Baseball Preview: Blue Devils return home to host Ripon in non-conference contests Wednesday

THIS WEEK'S GAMES:  UW-Stout (15-15, 10-10 WIAC) is scheduled  to host Ripon College (15-17, 11-10 MWC), Wednesday, May 4 in a non-conference doubleheader. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. The Blue Devils will close out the regular season by hosting Finlandia University (3-29, 0-22 WIAC), Friday, May 6 at noon at Nelson Field for Senior Day. The games move to Wakanda Park in North Menomonie, Saturday, May 7 as Stout.

A QUICK LOOK AT THIS PAST WEEK: The Blue Devils were unable to pick up a game against UW-Whitewater this past week. First, potential inclement weather pushed the opening games back one day. The Warhawks took all four games, 7-1, 8-3, 14-2, 12-4, May 1-2. The Red Hawks hosted Grinnell College over the weekend, and those games were also pushed back a day. Grinnell won the first two contests on May 1, 18-6, 10-2, but Ripon bounced back for an 11-1 third game win, May 2. Finlandia was scheduled to play at UW-Eau Claire, but those games were pushed off the weekend. The Blugolds captured 26-2, 16-4, wins, May 1. The second doubleheader was moved to Wednesday, May 4 at Carson Park with a 5 p.m. start.

PETS: While service animals are allowed, no pets are allowed at UW-Stout athletic events.


PARKING: There is no free parking for weekday baseball & softball games.   Regular parking restrictions are strictly enforced. Parking for baseball and softball spectators during weekday games is restricted to on-street parking and in Lot 29.  Spectators that park in Lot 29 (located just north of the outdoor track) must pay parking fees and register their license plate at the pay station near the main East entrance of the Sports & Fitness Center.  Lot 29 parking restrictions end at 4 pm on Monday through Friday.   DO NOT PARK in Lot 4 during the week. Lot 4 is the parking lot located to the west of the Sports & Fitness Center and north of Don & Nona Williams Stadium (the football stadium). Lot 4 is only open to the general public from 1 p.m. on Fridays until 9 p.m. on Sundays. There is no general parking in Lot 4 Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursdays and not until 1 pm on Fridays. Team buses may park on the east side (outdoor track side - not the metered side) of 3rd Street East. Parking is permitted in all university lots on weekends.

DIRECTIONS TO WAKANDA PARK: From I-94, exit Highway 25 South. Follow 25 South (Broadway St.) to Pine Avenue. Turn left on Pine Avenue.  You may use the address for Wakanda Waterpark, to locate the field. The baseball field is directly across from the waterpark. Wakanda Waterpark, 909 Pine Ave, Menomonie, WI 54751

 
2021 UW-Stout Baseball Schedule
Date / Opponent / Time or Result
Tue, March 8 / vs. Bethel University / L 5-1, L 10-5
Sun, March 13 / vs. Bethel University / W 7-5
Mon, March 14 / vs. Eastern Conn / L 20-3 (7)
Mon, March 14 / vs. Skidmore / L 13-12
Wed, March 16 / vs. St. Michael / W 14-8
Thu, March 17 / vs. Lasell / W 13-6 (7); W 11-0 (7)
Fri, March 18 / vs. Eastern Conn / L 24-9 (7)
Sat, March 19 / vs. US Merchant Marine / W 11-9 (10)
Mon, March 28 / vs. UW-Platteville* at Mauston  / W 7-5, W 13-5
Tue, March 29 / vs. UW-Platteville at Mauston / W 7-3, W 16-5 (7)
Sat, Apr 2 / UW-Eau Claire* at River Falls / W 11-6, W 16-3 (7)
Sun, Apr 3 / UW-Eau Claire* at River Falls / W 3-0, W 11-10
Sat, Apr 9 / at UW-Oshkosh* / L 11-2, L 13-4
Sun, Apr 10 / at UW-Oshkosh* / L 5-3, W 12-5
Fri, Apr 15 / at UW-Stevens Point* / L 6-3, W 8-3
Sat, Apr 16 / at UW-Stevens Point* / L 11-5, L 16-6
Sat, Apr 23 / UW-La Crosse* / L 11-3, L 5-4
Sun, Apr 24 / UW-La Crosse* / L 14-3, L 10-0
Sun, May 1 / at UW-Whitewater* / L 7-1, L 8-3
Mon, May 2 / at UW-Whitewater* / L 14-2, L 12-4
Wed, May 4 / Ripon College / 1 p.m.
Fri, May 6 / Finlandia University* / 12 p.m.
Sat, May 7 / Finlandia University* / 12 p.m.
         at Wakanda Park
May 12-14 / WIAC Championship / TBA
*all conference dates 9-inning doubleheaders


