Valparaiso (6-8, 0-0 MVC)
at Gardner-Webb (6-9, 0-0 Big South)

Bill Masters Field at John Henry Moss Stadium (550) | Boiling Springs, N.C.
Tuesday, March 12, 3 p.m. CT – RHP Kaleb Krier

Next Up in Valpo Baseball: The Valparaiso University baseball team will make its next stop on an 18-day, 11-game journey as the Beacons trek just over the South Carolina/North Carolina state line to clash with Gardner-Webb in a midweek matchup. Valpo holds a solid 4-3 record over the first seven games of the spring break trip, which comes all on the road and all against warm-weather competition.

Last Time Out: Valpo picked up a doubleheader sweep on Friday, beating The Citadel 3-2 and 10-5 in 10 innings in a pair of thrilling games in Charleston, S.C. before dropping Sunday’s series finale 10-6. Carson Husmann homered in each game of Friday’s doubleheader and reached base at a .666 clip over four games this past week. In the doubleheader alone, Husmann reached base nine times with three hits, five walks, two home runs, three runs scored and a hit by pitch. Valpo got stellar pitching performances in both games as Connor Lockwood threw five shutout innings to get the win in the opener before Adam Guazzo carried a perfect game into the sixth and eventually received no decision in the nightcap.

Following the Beacons: Tuesday’s game will air on ESPN+. Links to live coverage will be available on ValpoAthletics.com, and in-game updates on X (formerly known as Twitter) are available if you follow @ValpoBaseball.

Head Coach Brian Schmack: Brian Schmack (194-303) is in his 10th season in charge of the program. He ranks third in program history in seasons coached and games coached as he enters 2024 having skippered 482 Valpo games. He enters the season with 188 victories, the third most in program history. Schmack, a member of the 2003 Detroit Tigers, served as pitching coach/associate head coach at Valpo for seven seasons prior to his promotion.

Series Notes: Valpo is 2-5 all-time against Gardner-Webb after most recently battling the Bulldogs in 2015, when the Beacons dropped all three, 5-1, 5-1 and 8-7. Valpo has lost the last four meetings but took two of three including a 10-4 win in the series finale during a 2010 set.   

In The Other Dugout: Gardner-Webb

• Picked second of nine behind only USC Upstate in the Big South preseason poll.
• Infielder Alec Burns was a member of the preseason all-conference squad.
• Coming off a four-game sweep of Manhattan this past weekend.
• Racked up 31 wins last season.

Sticks Heating Up

• Valpo posted a season-high 18 hits in the second game of the March 8 doubleheader sweep at The Citadel as part of a 10-5, 10-inning victory.
• That marked the team’s highest hit total since May 1, 2021 vs. Illinois State and the team’s highest hit total in a road game since May 8, 2018 at Western Michigan.
• The Beacons followed that up with 12 hits in the March 10 series finale, tied for the team’s second-highest hit total of the season. The club’s three highest hit totals to date came in a four-game span the week of March 10.
• The 10 runs in Game 2 of the March 8 doubleheader at The Citadel marked the squad’s highest run total of the season.
• The Beacons have also displayed patience at the plate of late, working seven walks or more in four straight games.

Bonus Baseball

• The 10-inning win over The Citadel in the second game of the March 8 doubleheader marked the culmination of a stretch where four straight Valpo games were either one-run affairs or went extra innings.
• That marked Valpo’s first extra-inning affair since April 28 of last season at Missouri State.
• The five-run win was the largest margin of victory in a Valpo extra-inning game on record.

Notes Wrapping Up The Citadel: March 8-10

• Valpo’s doubleheader sweep on March 8 helped the team improve to 4-0 in doubleheader games this season after previously sweeping Alabama State on Feb. 17 in Montgomery.
• In Game 1 of the doubleheader, a 3-2 victory, Kaleb Hannahs had his second career triple and the first since the now-senior’s freshman campaign on May 21, 2021 at Missouri State.
• Carson Husmann homered in both games of the doubleheader, his first two jacks in a Valpo uniform. He lifted his career total to 22 counting his four seasons at Bradley. He reached base nine times during the twinbill.
• In Game 2 of the doubleheader, a 10-5, 10-inning win, Alex Thurston enjoyed a 4-for-4 performance, while Kyle Schmack had three hits and three other Beacons posted multi-hit efforts.
• In the March 10 series finale, Schmack hit his 23^rd career home run as part of his team-leading seventh multi-hit game, a contest Valpo dropped 10-6. Five Beacons had multi-hit games. Kaleb Hannahs extended his hitting streak to seven games and reached safely for the 14^th straight time to start the season.

