LEADING OFF -- The Washburn Ichabods finally open its home schedule beginning with a three-game series as Missouri Western comes to Falley Field ... the weekend will also mark the start of WU's conference slate of games ... the set begins on Saturday at 2 p.m. and will be followed with a 1 p.m. start on Sunday and Monday.
THE CHANGE-UP -- Due the possibility of inclement weather, Washburn's home opening weekend has been shifted to a Saturday-Sunday-Monday series ... first pitch on Saturday is slated for 2 p.m. with Sunday and Monday penciled in for a 1 p.m. start.
MWSU SCOUTING REPORT -- Led by 2016 all-region selections David Glaude and Landon Mason, Missouri Western returners eight position players and nine pitchers for the 2017 campaign ... the Griffons are coming off a 38-20 season that yielded an appearance in the NCAA Regionals in 2016 ... MWSU comes to Falley Field carrying a 3-7 record and looking to stop a three-game slide after being swept by Arkansas-Fort Smith last weekend.
THE WEEK THAT WAS -- Washburn split its four-game set with Drury last weekend ... the Ichabods swept the doubleheader on Saturday though dropped the opening and closing games of the series to finish the week at 2-2 .. Brett Nickle hits .455 with five hits, four doubles, five runs and two RBI with .818 slugging ... Riley Krane tagged his second home run of the season to finish the series with four hits, five runs, a triple and two RBI ... Washburn tallied 34 hits during the four games and had a team fielding percentage of .971 ... on the mound the Ichabods had a team ERA of 5.06 ... Jacob Head and Lance Barkley each picked up wins while Marcus McKinney moved his season save total to five.
SERIES HISTORY -- Prior to this weekend's showdown Washburn has faced Missouri Western 126 times ... the Ichabods hold the series lead 66-60 with 6-3 mark under head coach Harley Douglas ... last season WU went to MWSU and won the series 2-1.
FALLEY FIELD -- The official home of Ichabod baseball since opening in 1990 ... Falley Field features a FieldTurf surface for the infield and grass for the outfield with dimensions of 330 feet to the left and right field and a distance of 400 feet to center ... in the previous 26 seasons, Washburn has put together an overall record of 363-251 including a 21-10 mark during the 2000 season ... with a listed capacity of 800, Falley Field has welcomed 20,771 cheering fans over the course of the last three seasons.
ROAD WARRIORS -- The Ichabods closed their season opening 11-game road swing with a 8-3 record including a 4-1 tally in neutral venues ... as a result of their early travels WU has logged approximately 2,736 miles while having ventured to three states.
WHERE THEY RANK -- Behind one first-place vote, the Ichabods open the season ranked fifth in the MIAA Preseason Coaches' Poll ... WU placed eighth in the NCBWA's Division II Preseason Regional Rankings ... the only recognition the team earned nationally was from Collegiate Baseball News where they were listed in the receiving votes category.
PRESEASON HARDWARE -- Nick Silva has headlined the list of early awards for the Ichabods this season ... early honors for Silva include an ABCA Division II Preseason All-America nod as well as a Division II All-Central Region First Team selection from the NCBWA ... senior shortstop Riley Krane was placed on the ABCA Division II Players to Watch list ... sophomore outfielder Curtis Whitten was amongst those listed as a Division II Newcomer to Watch by the ABCA.
'BODS IN THE SHOW -- Washburn baseball has been home to many talented alumni with some being able to take their talents to the Majors ... to date, their have been seven former Ichabods who have played for an MLB club including Ken Berry, Rick DeHart, Jim Golden, Jerad Head, Davey Lopes, Jerry Robertson and Steve Simpson.
UPDATES & MORE -- Fans can fellow every pitch of the 2017 season via live stats available by visiting wusports.com/live ... for in-game updates, news and more be sure to also follow Washburn athletics on Twitter (@wusports) and Facebook.
NEW FACES -- Washburn welcomes 22 new players this season which includes transfers and redshirt freshman ... headlining the crop of newcomers are outfielders Curtis Whitten, Blake Tomasino and Darian Abram, infielders Brett Nickle, Gabe Franklin and Dylan Lonteen and pitchers Marcus McKinney and Wally Nellor.
WHERE THEY FROM -- The 2017 baseball team is comprised of 41 members hailing from 12 states. There are 22 players from Kansas, five from Colorado, four from Missouri, two from Illinois and one each representative from California, Iowa, Nebraska, Nevada, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas and Wisconsin.
70TH SEASON -- The 2017 campaign marks the 70th anniversary of the first season of Ichabod baseball ... the program however took a six-year hiatus from 1951-56 due to world events ... the program returned in 1957 under the leadership of Washburn's first baseball coach, Marion McDonald.
2016 REVIEW -- In 2016, Washburn added two more wins to its overall record from the season before to finish 34-20 with a 26-13 mark in conference play. After going 14-12 in the first half of the year, the Ichabods hit their its stride as they rattled off 20 wins during its final 28 games including a 15-1 stretch from March 30- April 24. At the conclusion of the season, eight Ichabods received All-MIAA accolades. The selections were headlined by David Gauntt and Nick Silva who not only were placed on the first team, but were named MIAA Player and Pitcher of the Year respectively. Kyle Carnahan also landed first team honors, while Riley Krane and Parker Gibson were third team selections. Greg Mason, Jaren Kutzke and Lance Barkley were each named honorable mentions. Silva went on to garner numerous all-region team accolades. Gauntt meanwhile earned All-America honors from D2CCA and NCBWA before being selected in the MLB Amateur Draft (Rd. 18, Pick 533) by the Miami Marlins.
