Ball State (11-9, 1-5 MAC)
at Valparaiso (7-11, 0-0 MVC)

Emory G. Bauer Field (500) | Valparaiso, Ind.
Tuesday, March 19, 3 p.m. CT – RHP Kaleb Krier

Next Up in Valpo Baseball: At long last, the Valparaiso University baseball team will take the field at home on Tuesday afternoon as instate foe Ball State makes its way to Emory G. Bauer Field for a midweek matchup. The Beacons, who rank 69^th in the RPI, returned to Valparaiso late Sunday / early Monday after an 18-day, 11-game spring break excursion that saw Valpo tour the south and face off with warm-weather opponents. The team’s home opener comes after a season-opening stretch of 18 straight games away from home. This will also mark the final tune-up prior to Missouri Valley Conference play, which begins on Friday as a three-game series at Southern Illinois gets going in Carbondale.

Last Time Out: Valpo was competitive but dropped all three games to a top-25 opponent this past weekend at No. 21 Campbell, losing 10-9 on Friday, 13-4 on Saturday and 18-7 in seven innings on Sunday. The Beacons pushed the Camels to the brink of an upset in the series opener, leading 5-1 and 9-5, but Campbell eventually escaped on a walk-off home run.

Following the Beacons: Tuesday’s game will be streamed on ESPN+ with Todd Ickow (play-by-play) and Leo Staudacher (analyst) on the call. Links to live video and stats are available on ValpoAthletics.com. For in-game updates, follow @ValpoBaseball on X, the social media platform that was once known as Twitter.   

Head Coach Brian Schmack: Brian Schmack (195-305) is in his 11th 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 holds a 28-40-1 record in an all-time series with Ball State that dates all the way back to 1948. This will mark the first time the two teams have locked horns since March 27, 2019, a 14-8 loss in Muncie. The Cardinals last visited Emory G. Bauer Field on March 26, 2018, a 13-5 setback for the hosts. Valpo has dropped five straight in the head-to-head series dating back to a 3-2, 10-inning win on May 9, 2012 in Northwest Indiana. 

In The Other Dugout: Ball State

• Picked to finish second in the Mid-American Conference preseason poll, receiving three of 11 first-place votes. They were behind only Kent State in the preseason projections.
• Went 36-23 last season and 19-11 in MAC play en route to winning the MAC Tournament and making an NCAA Regional appearance.
• Coming off being swept at home by Bowling Green this weekend, losing 5-4, 34-8 and 15-8. Also dropped two of three against Eastern Michigan on the first weekend of MAC play.
• Led offensively by Michael Hallquist, who is hitting .370 with a .402 on-base percentage and .753 slugging percentage.

Talkin’ Schmack

• Head coach Brian Schmack reached a milestone on March 17 at No. 21 Campbell, his 500^th game at the helm of the program. He became the third skipper in program history to reach that number, joining Paul Twenge (1,011; 1988-2006) and Emory G. Bauer (1954-1981; 606).
• Schmack is on the verge of another milestone, as he is five wins away from becoming the third Valpo head coach to reach the 200-victory threshold.
• 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).

Don’t Walk This Way

• Entering the March 15-17 series at No. 21 Campbell, Valpo ranked among the national leaders in walks allowed per nine innings, as the Beacons were permitting just 2.9 bases on balls per every nine innings pitched.
• Entering that series, Valpo was 10^th nationally in that category, behind only Nebraska (2.44), Fresno State (2.47), UTSA (2.66), UT Arlington (2.68), Purdue (2.71), California Baptist (2.82), Sam Houston (2.85), Texas A&M (2.86) and Arkansas (2.87).
• Entering that series, Valpo pitching had allowed two walks or fewer in six straight games. The Beacons have gone walk-free three times this season including two of the previous three games before the weekend series at Campbell.
• That trend took a turn in the wrong direction during the series in Buies Creek, as Valpo pitchers walked 29 in the three games after having walked 37 total in the first 15 games of the year. Valpo walked seven or more in each contest, including a season-high 14 in the series finale on March 17.
• The 14 free passes were the most issued by Valpo pitching in Schmack’s 500 games as head coach. In fact, this was the most walks allowed by Valpo pitching in Schmack’s 18 years overseeing the Valpo pitching staff including the seven seasons he spent as pitching coach before taking the helm.

A Look at the Leaderboards  

• The Beacons rank third in the MVC in doubles with 38.
• Valpo batters have drawn 98 walks this year, tied for the second most in the MVC.
• Valpo has swiped 25 bases this season, tied for second in the MVC in stolen bags.
• Kyle Schmack ranks tied for sixth in the league with six home runs.
• Schmack ranks eighth in the league in on-base plus slugging (OPS) at 1.152. He is seventh in slugging percentage at .681 and ninth in on-base percentage at .471.
• Schmack’s six stolen bases rank tied for sixth in the league.
• Kaleb Hannahs is tied for ninth in the league with six doubles and tied for fourth with six hit by pitches.