Schmacking Extra-Base Hits 

• Kyle Schmack is up to nine extra-base hits in 14 games this season, racking up four doubles and five home runs.
• He is up to 23 career home runs, climbing into a tie for fourth in program history in that category. He will move into sole possession of fourth with his next home run. He now owns the most career home runs of any Valpo player since 2003.
• Schmack has increased his career double total to 41, a number that ranks tied for seventh in program history.
• Schmack is up to 105 career RBIs. He needs to get to 116 to crack the top 10 in program history.

Home Runs

Rank   Player                         Years              HR

1          J.J. Swiatkowski         1997-2000       36

2          Mark Pedersen            1998-2002       32

3          Jeff Mandsager           2001-2003       26

4          Joe Gersna                  1982-1985       23

          Kyle Schmack            2020-pres.       23

6          Scott Carter                 1981-1984       22

            Ken Mannings            1988-1991       22

             Shawn Lemmons        1994-1996       22

              Nate Palace                 2014-2017       22

10        Dan Schrum                1999-2002       21

             Jamie Sykes                1994-1997       21

              Dale Polonus               1986-1988       21

               Marc Boggio               1999-2003       21

                Sam Shaikin                2016-2019       21

Doubles

Rank    Player                          Years               2B

1          Marc Boggio               1999-2003       58

2          Michael Arensdorff    2003-2007      57

3          Mark Pedersen            1998-2002       56

4          J.J. Swiatkowski         1997-2000       51

5          Kyle Gaedele              2009-2011       48

6          Nate Palace                 2013-2017       44

7          Chris Moore                1998-2001       41

            Kevin Kutansky          2003-2006       41

             Kyle Schmack            2020-pres.       41

10        Rob Hadrick               1994-1997       40

Notes Wrapping Up March 1-5

• Valpo started the spring trip with a 9-4 win at Elon on Friday, March 1. Kevin Denty went 4-for-4 with two home runs, three runs scored and three RBIs. He became the first Valpo player to enjoy a multi-homer game since Jake Skrine on May 19, 2013 vs. Illinois State.
• The Beacons prevailed 7-5 on March 2 at Elon as Josh Cottrill yielded just two runs (one earned) on five hits while walking one and striking out three to earn the win. Denty continued to make an impact at the plate, walking twice and lifting a sacrifice fly while scoring two runs in the victory. Each team had eight hits, but Valpo batters worked seven walks while the pitching staff yielded only three. Elon won 32 games last season.
• Valpo lost 3-2 vs. Binghamton on Sunday in Winston-Salem, N.C. Kyle Schmack doubled and homered and he and Kaleb Hannahs combined for four of the team’s five hits. Binghamton was the preseason favorite to win the American East Conference.
• The Beacons fell 6-5 at Jacksonville on Tuesday, March 5, the team’s second straight one-run defeat. Denty went 3-for-4, while Schmack and Liam Patton had multi-hit games. Patton had a go-ahead, two-out, two-run single in the ninth, but Jacksonville walked off with the win. Each team had a dozen hits, with Valpo’s total representing a season high. The Beacons worked a season-high eight walks while issuing just two. Jacksonville won 34 games last season.

Rankings Report

• Entering March 12 at Gardner-Webb, Valpo is tied for second in the MVC in doubles with 33.
• The Valpo pitching staff has allowed the fewest walks in the MVC, issuing just 12 bases on balls.
• Kyle Schmack ranks eighth in the MVC in slugging percentage at .655. He is tied for fourth in home runs with five. He is also tied for fifth in stolen bases with five.
• Kevin Denty ranks 10^th in the MVC in OPS at 1.060.
• Kaleb Hannahs is tied for fourth in the league in hit by pitch with five.

