By Austin Walther
for D3baseball.com
| UW-Whitewater's Lake Bachar is one of Baseball America's College Top 100 Draft Prospects. d3photography photo by Ryan Coleman |
Three teams in the Midwest region enter 2016 nationally ranked and they all believe they have the potential to make it to Appleton. After getting knocked out in the first round of the WIAC tourney, UW-La Crosse went on to win in the Regionals and make it all the way to the World Series.
Two other teams will be atop of the region once again. UW-Whitewater hasn’t missed the playoffs since 2007 and UW-Stevens Point has been there for the past three years. UW-Oshkosh hasn’t made the playoffs since 2008, but they return a lot of talent from a team that defeated UW-La Crosse in the conference tournament.
Concordia-Chicago looks to be headed to the top of the NACC once again after making four consecutive playoff appearances. Marian will challenge the Cougars in the conference, winning a share of the NACC in 2015. Concordia (Wisc.) will also be in the mix after posting two consecutive 20 or more win seasons. Bethel looks to represent the MIAC as they won the regular season title in 2015, but fell to St. Thomas and eventual champions Saint John’s in the tournament. St. Scholastica will once again be the favorite to win the UMAC as they return a very talented team from a year ago. At the end, we look for UW-Whitewater, led by a strong pitching staff to win the Midwest.
New Faces
Mike Stawski, Concordia-Chicago: Stawski has been the head assistant coach and pitching coach since July 2013 and was elevated to head coach this summer. Stawski pitched three season at Division II St. Joseph’s College and posted a career ERA of 3.40 in 196 innings. He earned his coaching debut with Webster where he served as the pitching coach from 2007 to 2009. He was then hired as the head baseball coach at Spalding and coached from 2010 to 2012. In his first two season with the Golden Eagles, Stawski increased the schools win total by 11 and 10 respectively.
| Adam Smith moved from Concordia-Chicago to Beneditine when John Ostrowski retired after 43 years with the Eagles. UW-Stevens Point athletics photo |
Jeremy Jirschele, UW-Stevens Point: Jirschele replaces Pat Bloom as the Pointers 14th head coach in program history. He played four years at UW-Oshkosh where he was named the WIAC Position Player of the Year twice (2004, 2005) and was a two-time First Team All-American. A member of D3baseball.com’s All-Decade team for the 2000s, Jirschele was drafted in the 30th round of the 2005 MLB draft by the Kansas City Royals and played professionally for three years. Jirschele coached Wausau West high school for three seasons prior to becoming an assistant at UWSP. During his time on the coaching staff, the Pointers have posted a 133-53 record.
Adam Smith, Benedictine: Smith made a move inside the NACC by going from Concordia-Chicago to Benedictine, replacing long time head coach John Ostrowski who was with the program for 43 years. Smith brings a great pedigree with him as he led Concordia-Chicago to four NACC conference championships. He has won nearly 200 games, advancing the Cougars to four consecutive NCAA Regionals and peaked at a number three national ranking in the 2014 D3baseball.com poll for two weeks. Smith played collegiate ball at Carthage and competed in the World Series in 1995 and 1997. He spent seven years as the assistant for the Red Men.
Conference Previews
Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference: Bethel continues to take a new step in the MIAC each year since head coach Brian Raabe took over five years ago. The Royals won the program’s first regular season title in 2015, but failed to win the tournament. The teams from last years MIAA Conference Championship game, Saint John’s and St. Thomas round out the top three.
| Tyler Heitmann had a breakout year in 2015 going 9-1 after compiling a 4-4 record as an underclassman. Bethel athletics photo |
Bethal’s Raabe is one win away from 100 career wins and this is the most talent and potential he has ever seen at the school. The pitching staff will feature a 2015 All-Region pitcher Tyler Heitmann who finished with a 9-1 record and a 3.05 ERA. Heitmann has a fastball that ranges from 88-91 MPH and is on professional scout’s radars. The offense also has two 2015 All-Region players. Outfielder Bryce Marquardt led the team in hitting with a .412 average and 12 stolen bases. Second baseman Jarad Watts hit .404 with a team high 141 at bats. Shortstop Esteban Velasco was MIAC Freshman of the Year.
The St. John's (Minn.) Johnnies tied with Concordia-Moorhead for second place in conference, but won the tournament to advance to its second playoff appearance in four years. Field general and starting shortstop Logan Hershey was an All-MIAC hitter a year ago as he hit .383 with five home runs and 39 RBI’s. Two other All-MIAC hitters were catcher Gabe McDonald, who also hit five home runs with a batting average of .343, and third baseman Derek Schiebel, batted at a .365 clip with 16 doubles.
The Tommies are returning four key players who they lost to injury last season as they finished fourth in the regular season. St. Thomas is returning two strong arms on the pitching staff. Eric Veglahn is an All-MIAC pitcher who finished 2015 with a 5-1 record, 3.08 ERA and 62 strikeouts in 61.1 innings. All-MIAC relief pitcher Bill Ferderer posted a 1.42 ERA and 4 saves in 31.2 innings out of the bullpen.
