LEADING OFF
>> Washburn baseball will wrap up their 12 game road trip to start the new season at the MIAA/GLVC Crossover in Joplin, Mo., which will now start Friday and end on Monday after the tournament was pushed back one day due to projected freezing temperatures.
>> The Ichabods' first game will be against the only NSIC team in the tournament, St. Cloud State, on Friday, Feb. 14 at 7 p.m.
>> Washburn will also play McKendree (Feb. 15, 4 p.m.) and Maryville (Feb. 16, 10 a.m.).
>> The final game of the tournament will be a non-conference tilt between Washburn and host team Missouri Southern on Monday, Feb. 17 at 4 p.m.
>> The Ichabods are 5-3 after taking three out of four games at the Northwestern Oklahoma State Ranger Roundup last weekend in Alva, Okla.
>> St. Cloud State and McKendree will play their first games of the 2020 season at the tournament, while Maryville is 1-1 and Missouri Southern is 6-1 to start the year.
HITTING FOR HISTORY
>> Senior outfielder Wyatt Featherston hit just the second cycle in Washburn baseball's program history in the 13-3 victory over Truman State on Saturday.
>> He was a perfect 4-4 at the plate and scored four runs with two RBI. He started the day with a double in the third inning, then a single in the fourth, a solo home run in the fifth, and completed the cycle with a triple in the seventh.
>> The first and only other time an Ichabod has hit for the cycle was on May 12, 2000 by Pat Colley against Central Missouri.
HEAD'S UP
>> Senior Jacob Head is 2-0 on the season through 9.1 innings pitched and has allowed only one run with zero earned runs and has tallied nine strikeouts.
>> Against Northwestern Oklahoma, he went five innings and gave up six hits and struck out five.
>> Head moved up into the top-20 of most innings pitched in Washburn program history as he sits in 18th with 157.1 IP and also boasts the 13th-lowest opponent batting average all-time at WU at .265.
WHAT A RELIEF
>> Dalton Huggins has thrown six innings in four relief appearances and has picked up two saves while allowing just one unearned run on four hits and has struck out five.
>> Cole Warner has recorded one save in two appearances across 4.1 innings pitched. He has surrendered two runs (one earned) on four hits while striking out six.
>> Trevor Marreel has also made two appearances out of the bullpen and has thrown three hitless innings with three strikeouts.
A [B]ROCK ON THE MOUND
>> Brock Gilliam had a solid outing against Rockhurst, hurling six innings and allowing two runs on six hits while tying a career-best seven strikeouts.
>> He threw a total of 69 pitches with 51 of those being strikes.
A LITTLE STREAKY
>> Heading into the MIAA/GLVC Challenge, Eric Hinostroza is on a six-game hitting streak.
>> Parker Dunn and Xavier De Leon have reached base in all eight games.
>> Peter Shearer currently has a five-game hitting streak.
EXTRA, EXTRA!
>> The Ichabods have recorded 28 extra base hits so far this season.
>> There have been 16 doubles, four triples, and eight homers.
QUICK STARTS
>> The Ichabods have outscored their opponents 25-9 in the first three innings so far this season.
>> Washburn has also scored 16 runs in the third innings alone.
BODS AND ENDS
>> The Ichabods have recorded 22 of their 47 RBI with two outs.
>> Behind the plate, Kros Bay threw out three runners attempting to steal second base in the second game against Northwestern Oklahoma State.
>> Cole Emerson, Cale Hlavac, and Brett Ingram all landed their first hit of the season last week as pinch hitters.
>> Dunn and Hinostroza both have 12 hits and scored seven runs so far this season.
>> Steven Jacobson is seven hits away from reaching 100 career hits since joining Washburn in 2018.
>> Joe Roecker leads the pitching staff in strikeouts with 14 in eight innings pitched.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
ST. CLOUD STATE
>> The St. Cloud State Huskies finished the 2019 season with a record of 41-17 (26-8 NSIC) and made an appearance in the NCAA Central Region Tournament.
>> Entering the 2020 season, the Huskies are ranked sixth in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association DII Central Region Preseason Poll.
>> The NCBWA also announced its 2020 DII All-Central Region team which included Lenny Walker, who was a second team selection.
>> Last season, Walker batted .315 with 65 hits and 46 RBI.
>> Also returning will be Aaron Hammann, who landed 33 hits and drove in 20 runs.
>> On the mound, Blake Flint looks to continue his success from his junior season when he went 6-2 with 44 strikeouts and finished with a 2.27 ERA.
