MACOMB, Ill. - Western Illinois baseball opens the 2014 season this weekend at the Carmel Inn Showdown hosted by Nicholls State in Thibodaux, La. The Leathernecks will battle Louisiana-Monroe, Nicholls State and Southern Illinois during the three-day tourney that begins Thursday (Feb. 20).
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A LOOK BACK: Western finished the 2013 season with a 19-37 record overall and 9-17 mark in Summit League play. Four Leathernecks were tabbed All-Conference, led by Jameson Henning who was named First Team All-League. Steve Kedroski, Neil DeCook and Aaron Michel were all named Second Team All-Conference. Michel was also named a Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American after his freshman campaign. The Purple & Gold returned to The Summit League Tournament for the first time since 2011, defeating #1 seed South Dakota State in the first round. Senior Dan Dispensa concluded his Leatherneck career second on the program's career hits list with 224. Senior Brian Loconsole notched nine saves in 2013, which is the most for both a single season and career at WIU. Following the season, Loconsole was taken in the 20th round of the MLB draft by the Los Angeles Angels.
RETURNERS: The Leathernecks return 23 players from the 2013 team. Of the 23 returners, 12 are position players and 11 are pitchers. Tanner Glore (.320), Zack Burling (.306) and Neil DeCook (.300) all hit .300 or better during 2013 and all return for their senior seasons. Brent Turner is the only Leatherneck who played in all 57 games last season and he returns for his junior campaign. On the mound Aaron Michel, Tyler Willman, Tom Constand and John White combined to start 42 games in 2013 and will all start the 2014 season in the weekend rotation. Nick Smith (15), Mason Pingel (14), Tyler Owings (12) and Riley Perry (11) all made 10 or more appearances last season and return to the bullpen in 2014.
FRESH FACES: Western welcomes 12 new players in 2014: seven high school, four JUCO and one redshirt. Of the 12 newcomers, seven are position players and five will be in the bullpen. JJ Reimer was a third team JUCO All-American at Ellsworth CC last season and is expected to start for WIU behind the plate. Chris Tschida earned IHSA Class 3A State Player of the Year honors in 2013 and will start at first base on opening weekend. Madison College transfer Nathan Pollock (.355 BA/32 RBI in 2013) is projected to start in right field for the Leathernecks.
PRESEASON RECOGNITION: Six members of the 2014 squad earned preseason recognition from College Sports Madness. Jameson Henning, Aaron Michel and Zack Burling were tabbed preseason First Team All-League, while Neil DeCook, Tanner Glore and Tom Constand earned preseason Second Team All-Conference nods.
PRESEASON POLL: WIU received one first-place vote and eight overall points in the preseason poll and were picked to finish in fourth place. 2013 regular season champion Omaha was picked to finish first after receiving three first-place votes and 15 total points. 2013 tournament champion South Dakota State finished second in the voting, picking up one first-place vote and 12 points. North Dakota State was third with 10 points, while Fort Wayne rounded out the voting in fifth place with five points.
THE SCHEDULE: The 2014 schedule consists of 52 games for the Leathernecks with 21 home games at Alfred D. Boyer Stadium. Western will travel a total of 7,758 miles round-trip during the course of the season with trips to Louisiana, Indiana, Kentucky, Nebraska, Iowa, South Dakota and North Dakota.
ON AIR: For the fifth straight year every Western Illinois baseball game will be broadcast live on the Internet (Rocky Vision) for free. Fans can log onto www.GoLeathernecks.com and click on the icon to Listen Live.
A LOOK AT ULM: The Warhawks enter the tournament with a 2-2 overall record. ULM most recently fell to Southern Mississippi, 14-2 on Tuesday (Feb. 18) in Monroe, La. Last weekend the Warhawks picked up two wins over Grand Canyon. ULM finished the 2013 season with an 18-36 overall record and 7-23 mark in Sun Belt play. Dalton Herrington hit .269 a year ago, which is the highest average for a returning Warhawk. Alex Dumaine made 22 appearances in 2013 and finished the season with a 2-3 record and 4.20 ERA.
A LOOK AT NSU: The Colonels enter the weekend with a 1-3 overall record in 2014. Nicholls State battled Loyola University (La.) on Tuesday in Thibodaux, winning 9-0. Last weekend the Colonels dropped three games to the Houston Cougars. NSU finished 2013 with a 26-29 overall record and 9-18 mark in conference play. Tyler Duplantis returns after leading the Colonels with a .330 batting average last season. Taylor Byrd is back on the mound for the Colonels after posting a 5-6 record in 2013 with a 3.18 ERA.
A LOOK AT SIU: Southern Illinois heads to the Carmel Inn Showdown with a 2-2 overall mark in 2014. The Salukis most recently defeated Austin Peay, 14-4 on Tuesday (Feb. 18) in Clarksville, Tenn. Last Saturday (Feb. 16) SIU defeated Western Kentucky on opening day before falling to the Hilltoppers twice on Sunday. SIU finished the 2013 season 25-33 overall and 6-15 in Missouri Valley Conference play. Jake Welch hit .317 last season with 51 runs scored to lead the Salukis. Sam Coonrod posted a 3-6 record in 2013 with a 4.29 ERA in 15 starts.
POSITION BREAKDOWN
PITCHERS: 11 pitchers return for the Purple & Gold in 2014. Aaron Michel posted a program-record 1.23 ERA last season, which is also the third-best season ERA in conference history. Tom Constand matched the team-high with four wins and appeared in a team-best 78.2 innings a year ago. Tyler Willman led the team with 64 K's in 2013, while John White was second on the team with 77.0 innings pitched. In the bullpen Nick Smith, Riley Perry, Tyler Owings, Mason Pingel, Nick Bakeris and Nick Milligan return for the Purple & Gold, while the Leathernecks bring in Preston Church, Carson Cheesman, Tyler Stolz and Robbie Nunn who all will make appearances in 2014.
CATCHERS: Behind the plate, Western loses Mark Garton for the 2014 season due to an illness. Garton will use a medical redshirt for the season and have two years of eligibility remaining. JJ Reimer will get the majority of the starts in his first season at Western after a standout career at Ellsworth CC. Joining Reimer behind the plate are senior Matt Risdon, freshman Adam McGinnis and freshman Adam Feiner.
INFIELD: Freshman Chris Tschida will start at first base for the Leathernecks to start the season. Jake Moore will also see playing time at first throughout the year. Payton Jeffers is likely to start the season at second base, while Brent Turner will also see significant playing time at second. At shortstop Jameson Henning returns after an All-Conference 2013 season. Travis Stafford will also see playing time at shortstop and third base throughout the year. Tanner Glore will start at third base for the Leathernecks on opening weekend.
OUTFIELD: In the outfield, Zack Burling and Neil DeCook return after successful first seasons at WIU. Burling spent the majority of 2013 in left field and will move to centerfield to start 2014. DeCook started 47 games in right field last season and will move to left field in 2014. Nathan Pollock will start his first season at Western in right field. Erik Maki and Cody Williams will also see significant playing time for Western in the outfield.
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