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  • Freshman Connor McCallum ended his first year with the Mavericks in impressive fashion, earning the starting shortstop job and helping them team reach the final three of the Division II World Series. Pat Christman

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  • Sophomore pitcher Bryce Bellin compiled a 10-2 record for the Minnesota State baseball team this spring, striking out 66 batters in 67 2/3 innings. Pat Christman

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  • Minnesota State head coach Matt Magers (14) talks with his team during a timeout at the Central Region Tournament at Caswell Park last month. Magers guided the team to a 51-win season, the most ever by an MSU baseball team. Pat Christman

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June 17, 2012

After record-setting season, MSU entering a future unknown

Mavericks could potentially be stacked with pitchers

By Jim Rueda Free Press Sports Editor

MANKATO — The fairy tale that was the Minnesota State baseball  season has been over for awhile now.

The bats and balls have been stored in the equipment room. The uniforms have been washed and put away. The graduating seniors have said their goodbyes.

It was an awfully good playoff run by Minnesota State. After winning the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference regular-season championship, the Mavericks got hot in the postseason.

They won the Northern Sun tournament title, captured the NCAA Division II Central Region championship and made it to the final three teams in the country before getting eliminated from the Division II World Series in Cary, N.C.

It was a historic campaign for the 51-12 Mavericks. They set the school’s single-season record with 51 wins and tied for the program’s best finish nationally (3rd). The 1980 team also placed third.

At the World Series, MSU was the third team ever, and first in 40 years, to record back-to-back shutouts.

In the final game, the Mavericks lost 6-5 to Delta State, giving up five runs in the eighth inning. Prior to that, the pitching staff had thrown 25 straight scoreless innings, including consecutive, complete-game shutouts by sophomores Jason Hoppe and Tyler Ockuly.

“It was definitely a memorable experience,” MSU coach Matt Magers said. “We sort of got on a roll (in the postseason) and just kept going.”

The question is: Can MSU repeat? Do the Mavericks have enough coming back and enough new talent coming in to make another extended postseason push next season?

If you look at the pitching staff, next year’s season looks promising. The young arms came of age toward the end of the season and were responsible for much of the team’s success.

Starting out, senior Kincaid and junior transfer Harvey Martin carried the staff until the younger guys could establish themselves. By season’s end, however, those two had taken a back seat to the likes of Ockuly, Hoppe, sophomore TJ  Larson and sophomore Bryce Bellin.

Martin, who was used strictly as a reliever at his previous college, seemed to wear down as the season progressed. He finished with the second-most innings on the team (76 1/3) but was used sparingly in the closing weeks.

“We leaned on Kincaid and Martin pretty heavy at the beginning of the year, and that allowed our younger guys to get confidence,” Magers said. “Kincaid was so valuable to us in the outfield and hitting-wise that it was an easy decision to let the younger guys pitch.”

Next year’s pitching corps should be solid with Ockuly (7-3, 2.31 ERA), Hoppe (8-1, 2.54 ERA), Bellin (10-2, 4.52 ERA), Martin (10-0, 2.95 ERA), Larson (2-0, 2.65 ERA) and relievers Nick Sutherland (5-0, 13 saves, 3.13 ERA) and Mahlon Zimmerman (2-1, 3 saves, 3.00 ERA) all returning.

A look at the position players reveals things are not quite as optimistic.

The Mavericks have graduated the heart of the batting order — Matt Kuchenbecker, Pat Dockendorf, Matt Odegard, Ben Kincaid — who manned the Nos. 2-5 spots. As a group they amassed 270 of the team’s 634 hits, had 162 of 342 RBIs and scored 166 of 390 runs.

“Those are some very good hitters,” Magers said. “We have to find a way to replace them. But we were faced with a similar situation at the start of this year, and the guys came through.”

Offensively, Mike Eckhart, Nolan Johnson, Connor McCallum, Lucas Skjefte, Todd Standish and Corey Glieden figure to be among the team’s hitting leaders. Outfielder Eckhart hit .365 with 11 doubles, six triples, seven home runs and 35 RBIs as a junior this year. He was the MVP of the conference tournament.

Johnson, a freshman, played just about every inning at catcher in the second half of the year and batted .343 with eight doubles and three home runs. McCallum, a freshman, took over the starting shortstop job in the second half and hit .320 with six doubles. Junior Skjefte ended up hitting .305, sophomore Standish, a middle infielder, batted .217 and sophomore Glieden hit .205.

“Some guys were just role players this year, and they’re going to have to step up and contribute full time next year,” Magers said. “That’s the nature of college baseball — players graduate, newer guys fill in.”

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