TERRE HAUTE —
With Sean Manaea in the national spotlight, it’s easy to forget the small matter of Indiana State being the defending Missouri Valley Conference champion.
ISU tied for third in the 2013 MVC preseason poll – Missouri State is the favorite – but there is confidence ISU can defend its crown even though several players who played an important role in ISU’s MVC championship team have moved on.
“We’ve got a lot of new guys that are hard-working and really competitive. It’s going to take us a few weeks to find our identity. It won’t be like last year, but we’re confident and excited,” said ISU shortstop Tyler Wampler, referring to ISU’s 13-game winning streak in March that lifted the Sycamores to a 26-6 mark on April 7, 2012.
Catcher Jeremy Lucas – the 2012 MVC Player of the Year – was drafted by Cleveland. First baseman Jon Hedges ran out of eligibility (and became a father). Left fielder Kyle Burnam called it a career and is working for the university. Outfielder Lucas Hileman went on to become an all-MVFC punter for ISU’s football team.
Pitcher Dakota Bacus was drafted by Oakland. Pitchers Ryan Torgerson and Kyle Rupe left the program.
Lucas’ shoes are the biggest to fill and catcher is ISU’s least experienced position. Heller is excited about transfer Mike Fitzgerald, who will also play in the outfield. Taylor Shaw, a transfer from Southern Utah, figures into the mix as he tries to recover from a knee injury. Taylor Steen is a freshman who might play.
“It’s obviously going to be a question mark with the lack of experience. Our pitching staff is pretty talented and throws hard with good breaking stuff. They’d be tough to catch for an experienced guy. Getting these guys ready has been a lot of work, but they’ve stepped up to it,” ISU coach Rick Heller said.
Hedges’ role has to be filled at first base, but Heller is very high on freshman Jeff Zahn, who played at Castle, Robby Ort’s alma mater.
Ort, who has played right field and first base during his time at ISU, returns to his roots at second base. He was an infielder in high school.
“It’s been tough moving back. I played in high school, but it’s a lot different at the college level. Being away from it for three years, it took a while. Every day is getting better. It’s coming back to me,” said Ort, who was named to the Preseason All-MVC team as an outfielder.
Wampler, one of the best defensive shortstops in the MVC, returns for his third season. Koby Kraemer is also back, but due to an elbow injury, might not play regularly in the infield as he did in 2012.
Jordan Pearson, who can play several infield positions, is in the mix at third base, vacated by Ryan Walterhouse. So is Derek Hannahs, a Robinson, Ill., native and son of former ISU star Mitch Hannahs. He sat out 2012 after starting his career at Ohio State.
With Ort moving to the infield, two spots have to be filled in the outfield. Landon Curry will play center field full-time after splitting time there with Hileman during Curry’s freshman campaign.
Casey McCurdy returns and can play either left or right field. Jacob Hayes, a Terre Haute South star, who like Hannahs, returned to the Wabash Valley from Ohio State, is expected to play regularly in right with Fitzgerald. Owen Conway will also be an option.
ISU suffered a blow when Connor McClain, a candidate to play left field, broke his hand. He had surgery Monday
With Bacus, Torgerson and Rupe gone, Heller has work to do to build a rotation. Manaea will start on Friday’s. Heller expects Daniel Peterson to take Manaea’s former Saturday role.
“Since he’s been here, he’s dominated everybody. He throws strikes and he throws at the knees. The infielders love fielding behind him,” Manaea said.
The Sunday starter’s role will be developed during the nonconference season. Devin Moore, a former reliever, could earn the job. Heller said Moore has been impressive in preseason throwing. Jeff Degaro and Tyler Fehringer are also competing for the job. One of those guys could emerge as ISU’s mid-week starter, a role Rupe was very effective in last season.
Heller believes the bullpen will be deep. Former Terre Haute South star Josh Dove is expected to be the closer after transferring from Lincoln Trail College. Heller has been impressed with veteran Kurt Kudrecki, who slots into a set-up role. Tyler Pazik, Josh Negele and Tyler Browning are veterans who give the Sycamores options.
“I feel like it’s deeper than it was last year. I feel Josh Dove can give us a true closer. He’s been great for us in the fall and spring,” Heller said.
