Jackrabbits close road swing in Indiana

Friday, March 29

Fort Wayne, Ind.

11 a.m.

South Dakota State University

Purdue Fort Wayne

Photo by: Mike Janes/Four Seam Images

3/28/2019 8:57:00 AM | Baseball

Games 22-24: South Dakota State (11-10 overall, 4-2 Summit League) at Purdue Fort Wayne (4-18, 0-6)

When	Friday, March 29 • noon ET (11 a.m. CT) [DH] \| Game 3 - To be determined Note schedule changes due to impending inclement weather
Where	Mastodon Field \| Fort Wayne, Indiana
TV	GoMastodonsLive
Radio	None
Live Stats	GoMastodons.com
Game Notes	South Dakota State \| Purdue Fort Wayne \| The Summit League
Social Media	Twitter \| Instagram \| #RAB5

With two road series wins to begin Summit League play, the South Dakota State University baseball team will attempt to end a long stretch of play away from home on a high note as it plays a three-game weekend series at Purdue Fort Wayne.

The schedule for the series at Mastodon Field in Fort Wayne, Indiana, has been altered due to impending inclement weather, with the two squads now slated to play a doubleheader Friday starting at noon Eastern Time (11 a.m. Central). Starting time and date for the third and final game of the series is to be determined.

Video and live stats will be available through GoMastodons.com.

The Jackrabbits, who have yet to play a game on South Dakota soil this season, enter the weekend with an 11-10 overall record and a 4-2 mark in The Summit League after winning the final two games of a three-game series last weekend at Oral Roberts. SDSU moved into a tie with ORU for second place in the league standings with the series victory.

Purdue Fort Wayne, begins the week with a 4-18 overall record and is 0-6 in league play after being swept in a three-game series at league-leading Omaha March 22-24. The Mastodons have a home game against Anderson (Ind.) scheduled for Thursday, prior to hosting SDSU.

THE SERIES: South Dakota State and Purdue Fort Wayne will play for the 67th time when the two squads meet in Friday's series opener. The Jackrabbits hold a 52-14 advantage in the series that dates back to 2006, when both schools competed as Division I independents.

SDSU extended its winning streak over the Mastodons to 10 games by winning the first four games between the two squads last season. Overall, the Jackrabbits won the season series by a 5-1 count.

The Jackrabbits swept a three-game series April 7-8, 2018, that was moved to Joplin, Missouri, due to extended wintry weather in the Upper Midwest. The Jackrabbits swept an April 7 doubleheader by scores of 10-0 and 7-2, before closing out the series with a wild 13-9 victory on April 8.

In the opening game of the twinbill, Jackrabbit pitchers Brady Stover and Mitchell Oehme combined on a one-hitter as the game was called after seven innings due the 10-run rule. Stover struck out a program-best 13 batters over 6 1/3 innings and allowed only an infield single to Travis Upp in the second inning.

In Game 2, SDSU scored five times in the eighth inning to break a 2-all tie and post a 7-2 victory. Nick Smith plated two with a double in the eighth, while Phil Velez went 4-for-4 with an RBI.

Velez was the hero of the April 8 series finale as he hit a walk-off grand slam to left field, giving the Jackrabbits a 13-9 victory. Velez's heroics came after Fort Wayne tied the game with a grand slam of its own by Robert Young III in the top of the ninth.

SDSU and Purdue Fort Wayne met for another three-game series April 27-29 in Fort Wayne, Indiana, with the Jackrabbits claiming two of three games. The Jackrabbits won the opener, 8-6, before the Mastodons held on for a 6-5 win in Game 2 to even the series.

In the decisive third game, Newt Johnson drove in three runs and Anthony Schneider scored four times to lead the Jackrabbits to an 11-5 victory. SDSU scored in each of the last four innings to pull away.

LAST WEEK: Following are some highlights from last week's series win at Oral Roberts:

The Jackrabbits recorded only the second series win by a Summit League team on ORU's home field; SDSU first accomplished the feat by winning two games in Tulsa in a 2015 series.
All three games were decided by one run; SDSU improved to 4-4 in one-run games this season.
The Jackrabbits matched a season high with three home runs in the second game of their March 16 doubleheader.
Gus Steiger extended his hitting streak to 11 games in the opener and added a four-hit game in the March 24 finale after his streak was snapped in the middle game of the series.
Of the 20 outs SDSU starting pitcher Tyler Olmstead recorded in the March 22 series opener, 15 were on groundouts.
Nick Smith had a streak of 11 consecutive games drawing a walk end in the March 24 series finale.
Jackrabbit pitchers combined to limit Oral Roberts to a .232 batting average.

HOT STREAKS: Three Jackrabbits begin the week batting .300 or better thanks to strong starts during the Summit League season.