Notes Wrapping Up No. 21 Campbell (March 15-17)

• Valpo led 5-1 and 9-5 in the series opener against a top-25 opponent, but the Camels won 10-9 on a walk-off home run.
• Valpo batters took 14 walks in the series opener, nearly doubling the team’s previous season watermark of eight. That was the club’s highest walk total since 14 on March 25, 2022 vs. St. Bonaventure.
• Kyle Schmack went 3-for-3 and reached base five times in the series opener.
• Valpo had Campbell on the ropes after the Camels went 46-15 and 22-5 in the Big South last year and won the conference for the fourth time in five years. The Camels have been an NCAA Regional team each of the last five seasons, and a year ago they were ranked as high as ninth in the country.
• Campbell entered this series at No. 21 according to D1Baseball and No. 23 in the USA Today Coaches’ Poll.
• Valpo’s nine runs in the series opener marked the team’s highest total against a nationally-ranked opponent since falling 14-10 at No. 3 Louisville on Feb. 23, 2020.
• In the series opener, Valpo played its fourth one-run game of the year and fell to 1-3 in those contests.
• Valpo dropped the middle game of the series 13-4 on March 16 despite two home runs by Alex Ryan, his first two blasts of the season and the fourth and fifth of his collegiate career. He had Valpo’s second multi-homer game this season, joining Kevin Denty on March 1 at Elon.
• Campbell invoked the 10-run rule in an 18-7 victory in the March 17 series finale. The luck of the Irish did not go the way of the Beacons, as they gave up a 10-spot in the fifth inning and issued 14 walks.
• Kaleb Hannahs reached base in all three games in the series, extending his season-long on-base streak to 18.
• Valpo batters had at least six walks in all three games and the Beacons have accepted at least a half a dozen free passes in eight straight games.
• Valpo stranded 12 on base in both Game 1 and Game 2 of the series. Prior to the series finale when they stranded just six, the Beacons had stranded a dozen or more in six of their previous seven games.

Notes Wrapping Up March 12: Valpo 5, Gardner-Webb 2

• Alex Ryan lashed two of the team’s five hits.
• Kyle Schmack worked three walks.
• Valpo produced five runs on five hits and prevailed despite being outhit 6-5.
• Carson Husmann accounted for the team’s lone extra-base knock.
• Kaleb Hannahs was hit by a pitch, extending his on-base streak to 15 games. He owns the team’s longest such streak since Ryan Maka reached in 25 straight last season.

Schmacking Extra-Base Hits 

• Kyle Schmack is up to 11 extra-base hits in 18 games this season, racking up five doubles and six home runs.
• He is up to 24 career home runs, climbing into sole possession of fourth in program history in that category. He now owns the most career home runs of any Valpo player since 2003.
• Schmack has increased his career double total to 42, recently grabbing sole possession of seventh in program history.
• Schmack is up to 108 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          Kyle Schmack            2020-pres.       24

5          Joe Gersna                  1982-1985       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          Kyle Schmack            2020-pres.       42

8          Chris Moore                1998-2001       41

Kevin Kutansky          2003-2006       41

10        Rob Hadrick               1994-1997       40

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 had a three-game series at No. 21 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.

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... Put together a solid start on March 12 at Gardner-Webb, going five innings of one-run, four-hit ball while walking none and striking out one. He received no decision in a game Valpo won 5-2.

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... Pitched two shutout innings and earned his first win of the season on March 12 at Gardner-Webb... Worked three plus innings and allowed just one run on four hits on March 16 at No. 23 Campbell. He did not allow a run in his first three frames before yielding a solo homer to lead off the start of his fourth frame.
• #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... Worked a scoreless ninth to finish out the March 12 win at Gardner-Webb.
• #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... Pitched a shutout inning in the March 12 win at Gardner-Webb... Pitched 1 1/3 innings of relief and was not charged with a run on March 15 at No. 21 Campbell.

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... Reached base in all three games at No. 21 Campbell from March 15-17, extending his season-long on-base streak to 18.
• #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... Moved into sole possession of fourth in program history with his 24^th career home run on March 17 at No. 23 Campbell.
• #30 Brady Renfro, 1B, Sr. (Antigo, Wis. / Antigo) – Is an only child… Hobbies include hunting and fishing… Favorite MLB player is Clayton Kershaw and team is the Milwaukee Brewers… Played with STiKS Baseball Academy and the Chicago Scouts Association… Posted a 21-game on-base streak that was snapped on May 2, 2021 vs. Illinois State, at the time Valpo’s longest on-base streak since 2017... Named 2021 All-MVC Honorable Mention... Was one of two players to start all 48 games for Valpo in 2022... Tied for the team lead in both home runs (seven) and RBIs (27) while also posting a .275 batting average during the 2022 campaign... Hit .319 in MVC play in 2022, ranking second on the team in league-only batting average while driving in a team-high 11 runs in Valley action... During the 2023 campaign, had an on-base streak that reached 30 games before it was finally snapped on April 22 vs. UIC. That was Valpo’s longest such streak since 2016... Delivered a grand slam to help Valpo to an upset win over No. 22 Southern Miss on March 10... Missed time with a hip injury from April 23 to May 23... Hit .287 in 2023 while appearing in 34 games, all starts... Is a fourth-year starter in 2024... Had not played since the first weekend of the season (Feb. 17 at Alabama State) due to back issues but returned to action on March 12 at Gardner-Webb.
• #9 Connor Giusti, 2B, 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.
• #5 Kevin Denty, Dh, 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.
• #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... Had Valpo’s second multi-homer game of the season, going deep twice on March 16 at No. 17 Campbell.
• #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.