One of the biggest changes to the program has nothing to do with the roster at all. The outfield wall at Bob Warn Field is being rebuilt and will now have a modern, padded outfield fence.
There’s new dimensions as fences have been moved in. Warn Field will be 332 feet down each line, 372 feet to left and right field, 395 feet in the power alleys and 393 feet to center.
Heller knows defending ISU’s league title won’t be easy. Missouri State, who finished second to ISU in 2012, is the favorite and has their own pitching phenom – Nick Petree.
“I think we all know it’s not going to be easy. There’s teams with a lot more back than we do. Missouri State has almost everyone back. Wichita State wasn’t hurt that much in the draft. The team I think that has the most back is Illinois State,” Heller said. “I think what we’ve seen in scrimmages gives me a lot of hope we can beat anybody. It’s up to them to do the job, but I think they will.”
Indiana State University
Related Photos
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Tribune-Star/Jim Avelis Tap: Indiana State standout Rob Ort lays down bunts during indoor practice Monday.
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Tyler Wampler
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ISU baseball coach Rick Heller
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Rob Ort
Discussion
ISU hopes new contributors emerge to defend MVC title
- Indiana State University
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ISU baseball hoping Manaea can get its MVC Tournament moving in right direction
Indiana State’s baseball team has been waiting all season for its stars to align.
But this is the 2013 Sycamores, after all, and after a season in which seemingly little has gone right, it appears its stars will remain crossed at the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. -
ISU sending largest group yet to postseason
On the heels of their thrilling double victory at the 2013 Missouri Valley Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championships both the Indiana State men and women moved up in the national rankings which were released Tuesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
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ISU's athletic treasure trove
Think of every championship that Indiana State has won in each of its sports, past and present. Think of every tournament — postseason or regular season — which the Sycamores have claimed as their own.
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Ort sets ISU RBI record in 16-7 win
Robby Ort celebrated his Indiana State baseball Senior Day on Saturday by becoming the Sycamores’ all-time leader in RBIs as ISU ended its regular season with a 16-7 win over Bradley at Bob Warn Field.
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Bradley ends 16-game MVC losing streak against ISU
Momentum was the only thing riding on Indiana State’s baseball game against Bradley on Friday. With a five-game winning streak going, ISU wanted to keep the good vibes going into next week’s Missouri Valley Conference Tournament.
ISU couldn’t do it. -
Indiana State to host 2014 MVC baseball tourney
Build it… and they will come. The Missouri Valley Conference and Indiana State University made that famous line from the movie “Fields Of Dreams” reality Thursday.
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Behind 16 hits and Manaea's pitching, ISU beats Bradley
Indiana State’s baseball team rode a wild ride of emotion on Thursday.
First came the public announcement that Bob Warn Field would host the 2014 Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. Later, Sean Manaea’s availability to pitch ISU’s series opener against Bradley was in doubt. -
TODD GOLDEN: Don't give up on ISU baseball just yet
If you had to pick one word that would describe the 2013 Indiana State baseball season, it would have to be frustration.
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ISU baseball team builds on success with 14-2 rout
Indiana State’s baseball victory over Alcorn State on Friday would take on more meaning Saturday if the Sycamores could build momentum and pick up on the good work they did in Friday’s ninth-inning rally.
Mission accomplished.
The Sycamores were aggressive from the opening inning at the plate and starting pitcher Devin Moore gave them eight valuable and effective innings on the mound as ISU defeated Alcorn State 14-2 at Bob Warn Field.
“It was a really good experience for everybody. It felt great to finally come out here and put some things together. It’s also really nice when your offense puts a lot of runs on the board,” Moore said.
Moore’s eight innings of work were as valuable as gold to an ISU team that is short on quality arms due to injury and ineffectiveness. He didn’t allow a hit until the fourth inning and one of the two runs he conceded was unearned. -
ISU earns badly-needed win
Alcorn State’s baseball team might be ranked in the bottom 10 in RPI and Indiana State might have never lost to a Southwestern Athletic Conference team. So it wouldn’t appear that a quality win was in the offing when Alcorn State visited Bob Warn Field on Friday.
