March 22, 2001
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Columbia, Mo. -- After seven non-conference games, the University of Missouri baseball team (13-9-1, 3-6 Big 12) ventures to Nebraska for a Big 12 Conference series this coming weekend. Nebraska is ranked fifth by Collegiate Baseball, fourth by Baseball America, eighth by Baseball Weekly/ESPN and fifth by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.
Upcoming Schedule: Missouri's upcoming action is as follows:
*#5/4/8/5 Nebraska - Friday, 6:30 p.m., Buck Beltzer Stadium
*#5/4/8/5 Nebraska - Saturday, 2 p.m., Buck Beltzer Stadium
*#5/4/8/5 Nebraska - Sunday, 1 p.m., Buck Beltzer Stadium
Tough Schedule: This weekend marks the fourth weekend in the past five that the Tigers have faced a ranked opponent for a three-game series.
Missouri met the following teams with the current rankings:
*#17/17/14/15 Oklahoma State, Feb. 24-26
*#23/19/16/23 Baylor, March 2-4
*#18/13/18/16 Pepperdine, March 16-18
The Tigers have posted a 3-6 record in those series and are 3-7 overall against ranked teams this season.
Probable Starters: For the seventh time in as many chances, Missouri will have Drew Endicott start the first game of the weekend. Endicott, a sophomore right-hander from Carthage, Mo., has a 2-3 record and a 4.04 earned-run average. He struck out a career-best eight against Oklahoma State on Feb. 24. Senior Mitch Kiler, a left-handed pitcher from Shawnee, Kan., is expected to start game two of the series. Kiler is 0-1 with a 5.75 ERA on the season and will be making his fifth start of the season. Shaun Marcum, a freshman from Excelsior Springs, Mo., will be the game three starter. Marcum is 1-0 with a 3.05 ERA. He struck out five batters in five innings of relief work against Wichita State and no-hit Kansas for four innings before picking up the win.
Hot Teams Collide: The Nebraska-Missouri series will feature two of the Big 12's hottest teams. The Cornhuskers have won 14 of 16 games after losing 6-5 to Wichita State Tuesday night. The Tigers have won eight of their last nine contests and have scored 10-or-more runs in three of their last four games.
Nebraska Notes: The Cornhuskers are 4-0 in Big 12 Conference play and are 16-5 overall. Nebraska is hitting a league-best .352 as a team. Dan Johnson leads the offensive attack with a .435 batting average, seven home runs and 24 runs batted in. Shane Komine, Friday's expected starter, is 5-1 with a 4.20 earned-run average and 50 strikeouts in 40 and two-thirds innings pitched. Dave Van Horn is in his fourth season as the Nebraska head coach.
Statistical Breakdown: Here is how Missouri and Nebraska match up:
| - | Missouri | Nebraska |
| Batting Average | .277 | .352 |
| Doubles | 39 | 45 |
| Home Runs | 13 | 26 |
| Runs Scored | 144 (6.26 per game) | 207(9.86 per game) |
| ERA | 3.60 | 4.98 |
| Opponents' Batting Average | .253 | .286 |
| Strikeouts | 134 | 163 |
| Strikeout to Walk Ratio | 2.39 | 2.33 |
| Won Loss | 13-9-1 | 16-5 |
Missouri vs. Nebraska: The Tigers hold a 128-92-1 record against Nebraska. The series started with Missouri winning two of three games in 1898. Mizzou won game one 7-6 before Nebraska won the second game 14-2. Missouri closed the series with a 19-9 triumph.
Missouri vs. Nebraska in 2000: Nebraska won four of the five meetings but Missouri upset the Cornhuskers 12-10 in the Big 12 Tournament. Nebraska ended the Tigers' season with a 4-3 win in an elimination game in the tourney. Missouri used two home runs by Landon Brandes and one homer each by Nick Wilfong, Mick Weiss and W.T. Hoover to down Nebraska 12-10 in the tournament's first round. Nebraska scored a run in both the seventh and eighth innings to rally from a 3-2 Missouri lead. The Tigers scored all three of their runs in the sixth inning, two runs coming in via a Nick Wilfong single.