Inside the Schedule

• Valpo started the season with a four-game series against an Alabama State team that won 41 games and went 26-4 in the Southwest Athletic Conference last season.
• The Beacons played three more in the Heart of Dixie from Feb. 23-25 at Alabama. The Crimson Tide of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) also won over 40 games in 2023, posting a 43-21 mark en route to an NCAA Regional crown and Super Regional appearance.
• A challenging early-season docket continued on March 1, when Valpo played at Elon, a team that went 33-22 last season including a 19-9 mark in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA).
• After a neutral site game on March 3 vs. Binghamton of the American East Conference – another team that finished with a winning record last year – Valpo visited Jacksonville, a 34-win team last year and a member of the Atlantic Sun Conference.
• Valpo will have a three-game series at Campbell (March 15-17) against a team that went 46-15 and 22-5 in the Big South in 2023. The conference champion Fighting Camels reached NCAA Regionals.
• The Beacons will make their way to Nashville, Tenn. for a game against preseason No. 6 Vanderbilt on March 26. The Commodores went 42-20 last season, were the runners-up of the College World Series in 2021 and won the national title as recently as 2019.
• Other power-five opponents on the docket include April 3 at Purdue and April 16 at Notre Dame.

Program Progress: Looking Back at 2023

• Valpo enjoyed 20 wins in 2023, the team’s highest overall win total since the 2017 campaign (24).
• The team surpassed 2018 (19) for the program’s highest overall win total since joining the Missouri Valley Conference.
• The team’s highest overall win total in recent years came despite the fact that six nonconference games were called off due to poor weather.
• Valpo finished with a .426 overall winning percentage, the team’s highest since joining the MVC and highest in any season since 2017.
• With 10 conference victories, Valpo notched its highest MVC win total since joining the league. The team’s previous Valley-only peak was nine in 2021.
• Valpo finished the season with a league-only winning percentage of .370. Prior to last season, the team’s best MVC winning percentage was .321 in 2021.
• Last season also represented the first time that Valpo has finished ahead of more than one team in the conference standings since joining the league. The team finished seventh of eight in 2018 and 2019 and eighth of eight in 2021 and 2022. There was no MVC play in 2020 due to COVID-19.
• Valpo was recognized by D1Baseball as one of three “Upsets of the Night” on March 10 after beating No. 22 Southern Miss 6-1 in the series opener. The victory snapped the team’s skid of 15 straight losses against nationally-ranked opponents and marked the team’s first victory over a top-25 foe since beating No. 25 Illinois on April 17, 2018. At No. 22, Southern Miss was the highest ranked team that Valpo has defeated since a win over No. 9 Arizona State on April 21, 2013.

Talkin’ Schmack

• Head coach Brian Schmack ranks third in program history in career victories, trailing only Paul Twenge (1988-2006, 378) and the legendary Emory G. Bauer (1954-1981, 359).
• Schmack is six wins away from becoming the third Valpo head coach to reach the 200-win milestone.
• Schmack will reach another milestone this season when the 2024 campaign reaches its 18^th tilt, which barring any schedule changes will be Sunday, March 17 at Campbell. That will mark Schmack’s 500^th game in charge of the program, becoming the third skipper in program history to reach that number.

Beacon Blasts 

• Valpo launched 50 home runs last season, surpassing the 2018 campaign (41) and the 2002 season (49) to climb all the way to fourth in single-season program history.
• Valpo held its highest single-season home run total during the BBCOR bat era that began in 2011.
• The 50 bombs marked the program’s most since 2001, a year were the team launched a program-record 81 long balls.

Valpo Single-Season Top 5 – Team Home Runs

Rank    Year    HR

1          2001    81

2          1985    64

3          1999    55

4          2023    50

5          2002    49

Other Record Book Updates from 2023

• Valpo drew 231 walks as a team last season, tied for the fifth most in program history. That marked the team’s highest number of bases on balls since 2018 (248).
• The Beacons also reached base at a high clip, as the team’s .386 on-base percentage was its highest in over 20 years. That tied for fifth in the program record book, joining the 2001 and 1998 seasons. This was the first time since 2001 that Valpo owned an OBP of .386 or better.
• Valpo possessed a .973 fielding percentage last season, matching a program record set in 2018.