Sophomore shortstop Gus Steiger leads the team with a .333 batting average and has hit safely in 12 of the last 13 games. During his recent hot streak, Steiger is batting .406 (26-of-64) during his current hitting streak with six doubles, three home runs and 13 runs batted in. He has collected two or more hits in eight of the 13 games, including four-hit performances March 8 at UA Little Rock and March 24 at Oral Roberts.

Freshmen Luke Ira and Drew Beazley both enter the weekend batting an even .300. An infielder from Iowa City, Iowa, Ira has started all 21 games this season and leads the team with 11 multi-hit games. He delivered the game-winning RBI double in the top of the ninth inning as part of a two-hit performance in the March 24 series finale at Oral Roberts.

Beazley, the reigning Summit League Player of the Week, is batting .462 (6-for-13) in Summit League play with three doubles, two home runs and four runs batted in en route to posting a 1.154 slugging percentage.

BEAZLEY HONORED: South Dakota State's Drew Beazley was honored March 25 as Summit League Player of the Week for his efforts in leading the Jackrabbit baseball team to a series win at Oral Roberts over the weekend.

A freshman from Johnston, Iowa, Beazley contributed all over the diamond as SDSU won the final two games of the three-game series in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He hit the game-winning solo home run in the top of the ninth inning in a 2-1 victory March 23, then doubled twice and pitched the final 2 1/3 innings to earn the victory in a 9-8 win the next day.

In the three-game series, Beazley hit .400 (4-for-10) and compiled a .900 slugging percentage with two doubles and a home run. He also drove in three runs and scored twice. In his March 24 pitching appearance, Beazley allowed a run on one hit and struck out a pair of batters in the bottom of the ninth to secure his first collegiate win.

Beazley is the third Jackrabbit this season to be honored as Summit League Player of the Week, joining Logan Holtz (March 4) and Gus Steiger (March 11). In addition, Brady Stover was named Summit League Pitcher of the Week on Feb. 18.

A CALL TO ARMS: South Dakota State starting pitchers have thrown at least five innings in 15 of the team's 21 games so far this season.

Junior Tyler Olmstead has taken over the No. 1 starter's role in recent weeks and currently leads the team with 34 strikeouts in 34 innings. A second-team all-Summit League selection last season, Olmstead has pitched five-plus innings in four of his first five starts, including taking a shutout into the ninth inning of his March 16 start against Western Illinois.

Freshman Nic McCay has hurled at least seven innings in two of his last three outings, including a seven-inning, 10-strikeout performance in the March 17 series finale against Western Illinois in which he ran his record to 3-1. McCay's 10 strikeouts are the most by a Jackrabbit pitcher this season. He also fanned eight UT Martin batters over five innings in his collegiate debut on Feb. 17.

McCay was the starting pitcher in the Jackrabbits' March 6 game at Alabama. He pitched the first two innings of the midweek game before turning the game over to the bullpen. In all, SDSU used 10 pitchers in the 6-5, 14-inning loss to the Crimson Tide, tying the mark for the most pitchers used in a Division I game this season.

Out of the bullpen, sophomore left-hander Bret Barnett has emerged as the top reliever on the staff. The Indianola, Iowa, native has posted a 3-0 record with three saves. In nine appearances covering 14 1/3 innings so far this season, Bartnett has allowed only one run (0.63 earned run average), struck out 13 and limited the opposition to a .125 batting average.

FROOM MAKES COMEBACK: Ryan Froom completed the long road back from injury by making his first appearance in nearly two years in the Feb. 16 game against UT Martin.

A sixth-year senior, Froom struck out five, walked four and surrendered three hits over five innings in finishing with a no-decision. It marked Froom's appearance since March 25, 2017, at Oral Roberts, when he suffered an arm injury. He missed the remainder of the 2017 season and was granted an injury hardship. Froom also sat out the entire 2018 campaign before rejoining the team this past fall.

Froom got back into the win column March 2 as the Jackrabbits knocked off Missouri, 6-3. After giving up a run in the bottom of the first, Froom pitched four consecutive shutout frames before tiring in the sixth. He finished with a season-high six strikeouts, while allowing three runs on four hits with five walks in 5 2/3 innings.

Froom again recorded the victory in the second game of a March 9 doubleheader at UA Little Rock, going seven innings. He allowed three runs on seven hits while striking out five and walking four.

Froom has logged five or more innings in five of his six starts this season to enter the weekend with a 2-1 record. He has notched 24 strikeouts in 32.1 innings.

The Crystal, Minnesota, native became a mainstay in the Jackrabbit rotation starting with his sophomore season in 2015. He currently ranks in fourth place in program history with 40 games started and 226 innings pitched.

GOING DEEP: Through the first 21 games of the 2019 season, the Jackrabbits have out-homered the opposition, 17-15, starting with a three-homer performance in the Feb. 15 season opener against UT Martin.