A Look Back: In 1996, Missouri won the Big 8 regular season title and picked up two wins over Nebraska in Lincoln along the way. Aaron Jaworowski had a monster series, hitting four home runs and driving in 11 runs in the doubleheader. The Tigers won 8-2 and 14-10 at Buck Beltzer Stadium on April 24, 1996. In 1999, Jon Williams was named Big 12 Player of the Week after going 9-for-17 with three doubles at Nebraska.
Player of the Week: Freshman outfielder Lee Laskowski made his first-ever start last week and started all five games between March 13 and March 18. During that stretch, he hit .429 (9x21) with two doubles and two home runs. Laskowski, from St. Louis, has also driven in five runs. He also recorded three games with two-or-more hits. For his efforts, Laskowski was named the Big 12's Player of the Week.
Laskowski is the first Tiger to be honored this season. In 2000, Missouri's Logan Dale was honored as a pitcher of the week on Feb. 21, outfielder Jayce Tingler was selected on March 6 and then-third baseman Landon Brandes was chosen on May 15.
Tigers on Tears: In the past 10 games, five Tigers are hitting .340 or better. W.T. Hoover is leading the way with a .381 average. Mick Weiss is hitting .371 and has driven a team-high 13 runs during that stretch. He has scored 12 runs and walked nine times.
Other hot hitters are:
*Jon Williams - .368 with 12 RBI
*Laskowski - 345 with five RBI
*Jayce Tingler - .341 with eight runs scored and stolen six bases
As a team during that 10-game stretch, Missouri is hitting .308 while its opponents are hitting .215. But the Tigers have done more than just hit the ball as Missouri has also stolen 25 bases on 27 attempts in the past 10 games.
Calling Mr. Ripken?: While the consecutive games played streak set by Cal Ripken, Jr., is not quite in jeopardy, Ryan Stegall has started every one of the 135 games he has played for the Tigers. Stegall started all 55 games he appeared in as a freshman but did not play in the March 31, 1999, non-conference game against Kansas but has started every game since then to bring his streak to 108 games. Stegall was the lone Tiger to start all 57 games in 2000.
Recent Action: Five players had two-or-more-hits Wednesday as the Tigers downed Western Illinois 10-2. Jayce Tingler led the way with three hits and stolen bases while Jon Williams, W.T. Hoover, Wes Fewell and Luke Cassis each had two hits. Missouri used six pitchers in the contest and Jon Harris improved to 3-0 with the win. Missouri used a 13-hit attack in Tuesday's 12-0 win over Western Illinois. Mick Weiss, Wes Fewell, Brian Desch and Felipe Tetelboin each had two hits to lead the Tigers. Ryan Rallo drove in two runs with a seventh-inning single. The Tigers won two of three games this past weekend against Pepperdine, which was ranked sixth by Collegiate Baseball at the time. Missouri swept Pepperdine 9-5 and 13-4 on Saturday but lost 2-1 on Sunday. Sunday's loss snapped a six-game win streak. A four-run fifth inning powered the Tigers in the opener while an eight-run eighth inning fueled MU in the nightcap. Lee Laskowski had two hits in game one, including his second homer of the season. Jayce Tingler and Brian Desch had two hits in game two while W.T. Hoover had three RBI. Laskowski also had two hits on Sunday.
Big 12 Leaders: Missouri has a number of players among the leaders in this week's Big 12 Conference statistics for conference-only games.
They are:
*Drew Endicott is one of 16 in a three-way tie for first in games started (3). He also ranks fifth in strikeouts (17, 7.52 per game) and ninth in innings pitched (20.1)
*Ryan Stegall is tied with five others for the lead in saves (2)
*Pete Sansone is tied for second in appearances (5)
*Jayce Tingler ranks second in walks with eight (0.89 bb per game)
*Mick Weiss ranks third with 14 hits (1.56 hits per game)
*Jon Williams ranks sixth in total bases (20)
In all games, the Tigers rank fourth with a 3.91 earned-run average. Missouri has allowed a league-low 55 walks.
