TOPEKA, Kan. -- Washburn baseball hosts Fort Hays State for three games beginning on Friday at 5 p.m. in Little League Weekend at Falley Field.
LEADING OFF
>> Washburn baseball plays its penultimate home series of the regular season this weekend against Fort Hays State beginning on Friday at 5 p.m.
>> This week's series with FHSU is Little League Weekend at Falley Field.
>> Last time out the Ichabods won 12-7 over Northwest Missouri State on Tuesday afternoon at home to wrap up the season series with the Bearcats.
>> Washburn is now 20-16 overall on the year and 14-10 inside the MIAA. They are 10-5 at Falley Field, 9-11 on the road and 1-0 in neutral field games.
>> The Tigers enter the game with a 21-17 overall record and a 9-15 mark in the MIAA after falling 12-5 to Newman on the road on Tuesday afternoon.
>> The Ichabods are coming off a second straight 30-win season in 2023 where they went 30-22 (21-12 MIAA) and finished tied for third in the MIAA Regular Season.
>> Washburn leaves the MIAA to take on Rockhurst in Kansas City on April 16 at 6 p.m.
>> In the 2024 MIAA Coaches Preseason Poll, the Ichabods were picked fourth after finishing tied for third in the 2023 regular season.
>> Washburn's roster consists of 26 returners from a season ago along with 25 newcomers broken down between 15 transfers and 10 true freshmen.
NUMBERS TO KNOW
>> Through 35 games Washburn is scoring 9.56 runs per game while allowing 7.69.
>> The Ichabods are 10-5 at Falley Field, 9-11 in road contests and 1-0 in neutral field games.
>> At the plate the Ichabods are hitting .328 with a .424 OB% and are slugging .592 as a team. They have 74 home runs and have drawn 185 walks.
>> Washburn's pitching staff has an ERA of 7.45 this season in 306.2 IP. They have struck out 269 batters while allowing 342 hits and issuing 200 walks.
>> The Ichabods have a .966 fielding percentage with 44 errors on the year and have turned 27 double plays.
>> On the basepaths Washburn has stolen 43 bases on 56 attempts while opponents have 42 stolen bases and have been thrown out 12 times.
>> The Ichabod hitters have collected 762 total bases while opponents are at 609 this year.
>> Washburn is starting and finishing games strong, outscoring opponents 54-20 in the first inning and 27-18 in the ninth. In extras they also have a 4-2 run edge.
STACKING THE STATS
>> The Ichabods are second in the nation in home runs per game with an average of 2.06 balls leaving the yard each game on the year.
>> In overall long balls the Ichabods are second in the nation with 74 blasts.
>> The Ichabods are tied for 4th in the nation and are first in the conference in doubles with 96 hits going for two bases on the year.
>> Washburn is 9th in the nation in hits on the year with 422 total knocks, second most in the conference.
>> The Ichabods are 3rd in the nation and second in the conference with a .592 SLG% on the year.
>> Scoring 9.6 runs per game WU is 11th in the nation and second in the MIAA in that department.
>> With a batting average of .328 as a team Washburn is 22nd in the nation and second in the MIAA at racking up hits.
>> Washburn is fifth in the MIAA and 48th in the nation turning 27 double plays on the year.
>> The Ichabod fielders are 80th in the nation and sixth in the conference with a .966 fielding percentage on the year.
AROUND THE ORDER
>> Payton McHarg has started and played in all 36 games for the Ichabods hitting .362 with a 1.296 OPS and a team-high 18 home runs and 47 RBI. He has scored 50 runs and has 51 total hits. He leads the nation in home runs, is second on total bases, ninth in slugging and 26th in RBI.
>> Cash Jay leads the team hitting .382 in 34 games played with 33 starts. He has the second highest OPS at 1.244 with a team-high 17 doubles. He also has 12 home runs and has driven in 46. He is fourth in the nation in doubles, 23rd in home runs, 30th in slugging and ranks inside the top-10 of the conference in all three categories.
>> Jett Buck is hitting third on the team at .359 in 33 appearances and 32 starts this season. He has 47 hits, 11 doubles, a triple, 10 home runs and five stolen bases. He is 8th in the conference in home runs, 11th in doubles and 12th in slugging.
