TOPEKA, Kan. -- After a series winning sweep at Newman last weekend, Washburn baseball stays on the road for a three-game set at Northeastern State this Saturday-Monday.
LEADING OFF
>> The series start has been pushed back one day due to winter weather forecasted for the Tahlequah area on Friday.
>> Saturday and Sunday are both slated for a first pitch at 2 p.m.
>> The series finale is set for Monday at noon.
>> The Ichabods will have a short turnaround as they are set to host Northwest Missouri for a single game on Tuesday, March 15 at 4 p.m.
>> Washburn (15-4, 6-0 MIAA) captured its second-straight sweep of the season as the Ichabods took all three games at Newman.
>> The RiverHawks are coming off three losses at No. 22 Central Missouri and are now 13-6 (3-3 MIAA) on the year.
>> WU is one of two MIAA teams undefeated in conference play as Central Missouri also holds a 6-0 mark.
>> The Ichabods have now won 14 of their last 15 games and are on an eight-game winning streak.
>> WU has had two other eight-game winning streaks in head coach Harley Douglas' tenure, in 2015 and 2016.
>> In Douglas' first season as head coach, the Ichabods won the first 14 games of 2015.
>> In the most recent Collegiate Baseball Newspaper DII rankings, Washburn checked in at No. 30 on the list.
>> NSU won two out of three against WU last year in Topeka.
>> Last season, Washburn won seven of the 11 conference series and had one sweep to close out the regular season.
>> This is the 70th season in Washburn baseball history.
MIAA HITTER OF THE WEEK - AGAIN
>> Senior outfielder Parker Dunn earned his second MIAA Hitter of the Week honors.
>> In five games last week, he finished with a scorching .458 batting average, 11 hits, 10 RBI, and eight runs scored while slugging .875.
>> In the three game series at Newman, he hit .563 with a 1.188 slugging percentage.
>> In game one, Dunn cranked out three home runs to become just the second Ichabod since 1999 to hit three home runs in a single game.
WASHBURN'S LAST TIME OUT
>> The Ichabods added to their winning streak with three victories at Newman last week.
>> Washburn hit .383 in the series and outscored the Jets, 43-30.
>> WU's pitching staff notched 36 strikeouts to NU's 16.
>> The Ichabods took game one, 13-6, and scored in every inning except the fifth.
>> WU clinched the series after winning the 22-19 shootout in game two.
>> After trailing 4-0 after two innings, Washburn cut the deficit in half in the third inning and then took a 6-4 lead with four runs in the fifth. The Ichabods went on to win, 8-5.
BY THE NUMBERS
>> The Ichabods have scored in the first inning in five of the last six games and are 11-1 when scoring in the opening frame.
>> In the fourth and fifth innings, Washburn has outscored its opponents a combined 41-12.
>> The Ichabods' biggest inning so far this year has been the eighth where they've put up 30 total runs.
>> When scoring six or more runs, Washburn is 12-0.
>> The Ichabods have had seven double-figure run games this season.
DOUBLE(S) UP
>> The Ichabods have hit 51 doubles so far this season, which ranks leads the MIAA and is fourth in Division II.
>> Connor Scott is second among MIAA players with nine doubles. He is also tied for eighth nationally.
>> The Ichabods have hit at least one double in 18 of the 19 games played.
>> WU has had three games with five doubles as well as three with four doubles.
>> Twelve different Ichabods have had a two-base hit.
QUICK HITS
>> In 13 games played with 12 starts, Easton Bruce leads the team with a .442 batting average and has landed 23 hits and scored 16 runs.
>> He was 9-16 at Newman with a pair of doubles and seven runs scored.
>> Dunn also had nine hits against the Jets and leads the team in hits (26), home runs (seven), RBI (26), and is second on the team in runs scored (19) and doubles (six).
>> He is also on an 18-game streak of reaching base as well as a 13 game hitting streak.
>> Zion Bowlin holds a .324 average with 22 hits, 16 runs scored, and 14 RBI.
>> Brett Ingram is batting .312 on the season with 24 hits. In game two at Newman, he hit his fourth home run of the year and added a double to finish the day with five RBI and three runs scored.
>> In addition to leading the squad in doubles, Connor Scott leads the team with nine multi-hit games. He's batting .308 and is tied for second in the MIAA and fifth in DII with four sacrifice flies.
>> Cal Watkins leads the league and is 12th in the nation with six sacrifice bunts. He has landed 22 hits with eight extra base hits, including a pair of triples.
>> In five games, Quinn Waterbury has recorded five hits, five runs, and six RBI. He hit his first home run as an Ichabod in the first game against the Jets.
FOR STARTERS
>> The Washburn pitching staff leads the league in strikeouts with 226 and are also second with a 4.39 ERA.
>> Rane Pfeifer received a no-decision in his most recent start against the Jets.
>> On the season, Pfeifer has a 2-1 record in five starts and has struck out 32 in 20.0 innings. He has struck out six or more batters in each of his last four starts.
>> In the following game against NU, Casey Steward also received a no-decision although he did strikeout a career-high 10 batters.
