The College of St. Scholastica

The 2008 St. Scholastica baseball team made it farther than any other squad in program history. Last year’s Saints were within one game of the Division III College World Series and this year the team hopes to take it one step further and play in Fox Cities Stadium.

The Saints are ranked 15th in the D3Baseball.com preseason poll, the highest preseason ranking in program history. CSS returns 25 letterwinners, including nine starters from a team that went 35-6 in 2008. Leading the returnees is 2008 American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) All-American first baseman Sean Claugherty. Claugherty batted .447 with 10 home runs and had a slugging percentage of .830 in his sophomore season. He was named the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Offensive Player of the Year and UMAC Tournament Most Valuable Player. Claugherty has also garnered accolades coming into his junior year as he was named a preseason First Team All-American by D3Baseball.com and by Baseball America.

Other key position players returning include Steve Gerten at third base. Last season Gerten batted .330 with 20 RBIs. He was named to the All-UMAC first team and the All-Midwest Regional Tournament team. Kyle Wojtysiak is also back at shortstop. Wojtysiak has been solid in the field throughout his career as he was an honorable mention all-conference selection last year. Brian Peterson, Chad Peterson, Jake Gaub, Paul Kolodge, and Brian Marshik will also see a significant amount of playing time this season in the field.

Assistant coach Joe Wicklund believes the confidence the team gained last year, making it to the regional championship will carry over to this season.

“I think for the returners there is a lot of confidence, going deeper in the playoffs than we have in the past,” Wicklund said. “I also think that can benefit the newcomers in that it’s an expectation they have coming in.”

The Saints did lose a few players that were keys to the Saints’ offensive success, but Wicklund believes that this year’s offense can flourish just as much as last year, but in a different way.

On the other hand, the St. Scholastica pitching staff remains almost in tact from last season. At the top of the rotation is D3Baseball.com honorable mention preseason All-American Peter Burg. Burg went 10-1 with a 2.71 earned run average on his way to be named Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Pitcher of the Year and a first team All-Midwest Region selection last season. Senior Adian Kummet is also back after winning eight games last year and was a second team all-region choice. Wicklund thinks that Kummet might be CSS’s top pro prospect, even though he doesn’t get the attention as Burg and Claugherty receive. Another pitcher in the rotation is Steve Gerten who was 5-0 with a 1.64 earned run average in 2008.

At the back end of the staff, sophomores Josh Hawkins and Matt Lewis will find themselves in a bigger role this season. Senior Dan Lanari will also be a key part of the Saints bullpen.

“They (pitching staff) will be as relied on as they always are,” Wicklund said. “We will count on them to be a huge part of what takes us through the regular season, conference play, and put us in a position to make a postseason run.”

Newcomers
The Saints added six freshmen to the team this season. The coaches think these six fresh faces will add depth. The freshmen include Tom Juberian, Ben Grieger, Brandon Peterson, Eric Schwinghammer, Dan Ubl, and Kyle Moody.
Juberian will add depth at third base and potentially be a starter in the outfield. Moody will be the team’s back-up catcher behind Paul Kolodge. Brandon Peterson will look to see some action in the outfield and Dan Ubl may see some time at first base and on the mound. Expect to see some of the newcomers to be called upon at some point during the season.

Schedule
The Saints had their earliest start in program history when they played on February 8th against NAIA’s Mount Marty College at the Metrodome. The Saints will have two more dates at the Metrodome, including doubleheaders against the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse on February 24th and nationally-ranked University of St. Thomas on March 1st. The Saints knocked out the Tommies in last year’s NCAA Regional.

On March 7th, St. Scholastica heads to Fort Pierce, Fla. for its annual spring trip. The Saints will play nine games down south, including a contest against 2008 NCAA Tournament participant Penn State University-Behrend. The Saints will be tested throughout their Florida trip.

CSS begins conference action on March 27th when it will face its toughest competitor in the UMAC, Bethany Lutheran College. The Saints will have their home opener on April 17th when they host Presentation College at Wade Stadium. That game will begin an eight-game home stand for St. Scholastica.

The Saints will go back out of conference on April 28th when they face St. Olaf. The Oles, who finished second behind St. Thomas in the MIAC last year, did not play the Saints in 2008 because of weather. After the final conference regular season series against Martin Luther College on May 1st and 2nd, the Saints will host St. Thomas again for one game at Wade Stadium in the regular season finale.

The UMAC Postseason Tournament will be held at Wade Stadium again this season, beginning on Thursday, May 7th. It will be a four-team, double-elimination tournament. After that, if the Saints qualify for the NCAA Midwest Regional, that will take place in Oshkosh, Wis. for the second straight year from May 13th-17th and the College World Series in Appleton, Wis. on May 22nd-26th.