Nine different players have accounted for the Jackrabbit home runs, with Gus Steiger leading the squad with four. Josh Falk has hit three, while Drew Beazley, Braeden Brown and Logan Holtz have each hit two.

Holtz and Ryan McDonald connected on back-to-back homers in the fifth inning of a Feb. 16 game against UT Martin. It was the first career home run for each and marked the second time in five games dating back to last season that the Jackrabbits hit consecutive home runs. Anthony Schneider and Tony Kjolsing led off a May 24 Summit League Baseball Championship game against Western Illinois with back-to-back homers.

SDSU hit a total of 10 home runs in its first six contests. The Jackrabbits then went 10 full games without a long ball until hitting three in the first three innings of the second game of a March 16 doubleheader against Western Illinois. Freshman Drew Beazley notched his first career home run, while Steiger and Falk each hit their second round-trippers of the season.

Steiger tallied his team-leading fourth home run in the March 24 series finale at Oral Roberts.

PRESEASON POLL: South Dakota State was picked to finish second in the 2019 Summit League baseball race, according to a poll conducted among conference coaches that was announced Feb. 7 by league officials.

The Jackrabbits received one first-place vote, finishing with 21 points. Defending league champion Oral Roberts again paced the six-team race with five first-place votes and 25 points. North Dakota State completed the upper half of the poll with 17 points.

Rounding out the poll were: Western Illinois, 12 points; Omaha, 9 points, and Purdue Fort Wayne, 6 points.

The top four teams during the regular season will advance to the 2019 Summit League Baseball Championship, which is scheduled for May 22-25 in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

In addition, the Jackrabbits' Nick Smith and Brady Stover were recognized among the Summit League's top players to watch.

A two-time all-Summit League honoree, Smith has posted a batting average of better than .300 each of the past two seasons. Smith, a senior from Chanhassen, Minnesota, hit at a .303 clip with 18 runs batted in en route to first-team honors as a utility player in 2018.

Stover, a junior from Huxley, Iowa, posted a 3-2 record in 2018 with a 4.57 earned run average in 10 appearances, including nine starts. The left-hander struck out 63 batters in only 43.1 innings, setting an SDSU single-season record with an average of 13.09 strikeouts per nine innings. He also limited the opposition to a .203 batting average.

CREIGHTON GAME POSTPONED: The Jackrabbits' game scheduled for March 20 at Creighton was postponed due to concerns over weather and field conditions at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Nebraska. No makeup date has been determined.

COACH BISHOP: Rob Bishop, who has guided college baseball teams to more than 600 career 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.

Now in his third season with the Jackrabbits, Bishop holds a 55-66 record at SDSU, including a 36-27 mark in Summit League play.

In his first season, Bishop's 2017 squad returned to the winning side of the ledger with a 26-24 overall mark, including an 18-12 record for a third-place finish in The Summit League standings. SDSU won its opening-round game in the Summit League Baseball Championship, 6-5, over second-seeded North Dakota State.

In 2018, SDSU overcame a slow start to post a winning record in Summit League play at 14-13 and went on to reach the title game of the Summit League Baseball Championship. The Jackrabbits finished with an 18-32 overall record during a campaign in which they played only six home games.

Overall, Bishop holds a 604-388-1 record (.609 winning percentage) as a collegiate head coach. He recorded career win No. 600 March 10 at UA Little Rock.

Individually, Jackrabbit players have been honored as all-Summit League performers 10 times during his brief tenure, including six all-league selections in 2018. Utility player Nick Smith and third baseman Newt Johnson received all-Summit League recognition in both 2017 and 2018.

Prior to becoming head coach at SDSU, Bishop spent 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. Bishop's teams won at least 30 games each of his 10 seasons, including four 40-win seasons. He ended his tenure at Miles City with a 377-151 overall record. He also served as athletic director his last five years 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 with a 38-18 record.

A 1994 graduate of Jamestown College, Bishop earned NAIA All-America honors during the 1992 and 1994 seasons as an infielder.

THE ROSTER: The 2019 SDSU baseball roster features 33 players from seven different states and one Canadian province. Of the 33 players, 11 are from Iowa, nine are from South Dakota and eight hail from Minnesota. Arizona, Nebraska, Washington and Wisconsin are represented by one player each, as is Manitoba.

By class, 10 are seniors, nine are juniors, five are sophomores, two are redshirt freshmen and seven are incoming freshmen.

A LOOK AHEAD: The Jackrabbits are tentatively slated to open the home portion of their schedule April 3 by hosting Dakota State. First pitch is set for 3 p.m. at Erv Huether Field.

SDSU is then set to continue its homestand with a three-game weekend series April 5-7 against Omaha.

-GoJacks.com-