Purdue opens 2022 season with four-game sweep

By STEVE KRAH
http://www.IndianaRBI.com

The state’s nine NCAA Division I baseball teams opened the 2022 this past weekend.
Purdue swept a four-game series against South Dakota State — 5-4, 11-1, 14-3 and 10-7 Friday through Sunday, Feb. 18-20 — in Sugar Land, Texas.
Mike Bolton Jr., Paul Toetz and Cam Thompson all went 4-of-11 (.364) at the plate for the Boilermakers. Toetz belted a pair of home runs. Thompson drove in nine runs. Ty Gill (Valparaiso High School graduate) homered in his first collegiate at-bat in Game 2.
Winning pitchers were right-hander Landon Weins (Frankton), left-hander Jackson Smeltz (McCutcheon), lefty Troy Wansing and righty Kyle Wade (Kokomo).
Ball State (2-2) bested Bucknell 8-7 and Army 10-6 and lost 11-1 to Iowa and 9-0 to Air Force in Charleston, S.C.
Amir Wright (Griffith) went 5-of-15 (.333) and Ryan Peltier 3-of-10 (.300) for the weekend while Hunter Dobbins (Mount Vernon of Fortville) clubbed two home runs in his first collegiate contest (vs. Bucknell) for the Cardinals.
Earning mound wins were lefty Jake Lewis (New Albany) against Bucknell and righty Andre Orselli against Army. Righty Sam Klein (Bloomington North) picked up the save vs. Bucknell.
Indiana State (2-2) won 3-2 against Brigham Young and 9-7 against Marshall and lost 9-3 and 9-8 to Ohio State in Port Charlotte, Fla.
Jordan Schaffer (West Vigo) went 6-of-14 (.429), Mike Sears 4-of-10 (.400) with two homers and four RBIs and Josue Urdaneta 7-of-18 (.389) for the Sycamores.
Winning hurlers were righty Matt Jachec against BYU and righty Brennyn Cutts against Marshall. Righty Connor Fenlong saved both victories.
Notre Dame (2-1) topped Manhattan 17-2 and Stetson 5-3 and lost 5-4 to Delaware in Deland, Fla.
David LaManna went 4-of-6 (.667), Brooks Coetze 5-of-17 (.417) with two homers, Carter Putz 4-of-11 (.364) and Zack Prajzner 4-of-11 (.364) for the Irish.
Winning pitchers were lefty Aidan Tyrell against Manhattan and lefty John Michael Bertrand against Stetson. Righty Ryan McLinskey got the save against the Hatters.
Valparaiso (1-2) lost 13-0 and 4-3 then won 10-8 in a three-game series at Memphis.
Kaleb Hannahs (West Vigo) went 6-of-13 (.462) with two homers and Kyle Schmack (South Central of Union Mills) 4-of-11 (.364) for the Beacons.
Lefty Jake Miller was the winning pitcher and righty Bobby Nowak (Hanover Central) notched the save in the series finale.
Butler (0-3) lost 6-4, 18-1 and 25-12 at Murray State.
Travis Holt went 4-of-10 and Ryan O’Halloran 3-of-8 for the Bulldogs.
Lefty Cory Bosecker (Evansville Central) struck out six in five innings on the mound.
Evansville (0-3) lost 24-6, 6-4 and 7-0 at No. 10 North Carolina State.
Brent Widder went 4-of-12 (.333) and Ty Rumsey (Evansville North) 3-of-10 (.300) for the Purple Aces.
Lefty Michael Parks fanned four in 2 2/3 innings.
Indiana (0-3) lost 9-0, 19-4 and 5-4 (10 innings) at Clemson.
Bobby Whalen went 6-of-14 (.429) and Brock Tibbitts 3-of-7 (.429) while Tyler Doanes, Matthew Ellis and Phillip Glasser homered for the Hoosiers.
Righty Jack Perkins (Kokomo) whiffed eight in 3 2/3 innings and righty Reese Sharp (University) seven in three.
Purdue Fort Wayne (0-4) lost 13-2, 12-2, 6-5 and 8-7 at Georgia State.
Jack Lang (Hamilton Southeastern) went 5-of-14 (.357) with one homer and six RBIs, Alex Evenson 4-of-12 (.333), Cade Nelis (Noblesville) 3-of-9 (.333) and Garret Lake plated five runs for the Mastodons.
In NCAA Division II, the University of Indianapolis (3-0) downed Notre Dame (Ohio) 5-0, 15-14 and 13-3 at Grand Park in Westfield, Ind.
Drew Donaldson drove in four runs in Game 3 and three in Game 2 (when the Greyhounds scored in every frame but the fourth and fifth). Alex Vela (Indianapolis Cardinal Ritter) scored four runs in Game 2. Brandon DeWitt scored three runs in Game 2 and plated three in Game 3.
Winning pitchers were lefty Xavier Rivas (Portage) in Game 1, righty Wyatt Phillips (Indian Creek) in Game 2 and righty Logan Peterson in Game 3.
Southern Indiana (3-0) won 19-6, 11-4 and 10-8 at Young Harris (Ga.).