>> Connor Scott is hitting .339 on the year in 34 games played with 31 starts. He has a .915 OPS and a team-high 13 stolen bases to pair with three home runs. He is second in the conference in sacrifice bunts and 11th in stolen bases.
>> Cale Savage has the third highest OPS on the squad at 1.072 with 45 hits and nine home runs while starting in all 36 games this season. He leads the team drawing 34 walks on the year. He is 14th in the nation and 3rd in the MIAA in walks and is 11th in the conference in home runs.
>> Hayden Priest has started in 33 of the 34 games he has appeared in and is hitting .325 on the year with a .959 OPS. He has 41 hits driving in 44 runs and has only struck out 15 times in 126 at bats.
>> Cal Watkins has played in 29 games and made 25 starts hitting .303 with 18 RBI, 10 doubles and three home runs.
>> Blake Scott has made 11 starts and played in 23 games this season hitting .349 with a 1.098 OPS and a pair of home runs.
>> Easton Bruce has played in 17 games and started 16 while hitting .314 on the year with one home run and nine RBI from the outfield.
ON THE MOUND
>> Seventeen players have taken the mound this season for Washburn.
>> Cooper Carlgren leads the Ichabods with 46.0 innings across ten starts this season. He has a 6.46 ERA and a 3-2 record along with a team-high 48 strikeouts. Hitters have only a .244 batting average against him. He is 8th in the MIAA in strikeouts.
>> Caden Bressler has thrown 36.1 innings in 11 outings this season, with five starts and six bullpen calls. He has a 4.46 ERA, lowest among starting pitchers, a 3-2 record and 19 strikeouts with 31 hits allowed. He leads the team with a pair of saves and is 4th in the MIAA in hits allowed per nine innings.
>> Griffin Huiatt is second on the Ichabods throwing 44.0 innings this season in 12 appearances with six starts for a 6.95 ERA. He has a 1-3 record and is second on the team with 44 strikeouts. He is 10th in the MIAA in strikeouts per nine innings.
>> Chase Torkelson has thrown 42.2 innings across ten starts this season with a 4-0 record for the most wins on the squad. He has a 7.38 ERA, has struck out 31 batters and walked 25 hitters.
>> Charlie Kiefer is 3-1 this season throwing in 12 games total with one start. He has a 5.66 ERA in 20.2 innings of work. He has struck out 11 batters.
>> Fidel Hatch has thrown in 11 games this season making one start with a 7.61 ERA. In 23.2 innings he has struck out 21 while giving up 26 hits.
>> Cole Warner has thrown 11.2 innings in nine appearances out of the bullpen with a 7.71 ERA and a 1-0 record. He has struck out 13 on the year .
>> Max Clark has eight appearances and made two starts throwing 10.1 total innings with a 6.97 ERA. He has an 0-1 record and has struck out nine batters.
>> Sam Wragge is 1-0 on the year with a 4.91 ERA across 7.1 innings in eight appearances.
>> Grant Zwald has made five appearances in relief this season and has a team-low 3.75 ERA with 15 strikeouts, 12 walks and a save.
IN THE FIELD
>> Jett Buck leads the team with 75 assists, Cal Watkins is second with 65 and Cash Jay rounds out the infield with 52.
>> Excluding first basemen and catchers, Connor Scott leads the team with 83 putouts, Payton McHarg has 55.
>> Hayden Priest has thrown out eight baserunners from behind the plate.
HEAD COACH HARLEY DOUGLAS
>> Former Washburn All-MIAA outfielder Harley Douglas enters his 10th season at the helm of the Washburn baseball program in 2024.
>> In nine plus seasons, Douglas carries an all-time record of 244-212 with five appearances in the MIAA Tournament and led the program to its first-ever NCAA Tournament in 2022.
>> He has also coached a total of 54 all-MIAA selections, including the MIAA Player and Pitcher of the Year in 2016.
>> Prior to returning to his alma mater in 2012 he was the head coach at St. Marys HS from 2003-06 and at Rossville HS from 2007-10.
>> Douglas is a two-time Washburn graduate, receiving his Exercise Physiology degree in 2002 before earning an Education degree in 2004. He also earned a Master's Degree in Adaptive Special Education from Emporia State in 2010.