Maka-ing Good Things Happen

• Ryan Maka was named to the 2024 Preseason All-MVC Team after earning first-team all-conference accolades at the conclusion of the 2023 campaign. The left-handed hitting outfielder raised his average nearly 100 points from the previous season by batting .345 a year ago including a .382 mark in Valley play.
• Maka hit two grand slams – April 2 vs. Murray State and May 5 vs. Southern Illinois – becoming the first Valpo player since at least 2006 with two career grand slams.
• He ranked second in the MVC in batting average and eighth in on-base percentage (.454).
• In league-only play, Maka ranked in the top 10 in The Valley in batting average, slugging percentage, on-base percentage, runs scored, hits, RBIs, total bases and walks.

Who’s Back, Who’s New?

• The 2024 roster features 16 seniors and nine juniors including an upperclassmen core of position players who have been together for several seasons.
• The bulk of Valpo’s position players are back from last season including returning starters at seven of the eight positions. Four of those are set to become four-year starters – Kyle Schmack (LF), Kaleb Hannahs (3B), Brady Renro (1B) and Alex Thurston (SS). Other returning starters include Alex Ryan (CF), Ryan Maka (RF) and Kade Reinertson (C).
• In total, the roster features 22 returning players.
• Valpo has welcomed nine transfers to the program – outfielder Carson Husmann (Bradley), infielder Connor Giusti (Wisconsin Oshkosh), RHP Ryan Kruse (Northern Kentucky), RHP Spencer Boynton (Eastern Nazarene College), RHP Joe Seiber (College of DuPage), RHP Bryce Konitzer (Oakland), catcher Liam Patton (Wabash), infielder Chase Maifield (Augustana) and RHP Jake Jakubowski (Heartland).
• In addition, five true freshmen have joined the fold – LHP Jack Thompson, infielder Aidan Thaxton, infielder/outfielder Kevin Denty, RHP Bennett Musser and LHP Lucas Foley.

Pitching Profile – Projected Starter

• #21 Kaleb Krier, Sr. (Altoona, Iowa / Southeast Polk (DMACC) – Made four appearances, all starts, in his first season at Valpo in 2023... Spent two seasons of JUCO ball at DMACC... Favorite MLB team is the New York Mets... Started on March 5 at Jacksonville and allowed three runs on five hits in three innings.