Lucas McNew (Borden) knocked in six runs in Game 1 and scored four in Game 2. Adam Wildeman (Evansville Mater Dei) plated three runs and Ethan Hunter (Terre Haute South Vigo) scored four in Game 2. Daniel Lopez scored three times in Game 3 for the Screaming Eagles.
Winning hurlers were righty Tyler Hutson, lefty Blake Ciuffetelli (Castle) and righty Carter Stamm (Jasper).
Purdue Northwest is slated to open the season Friday, Feb. 25 at McKendree (Ill.).
In NCAA Division III, DePauw (2-1) lost 6-3 to North Central (Ill.) then routed Wilimington (Ohio) 16-0 and Blackburn (Ill.) 25-7 in Carbondale, Ill.
Cameron Allen and Brian May drove in three runs each and Allen, Kyle Boyer and Cameron Macon (home run) scored three apiece against Wilmington for the Tigers.
Against Blackburn, Macon plated five, May and Paul Jennewein three each while Allen, May, Macon and Evan Barnes all crossed the plate three times.
Lefty Michael Vallone and righty Will Lucas were winning pitchers.
While Anderson is 1-2, Hanover (Feb. 22 at Centre), Manchester (Feb. 25 vs. North Central at Grand Park), Wabash (Feb. 25 vs. Heidelberg at Grand Park), Earlham (Feb. 26 vs. Olivet), Franklin (Feb. 26 vs. Albion at Indianapolis Bishop Chatard), Trine (Feb. 26 at Asbury) and Rose-Hulman (Feb. 27 vs. Northern Vermont-Lyndon in Auburndale, Fla.) are nearing their season openers.
In the NAIA, No. 7 Indiana University Southeast (5-6) swept three games at Blue Mountain (Miss.) — 7-4, 14-6 and 9-4 — running the Grenadiers’ win streak to five.
In Game 1, Brody Tanksley plated three runs and head coach Ben Reel became the career wins leader at IUS with 478, surpassing Rick Parr. In Game 2, Marco Romero drove in two runs and scored four. In Game 3, Trevor Campbell knocked in three runs.
Taylor (6-5) downed Siena Heights (Mich.) 12-1, 4-0 and 4-3 and lost 9-3 in Hoover, Ala.
Kade Vander Molen (4 RBIs in Game 1), Bloomington South grad Mason David (homer in Game 2 to support righty and Mishawaka graduate Luke Shively) and Greenwood alum T.J. Bass (3 RBIs to back righty and NorthWood grad Matt Dutkowski in Game 3) were among key contributors for the Trojans.
Goshen (3-3) split four games at Toccoa Falls (Ga.), winning 11-7 and 6-3 in Game 1 and 3 and losing 3-0 and 14-3 in Game 2 and 4.
Camm Nickell (Northridge) is 7-of-18 (.389) with four RBIs on the season for the Maple Leafs.
Saint Francis (6-4) won 10-8 and 4-2 before losing 8-7 and 7-5 at Pikeville (Ky.).
David Miller homered and drove in three runs in Game 1. Sam Pesa (Fort Wayne Bishop Dwenger) plated three runs in Game 2.
Indiana University South Bend beat Aquinas (Mich.) 11-7 and lost 15-14 in 10 innings at Grand Park.
Evan Allen (McCutcheon) drove in three runs while Owen Benson and Brenden Bell scored three runs each for the Titans in Game 1. Benson had two RBIs and three runs in Game 2.
Indiana Tech (2-3) beat Midway (Ky.) 5-3 and lost 6-5 to host Georgetown (Ky.).
Jacob Daftari is 7-of-14 (.500 and Manuel Ascanio 8-of-21 (.381) on the season for the Warriors.
Oakland City (5-3) split a doubleheader with Bethel, losing 7-2 and winning 7-6.
Sam Pinckert (Heritage Hills) drove in three runs in the Mighty Oaks’ win.
In the triumph for Bethel (2-8), Alex Stout (Benton Central) socked a three-run homer and wound up with four RBIs.
Marian (6-4) beat Carolina University 11-5 then lost 9-2 to Carolina U., in Winston-Salem, N.C., and 8-4 at No. 5 Tennessee Wesleyan.
Matteo Porcellato collected three hits and scored three runs in the Knights’ win against Carolina.
Righty Damien Wallace (Indianapolis Cardinal Ritter) was the winning pitcher.
Grace (5-7) lost 10-0, 9-5, 2-0 and 12-4 to Saint Xavier (Ill.) in White Pine, Tenn.
Alex Rich (Crown Point) is 17-of-43 (.395) for the Lancers on the season.
Among junior colleges, Nick Kapostasy lofted a walk-off sacrifice fly as Vincennes University (2-3) edged South Suburban (Ill.) 8-7 after beating Marian University’s Ancilla College 15-5.
South Suburban (Ill.) beat MUAC (0-5) by a 17-3 count. All games were played at Vincennes.

