University of St. Thomas Athletics
South Dakota State University
Tommies back in action against SDSU
4/9/2026 9:41:00 AM | Baseball
St. Thomas hosts SDSU for Summit League series
ST. PAUL, MINN.- St. Thomas baseball is back in action after a weekend off due to mother nature. The Tommies are set to host the South Dakota State Jackrabbits in a Summit League series April 10 and 11.
Game one and two: Friday, April 10th (12 p.m. first pitch & 30-40 minutes after game one)
Game three: Saturday, April 11th (12 p.m. first pitch)
Be sure to follow along for live stats and radio through links found at tommiesports.com/sports/baseball/schedule – and on Twitter @TommieBase and Instagram at @TommieBaseball.
History with South Dakota State
The Tommies and Jackrabbits have become Summit League foes over the past five seasons. St. Thomas holds a 6-14 all-time record against SDSU.
The 2025 season was a good one for the Purple in many ways, one of which was taking both the road and home series against the Jackrabbits as they took two of three games both weekends.
Scouting the Jackrabbits
SDUS currently hold a 9-20 overall record and are 4-5 in conference play. The Jackrabbits faced Northern Colorado in their last conference series and took the series 2-1. SDSU most recently fell to Minnesota in a midweek game 16-7.
The Jackrabbits offense is led by sophomore Owen Siegert hitting .343 with a .886 OPS. On the bump the SDSU staff holds a .7.89 team ERA.
Last time out
Due to mother nature, the Tommies have not played a game since they hosted Omaha back on March 28 and 29. The Purples series at NDSU April 2-4 was cancelled due to a snowstorm.
St. Thomas fell 1-2 in the series against the Mavericks back at the end of March. The Tommies won game two of the series 15-3 in seven innings
Reaching the Summit
Junior Owen Bond has been having a breakout season and is making a name for himself among Summit League foes. Bond is currently second in the league in batting average (.361), and on-base percentage (.460), third in OPS (.966).
Tanner Recchio has been off and running this season as he leads the Summit with stolen bases with 15.
Four Tommies have found their way into the Summit league top ten in doubles. Matthew Maulik and Adam Puder are tied for third with eight and Tanner Recchio and Chris Knowles are tied for eighth with six.
Summit League Peak Performers
Tanner Recchio 3/10/26
Joe Roder 3/31/26
2026 Roster
The Tommies welcomed 17 newcomers to the 2026 roster
Roster makeup
Class:
Freshman/Red-shirt freshman: 15
Sophomores: 13
Juniors: 7
Seniors: 4
Graduate Students: 2
State:
Minnestoa: 25
Wisconsin: 8
Colorado: 3
Illinois: 2
Iowa: 2
Nebraska: 1
Leader of the pack
Head Coach Chris Olean enters his 17th season at the helm of the Tommie baseball program in 2026. Olean has totaled a 414-256-1 overall record (338-148-1 in NCAA Division III) since being named 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
Any and all information pertaining to the St. Thomas baseball team can be found at tommiesports.com and on Twitter @TommieBase and Instagram at @TommieBaseball.