Pitching Profiles – Bullpen Bits

• #10 LHP Christian Hack, Jr. (Oak Forest, Ill. / Tinley Park) – Helped his high school team to conference and regional championships in 2019... Also competed in high school basketball... Says he can “do a decent Chewbacca noise”... Favorite TV Show is The Office... Appeared in six games out of the Valpo bullpen and logged 6 2/3 innings as a freshman in 2022... Saw action in 14 games and logged 19 1/3 innings last season.
• #31 Joe Seiber, R-So. (Homer Glen, Ill. / Lockport [College of DuPage]) – Third team junior college All-American at Collee of DuPage... Favorite MLB team is the Chicago White Sox... Favorite movie is Billy Madison... Joined the program prior to the 2024 season as a junior college transfer... Earned his first Valpo save with two shutout innings of one-hit ball while allowing no walks to close out a 3-2 win at The Citadel in Game 1 of a doubleheader on March 8... Was not charged with a run in 2/3 of an inning in the series finale on March 10 at The Citadel.  
• #32 Bryce Konitzer, Sr. (Mukwonago, Wis. / Mukwonago [Oakland]) – Started his collegiate career at Illinois State as a member of the 2019 MVC championship team for the Redbirds... Then spent one season at Madison College before three years at Oakland... Worked his way back from March 2022 Tommy John surgery to be ready for the start of the 2023 campaign, during which he appeared in 15 games and made eight starts... Tossed a shutout inning on March 3 vs. Binghamton.
• #34 RHP Grant Jablonski, Sr. (Mishawaka, Ind. / Mishawaka) – Appeared in four games in 2021 and two in 2020 before appearing in nine games in 2022 and 17 in 2023... 2019 Indiana All-Star while earning all-state honors... Favorite TV show is It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia... Did not allow an earned run in his season debut while logging 2 1/3 innings of relief on Feb. 18 at Alabama State... Hurled two shutout innings on Feb. 25 at No. 17 Alabama.
• #38 RHP Griffin McCluskey, Sr. (Normal, Ill. / Normal Community) – As a freshman, got the starting nod on May 11, 2021 vs. No. 8 Notre Dame and pitched a gem at Emory G. Bauer Field, holding the guests to no runs on one hit – a seeing-eye single through the left side – while walking just one and striking out four in six innings. He left in position for the win after becoming just the third pitcher to hold Notre Dame scoreless while pitching six or more innings all season, joining Duke’s Jack Carey and Boston College’s Emmett Sheehan... Posted the highest fielding percentage by a starting shortstop in program history in high school... Finished in the top 10 in his high school’s history in career 3-point field goals in basketball... Enjoys playing the guitar... Earned his first collegiate victory in his hometown of Normal, Ill. on April 17, 2022, pitching Valpo to a 2-1 win over Illinois State on Easter Sunday. He allowed just one run on four hits and one walk while striking out five over six strong innings... Was Valpo’s 2023 opening day starter vs. Kansas in Corpus Christi, Texas... In 2023, tied for fourth in the league in games started, ranked 13^th in innings pitched and was eighth in strikeouts... Got the Opening Night nod on Feb. 16, 2024 vs. Alabama State and took the defeat... Took the loss on Feb. 23 at No. 17 Alabama, when he was tagged for eight runs on seven hits in three innings... Tossed two innings of relief and allowed two runs on four hits and no walks in the March 10 series finale at The Citadel. This was his return to the mound after being briefly sidelined by an injury.
• #36 Trent Turzenski, Sr. (Burlington, Wis. / Burlington) – Had a team-best ERA (2.48) in four games out of the bullpen during the shortened 2020 season... Made 13 appearances including 10 starts in 2021... Made seven starts as the team’s Friday starter before going down with a season-ending injury in 2022... Missed most of the 2023 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery. He pitched a scoreless inning and allowed one hit in his lone outing of the year, May 7 vs. Southern Illinois... Played in the Little League World Series Regional Tournament on ESPN twice when he was 11 and 12... Favorite MLB Player is Josh Hader... Nailed down the save with three innings of one-run ball while allowing three hits, striking out four and walking none in Game 1 of a doubleheader on Feb. 17 at Alabama State... Pitched four shutout innings while allowing only one hit and one walk and fanned four to earn the victory on March 1 at Elon... Allowed two runs on three hits and no walks in two innings of relief on March 8 at The Citadel in Game 1 of a doubleheader.
• #39 Jake Jakubowski, Jr. (Lake in the Hills, Ill. / Huntley [Heartland]) – Won a national championship while playing junior college ball at Heartland CC... Played summer ball for the Kenosha Kingfish of the Northwoods League (2022) and the Burlington Bees of the Prospect League (2023)... Favorite movie is Super Bad... Retired all six batters he faced while pitching the final two innings of Game 2 of a Feb. 17 doubleheader at Alabama State... Nailed down the save on March 2 at Elon by coming in to record the final out... Picked up the win in Game 2 of a doubleheader on March 8 at The Citadel by firing 2 1/3 scoreless innings without allowing a hit or walk.