INDIANA COLLEGE BASEBALL
Records Through Feb. 20

NCAA D-I
Purdue 4-0
Notre Dame 2-1
Ball State 2-2
Indiana State 2-2
Valparaiso 1-2
Butler 0-3
Evansville 0-3
Indiana 0-3
Purdue Fort Wayne 0-4

NCAA D-II
Indianapolis 3-0
Southern Indiana 3-0
Purdue Northwest 0-0

NCAA D-III
Anderson 1-2
DePauw 0-0
Earlham 0-0
Franklin 0-0
Hanover 0-0
Manchester 0-0
Rose-Hulman 0-0
Trine 0-0
Wabash 0-0

NAIA
Marian 6-4
Saint Francis 6-4
Taylor 6-5
Oakland City 5-3
Indiana University Southeast 5-6
Grace 5-7
Goshen 3-3
Indiana University-Kokomo 3-4
Indiana University South Bend 2-3
Indiana Tech 2-3
Huntington 2-6
Bethel 2-8
Indiana Wesleyan 1-3
Calumet of Saint Joseph 0-0

Junior College
Vincennes 2-3
Marian’s Ancilla 0-5
Ivy Tech Northeast 0-0

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Ball State leads nation in RPI, Strength of Schedule

BY STEVE KRAH

http://www.IndianaRBI.com

Making memories against formidable foes.

That’s one thing Ball State University head baseball coach Rich Maloney considers when putting together the Cardinals schedule.

When the opportunity came to open the season at perennial powerhouse Arizona, Maloney jumped at it.

Kent State had planned to visit the Wildcats, but was not allowed to travel.

Maloney asked Ball State director of athletics Beth Goetz about taking the place of their Mid-American Conference partners.

“We’ve got a veteran team,” says Maloney of his sales pitch to Goetz. “They didn’t get to go last year (because of a pandemic-shortened 2020 season). They’re hungry. We wanted to be able to go somewhere and play.