>> Steward is second on the team in innings pitched after logging 23.0 in five starts and he has a 4.70 ERA and 30 strikeouts.
>> Jack Brimacombe earned his first win in a Washburn uniform in the series finale, going five innings and allowing five runs, four earned, on eight hits and one walk. He also struck out five.
>> After four starts, he is 1-1 in 23.1 innings pitched and has struck out 24 batters.
WHAT A RELIEF
>> Dalton Huggins leads the MIAA in seven catgories, including earned run average with a miniscule 0.89 ERA as well as opposing batting average at .132.
>> He leads the Ichabods with 33 strikeouts, which ranks fourth in the conference, in 20.1 innings of work. He is No. 1 in the league in the lowest runs allowed (two), hits (nine), walks (one), and doubles (one).
>> Huggins improved to 2-0 after picking up the win against Newman in the series opener. He also has one save on the year.
>> John Cross and Austin Gerety have not allowed an earned run after four and six appearances, respectively.
>> Cross worked a scoreless inning in game one at Newman and has surrendered just one hit while striking out 11 this season.
>> Jake Schroeder pitched a clean ninth inning in the first game and recorded a pair of strike outs. In five innings this season, he has notched 12 strikeouts.
>> Gerety received the win in game two after a scoreless 1.1 innings. He is 2-0 with eight strikeouts and just two hits allowed.
>> Trevor Marreel got the final two outs in the second game to pick up the save.
>> Charlie Kiefer (2-1) earned his first save of the season as he tossed four scoreless innings with one hit, two walks, and four strikeouts in game three.
>> He has a 3.14 ERA in five appearances with 15 strikeouts in 14.1 innings.
HEAD COACH HARLEY DOUGLAS
>> Former Washburn All-MIAA outfielder Harley Douglas enters his eighth season at the helm of the Washburn baseball program in 2022.
>> In seven seasons, Douglas carries an all-time record of 161-152 with three appearances in the MIAA Tournament.
>> He has also coached a total of 39 all-MIAA selections, including one MIAA Player and Pitcher of the Year.
SCOUTING NORTHEASTERN STATE
>> After finishing second in the league standings last year with a conference mark of 23-10, Northeastern State was selected third in the 2022 preseason poll and earned one first-place vote.
>> They are currently 13-6 (3-3 MIAA) with four of those being run-rule victories.
>> NSU's offense leads the MIAA with a .333 batting average.
>> Brock Reller, who was named the National Player of the Week earlier this season, leads the team and ranks in the MIAA top-10 with 29 RBI (first in MIAA), 25 runs scored (second in MIAA), eight home runs (fourth in MIAA), five triples (first in MIAA), 12 walks (ninth in MIAA), and is hitting .365 with an .892 slugging percentage (third in MIAA).
>> Blake Freeman has also started all 19 games and leads the team with a .434 average (fifth in MIAA) and is tied with teammate C.D. White for second in the league with 33 hits.
>> The RiverHawks' are third in the MIAA in ERA at 4.83.
>> Seth Key was named the MIAA Pitcher of the Week two weeks ago and is 4-1 in five starts with a 2.79 ERA and a team-high 22 strikeouts in 29 innings pitched.
>> Jonathan Smithey is second in the conference with a 1.69 ERA and holds opponents to a .158 batting average. In four starts, he's 2-1 and has tossed 21.1 innings and struck out 14.
HEAD COACH JAKE HENDRICK
>> Jake Hendrick is in his seventh season leading the RiverHawks and compiled a record of 124-137 heading into this year.
>> In conference games, he is 89-93 and has guided the team to three MIAA Tournament appearances.
>> Prior to becoming NSU's head coach, he served as an assistant coach at the JuCo and high school levels.
SERIES HISTORY WITH NORTHEASTERN STATE
>> These two program have played each other 28 times since 1989 with the RiverHawks leading the all-time series, 16-12.
>> The RiverHawks took the series last year at Falley Field, winning two out of three.
>> Dunn had a double in each of the three games against the RiverHawks last season and finished the series 5-11 and three RBI.
>> Coach Douglas is 8-7 against Northeastern State.
MIAA PRESEASON POLL
>> For the second-consecutive season, the Ichabods were picked sixth in the MIAA Baseball Coaches Preseason Poll.
>> Central Missouri was voted the favorite earning 10 first-place votes and totalling 120 points.
>> Pittsburg State racked up 103 points and one first-place votes and Northeastern State received the final first-place vote and was tabbed third with 94 points.
>> Central Oklahoma (92 points) and Missouri Southern (86 points) rounded out the top-five.
PRO BOD
>> There have been five Washburn players since 1965 that played for a Major League Baseball team and eight total players have signed a professional contract.
>> At the conclusion of his collegiate career, Brock Gilliam was signed by the Kansas City Monarchs on July 23, 2021.
>> He appeared in 13 games making one start and finished with a 3-1 record in 22.2 innings pitched with 21 strikeouts.
>> He helped the Monarchs to the American Association championship title.
TAKE A LOOK AHEAD
>> The Ichabods host Northwest Missouri for a single game on Tuesday, March 15 at 4 p.m. before returning to the road for three games at Missouri Southern, March 18-20.