Hit Streaks: Jon Williams saw a 10-game hit streak snapped in Tuesday night's 12-0 win over Western Illinois. Williams also had an eight-game hit streak earlier this season. Mick Weiss had a team-best 13-game hit streak snapped this past weekend. In terms of current streaks, Brian Desch has a seven-game hit streak.
MU vs. 2000 NCAA Participants: The Tigers have 19 games scheduled against teams which participated in the 2000 NCAA Championships. Missouri is 3-2-1 so far this season against those foes, defeating Loyola Marymount and Wichita State, winning one of three games against Baylor and tying San Jose State. Upcoming opponents Nebraska (this weekend), Texas Tech, Oklahoma, Texas and Creighton also advanced to the 2000 NCAAs.
Home Sweet Home: The Tigers have posted an impressive 9-1 record this season at Taylor Stadium. Missouri went 18-12 in 2000 - the first season at Taylor Stadium.
Milestone Watch I: Ryan Stegall hit his 24th career home run in the win over Truman State on March 14. Ironically, Stegall hit his first career home run against the Bulldogs in 1999. Stegall is tied for ninth place on the career home run chart with Mark Thiel (1974-76) with 24 round-trippers.
Milestone Watch II: Ryan Stegall is in second place with 15 career saves. He passed Jeff Cornell, who recorded 14 saves from 1976-78, to move into sole possession of second place against Kansas (3/11). Stegall set a single-season record in 2000 with 12 saves.
Weather: Weather has played a factor in the Tigers' season. MU has had five games affected by rain or snow or fog. Missouri's season-opening contest against San Jose State was called with the Tigers coming to bat in the sixth inning due to rain and the score tied 0-0. MU's game with Creighton will now be played April 18 at 7 p.m. at Taylor Stadium/Simmons Field. That game was originally scheduled for Feb. 21 but was postponed due to snow and cold. Missouri's game with Lincoln on Feb. 27 was cancelled due to snow. The Tigers replaced that contest with the game against Truman State. The second game of the Tigers' series with Baylor was suspended due to fog covering the outfield in the bottom half of the first inning. The contest was completed on March 4. Last Saturday's doubleheader against Pepperdine was due to snowfall and cold temperatures on March 16.
A Tie?: Yes, the Missouri Tigers had a tie game to open the season. The tie was not the first in school history. Missouri tied Illinois 3-3 in the 1986 season and tied Murray State 8-8 in the 1984 campaign. The 1980s decade featured three tie games. MU has been involved in seven tie games since the 1940 season and now has played 19 tie games all-time. A total of 10 of those tie games came between the 1897 and 1921 seasons.
Preseason Honors: Junior shortstop/relief pitcher Ryan Stegall has collected a number of preseason honors this season. They are:
*Named to Rotary Smith Award's watch list for Player of the Year
*Big 12 Player of the Year by Collegiate Baseball
*Second-team All-American utility player by Collegiate Baseball
*Third-team All-American utility player by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association
Sophomore outfielder Jayce Tingler and senior pitcher Mitch Kiler were mentioned as "Players to Watch" in the Big 12 by Collegiate Baseball.
2000 Recap: The Tigers went 33-24 in 2000 and advanced to the Big 12 Conference Tournament for the fourth consecutive campaign. Ryan Stegall was honored as the first-team all-Big 12 shortstop and was named an All-American utility player by two organizations. Jayce Tingler was named to the Freshman All-American team.