UW-STOUT AT A GLIMPSE
Head Coach:  Ben Kincaid; 6th season; 80-110
Letterwinners Returning/Lost:  24/11
Starting Position Players Returning/Lost:  6/3
Pitchers with Starting Experience Returning/Lost:  5/1
Pitchers with Saves Returning/Lost:  3/1
Returning All-WIAC:  Charlie Szykowny, Sr., SS (2021-First)
Notable Returning Position Players:  Riley Boushack, So., OF; Joel Thimsen, Sr., 3B; Levi Wilson, Jr., 2B
Notable Returning Pitchers:  Jace Baumann, Sr., RHP; Brock Burg, Jr., RHP; Cody Urban, Jr., RHP


UW-STOUT: Four Stout batter are averaging over .300 with one not too far beneath the cut. Leading the way is Joel Thimsen, with a batting average of .407. Thimsen has picked up 44 hits at 108 at-bats and leads the team with 12 doubles. Next is Charlie Szykowny with a .397 batting average. Szykowny leads the WIAC with 13 home runs and .833 slugger percentage. Sykowny leads the team in RBIs with 43. Jack Schirpke (.333) and Jacoby Endreas (.321) are next in line. Schirpke has picked up 22 hits at 93 at-bats and has recorded six doubles and two home runs. Endreas has picked up 25 hits on 78 at-bats and has five doubles and five home runs. Levi Wilson is right under the .300 mark batting .293. Wilson leads the team in walks, getting 22 bases on balls.

PATIENCE, GENTLEMEN, PATIENCE: Levi Wilson has drawn a team-high 22 walks so far this year. Joel Thimsen has drawn 20 walks, Charlie Szykowny 16 and Colin Hageman 13, and Jacoby Endreas 10. Szykowny has drawn five intentional walks and Endreas, two, both coming on the same day. 

BLUE DEVIL PITCHING: Jace Baumann (5.36 ERA, 50.1 IP, 40K), Cody Urban (6.80 ERA, 47.2 IP, 25K), Drew Buss (7.36 ERA, 36.2 IP, 42K), and Ethan Kjellberg (8.29 ERA, 33.2 IP, 22K) have drawn the majority of the starts on the mound. Connor Hemme (5.00 ERA, 9.0 IP, 9K), Dak Doyle (6.89 ERA, 15.2 IP, 12K) and Brock Burg (14.46 ERA, 9.1 IP, 7K) have all seen more than nine innings pitched. Quintin Gonzalez, Luke Kallod and Doyle each have a save and Szykowny and Hemme each have a win and a save.

JACOBY'S BIG DAY: Jacoby Endreas had a day baseball players dream of. On the first day of the UW-Eau Claire series, April 2, the Blue Devil transfer from Ellsworth Community College smashed out four home runs, of which two were grand slams, and finished the day with 12 RBI. In the first game alone, Endreas hit three home runs (one of them a grand slam) and had an eight RBI game, driving in single runs on two home runs, four with the grand slam and had a two-run single midway through the game. For the season, Endreas is hitting .375 (21-56) with five doubles, the four home runs and 18 RBI. Endreas has been steady at first base. He had a perfect fielding percentage last week in the eight combined games with UW-Platteville and Eau Claire. For the year, Endreas has a .982 fielding percentage, committing only two errors in 111 chances.

