University of St. Thomas Athletics
Wednesday, April 26
Minneapolis, Minn.
6:00 p.m. Central
at
Minnesota
Photo by: Collin Boyles
Tommies, Gophers to meet for first time this season in midweek game
4/25/2023 1:02:00 PM | Baseball
ST. PAUL, Minn. -- St. Thomas Baseball is back in the Twin Cities for action Wednesday, April 26 as it takes on Minnesota at Siebert Field in Minneapolis.
The Tommies and Gophers make their first meeting of the season at 6 p.m. after their first two meetings were canceled due to weather.
Live video will be available through B1G+ HERE with live stats available HERE.
The Last Time Out
• St. Thomas was swept by South Dakota State during a three-game series April 23-24. Originally scheduled to play Friday-Sunday, the series was moved to a doubleheader Sunday, with losses of 8-5 and 7-0, and a single game Monday, a loss of 2-1.
• The Jacks scored in the first inning of all three games, led off by a three-run first during game one. SDSU added two runs in the second inning before Ben Taxdahl hit a three-run home run, the first of two in the series, in the fourth inning. Dylan O'Connell accounted for the Toms' final RBI hits, a single in the fifth and another in the ninth.
• The Tommies were stifled during game two with just three hits, including a stretch of 14 batters retired in a row. SDSU again scored three runs in the first inning and extended the lead to 6-0 after four.
• Reigning Summit League Pitcher of the Week Evan Esch put up another stellar performance during Monday's 2-1 loss, throwing 6.0 innings with a career-high 11 strikeouts and allowing one hit. The lone run scored against Esch came in the first inning as a lead-off double was brought home following a passed ball and wild pitch. Taxdahl accounted for the Tommies' only run of the game, a solo home run in the fourth inning.
Next Up for the Tommies
• St. Thomas travels to the University of Minnesota for the program's first meeting of the season. The two teams were scheduled to play twice previously this season, but both were canceled due to weather.
• The Gophers are led by Brett Bateman and Boston Merila, who are the lone UM athletes hitting above .300 from the plate. Bateman leads the squad with a .331 batting average, 44 hits, a .422 on-base percentage, and 12 stolen bases. Merila is hitting .307 with 39 hits, nine doubles, 13 RBI, a .414 on-base percentage, and a .378 slugging percentage.
• The pitching staff is led by Richie Holetz who holds a .335 ERA in 51.0 innings. He holds a record of 2-3 over eight starts, recording 42 strikeouts with 19 walks, 19 earned runs, and 44 hits allowed.
• Minnesota lost its first 11 games of the season before picking up a pair of wins against Northern Illinois and South Dakota State. Heading into Tuesday, the Golden Gophers are facing a five-game losing streak with their last win coming April 14 over Iowa, 12-3.
• Minnesota hosts North Dakota State Tuesday, April 25 prior to facing St. Thomas on Wednesday.
Fresh Esch
• Sophomore Evan Esch was named the TicketSmarter Summit League Peak Pitcher of the Week for the first time in his career following his start Saturday, April 15 against North Dakota State.
• Esch went 6.0 innings during his longest outing of the season, not allowing any runs during his fourth start of the season. He finished with five strikeouts, tying a season-high, and allowed just two hits and two walks.
• The weekly award is the first of Esch's career, who has made eight appearances on the mound in 2023 and made 14 with eight starts as a freshman. It also marks the first weekly honor by a Tommie this season. St. Thomas earned four award winners last season, including two pitchers and two performers of the week.
• Esch followed up with another stellar outing Monday, April 24 at South Dakota State, tossing a career-high 11 strikeouts in another 6.0-inning performance. He held the Jackrabbits to one hit and retired 13 straight batters between the second and sixth innings. After allowing his only run, Esch struck out the side in the first inning on his way to striking out eight of the first nine batters faced.
• Esch leads all active Tommies with 85 career strikeouts during the Division I era. Walker Retz follows with 66 while Duke Coborn and Kolby Gartner each have 62.
Summit League Ranks (As of 4/24/23)
Team
Earned Run Average (5th/7.30)
Fielding Percentage (6th/.958)
Opp. Batting Average (6th/.298)
Individual - Pitching
Earned Run Average (E. Esch - 6th/4.41)
Opp. Batting Average (E. Esch 6th/.219, K. Gartner - 8th/.238)
Individual - Hitting
Batting Average (J. Roder - 13th/.308, C. Bartholomew - 20th/.295)
Hits (B. Richartz - t-32nd/30)
On-Base % (J. Roder - 29th/.368)
OPS (T. Marsh - 30th/.260)
Slugging % (T. Marsh - 25th/.440)
Stolen Bases (D. O'Connell - t-23rd/4)
Individual - Fielding
Putouts (C. Bartholomew - t-10th/169)
Assists (M. Enck - 7th/63)
Fielding % (C. Bartholomew - 5th/.995, J. Roder - 6th/.992)
Caught Stealing (C. Bartholomew - t-4th/9, M. Moris - 7th/3)
The Lead Off Man
• Since Brigs Richartz led off the season with a single to center field on the very first pitch, he reached base in a team-best 12 straight games before being denied a 13th in the series finale at Oral Roberts.
