iowa and April 11 at Creighton, allowing five runs over a combined eight innings. His last outing was a three-inning relief stint in the first game of an April 15 doubleheader at Western Illinois, in which he alllowed one run while striking out three.
Since allowing seven runs in one inning in his Feb. 25 debut against Central Connecticut State, Even has given up a total of six runs over the next 17 innings to lower his earned run average to 6.50. He has struck out 19 batters and walked six in 18 total innings.

HOME ON THE MOUND: The Jackrabbit pitching staff began the home portion of its 2017 schedule by holding the opposition scoreless for the first 24 innings in games played at Erv Huether Field.
With consecutive 1-0 wins against Dakota Wesleyan on March 29 and Fort Wayne in 11 innings March 31, South Dakota State hurled back-to-back shutouts for the first time in four years. SDSU's shutout streak ended in the fifth inning of the Jackrabbits' April 1 game against Fort Wayne.
The last time the Jackrabbits posted consecutive shutout wins was May 26, 2013, when SDSU blanked North Dakota State by scores of 2-0 and 1-0 in the championship series of the Summit League postseason tournament in Rochester, Michigan.
SDSU has posted four shutouts so far in 2017 — three of which have been 1-0 wins.

LIGHTS OUT: Three relievers have solidified the Jackrabbit pitching staff in the first half of the 2017 season.
Leading the way is closer Chris Halbur. A senior right-hander from Manning, Iowa, Halbur did not a run in his first 13 appearances, covering 18 innings. Halbur's scoreless streak ended at 18 2/3 innings as he allowed the tying run to Creighton with two outs in the ninth inning on April 11, a game the Jackrabbits lost in 11 innings. He has given up only 10 hits (.154 opponent average) and struck out 23 batters against five walks. His five saves currently are third in The Summit League, while his seven career saves at SDSU rank 10th in program history.
Halbur earned the win after pitching the final three innings in SDSU's 1-0, 11-inning victory over Fort Wayne on March 31. He also pitched in the April 2 series finale, striking out two batters in an inning of work.
Left-hander Bryce Hanson has pitched effectively as a long reliever and spot starter. A sophomore from Dakota Dunes, Hanson is 3-0 in 13 appearances with a 1.35 earned run average. He has struck out 29 batters in 26 2/3 innings, including fanning a career-best eight batters in 4 1/3 innings en route to the win in the second game of an April 15 doubleheader at Western Illinois.
Junior setup man Derek Feige also has pitched well out of the bullpen and ranks second on the team with 15 appearances. A junior from Sioux Falls, Feige has posted a 2-2 record with a 2.59 ERA, while striking out 21 in 24 1/3 innings.
Over the last two Summit League weekend series against North Dakota State and Western Illinois, Jackrabbit relievers combined for 1.82 ERA by allowing only six earned runs in 29 2/3 innings pitched.

TURNING TWO: South Dakota State played solid defense in their series sweep of Omaha to open Summit League play. The Jackrabbits turned eight double plays, including a Division I-era-best four in the opening game of the series on March 17.
Second baseman Nick Smith was part of all eight double plays, seven of which came on ground balls, with the other on a lineout.

INJURY BUG: The Jackrabbit pitching staff has been short-handed over the last two weeks. Two-time Summit League Pitcher of the Week Ryan Froom is out indefinitely with an arm injury and fellow hurler Tyler Olmstead has missed the last three weeks due to injury. Olmstead is on track to return to the mound as soon as this week.
Starting shortstop Tony Kjolsing, who had been sidelined by injury since the opening weekend of the season, made his return to the starting lineup April 1 versus Fort Wayne and has hit safely in his last four games.

COACH BISHOP: Rob Bishop, who has guided college baseball teams to more than 500 victories, was named head baseball coach at South Dakota State University on Aug. 1, 2016. Bishop is the ninth head coach in program history and the fourth in the Division I era of Jackrabbit baseball.
Overall, Bishop holds a 564-339-1 record (.624 winning percentage) as a collegiate head coach, including a 15-17 mark at SDSU. He spent the previous six years at NCAA Division II member Montana State University-Billings, where he led the Yellowjackets to back-to-back Great Northwest Athletic Conference regular season titles in 2015 and 2016, attaining the program's first-ever 30-win season with a 30-20 record in 2016.
His squads also were honored as the top academic team in the GNAC each of his last three seasons.
Previously, Bishop spent 10 years at Miles City Community College in Montana, where his teams won MonDak conference championships every year. His squads also claimed five consecutive junior college region titles and a Northwest District championship in 2007 to advance to the NJCAA Division II College World Series. He also served as athletic director the last five years of his tenure at Miles City.
Bishop served as a graduate assistant at SDSU under head coach Mark Ekeland during the 1998 and 1999 seasons. In his first season as a head coach, Bishop led Huron University to the South Dakota Intercollegiate Conference title in 2000.
A 1994 graduate of Jamestown College, Bishop earned NAIA All-America honors during the 1992 and 1994 seasons as an infielder.

THE ROSTER: The 2017 SDSU baseball roster features 36 players from five different states. Of the 36 players, 15 are from South Dakota, 10 are from Minnesota and nine hail from Iowa. California and Indiana are represented by one player each.
By class, eight are seniors, 11 are juniors, six are sophomores, two are redshirt freshmen and nine are true freshmen.

A LOOK AHEAD: SDSU continues its long homestand with a pair of mid-week games at Erv Huether Field. The Jackrabbits are scheduled to host Dakota Wesleyan on April 25, followed by an April 26 matchup against Creighton. Both games are slated for 3 p.m. starts.
The Jackrabbits will then welcome North Dakota State to town for a three-game weekend series April 28-30.

-GoJacks.com-

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Hunter Even

Derek Feige

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Chris Halbur

Bryce Hanson

Matt Johnson

Newt Johnson

Ethan Kenkel

Tony Kjolsing

Tyler Olmstead

Luke Ringhofer

Nick Smith

Completed Event: Baseball at Omaha on May 22, 2025 , Loss , 6, to, 7 , 10 inn.

Completed Event: Baseball versus Oral Roberts on May 21, 2025 , Loss , 2, to, 11

Completed Event: Baseball versus Oral Roberts on May 17, 2025 , Loss , 2, to, 9

Completed Event: Baseball versus Oral Roberts on May 16, 2025 , Loss , 11, to, 13

Completed Event: Baseball versus Oral Roberts on May 15, 2025 , Loss , 11, to, 14

Completed Event: Baseball versus Oral Roberts on May 15, 2025 , Loss , 4, to, 11

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