On Tap: Minnesota State, the two-time defending central region champion, will open the 2013 NCAA DII World Series Saturday at 5 p.m. ET against the champion of the midwest region, Grand Valley State, as the Mavericks look to improve on last year’s third place finish in their third baseball championship appearance in the past four years and seventh overall.
 
Last Time on the Diamond:  The Mavericks went 4-0 last weekend, including a 17-1 victory over St. Cloud State in the title game, to clinch their second consecutive NCAA Central Region tournament championship and third in the past four years.  This current postseason run marks the Mavericks eighth consecutive trip to the NCAA postseason tournament and 32nd overall, ranking only behind Florida Southern’s 39 tournament appearances, as MSU is now 54-52 all-time in NCAA regional play and will make its seventh appearance in the NCAA DII World Series - 1971, 1979, 1980, 1986, 2010, 2012 and 2013. The Purple and Gold are 6-12 all-time at the NCAA DII Baseball Championship.
 
MSU’s pitching staff was dominate from start-to-finish at last weekend’s NCAA Central Region tournament allowing only five runs in 42.0 innings of play. Junior Jason Hoppe struck out seven in 10.2 scoreless innings, while senior Harvey Martin allowed one earned run after recording seven strikeouts in 10 innings on the hill. Additionally, senior Mahlon Zimmerman allowed only three hits in four and one-third scoreless innings as he was 2-0 out of the bullpen.
 
At the plate, sophomore Nolan Johnson went 8-for-18 (.444) with an RBI, two doubles and three runs scored en route to capturing NCAA Central Region Tournament MVP honors, while sophomore Connor McCallum was 6-for-18 (.333) with a double, two RBI and three runs scored, and junior Parker Sullivan was 7-for-22 with three RBI, two runs and a double.
 
NCAA DII Baseball Championship First Round Schedule:
Date       Teams                                                                                                 Time       
5/25        Franklin Pierce vs. Shippensburg                                                    1:00 p.m. EST
5/25        Grand Valley State vs. Minnesota State                                       5:00 p.m. EST
5/26        Tampa vs. Coker                                                                              1:00 p.m. EST
5/26        Grand Canyon vs. St. Edward’s                                                     5:00 p.m. EST
 
-- All contests will be played at the USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, N.C.
-- To view complete schedule, see tournament bracket on page 29
 
Pitching and Defense Wins Championships: The Minnesota State pitching staff has surrendered only seven runs in eight games and 78.0 innings this postseason good for a 0.81 team ERA as opponents are hitting just .193 against MSU...Defensively, the Mavericks have committed only three errors in 78.0 innings for a .991 fielding percentage this postseason, while ranking first in the nation in fielding percentage for the second straight season at .980...On the mound, junior Jason Hoppe is riding a 42 and two-thirds inning scoreless streak ahving not allowed a run since April 7, while senior Harvey Martin was named the Daktronics Central Region Pitcher of the Year and the Rawlings/ABCA Central Region Pitcher of the Year.
 
A Look at the Lakers: Grand Valley State enters the week with a 35-17 overall record after defeating Bellarmine, 6-3, in a winner-take-all championship game at the midwest regional. GVSU is batting .314 as a team this season and is led at the plate by sophomore Kevin Zak who is hitting .389 with 12 stolen bases, 37 RBI and 46 runs scored. The Lakers have a 2.54 team ERA and are led on the mound by senior Anthony Campanella who stands 9-4 with a 1.74 ERA and 50 strikeouts in 93.0 innings pitched. Head coach Jamie Detillion is in his first year at the helm of the Laker program after serving the previous 10 years as assistant coach.
 
Minnesota State History: The 2013 season marks the 74th for Maverick baseball. MSU owns a 1,581-812-7 (.660) all-time record in 2,400 total games. Minnesota State has five Northern Intercollegiate Conference titles (1968, 1969, 1979, 1980, 1981), 19 North Central Conference championships (1970, 1971, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2006, 2007) and three Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference crowns (2010, 2011, 2012). The program has 32 appearances in the NCAA Division II National Tournament (1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013) and seven in the NCAA Division II World Series (1971, 1979, 1980, 1986, 2010, 2012, 2013) including two third-place finishes in 1980 and 2012.
 
Additionally, five Mavericks have been selected as All-Americans.

To view the complete 29-page PDF of this release, click HERE.