ASSISTANT COACHES
>> Connor Crimmins is in his sixth season with the Ichabods after spending the prior two seasons on Brad Hill's Kansas State staff serving as a graduate assistant
>> While at Washburn, Crimmins played both football and baseball, finishing his career on the diamond top 10 in sacrifice flies (4th/11), doubles (6th/38) and RBI (t-7th/132), while having the 12th-most at-bats (575).
>> He graduated from Washburn in 2016 with his bachelor's and earned his master's in college student development and counseling from K-State.
>> Rane Pfeifer joins the Ichabod coaching staff in 2024 after wrapping up a three-year career with Washburn in 2023
>> He finished his career second all-time in opponent batting average (.218), third in games started (36), fourth in strikeouts (210) and 19th in innings pitched (165.2)
>> Pfeifer graduated from Washburn with a bachelor's degree in business management in May 2022
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
FORT HAYS STATE TIGERS
>> The Tigers are 21-17 on the year overall and are 9-15 in the MIAA after falling 12-5 to Newman on the road in a midweek game on Tuesday.
>> They have gone 6-9 in true road games away from Hays.
>> A season ago they went 20-30 overall with a 10-23 record inside of the MIAA, missing out on the conference tournament.
>> Fort Hays State's offense is hitting .269 on the year with a .383 OB%, 450 SLG% and 41 home runs.
>> Brady Kreutzer leads the team hitting .342 across 38 starts with a 1.124 OPS and 11 home runs with 39 RBI. He is also 8-8 in stolen base chances this season.
>> Elliott Herrmann is slashing .331 on the year and is tied for the team lead with 11 home runs while driving in a team-best 42. He has started all 38 games as well.
>> On the mound, Fort Hays State's staff has a 5.87 ERA in 308.0 innings with 290 strikeouts and 161 walks issued.
>> Ty Riley has a team-low 3.03 ERA across 11 appearances with five starts throwing 44.2 innings. He has a 3-2 record and has struck out 48 batters while walking 18.
>> Cade Flaherty leads the Tigers with 51 innings pitched across 11 appearances while making 10 starts. He is 2-5 with a 4.76 ERA and has struck out 41 hitters while allowing 62 hits.
HEAD COACH JUSTIN WICHERT
>> Is in his 2nd season at the helm of the Fort Hays State baseball program
>> led the Tigers to their first 20-win season in seven years in 2023
>> comes to Hays after a four-season stint as head coach at Trinidad State College in Trinidad, Colo.
>> Before starting his head coaching career at TSC, Wichert served as assistant coach at three different institutions - University of Arkansas-Fort Smith, Pittsburg State University and Northeastern Oklahoma A&M.
SERIES HISTORY
>> This weekend's series will be games 186-188 all-time between Fort Hays State and Washburn with the Tigers leading the series 101-88.
>> The first game between the two programs came on May 5, 1966 and was a 7-3 win for the Ichabods in Omaha.
>> The Ichabods are 42-43 against Fort Hays State at Falley Field.
>> Washburn swept the three game series between the two teams last season winning 13-7, 9-2 and 4-1. They have won the last six matchups in the series.
MILESTONE MARKERS
>> Cale Savage is three home runs away from 30 in his career, he is currently fifth in program history in home runs hit, 12th in walks and 17th in RBI.
>> Cal Watkins is fifth in program history in doubles with 41 and is 14th in program history in total hits with 173.
>> Payton McHarg is tied for 4th in program history for the most home runs in a season and 5th in single season slugging percentage.
>> Connor Scott is one RBI from 50 runs batted in at Washburn.
WASHBURN BASEBALL HISTORY
>> The 2024 season will be the 72nd year of Washburn Baseball.
>> The Ichabods have gone 1347-1283-3 in that time.
>> There has been 33 seasons with 20+ wins; 23 seasons with 25+ wins; and 12 seasons with 30+ wins.
>> Washburn has earned 25 All-Region selections and nine All-America awards.
ON DECK
>> Washburn takes a break from conference play for a midweek game with Rockhurst on the road on Tuesday, April 16 at 6 p.m.
>> Senior day for the Ichabods will be on Sunday, April 21 against Central Oklahoma.
>> The MIAA Tournament first round will begin on campus sites on Friday, May 3 and run until May 5 if needed.