• He leads the team with 32 hits, 15 runs, and 41 total bases. Richartz has led off six games with a base hit and eight games by reaching base. He has hit third during 12 of the last 13 games and 14 times overall this season.
• Richartz led off the season with a six-game hitting streak, including two multi-hit games.
• Richartz recorded the program's first cycle since 1996 in game one at Northern Colorado. He singled in the first inning to drive in one RBI, homered with one runner on base in the third inning, tripled in the fifth inning and doubled in the sixth inning.
Bringing the Lumber
• Freshman Ben Taxdahl recorded two home runs during the South Dakota State series, bringing his season total to a team-best three.
• Both of his long balls came during the fourth inning against the Jackrabbits, while two of his home runs were three-run shots.
• No other Tommie has more than one home run this season.
Hitting 21
• The Tommies scored a season-high 21 runs during the series opener April 7 at Northern Colorado, which is also the first time the program has topped 20 runs in a game since joining NCAA Division I. The Toms' 21 runs are the most for the team since totaling 21 against Macalaster in 2016 and 22 against Macalaster in 2015.
• St. Thomas tallied a season-high 19 hits and scored in every inning of the game. All but one starter recorded a hit and an RBI, and all but two totaled multiple hits.
Preseason Headlines
• Freshmen Dylan O'Connell (3B) and Nolan Kemp (RHP) were named the St. Thomas Player and Pitcher to Watch, as released in the 2023 Summit League Preseason Coaches' Poll.
• St. Thomas was selected to finish fifth in the Summit Preseason Poll.
• Dylan O'Connell was named the 2023 Preseason Summit League Freshman of the Year by D1Baseball.com and Perfect Game.
• Ben Vujovich was named to the 2023 Preseason Summit League All-Conference Team by Perfect Game.
Leading the Pack
• Chris Olean begins his 14th season with St. Thomas in 2023. He has totaled an overall record of 359-197-1 (338-148-1 in NCAA Division III) since being named the head coach prior to the 2010 season.
• Olean is a three-time NCAA DIII Region Coach of the Year and closed out its DIII era by winning championships in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) and region en route to a national runner-up finish and 37-10 record.
• During the last 12 DIII seasons the Purple won eight MIAC Championships, capped by third-place national finishes in both 2012 and 2014, in addition to the runner-up finish in 2021.
• Olean mentored seven DIII All-American pitchers. He was voted MIAC and Midwest Region Coach of the Year in 2012, 2013, and 2021. In addition, Olean works with the Tommie pitching staff, which was a perennial top-10 group in DIII baseball.
Follow Along
For more information on St. Thomas Baseball, follow along on Twitter and Instagram at @tommiebase
-- St. Thomas Athletics --
The Tommies and Gophers make their first meeting of the season at 6 p.m. after their first two meetings were canceled due to weather.
Live video will be available through B1G+ HERE with live stats available HERE.
The Last Time Out
• St. Thomas was swept by South Dakota State during a three-game series April 23-24. Originally scheduled to play Friday-Sunday, the series was moved to a doubleheader Sunday, with losses of 8-5 and 7-0, and a single game Monday, a loss of 2-1.
• The Jacks scored in the first inning of all three games, led off by a three-run first during game one. SDSU added two runs in the second inning before Ben Taxdahl hit a three-run home run, the first of two in the series, in the fourth inning. Dylan O'Connell accounted for the Toms' final RBI hits, a single in the fifth and another in the ninth.
• The Tommies were stifled during game two with just three hits, including a stretch of 14 batters retired in a row. SDSU again scored three runs in the first inning and extended the lead to 6-0 after four.
• Reigning Summit League Pitcher of the Week Evan Esch put up another stellar performance during Monday's 2-1 loss, throwing 6.0 innings with a career-high 11 strikeouts and allowing one hit. The lone run scored against Esch came in the first inning as a lead-off double was brought home following a passed ball and wild pitch. Taxdahl accounted for the Tommies' only run of the game, a solo home run in the fourth inning.
Next Up for the Tommies
• St. Thomas travels to the University of Minnesota for the program's first meeting of the season. The two teams were scheduled to play twice previously this season, but both were canceled due to weather.
• The Gophers are led by Brett Bateman and Boston Merila, who are the lone UM athletes hitting above .300 from the plate. Bateman leads the squad with a .331 batting average, 44 hits, a .422 on-base percentage, and 12 stolen bases. Merila is hitting .307 with 39 hits, nine doubles, 13 RBI, a .414 on-base percentage, and a .378 slugging percentage.
• The pitching staff is led by Richie Holetz who holds a .335 ERA in 51.0 innings. He holds a record of 2-3 over eight starts, recording 42 strikeouts with 19 walks, 19 earned runs, and 44 hits allowed.
• Minnesota lost its first 11 games of the season before picking up a pair of wins against Northern Illinois and South Dakota State. Heading into Tuesday, the Golden Gophers are facing a five-game losing streak with their last win coming April 14 over Iowa, 12-3.