2015 D3baseball.com preseason All-American catcher/outfielder Hayden Tsutsui returns for Carleton with a lifetime .428 hitter with 19 home runs and 112 RBI’s. Concordia-Moorhead returns All-MIAC outfielder Aaron Green who hit a .367 with 10 home runs and 46 RBI’s. St. Mary’s (Minn.) returns 2015 D3baseball.com third team All-American and Capital One Academic All-American third baseman Ben Buerkle.
| Cody Caballero was 6-1 in 10 appearances with a 3.05 ERA over 56 innings in his sophomore year. Concordia-Chicago athletics photo |
Northern Athletic Collegiate Conference: In the last two years, Concordia-Chicago has led the NACC with 17 wins in conference. In 2015, Marian also won 17, earning themselves a share of the conference. The Cougars enter 2016 as the 18th ranked team in the country and a favorite to win the conference.
The Cougars are returning 27 starters from a year ago including NACC Pitcher of the Year, Cody Caballero. This is the most talent Concordia-Chicago has seen return in a while. Joining the returning players is shortstop Andrew Massey, a transfer from Tennessee-Martin who is capable of hitting to all sides of the field and is an effortless defender. Eric Palmer will help out in the pitching rotation. Palmer, a right handed pitcher, throws 88-91 MPH and has the possibility to pitch at the next level.
Marian will once again be nipping at the heels of the Cougars. They return eight of nine starting position players from an offense that was second in runs scored a year ago. Edgewood also feels like they will be in the mix as they finished third in 2015. The Eagles Andrew Lauritzen is a lifetime .339 career hitter and is moving from shortstop to outfield with hopes he recovers from a down 2015 season. Concordia (Wisc.) returns pitcher Carter Buuck, outfielder Michael Szeszol and outfielder Nathan Thyssen who all made the NACC All-Freshman team a year ago.
Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference: The WIAC will once again be the top conference in the region. Three teams begin the season ranked in the top-25 including 2015 World Series runner-up UW-La Crosse. UW-Whitewater and UW-Stevens Point join them as they have both made the playoffs eight out of the last nine years.
| A second place finish in 2015 is all Taylor Kohlwey and the UW-La Crosse Eagles need as motivation in 2016. d3photography photo by Ryan Coleman |
The UW-Whitewater Warhawks offense will be led by All-WIAC third baseman Steve Chamberlain who led the team in batting with a .389 average. Daytona Bryden will again be a threat on the base paths as he led the team in stolen bases with 20 a year ago. As their offense will be young, Whitewater returns plenty of experience in the pitching staff with five starters and five relievers. They are led by All-WIAC selection Lake Bachar who dominated the Northwoods League and is able to mix up four different pitches.
The UW-La Crosse Eagles return four out of their top six hitters from a year ago. 2015 D3baseball.com All-Americans Taylor Kohlwey led the team in hitting with a .413 average and Justin Anderson was tops with seven home runs. Shortstop Alex Cordova and catcher/third baseman Ben Morgan, both All-WIAC honorees, also return. The pitching staff will be led by All-WIAC selection Caleb Boushley. Despite losing its top closer, the bullpen will feature two pitchers who combined for 49 innings in 2015.
The Pointers of UW-Stevens Point return eight bats from a year ago including the 2015 WIAC Position Player of the Year and D3baseball All-American outfielder Cody Hanke (.366, 12 HR, 56 HBI). Joining Hanke is infielder Ray Greco who hit .338 a year ago. Cole Erickson and Mark Kowalke will lead the pitching staff who both posted sub 3.00 ERA’s with 102.2 total innings combined. Heinrich Walder (4 saves) is expected to be the top closer in the bullpen.
UW-Oshkosh will be looking to make the WIAC a four team race. The Titans return 20 players including eight starting fielders and eight players from the pitching staff. All-WIAC outfielder Johnny Eagan hit a .382 in team high 178 at bats and first baseman Andy Brahier hit a .384 and led the team with 44 RBI’s. All-WIAC pitcher Peter Jewell will lead the pitching rotation as he posted a 2.72 ERA and 41 strikeouts in 72.2 innings.
| Trevor Bernsdorf is only the second CSS baseball player to earn Capital One Academic All-District accolades. St. Scholastica photo by Derek Montgomery |
Upper Midwest Athletic Conference: The UMAC has been dominated by St. Scholastica and 2015 was no different as the Saints swept every conference award in 2015 for the first time since 2006. Head coach Corey Kemp was the UMAC’s coach of the year and he won his 200th career game during the conference tournament. Outfielder Trevor Bernsdorf, D3baseball.com Midwest Rookie of the Year, was named the UMAC’s Player of the Year as he hit .398, 14 doubles and 50 RBI’s. Daniel Wood was the UMAC’s pitcher of the year as he went 9-1 with a 1.56 ERA in 69.1 innings. Shortstop Steven Neutzling was Rookie of the Year in conference after hitting .398 and recording 13 multi-RBI games.
After finishing in the top three in the UMAC the past three years, Northwestern (Minn.) is looking at making a push towards the top. The Eagles are very optimistic and passionate about the upcoming season. They return senior outfielder Tyler Osborn who was a 2015 National Christian College First Team All-American as he led the team in all offensive statistics including a .368 batting average, four home runs and 41 RBI’s.