CLIMBING THE LADDER: Charlie Szykowny's 14 home runs is one shy of tying the Blue Devils' single season record of 15, held by Brad O'Connell (2000) and Ryan Freitag (2014). Szykowny has 18 career home runs, tied with Matt Barnard, Matt Anderson, Todd Hanson, Jeff Kloes and Tim Seichter for 18th. Szykowny has recorded three triples in each of the 2020, 2021 and 2022 seasons, bringing his total to nine career triples, one shy of tying the school record of 10 owned by Brandon O'Connell (2008-11). He is currently tied with Santiago Morales (2012-13) and Brad O'Connell (1998-2001). Szykowny currently has 36 career doubles, ranking third. Seth Maier (2003, 2005-07) holds the record with 50 doubles. Szykowny is  10th in career runs scored with 112. Szykowny's 45 RBI is currently sixth on the single season season list. John Filas drove in 54 runs in 1989 to lead the category. Joel Thimsen currently has 33 career doubles and is tied for ninth on the all-time Stout list. 

WIAC STATS: The Blue Devils have several players in the WIAC top 10 in individual statistical categories. Charlie Szykowny is seventh in batting average (.387), first in slugging percentage (.814), 10th in on-base percentage (.459), first in OPS (1.273), third in runs scored (40), third in hits (54), second in RBI (45), fourth in doubles (12), second in triples (3), first in home runs (14). Joel Thimsen is sixth in average (.387), fourth in on-base percentage (.477), 10th in OPS (1.033), fifth in hits (48), ninth in RBI (35), second in doubles (12). Jacoby Endreas is ninth in home runs (5). Levi Wilson is fourth for walks drawn (22).

UW-STOUT LAST TIME OUT:  The Blue Devils were unable to pick up a game against UW-Whitewater this past week. First, potential inclement weather pushed the opening games back one day. The Warhawks took all four games, 7-1, 8-3, 14-2, 12-4, May 1-2.


WIAC PRESEASON POLL:   UW-Stout is picked to finish fifth in the 2022 preseason poll. UW-Whitewater is first, UW-Stevens Point second, UW-La Crosse third, UW-Oshkosh fourth, UW-Platteville sixth, UW-Eau Claire seventh, and Finlandia eighth


SCOUTING RIPON COLLEGE: Nick Terrell leads the Red Hawks with a .409 batting average (52-127), hitting 19 doubles, two triples, eight home runs, driving in 35 runs and scoring 46 runs. Terrell has stolen eight bases. Samuel Ott is hitting .356 (48-135) with 13 doubles, five home runs and a team-best 47 RBI. Cormac Madigan is hitting .348 (46-132) with six doubles, a triple and a home run. Madigan has stolen 12 bases. Cam Stampfl is hitting .336 (42-125) with eight doubles and two home runs. On the hill, Mau Huesca Villegas (2-1, 3.52 ERA, 46.0 IP, 28K), Mitchell Lukasik (5-1, 3.91 ERA, 53.0 IP, 35K), Brock Warren (3-2, 5.84 ERA, 44.2 IP, 40K) and Austin Preiss (0-3, 9.00 ERA, 12.0 IP, 5K) have started the majority of the games. Brent Tetzlaff (5.40 ERA, 18.1 IP, 11K), Brandon Peace (9.28 ERA, 10.2 IP, 4K0, and Caleb Green (11.25 ERA, 12.0 IP, 5K) have thrown more than nine innings. Huesca Villegas, Green, and Jake Pankratz have each recorded a save. Blue Devil assistant coach Zach Bayruether played his college ball at Ripon College.  

LAST TIME OUT: The Red Hawks hosted Grinnell College over the weekend, and those games were also pushed back a day. Grinnell won the first two contests on May 1, 18-6, 10-2, but Ripon bounced back for an 11-1 third game win, May 2. One day after getting swept in a doubleheader against Grinnell, Ripon's baseball team redeemed themselves against the same team, defeating the Pioneers 11-1 in eight innings. The Red Hawks finished the game with 15 hits, while Mau Villegas spun a gem on the mound, scattering seven hits without allowing an earned run in the complete game effort.

LAST TIME THEY MET: The teams have not met since the 2001 season when Stout swept both games, 6-5, 4-3, in Fort Myers, Fla. Brad Barneson recorded the game-winning RBIs in both games, slashing a single in the bottom of the 10th in the 4-3 win and an RBI double in the fifth inning of the 6-5 win. 