Position Player Profiles – Projected Lineup (based on recent games)

• #15 Kaleb Hannahs, 3B, Sr. (West Terre Haute, Ind. / West Vigo) – 2021 MVC Freshman of the Year, Collegiate Baseball Newspaper Freshman All-American, All-MVC Second Team and Valparaiso University co-Male Newcomer of the Year (ARC Awards)... In a very unusual and possibly even unprecedented occurrence, Valpo has two sons of Missouri Valley Conference head baseball coaches in the starting lineup… Hannahs’ father Mitch is the head coach at Indiana State… Fan of Luke Combs, the St. Louis Cardinals and Fernando Tatis Jr… Three-sport athlete in high school, where he earned four letters apiece in football, basketball and baseball… Earned MVC Player of the Week on May 3, 2021 after posting a slash line .556/.636/.667 over five games during the week... Led the team in batting average (.296), hits (55) and on-base percentage (.389) in 2021, becoming the first rookie to pace the team in batting average since Spencer Mahoney in 2012... Finished the 2021 season on a 20-game on-base streak... Started his freshman season with a .200 average over the first 11 games before hitting .336 over his last 36 regular-season contests while posting a .434 on-base percentage in that time... Named to the 2022 MVC All-Defensive Team... Led the team in runs scored with 36 while starting all 48 games in 2022, posting a .275 batting average... Was hit by a pitch on April 9, 2023 at Evansville, suffering an injury that caused him to be sidelined until May 18 vs. Illinois State (with the exception of one pinch running appearance during that stretch)... Drilled a home run in his first plate appearance back in the lineup on May 18 vs. Illinois State... Hit .286 while playing in 30 games and making 29 starts in 2023... Fourth-year starter in 2024... Hit his ninth career home run on Feb. 16, 2024, Opening Night at Alabama State... Extended his hitting streak to seven games and his on-base streak to all 14 games this season based on his performance March 8-10 at The Citadel. He tripled in the first game of that series, the second triple of his collegiate career and the first since the now-senior’s freshman year.
• #27 Kyle Schmack, LF, Sr. (Wanatah, Ind. / South Central) – After graduating from nearby South Central High School in 2019, Kyle joined his father Brian’s program at Valpo… Was the MVP of the Indiana North/South All-Star Game in June 2019 following his senior year of high school… Also played football during his prep days… Appeared in 20 games and made nine starts during the shortened 2020 season… Appeared in all 51 games and made 50 starts in 2021, posting a .264 average that ranked fourth on the team while tying for second on the club with 24 RBIs and ranking second on the squad with nine doubles... Started all 47 games and batting .322 with nine home runs, 38 RBIs and a team-high 99 total bases in 2023... Fourth-year starter in 2024... Notched his first home run of the season and the 19th of his career on Feb. 18 at Alabama State... Entered the program’s career top 10 for doubles and hit his 20^th career home run during a series where he hit .500 over three games at No. 17 Alabama from Feb. 23-25... Hit his 21^st career home run on March 2 at Elon in a 7-5 win... Hit his 22^nd career home run, climbing into a tie for fifth in program history, while also drilling a double on March 3 vs. Binghamton... Hit his 23^rd career home run on March 10 at The Citadel, climbing into a tie for fourth in program history and taking over the most career home runs by any Valpo player since 2003.
• #5 Kevin Denty, 2B, Fr. (Tinley Park, Ill. / Marian Catholic) – All-conference honoree in high school... All-Star in the Northern League during the 2023 summer with the Northwest Indiana Oilmen... Hobbies include fishing, listening to podcasts, reading and traveling... Went 4-for-4 with two home runs, three runs scored and three RBIs on March 1 in a win at Elon... Had another big game with three hits on March 4 at Jacksonville.
• #9 Connor Giusti, 1B, Sr. (Hoffman Estates, Ill. / Fremd [Wisconsin Oshkosh]) – Played in 117 games over four seasons at Wisconsin Oshkosh before transferring to Valpo for the 2023 campaign... Named to the all-defensive team and all-conference honorable mention at Oshkosh... Big Chicago Bears fan and loves football... Hit his 11^th collegiate home run and first at Valpo on Opening Night on Feb. 16 at Alabama State.
• #35 Chase Maifield, DH, Sr. (Fox Lake, Ill. / Grant [Augustana]) – 2023 Division-III first team all-region and first team all-conference pick... Enjoys fishing, hiking and collecting vinyl records... Once placed third in a snowboard slopestyle competition.