>> Last season, Shannon Ahren rang up 36 batters in 29.2 IP and recorded a 2.12 earned run average.
HEAD COACH PAT DOLAN
>> Pat Dolan will begin his 13th season as the Huskies' head coach in 2020 with a record of 478-170-1.
>> He has led SCSU to nine NCAA tournament bids since 2010 and was named the NSIC and NCBWA DII National Coach of the Year in 2015.
>> In his collegiate coaching career at four-year universities, he has amassed a record of 678-352-1 over 21 years at SCSU, Dakota State, and Belmont Abbey.
SERIES HISTORY WITH ST. CLOUD STATE
>> These two teams last met in 1971 and Washburn leads the series, 2-1.
SCOUTING MCKENDREE
>> The McKendree Bearcats are looking to improve on their 11-38 record from a year ago.
>> The offense finished with a .240 batting average and hit 34 home runs.
>> Bryce Emery is the top-offensive returner, hitting .329 last season in 41 games with 46 hits, 12 runs scored, and 17 RBI.
>> The Bearcats finished the season with a 6.32 ERA and struck out 308 batters while allowing 373 runs.
>> Jared Timmermann led the team in innings pitched with 61.1 and was third on the team in strikeouts with 31.
HEAD COACH ANDREW STEPP
>> Andrew Stepp will begin his tenure as head coach for the Bearcats in the 2020 season.
>> In 2019, Stepp served as an assistant for McKendree and was the hitting and infield coach.
>> He also spent time on staff at Murray State, Ohio University, and his alma mater, Western Kentucky.
SERIES HISTORY WITH MCKENDREE
>> This will be the first meeting between the two teams.
SCOUTING MARYVILLE
>> Maryville is 1-1 to start the season after splitting games against Union.
>> The Saints were picked sixth in the 2020 GLVC Preseason Poll after going 29-22 last season.
>> One of the top-returners to this year's squad is Dominic Connolly, who was second on the team with a .313 batting average. He also recorded 57 hits, 14 of which were for extra bases.
>> Returning on the mound will be Cody Siebenberger who finished 2019 with a 7-2 record. In 71.0 innings pitched, he allowed 41 runs and struck out 50 while finishing with a 4.69 ERA.
HEAD COACH PAT EVERS
>> Pat Evers is entering his second season leading the Saints.
>> Prior to joining the Maryville staff, he was the head coach at Jefferson College for four years and posted a record of 172-68-1.
>> He also served as an assistant coach at JC and at his alma mater, Central Missouri.
SERIES HISTORY WITH MARYVILLE
>> It's been nearly five decades since these teams have played each other as the last game played was in 1972.
>> Maryville is 4-2 against Washburn.
SCOUTING MISSOURI SOUTHERN
>> The Lions are 6-1 to start 2020 with their one loss coming to Southwestern Oklahoma State by the score of 13-0.
>> They are 4-0 on their home field so far this year.
>> As a team, they are hitting .270 with Tommy Stevenson leading the way at a .350 clip going 7-20 in six games with three extra base hits and seven RBI.
>> Joe Kinder has five hits, two of which have been homers, and nine RBI.
>> Brad Willis and Jordan Fitzpatrick lead the team with nine runs scored each and have combined for seven doubles out of their 13 total hits.
>> The pitching staff currently holds a 3.44 ERA led by 2019 MIAA Pitcher of the Year, Zach Parish.
>> Parish is 2-0 with a 0.69 ERA in 13.0 innings pitched with 19 strikeouts and one earned run.
>> Zac Shoemaker is also 2-0 and has struck out 23 in 13 innings with a 2.77 ERA.
HEAD COACH BRYCE DARNELL
>> Bryce Darnell is in his 13th season with Missouri Southern and holds a record of 359-276.
>> In his time with the Lions, he has coached 86 all-MIAA selections, 15 all-region selections, and nine All-Americans and has earned the honors of being named the MIAA Coach of the Year twice.
>> Darnell started his coaching career at the high school level for eight seasons before being named the head coach at his alma mater, Missouri Southern.
SERIES HISTORY WITH MISSOURI SOUTHERN
>> Missouri Southern holds a 58-37 series advantage and has won eight of the last nine games.
>> In non-conference games against the Lions, Washburn is 6-10.
>> The Ichabods picked up a 10-3 non-conference victory against Missouri Southern in their last meeting.
>> Washburn Head Coach Harley Douglas is 5-14 against Missouri Southern.
TAKE A LOOK AHEAD
>> The Ichabods are set to play their first home games of the season starting Feb. 21 for a four-game series against Regis.