SCOUTING FINLANDIA UNIVERSITY: The Lions are still looking for their first conference win of the season. Jacob Mead, outfield and pitcher, is leading the team in batting, averaging .343 (34-99) with 23 runs scored, six doubles, five home runs and 17 RBI. Jordan D'Angelo is averaging .333 (36-108) with six doubles and 13 RBI. The Lions have two pitchers among the conference leaders in strikeouts. Mead is fourth in the WIAC with 65 and Cole Fransen is seventh with 58. Mead, Jeff Bishop, Brandon Hale and Cale Fransen have started the majority of the games.

Finlandia University (Mich.)
Head Coach:  Evan Brandt; 5th season at FIN; (17-126)
Letterwinners Returning/Lost:  17/23
Starting Position Players Returning/Lost:  4/5
Pitchers with Starting Experience Returning/Lost:  2/4
Pitchers with Saves Returning/Lost:  0/0
Returning All-WIAC:  None
Notable Returning Position Players:  Jordan D'Angelo, So., 2B; Jacob Mead, So., OF
Notable Returning Pitchers:  Brandon Hale, Jr., RHP; Tyler Hale, Jr., RHP; Alex Tallman, Jr., RHP

LAST TIME OUT: Finlandia University is scheduled to compete at UW-Eau Claire, May 2 and May 4 in games that were originally scheduled for April 30 and May 1. May 4 Game Story and Stats

LAST TIME THEY MET: The Blue Devils have won all 10 meetings since 2010, including all four last season. Stout took wins of 14-6 and 11-5, May 15, 2021, fresh off the heels of 9-0, 11-1 wins a day earlier. 



TEAM CAPTAINS: Charlie Szykowny, Joel Thimsen and Cooper Beving will serve as 2022 team captains.

2022 PLAYERS OF THE WEEK: Week Seven: Pitcher of the week:  Cody Urban, Jr, Deerbrook, Wis. (Antigo)...Week Six: Player of the week:  Charlie Szykowny, Sr, Palos Heights, Ill...Week Five: Pitcher of the week:  Quintin Gonzalez, Fr, Apple Valley, Minn. (Rosemount). Week Four: Position player of the week: Levi Wilson, Jr, Minneapolis, Minn. (Southwest); Pitcher of the week:  Connor Hemme, Jr, Eden Praire, Minn.  Week Three: Position player of the week: Joel Thimsen, Sr, Minnetonka, Minn; Pitcher of the week:  Cody Urban, Jr, Deerbrook, Wis. (Antigo)  Week Two: Position player of the week: Charlie Szykowny, Sr, Palos Heights, Ill. (Alan B. Shepard); Pitcher of the week: Cooper Beving, Sr, Norwalk, Iowa; Week One: Position player of the week: Joel Thimsen, Sr, Minnetonka, Minn; Pitcher of the week: Jace Baumann, Sr, Mosinee, Wis.

AWARDS AND HONORS: 2022:  Joel Thimsen was named the WIAC/Kwik Trip position player of the week April 5 after hitting 13 RBI over eight games as the Blue Devils swept UW-Platteville and UW-Eau Claire to open the conference season...Charlie Szykowny was named the WIAC/Kwik Trip position player of the week and the NCBWA honorable mention hitter of the week after driving in 18 runs and hitting five home runs during Stout's Florida.

COACHES: Ben Kincaid (80-110) is in his sixth year as the Blue Devils' head coach with the 2022 season, following two years as a Blue Devil assistant coach where he worked primarily with the pitchers. Kincaid played collegiately at at Minnesota State University-Mankato, where he was a four year letter winner, playing in 149 games. He finished with a .339 batting average, 38 doubles (5th on MSU's career list), six home runs and 140 runs batted in (6th on MSU's career list). As a right-handed pitcher he sported a 14-8 record with a 3.45 earned run average and had 148 strikeouts in 172 innings pitched. Kincaid was named to the All-Central Region team three times in his career. An Eau Claire native, Kincaid played for the local Eau Claire Express. (Ben Kincaid was 65-91 to start 2022 season)


2021 BLUE DEVILS: Stout finished the 2021 season at 23-19 overall, 16-12 in the WIAC, and advanced to the WIAC tournament, where they played four games, heading into the final day of the tournament.

DOWN THE ROAD:  The WIAC Baseball Tournament is May 12-14 at the home of the highest seeded team. The top four teams qualify to the tournament.