“I try to schedule really good opponents and get the kids to have the opportunity for experiences that they can remember and go to places they’ll never forget.”

A couple of items sweetened the deal. Arizona offered a guarantee in case the series could not be played because of COVID-19.

Also, one of Maloney’s former players at Michigan — Derek Kerr — is an Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at American Airlines and that just happens to be the carrier the Cards chose to take to Tucson.

“It was totally incidental,” says Maloney. “I called and asked Derek if there was any way he could help Coach out and get an extension in case we got hit with COVID and couldn’t make the trip to Arizona. He promised and that’s what gave Beth Goetz the green light to say it’s OK to schedule the flight.

“Our guys have done a nice job of staying in their bubble the best they can and we’ve been able to make these trips.”

With senior right-handed pitcher John Baker playing a major role, Ball State split four games Feb. 19-22 at Arizona, went 2-1 Feb. 26-27 against Bradley in Normal, Ill., and 2-1 March 5-7 at Kentucky for a 6-4 start to 2021 season.

Baker has made four appearances (three in relief) and is 1-0 with a 1.45 earned run average. Opponents are hitting .127 against him.

“He should have gone to pro ball a long time ago,” says Maloney of Baker. “He has amazing moxie. 

“He’s so underrated. He has the ‘It’ factor.”

Senior left-hander Lukas Jaksich (2-0), junior right-hander Chayce McDermott (1-0), junior Tyler Ruetschle (1-1) and sophomore right-hander Andre Oreselli (1-0) have accounted for the other mound victories.

In Sunday’s 4-3 win at UK, the Cards’ starting batting order featured junior second baseman Noah Navarro, freshman designated hitter Decker Scheffler, senior right fielder Ross Messina, junior first baseman Trenton Quartermaine, senior catcher Chase Sebby, junior left fielder Nick Powell, sophomore third baseman Ryan Peltier, sophomore shortstop Justin Conant and senior center fielder Aaron Simpson.

Those nine represent 521 games (with 465 starts) in their Ball State careers. 

Sebby, the 2019 MAC Defensive Player of the Year, has started 122 of his 130 games while Messina and Simpson have started all 83 times they’ve been in the lineup.

“We’ve got a great bunch,” says Maloney. “It’s a fun team to coach. They’re highly-competitive and they’re experienced.

“They’ve done some pretty incredible things in the first couple of weekends. I’m certainly happy for them. They’ve created some great memories. But we’ve got a long way to go. We can get a lot better than we are.”

Maloney says he is encouraged by the “grit” of his team, which has several players back — right-handed fireballers Drey Jameson and Kyle Nicolas being the notable exceptions — from that went 38-19 overall and 20-5 in the MAC while Central Michigan was having stronger year at 47-14 and 22-5.

“In any other year we would have been a (conference) champion,” says Maloney. 

WarrenNolan.com has Ball State No. 1 in both RPI and Strength of Schedule among NCAA Division I programs. Indiana State is No. 9 and No. 10, Notre Dame No. 20 and No. 35.

Maloney says high-profile wins can only help the Cards.

“Over the years we’ve been good enough to be in the NCAA tournament but because (the MAC) has been a one-team bid we just haven’t been able to get over the top in tournament play.

“The RPI — the power of the league — has held us back.”

When Maloney was head coach at Michigan, the Big Ten had bids for the conference champion and an at-large bid — something not enjoyed by the MAC.

“I talk about it a lot with the other coaches. There’s going when we can get two teams in. I don’t know if this is the year or not. Our conference is winning some games out of conference.

“The Mid-American Conference is at the highest level its been in a long, long time.”

For example: Kent State beat No. 2-ranked Mississippi State Saturday, March 6.

“The difference between David and Goliath isn’t really that big,” say Maloney.

Next up for Ball State is a three-game series March 12-14 at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Va.

The Cardinals is scheduled to open the home portion of their season with a four-game set March 19-21 against MAC foe Western Michigan.