What's on Tap: No. 7 Minnesota State baseball begins the 2018 season with nine games in Florida.
 

Date	Opponent	Location	Time (CST)
March 1	Davenport	Auburndale, Fla.	1:00 p.m.
March 2	Davenport	Auburndale, Fla.	9:30 a.m.
March 3	Malone	Winter Haven, Fla.	8:00 a.m.
March 3	Malone	Winter Haven, Fla.	10:00 a.m.
March 4	Saint Anselm	Auburndale, Fla.	8:45 a.m.
March 6	Lewis	Auburndale, Fla.	12:00 p.m.
March 6	Notre Dame (Ohio)	Auburndale, Fla.	3:30 p.m.
March 7	Walsh	Auburndale, Fla.	12:00 p.m.
March 8	Lewis	Auburndale, Fla.	9:30 a.m.

Looking Back at 2017: Minnesota State baseball finished the 2017 season with a 46-11 record, including a 35-5 mark in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play. The Mavericks claimed the 10th-NSIC regular-season championship in program history — the fifth in the last eight years. Minnesota State then earned its fifth NSIC Tournament title to earn the 36th NCAA Tournament appearance in program history — the second most in NCAA DII to Florida Southern's 41. The NCAA Tournament appearance was the 12th-straight for the Mavericks. Minnesota State's season ended in the NCAA Central Regional as they were eliminated with a 3-2 loss to Central Oklahoma on May 21, 2017 in Emporia, Kan.
 
One of the Top Pitching Staffs in NCAA DII: The Maverick pitching staff finished 2017 as one of the best in NCAA DII — ranking first in WHIP (1.12), first in hits allowed per nine innings (7.48), second in strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.50:1), third in ERA (2.78), tied for third in shutouts (9), sixth in walks allowed per nine innings (2.62) and 12th in strikeouts per nine innings (9.2).
 
King of the Hill: Senior right-handed pitcher Dalton Roach earned All-American honors three times in 2017. He was named to the NCAA Division II Conference Commissioners Association All-America First Team, the ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Division II All-America First Team and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association All-America Second Team. In addition, Roach joined Jason Hoppe as the only two Mavericks to earn three All-American honors in one year. Hoppe did so in 2014. Roach is also the first Maverick to earn two All-American first team honors in the same season.
 
Roach, who recorded a 10-1 record with a 1.56 ERA in 2017, also became the first Maverick to earn the Brett Tomko Award — bestowed to a college baseball pitcher whose on the field performance is deemed the most outstanding at the NCAA Division II level.
 
He limited opposing hitters to a .180 batting average, struck out 128 and walked 12 in 86 2/3 innings. Roach tallied six complete games and two shutouts, including a three-hit shutout in the Mavericks' 4-0 win over Central Oklahoma in the NCAA DII Central Region Tournament on May 18, 2017. His 128 strikeouts are the most in a single season at Minnesota State, surpassing the previous high of 113 that was set by Hoppe (2011-14). Roach recorded six games with at least 11 strikeouts in 2017, including three outings of 14. Roach's 285 career strikeouts are second in Minnesota State program history to Hoppe's total of 295.
 
Returning Player Position Breakdown: The 2018 Minnesota State baseball roster features 20 previous letterwinners. The Mavericks return eight pitchers from last year's staff. In the field, the Mavericks return 12 position players (six infielders, two catchers, three outfielders and one utility player). 
 
RBI Machine: Senior first baseman Dylan Dresel drove in 57 runs in 2017, which is the sixth-highest single-season total in program history. His 143 career runs driven in are the fifth most in Maverick history. Dresel helped power a Maverick offense that batted .299 with a .381 on-base percentage, .474 slugging percentage, 526 hits, 93 doubles, 13 triples, 63 home runs and 158 walks in 2017.
 
Got Hart?: Junior outfielder Jordan Hart is coming off of a season where he posted career highs in batting average (.356), on-base percentage (.427), slugging percentage (.620), hits (73), doubles (12), home runs (12), RBI (49) and walks (23). In addition, Hart earned NSIC Player of the Week honors.

2017 NSIC Coach of the Year: Head coach Matt Magers was named the 2017 NSIC Coach of the Year after leading the Mavericks to a 46-11 overall record and a 35-5 NSIC mark. He led Minnesota State to its 10th NSIC regular season title – the first since 2014 and the fifth under Magers' guidance. He coached six players, who earned All-NSIC honors, including four first-team members and the NSIC Newcomer of the Year. Magers, who eclipsed 40 wins in a season for the seventh time, has a 388-115 career record at Minnesota State.
 
2017 NSIC Newcomer of the Year: Senior right-hander Ricky Digrugilliers was named the NSIC Newcomer of the Year in 2017. On the season, he went 7-0 with two saves (pitching primarily out of the bullpen) with a 1.75 ERA, .212 batting average against and a 12:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 51 1/3 innings.
 
2017 All-NSIC: Senior right-hander Dalton Roach, senior left-hander Aaron Rozek and senior first baseman Dylan Dresel were named to the All-NSIC First Team in 2017. Junior outfielder Jordan Hart was named to the second team. Rozek was also named to the NCBWA All-Central Region Second Team. 
 
2017 All-NSIC Tournament Team: Four returning Mavericks were named to the 2017 All-NSIC Tournament Team. They are: senior shortstop Luke Waldek (Tournament MVP), senior right-hander Nick Belzer, senior right-hander Dalton Roach and senior center fielder Josh Wenzel.
 
2017 NSIC Players of The Week: Senior outfielder Josh Wenzel was named the NSIC Player of the Week for the first time in his Maverick career.  Wenzel earned the honor for his performance during the week of Feb. 20-26, 2017. Wenzel earned his second NSIC Player of the Week honor for the week of March 27-April 2, 2017.
 
Senior first baseman Dylan Dresel was named the NSIC Player of the Week for his performance during the week of April 3-9, 2017.
 
Junior outfielder Jordan Hart was named NSIC Player of the Week for his performance during the week of May 1-7.
 
2017 NSIC Pitchers of the Week:
Senior right-hander Dalton Roach was named the NSIC Pitcher of the Week for April 23-30, 2017. Roach tossed a one-hit, seven-inning, complete-game, shutout with 14 strikeouts against Upper Iowa.
 
Davenport: The Panthers (4-2), who face Judson on Wednesday before facing the Mavericks on Thursday, enter their game with Judson on a three-game winning streak. Last season, Davenport, which is in its first season in NCAA DII, finished 43-17 in the NAIA in 2017.

Malone: The Pioneers (0-4) face Davenport on Friday before facing the Mavericks on Saturday. Last season, Malone finished with a 35-18 record, including 14-8 mark in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.
 
Saint Anselm: The Hawks (3-3) face University of Mary on Saturday before facing the Mavericks on Sunday. Last season, the Hawks finished with an 11-32 record, including a 5-22 record in the Northeast10.

Lewis: The Flyers (1-3) will play three more game before facing the Maverick on Tuesday. The two teams will play a second game on March 8. Last season, the Flyers finished 16-34 and 10-18 in Great Lakes Valley Conference play.

Notre Dame (Ohio): The Falcons (2-5) will play three more game before facing the Mavericks on Tuesday. The Falcons finished 2017 with an 18-32 record, including a 13-19 mark in Mountain East Conference play.
 
Walsh: The Cavaliers (0-3) are set to play five more games before facing the Mavericks on March 7. Last season, the Cavaliers played to a 32-18 record and a 19-11 mark in Great Midwest Athletic Conference play.

Listen to head coach Matt Magers' comments on the upcoming season, below.