INDIANA STATE VS. No. 1 VANDERBILT
Charlotte Sports Complex, Port Charlotte, Fla.
Feb. 20-22, 2015, 5:00, 1:00, 1:00 (ET)
Setting the Stage
The Indiana State baseball team will travel to Port Charlotte, Fla. to take on the defending National Champion, and current No. 1 Vanderbilt in a three game series set to begin Friday, Feb. 20th. The Sycamores and the Commodores enter the series with matching 2-1 records. After winter weather cancelled the Elon University tournament, the Sycamores and Commodores agreed on a three game series.
Weekend Schedule - Vanderbilt University at Port Charlotte, Fla.
Friday: Vanderbilt, 5:00 p.m. (ET)
Saturday: vs. Vanderbilt 1:00 p.m. (ET)
Sunday: vs. Vanderbilt, 1:00 p.m. (ET)
Probable Pitching Rotation
David Stagg - LHP (0-0, 9.82 ERA, 7 K's)
Jeff Degano - LHP (1-0, 6.35 ERA, 7 K's)
Greg Kuhlman - LHP (0-1), 9.00 ERA, 3 K's)
Schedule Change
Due to inclement weather, the Elon University Tournament originally scheduled for this weekend was cancelled. Vanderbilt also cancelled a three game series with UIC because of an ice storm that went through Nashville earlier in the week. The Sycamores and the Commodores will face off in Port Charlotte, Fla. at the same site as the Snowbird Baseball Classic in 2014. When at the Classic, the Sycamores faced Auburn, UConn and Ohio State, going 3-1 on the weekend.
Scouting the Commodores
Vanderbilt enters the weekend as the No. 1 ranked team in the country in the USA Today Coaches' Poll, Baseball America and D1baseball.com rankings. The Commodores are the defending National Champions after going 51-21 and defeating the University of Virginia in the College World Series. The Commodores have three players that were named to Baseball America's preseason All-American First-Team. Right-handed pitchers Walker Buehler, and Carson Fulmer, along with infielder Dansby Swanson picked up the honors. Swanson earned postseason All-American honors after he led the nation in doubles and earned the Most Outstanding Player award at the College World Series. Fulmer earned the recognition after making the move to a starting pitching role. In his first 29.2 innings as a starter, he didn't allow a run, and the Commodores won all three of his starts in Omaha. Buehler led the Vanderbilt pitching staff with 12 wins and recorded 111 strikeouts. Early in 2015, VU posts a 2-1 record after a three game series with Santa Clara Feb. 13-14 in Nashville. Santa Clara proved to be a tough out against the Commodres on the second day, taking game one of a double header 7-6, and went into extra innings with the defending National Champions before falling 6-5 in ten innings.
A Little History
The Sycamores and the Commodores have faced off on the diamond a total of four times, with the series tied at two games each. The last meeting was in 2014, when the Sycamores suffered a 6-2 loss to then #7 ranked Vanderbilt. The matchup with the #1 team in the country is the highest an opponent has been ranked since the Sycamores played #2 Mississippi in 2008 in Oxford, Miss.
Series History
Mar. 12, 1987 at Vanderbilt, W, 10-7 Mar. 28, 1990 at Vanderbilt, W, 13-8
Mar. 9, 1992 at Vanderbilt, L, 1-3 Apr. 8, 2014 at Vanderbilt, L, 6-2
Early Season Recognition
The Sycamores placed four players on the Warhawk Classic All-Classic team during the weekend of Feb. 13-15 at the Warhawk Classic hosted by UL-Monroe. Position players Derek Hannahs, Kaden Moore and Andy Young earned a spot, along with pitcher Michael Eberle. ISU went 2-1 in game in Louisiana, placing second at the Classic.
Power Surge
In the first three games of the season, three different Sycamores hit home runs. In 2014, ISU hit 14 team home runs in their 53 games. Jacob Hayes hit his fifth career home run against Grambling State. Hunter Owen hit the first of his career on the first pitch he saw of 2015 against Central Arkansas, Tony Rosselli also went yard against UCA, his second career homer.
Brothers in Arms
Redshirt juniors, Jeff Degano and Greg Kuhlman made their first appearances since 2013 Opening Weekend. Both are coming off of arm injuries which didn't allow them to appear on the diamond for ISU in 2014. Kuhlman, prior to 2015, had a 3-3 career record and a 5.38 ERA after appearing in 27 games and making five starts. Degano, a transfer from Marshalltown CC, started in three games in 2013, posting an 0-1 record in 8.2 innings pitched. The pair of southpaws started Saturday and Sunday of Opening Weekend. The Sycamores featured an all-lefty rotation in the first weekend of the year at the Warhawk Classic in Monroe, La with senior David Stagg getting the ball on Friday night.
The First Hurdle
The Sycamores suffered a 0-4 loss to Auburn in the opening game of the 2014 season. In the last ten seasons, ISU is a combined 3-7 in season opening games. Last year, ISU made up for the opening day loss and rattled off 12 straight victories to earn their way to one of the best starts in school history.