• Minnesota hosts North Dakota State Tuesday, April 25 prior to facing St. Thomas on Wednesday.
Fresh Esch
• Sophomore Evan Esch was named the TicketSmarter Summit League Peak Pitcher of the Week for the first time in his career following his start Saturday, April 15 against North Dakota State.
• Esch went 6.0 innings during his longest outing of the season, not allowing any runs during his fourth start of the season. He finished with five strikeouts, tying a season-high, and allowed just two hits and two walks.
• The weekly award is the first of Esch's career, who has made eight appearances on the mound in 2023 and made 14 with eight starts as a freshman. It also marks the first weekly honor by a Tommie this season. St. Thomas earned four award winners last season, including two pitchers and two performers of the week.
• Esch followed up with another stellar outing Monday, April 24 at South Dakota State, tossing a career-high 11 strikeouts in another 6.0-inning performance. He held the Jackrabbits to one hit and retired 13 straight batters between the second and sixth innings. After allowing his only run, Esch struck out the side in the first inning on his way to striking out eight of the first nine batters faced.
• Esch leads all active Tommies with 85 career strikeouts during the Division I era. Walker Retz follows with 66 while Duke Coborn and Kolby Gartner each have 62.
Summit League Ranks (As of 4/24/23)
Team
Earned Run Average (5th/7.30)
Fielding Percentage (6th/.958)
Opp. Batting Average (6th/.298)
Individual - Pitching
Earned Run Average (E. Esch - 6th/4.41)
Opp. Batting Average (E. Esch 6th/.219, K. Gartner - 8th/.238)
Individual - Hitting
Batting Average (J. Roder - 13th/.308, C. Bartholomew - 20th/.295)
Hits (B. Richartz - t-32nd/30)
On-Base % (J. Roder - 29th/.368)
OPS (T. Marsh - 30th/.260)
Slugging % (T. Marsh - 25th/.440)
Stolen Bases (D. O'Connell - t-23rd/4)
Individual - Fielding
Putouts (C. Bartholomew - t-10th/169)
Assists (M. Enck - 7th/63)
Fielding % (C. Bartholomew - 5th/.995, J. Roder - 6th/.992)
Caught Stealing (C. Bartholomew - t-4th/9, M. Moris - 7th/3)
The Lead Off Man
• Since Brigs Richartz led off the season with a single to center field on the very first pitch, he reached base in a team-best 12 straight games before being denied a 13th in the series finale at Oral Roberts.
• He leads the team with 32 hits, 15 runs, and 41 total bases. Richartz has led off six games with a base hit and eight games by reaching base. He has hit third during 12 of the last 13 games and 14 times overall this season.
• Richartz led off the season with a six-game hitting streak, including two multi-hit games.
• Richartz recorded the program's first cycle since 1996 in game one at Northern Colorado. He singled in the first inning to drive in one RBI, homered with one runner on base in the third inning, tripled in the fifth inning and doubled in the sixth inning.
Bringing the Lumber
• Freshman Ben Taxdahl recorded two home runs during the South Dakota State series, bringing his season total to a team-best three.
• Both of his long balls came during the fourth inning against the Jackrabbits, while two of his home runs were three-run shots.
• No other Tommie has more than one home run this season.
Hitting 21
• The Tommies scored a season-high 21 runs during the series opener April 7 at Northern Colorado, which is also the first time the program has topped 20 runs in a game since joining NCAA Division I. The Toms' 21 runs are the most for the team since totaling 21 against Macalaster in 2016 and 22 against Macalaster in 2015.
• St. Thomas tallied a season-high 19 hits and scored in every inning of the game. All but one starter recorded a hit and an RBI, and all but two totaled multiple hits.
Preseason Headlines
• Freshmen Dylan O'Connell (3B) and Nolan Kemp (RHP) were named the St. Thomas Player and Pitcher to Watch, as released in the 2023 Summit League Preseason Coaches' Poll.
• St. Thomas was selected to finish fifth in the Summit Preseason Poll.
• Dylan O'Connell was named the 2023 Preseason Summit League Freshman of the Year by D1Baseball.com and Perfect Game.
• Ben Vujovich was named to the 2023 Preseason Summit League All-Conference Team by Perfect Game.
Leading the Pack
• Chris Olean begins his 14th season with St. Thomas in 2023. He has totaled an overall record of 359-197-1 (338-148-1 in NCAA Division III) since being named the head coach prior to the 2010 season.
• Olean is a three-time NCAA DIII Region Coach of the Year and closed out its DIII era by winning championships in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) and region en route to a national runner-up finish and 37-10 record.
• During the last 12 DIII seasons the Purple won eight MIAC Championships, capped by third-place national finishes in both 2012 and 2014, in addition to the runner-up finish in 2021.
• Olean mentored seven DIII All-American pitchers. He was voted MIAC and Midwest Region Coach of the Year in 2012, 2013, and 2021. In addition, Olean works with the Tommie pitching staff, which was a perennial top-10 group in DIII baseball.
Follow Along
For more information on St. Thomas Baseball, follow along on Twitter and Instagram at @tommiebase
-- St. Thomas Athletics --
Players Mentioned
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