Belton, Texas – The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor baseball team will open the 2015 season on Tuesday, February 17th. The Cru will travel to Seguin to face former conference rival Texas Lutheran University in a 7:00 PM non-conference single game.
UMHB is scheduled to play three more games in a busy opening week. The Cru is set to follow up Tuesday's opener with the start of American Southwest Conference play this week. UMHB will play its first conference series of the year in a three-game home set against Howard Payne University. The two teams will play a 6:00 PM single game on Friday before closing out the weekend with a 12:00 PM doubleheader on Saturday at Red Murff Field.
UMHB returns seven starting position players, ten total pitchers and 21 total letter winners this season. The Cru went 26-17 overall and 19-14 in ASC play last season. UMHB advanced to the ASC Championship Tournament for the second consecutive season and went 1-2 in that tournament. UMHB returns six ASC All-Conference selections this season and will build around that nucleus this year. Outfielder Chase Burrow (Jr., Groesbeck) was also an All-Region pick after hitting .300 with three homers, 35 RBI and 14 steals. Utility player Rob Loewe (Sr., Waller) batted .296 with 29 RBI, outfielder K.J. Stark (Sr., Killeen) batted .315 with three home runs and 27 RBI and also shared ASC Newcomer of the Year honors last season. Shortstop Dakota Parsons (So., Conroe) was ASC Freshman of the Year after hitting .344 with 21 RBI. Outfielder Will Stafford (Jr., Katy) led the Cru with a .358 batting average and pitcher Aaron Barteau (Jr., Dallas) won six games, set an NCAA Division III era school record with seven saves and posted a 0.95 ERA last season. UMHB also returns starting second baseman Tripp Reeves (Sr., Sulphur Springs) and designated hitter Zach Whiddon (Jr., Katy). Part-time starters in Heath Spencer (Sr., Temple), Justin Dingman (Jr., Killeen) Ty Johnson (So., Copperas Cove) and Josh Cruz (Jr., Temple) also return this season. A deep and talented group of newcomers will help provide depth and push for starting jobs as position players.
Barteau headlines the pitching staff, but he has plenty of help returning. Kreece Cooper (Sr., Jarrell) is healthy again after missing all of last season with an injury and Ian Ekery (Jr., El Paso) went 5-3 with a 3.02 ERA last year. Nick Bergmann (Jr., Houston) was 4-5 last year and Seth Hill (So., Sealy), Mikey Bielamowicz (Jr., Robinson), Jacob Riley Davis (Sr., North Richland Hills), J.D. Perkins (Jr., Groesbeck), Ty Nelson (So., Weatherford) and Johnson all saw time on the mound for the Cru last season. Several live young arms will also be counted on to step up and contribute.
Ben Shipp returns for the third season of his second stint as head coach of the UMHB baseball program. Those stints wrap around a 16-year tenure as Vice-President for Athletics for the Cru. Shipp become just the second coach in Cru athletics history to reach 300 career wins at the school last season, joining head Men's Basketball Coach Ken DeWeese. UMHB was picked to finish fourth in the ASC in the league's annual preseason poll and Stark and Cooper were named to the Preseason Players to Watch list.
Texas Lutheran will enter Tuesday's game with a 5-2 record on the season. The Bulldogs are in their second year of competition in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference after leaving the ASC following the 2012-13 school year. TLU will offer free live video and live stats for Tuesday's game. You can find those links on the UMHB athletic department web site at www.cruathletics.com or by clicking directly on the TLU link at: http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/tlu.portal.