Preseason Poll
ISU placed fourth in the MVC preseaon poll with 42 points. Dallas Baptist is the preseason favorite to win the conference, earning seven of the eight possible first place votes and 62 points overall. Missouri State picked up the one other and placed second on the list with 53 total points. Wichita State finished a spot ahead of the Sycamores with 43 points. Rounding out the bottom of the conference was Evansville with 28 points, Illinois State with 26, Bradley with 18, and Southern Illinois with 15.
Preseason All-MVC
Ryan Keaffaber was the lone Sycamore to place on the preseason all-MVC team. Keaffaber is a relief pitcher that finished 2014 with a 3-2 record and a 3.26 ERA. He also was named to the 2014 Missouri Valley Conference Freshman of the Year. Other memebers of the preseason all-conference team are as follows: Paul DeJong of Illiniois State; Spencer Gaa and Tyler Leffler of Bradley; Daniel Salters, Justin Wall, David Martinelli, and Brandon Koch of Dallas Baptist; Dylan Becker, Tate Matheny, and Jon Harris of Missouri State; and Daniel Kihle and Sam Tewes of Wichita State
2-for-3
Over the past three seasons, the Sycamores have earned at-large bids into the NCAA Regionals. In 2012, ISU earned a spot in the NCAA Regional in Eugene, Oregon. ISU also earned an at-large bid last season when the Sycamores competed in the NCAA Regional in Bloomington, Indiana.
Stellar Sophomore
Sophomore pitcher Ryan Keaffaber had a freshman season that saw him etch his name into the Indiana State Record Book. Ryan earned a place on the Collegiate Baseball Freshman All-American Team and was the 2014 Missouri Valley Conference Freshman of the Year. Ryan appeared in 24 games with three earning a 3.26 ERA and a 3-2 record. Ryan served mostly as the closer for the Sycamores during the season. His 11 saves are the third-best total in school history while holding opponents to a .212 average against him. The only other Sycamore to earn Freshman of the Year honors was Mitch Stetter, a former major leaguer with the Milwaukee Brewers.
Sycamores against the Big 10
Indiana State did well against Big 10 teams in 2014. The Sycamores split with Indiana, defeating the Hoosiers 12-8 in Terre Haute on March 26 but lost at Indiana 8-4 on Apr. 9. Indiana State owns two wins over Ohio State (7-3 and 8-6) but lost at Illinois (8-0). Indiana State defeated Purdue 10-3 on Apr. 22. In 2015, ISU is scheduled to face off against the Big Ten seven times, with games against Rutgers, Nebraska, Indiana, and Purdue.
Returning Sycamores
Landon Curry, Jacob Hayes, and Connor McClain return in the outfield. Each player started at least 50 games last season. Landon Curry will take his spot at the top of the order and in centerfield for the Sycamores. Curry (Sr.) has played in 161 games since 2012. He has also led the Sycamores in stolen bases over the last three years. Hayes, an Ohio State transfer, hit in the three-spot of the Sycamore line up in 2014. Hayes ended the season with a .275 batting average, with a team-leading .431 slugging percentage. Hayes led the team in triples (4), home runs (4), and RBI (36) while finishing second with 14 stolen bases.
Second baseman, Derek Hannahs (R-Sr.) and first baseman Jeff Zahn (R-Jr.) are back for their second season on the right side of the infield. Hannahs led the team with a .301 batting average in 2014, while starting in 53 games. Zahn played in 50 games, finishing with a .247 average and driving in 29 runs.
The ISU pitching staff returns David Stagg, a left-handed pitcher who was 7-5 with a 3.22 ERA in 2014. Stagg led the team with 95.0 innings pitched and 89 strike outs. The transfer from Des Moines Area CC looks to improve upon his 3.22 ERA from 2014. Other notable returners are Trent Lunsford and Nick Kolarik. Lunsford finished 2014 with a 2-2 record after appearing in 19 games and making seven starts. Kolarik made a team-high 26 appearances out of the bullpen, posting a 5-1 record and earning a 3.06 ERA.
Lucky Number Seven
ISU is looking to make it seven winning season in a row. The Sycamores earned their sixth-straight winning season in 2014 after going 35-18 and earning an at-large bid into the NCAA Regionals in Bloomington, Ind. The six winnings seasons are the longest such streak since the 17-season streak from 1977-1993.
Look at Me, I Can Be Centerfield
Landon Curry has started in 161 and played in 162 of the 164 games for the Sycamores since arriving in the 2012 season. Curry has a career .290 batting average and has stolen 53 bases. Curry needs 15 stolen bases to tie for sixth-place all-time at ISU. Curry has hit in the lead-off spot 153 times of his 162 games played, and every game since April 24, 2013, a string of 69 straight. Curry made the most of his one career home run, belting a grand slam against Ball State in 2012.
Powerful Pitching
The Sycamore pitching staff led the MVC with a 3.34 ERA and placed second with 17 saves. The pitchers also controlled the running game from the mound, picking off 18 runners. Continuing the pitching prowess, the Sycamores were first in runs allowed (222) and tied for first in the MVC in hits allowed (417).
Return to Action
The Sycamores return to action on Wednesday, Feb. 25th when they head to Clarksville, Tenn. to face off against Austin Peay before traveling to Georgia Tech for a three-game series, Feb. 27-Mar. 1.
For the latest information on the Sycamore Men's Baseball team, make sure to visit GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media including Facebook and Twitter.