Coaching Staff: Head coach Tim Jamieson is in his seventh season and has an overall mark of 208-150-1 and a record of 89-87 in Big 12/Big 8 play. He recorded his 200th career victory over Wichita State (9-8) on March 7. A University of New Orleans graduate, Jamieson was an assistant coach for the Tigers for six seasons before taking over the top spot. He led the Tigers to the 1996 Big 8 regular season crown and a berth in the Midwest Regional. Jamieson is assisted by Chal Fanning (pitching coach, fifth season), Evan Pratte (hitting coach/infield, fourth season) and Chris Smith (outfield, first season). The Tigers have had 16 players enter professional baseball during Jamieson's tenure. Jamieson is 5-0 against Western Illinois and has guided the Tigers to a 13-10 overall record against Nebraska and a 1-1 mark in the Big 12 Tournament.
Jamieson's milestone victories:
*1 - Missouri 12, Lincoln 2 - Feb. 27, 1995
*50 - Missouri 8, Nebraska 2 - April 24, 1996
*100 - Missouri 3, Eastern Michigan 0 - March 14, 1998
*150 - Missouri 5, Oklahoma 2 - April 17, 1999
*200 - Missouri 9, Wichita State 8 - March 7, 2001
Another Season, Another 30 Wins: Missouri has won 30-or-more games the past five seasons and in 14 of the last 16 campaigns.
Success: The Tigers opened the 2001 season ranked 35th among all NCAA Division I teams with 1,743 wins. In its 104 seasons of baseball, Missouri has won 61.0 percent of its games.
Broadcasts: The Tigers' games this season are carried on KWWC (90.5 FM) as well as on www.mutigers.com. Sean Kelley serves as the play-by-play announcer while color commentary will be provided by Mike Cronemeyer (home games) and Matt Schmidt (road games). Kelley is in his third season as the voice of MU baseball.
Home Runs for Kids: Again this season, the Tigers have teamed with the University of Missouri Children's Hospital to develop a special program called "Home Runs for Kids." The program is geared to raise money for sick children at the Children's Hospital at University Hospital and Clinics. The fund-raising program will recruit baseball fans, individuals, businesses, clubs and organizations, to pledge 25 cents to $10 or more for every home run the Tigers hit this season. All of the money raised by the "Home Run for Kids" program will be used locally to fund equipment, research and programs for patients at Children's Hospital. Currently, the Tigers have hit 13 home runs.
Tigers By Inning: The eighth inning has been a hot inning lately as the Tigers have scored 17 runs in that frame in the past three games. Missouri has found the middle innings to be its favorite for scoring runs. The Tigers have scored 18, 22 and 22 runs in fourth, fifth and sixth innings. Missouri scored a season-high eight runs in the eighth inning in the win over Peperdine (3/17). The second inning has been the Tigers' downfall, allowing 22 runs.
| - | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | EI | Total |
| Missouri | 14 | 12 | 11 | 18 | 22 | 22 | 14 | 27 | 3 | 1 | 144 |
| Opponents | 9 | 22 | 11 | 14 | 7 | 10 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 1 | 98 |
Academic Success: Seven members of the Tigers' squad were named to Missouri's Fall Student-Athlete Dean's List. They are: Dan Bane, Garrett Broshuis, Logan Dale, Bo Davis, Mitch Kiler, Malachi Momper, Andy Runyan
Birthdays: The following Missouri players will have their birthdays during the 2001 season:
Feb. 16 - Mick Weiss (2 hits, 1 run scored, 1 RBI vs. Nevada-Las Vegas)
Feb. 19 - Dan Bane (DNP)
March 2 - Matt Hobbs (DNP)
March 10 - W.T. Hoover (1 hit vs. Kansas, 1 run scored, 1 RBI)
March 24 - Shannon Wheeler
March 25 - Brian Desch
March 30 - Drew Endicott
April 1 - Kurt Propst
April 16 - Cody Ehlers
May 18 - Jon Williams
Next: Missouri heads to Arkansas State for a two-game series March 27-28 before returning to Taylor Stadium for a three-game series with fellow Big 12 Conference member Texas Tech (March 30-31-April 1).