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ISU’s Mascari and Hope win MVC track & field titles
Indiana State produced two champions during the opening day of action in the Missouri Valley Conference track and field championships Friday at Drake. Freshman John Mascari, a Terre Haute native, won the men’s 10,000-meter race and Nicole Hope won the women’s pole vault for the second time in three seasons.
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ISU pole vault tradition continues with help from its author
Pole vault is track and field for the adrenaline junkie, Indiana State senior Nicole Hope proclaimed during a recent practice at Marks Field.
To catapult oneself about 14 feet into the air with a large $500 fiberglass pole on a daily basis is a risky endeavor.
“We have to be fearless. You can’t be afraid at all,” said Hope, who has also catapulted herself into the NCAA’s elite in the event, ranking 15th in the NCAA with her leap of 13-feet, 9 1/4. -
Lansing looking for more home games for next fall
Indiana State’s men’s basketball team is looking for a few good games.
Home games that is.
The Sycamores have filled in most of the blanks in their nonconference schedule, but as ever, ISU coach Greg Lansing would like to visit the friendly confines of Hulman Center a bit more often. -
ISU baseball gets back into rhythm with victory
Baseball is a rhythm game. With contests every day or five times a week in the case of many college programs, you have the chance to build on success or wallow in a slump.
Mother Nature took that rhythm away from Indiana State’s team last week. After a 7-1 loss to Indiana on April 24, ISU was supposed to play a three-game series at Tennessee-Martin, but it was wiped out by rain.
So the rhythm was disturbed, but perhaps that wasn’t a bad thing.
ISU was in a five-game losing streak before its unintended vacation and the Sycamores made a move in the right direction Wednesday with a 7-0 win over DePauw at Bob Warn Field.
“It was a disappointing weekend. We went all the way down to Tennessee and didn’t get to play. We sat around in the hotel room. We came here and it was still raining. It was nice to get out and see some live pitching,” ISU center fielder Landon Curry said. -
Metro roundup: ISU hands out spring awards
The Indiana State University athletic community, along with family, friends and fans, paused Tuesday night to honor the spring sports teams at the Terre Haute Savings Bank Spring Sports Banquet.
Most of the ISU teams are still in competition with the baseball team having 13 games left of its regular-season schedule before beginning the Missouri Valley Conference tournament May 21, the softball team with just three games left of the docket this coming weekend against Southern Illinois and the track and field program with just one more meet before beginning its postseason events.
The ISU women’s golf team is the team that has ended at this time, with the group recording a sixth-place finish at the MVC championships one week ago. -
Indiana State loses 2 in MVC softball
Indiana State aspired to upset Illinois State to get at least a doubleheader split in Missouri Valley Conference softball Thursday at Price Field as the Sycamores opened an eight-game season-ending homestand.
Paige Schreiner hit a two-run blast over the left-field fence in the fifth inning and junior Shelby Wilson delivered a sizzling RBI triple down the right-field line in the sixth as ISU ended the day playing well against the league’s highest-scoring offense.
The result was still a 5-3 loss to the Redbirds (26-18, 11-6 Missouri Valley Conference) as freshman Halle Humphrey gave up four runs in the first two innings. Humphrey, called upon to pitch the opener as well — she’s the only full-time pitcher remaining on the team — gave up six runs and eight hits as the Sycamores dropped a 6-1 game to start the day. -
ISU, MVFC brace for change at FCS football level
It seemed so far-fetched.
Internet rumors circulated that Indiana State had been approached by the Sun Belt Conference to bring the Sycamores’ football team into the Sun Belt’s fold.
The Sun Belt is part of the Football Bowl Subdivision. Bowl football. Big boy football … and all it entails.
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ISU football in good spirits after healthy Spring Game
Was Saturday afternoon’s weather an omen for Indiana State football as the Sycamores wrapped up spring practice with the annual Blue-White Game at Memorial Stadium? After several practices conducted in less-than-perfect conditions, they’d like to think so.
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Loyola ready to take big step
Loyola University and the Missouri Valley Conference took their first steps together Friday and the MVC is hoping the Ramblers don’t have to take too many baby steps before they become a competitive part of the conference.