• #7 Carson Husmann, RF, Sr. (Hannah, Ind. / South Central [Bradley]) – Played in 113 games and made 101 starts over four years at Bradley while hitting 20 home runs and driving in 68 runs... His best year was 2022, when he hit .277 with 13 home runs and 45 RBIs... High school teammates with Kyle Schmack at South Central in Northwest Indiana... Was also a four-year letter winner in basketball during his prep days... Homered in each game of a doubleheader sweep at The Citadel on March 8, his first two home runs in a Valpo uniform. He reached base nine times over the course of those two games.
• #17 Alex Ryan, CF, Sr. (Lake Mills, Wis. / Lakeside Lutheran) – Played in 10 games and made one start as a freshman in 2021... Three-time all-conference pick in high school… Milwaukee Brewers fans… Has a twin sister, Olivia… Hobbies include hiking and playing card games... Played in 46 games (44 starts) in 2022... Was a member of the 2023 MVC Scholar-Athlete First Team after earning MVC Scholar-Athlete Honorable Mention the year prior... Finished 2023 with a .260 batting average while playing in 40 games and making 37 starts.
• #19 Kade Reinertson, C, R-Jr. (Huxley, Iowa / Ballard Community) – Played in 18 games before suffering a season-ending injury in 2023 after playing in 22 games and making 17 starts in 2022... Did not see game action as a rookie 2021... Named second team all-state in high school in 2019... Also played football and basketball in high school... Kicks with his left foot but does everything else right handed... Enjoys golfing and disc golfing.
• #33 Liam Patton, C, Gr. (Barrington, Ill. / Warsaw [Wabash]) – Spent the last three seasons at Wabash College, where he hit .384 with six home runs, 50 RBIs and a .582 slugging percentage in 2023... Had a go-ahead, two-run single with two outs in the ninth inning on March 5 vs. Jacksonville, a game Valpo eventually dropped 6-5 on a walk-off in the bottom of the ninth... Came up clutch again in the second game of a doubleheader on March 8 at The Citadel, when his bases-clearing double in the top of the 10^th spurred a 10-5 victory.
• #6 Alex Thurston, SS, Sr. (Fowler, Ind. / Benton Central) – Finished as the Valedictorian of his high school senior class… Won the 2019 Nanoline Automation National Championship with three classmates after creating an automated paint brush cleaner… Three-year all-conference honoree on the diamond while also playing four years of tennis and one year of basketball in high school… Appeared in 40 games and made 39 starts in 2021... Posted five hits on April 29, 2022 at Southern Illinois, becoming the first Valpo player with a five-hit game since Scott Kapers on May 8, 2018 at Western Michigan... After hitting .158 in 2021, made a significant jump with a team-high .301 batting average in 2022 while playing in 47 games, all starts... Played in 46 games – all starts – while turning in a .238 batting average in 2023... Is a fourth-year starter in 2024... Hit his fourth career home run on Opening Night, Feb. 16 at Alabama State... Laid down a squeeze bunt to drive in the tying run in the ninth inning of an eventual 10-5, 10-inning win in Game 2 of a March 8 doubleheader at The Citadel.

Inside the Assistants: Top assistant Kory Winter returns to head coach Brian Schmack’s staff this season, while assistant coach Jeff Mayes is back for Year 2 and assistant coach Adam Brian has joined the fold.

• After spending three seasons as a volunteer assistant, Kory Winter was hired as Schmack’s top assistant and hitting coach beginning with the 2019 campaign. Winter played collegiately at Wittenberg and has completed coaching stints at Muskingum University and Shippensburg University. He is also Valpo’s outfield instructor.
• Jeff Mayes is in his second season on the Valpo coaching staff, serving as the team’s infield coach while also assisting with the team’s hitters and manning the third base coaching box. He spent the previous three seasons on staff at his alma mater Aurora University, a Division-III institution in Illinois, where the program amassed an 83-21 record during his tenure. Prior to that, he enjoyed a standout playing career for the Spartans.
• Adam Brian is in his first season on Valpo’s staff after graduating from Bradley. He works with the team’s catchers and holds down the first-base coaching box. Brian’s father Braden Brian played college baseball at Eastern Kentucky and was selected in the 30^th round of the 1986 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft by the Montreal Expos.