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Sanford wraps up first spring with ISU
The final day of Indiana State football’s first Mike Sanford experience is upon the Sycamores.
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Lansing excited about Etherington's signing with Sycamores
The spring signing period for men’s basketball is usually a time to use available scholarships to load up on junior college additions and transfers.
To find a diamond-in-the-rough at the high school level who can give you four years? That’s harder to come by. -
Creighton sweep puts ISU in thick of things
In a difficult early-season Missouri Valley Conference schedule, Indiana State took its lumps. Unenviable back-to-back trips to contenders Missouri State and Wichita State had ISU reeling with five straight MVC losses eight days ago.
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Second City in the Valley: Loyola joins the MVC
For the first time in its history, the Missouri Valley Conference will have a home in the Second City.
The Chicago Tribune confirmed Saturday via a Loyola University source that the Ramblers will replace Creighton as the MVC’s 10th team. Loyola — a member of the Horizon League — will join the MVC effective July 1.
Indiana State Director of Athletics Ron Prettyman — who was part of the MVC search committee that scouted potential replacements for Creighton — confirmed Sunday that the Ramblers were in the MVC loop. -
Sycamore baseball holds off Creighton rally
By his own estimation, Indiana State baseball coach Rick Heller has been involved in close to 2,000 baseball games. If anyone has seen it all on the field, he’d be as good a candidate as any.
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Devin Moore pitches gem in 6-1 victory over Creighton
A hip injury suffered by Indiana State ace starting pitcher Sean Manaea shuffled the Sycamores’ starting rotation for the second weekend running as it opened a Missouri Valley Conference home series against Creighton on Friday.
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Sanford gets 2nd look at Sycamores
In the immediate aftermath of a practice, game, or in Friday’s case for Indiana State, a scrimmage, most football coaches defer to the film to paint a true picture of what was and wasn’t done. ISU coach Mike Sanford is no different. With the flurry of activity on both sides of the ball, it’s hard to get a true evaluation of anything watching it live.
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ISU center FN Lutz glad to be back in the middle of things
For someone who missed an entire season due to a knee injury, Indiana State center FN Lutz has certainly kept himself visible since then.
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METRO ROUNDUP: ISU's Brandon Pounds the top collegian in Sea Ray relays
Indiana State senior Brandon Pounds was the top collegian in the men’s hammer throw and fellow senior Felisha Johnson opened up the Sycamores’ three-day competition at the University of Tennessee’s Sea Ray relays with a second-place finish in the women’s hammer throw.
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Stealing records: ISU softball’s offense gaining momentum
The Indiana State softball offense is no juggernaut, but the fog may be clearing on a program that has had a long history of struggles with few signs of consistent winning.
Explosive, dedicated athletes like Morgan Allee and Megan Stone are two reasons to believe this group of Sycamores can spark a turnaround.
The Sycamores are scoring an average of 3.1 runs per game while also ranking in the middle of the Missouri Valley Conference pack in hits and batting average. But the Sycamores are on pace to break the school record for on-base percentage as they lead the MVC in walks, hit-by-pitches, sacrifice bunts and stolen bases.
Allee, with 17 regular-season games to go, broke the school record for stolen bases in a season Tuesday against IUPUI and is among the 10 best in the NCAA. Her total of 30 makes up almost half of ISU’s 74.
“I’m so big [that] they think I won’t go. It works out well,” the stocky shortstop said. -
ISU’s QB battle
Quarterback battles come in all shapes and sizes, but one could forgive Indiana State’s Mike Perish, Robert Tonyan Jr. and Trent Lancaster if they feel a bit more beleaguered than your average signal-caller.
Not only is the trio fighting for the right to be named ISU’s starter by the Sycamores’ football opener Aug. 29 at Indiana University, but all three also are trying to learn a new offense, they’re acclimating themselves to new coach Mike Sanford’s different way of running things, and they’re trying to maintain harmony amongst each other, so whoever the ultimate winner is can effectively lead the team without angst.
All of it is playing out during ISU’s spring practice, and so far, none of the quarterback candidates have separated themselves from the pack. - More Indiana State University Headlines
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