After a productive fall practice season and about three weeks of preseason practice, UAFS baseball coach
Todd Holland said his players are ready to face an opponent other than their own teammates.
They'll finally get their chance this weekend when the Lions make their long-awaited season debut in a three-game, weekend series against the Northwest Missouri State Bearcats at Crowder Field.
The three-day series is scheduled for Friday, Saturday and Sunday and will feature one nine-inning game beginning at 1 p.m. each day. It will be the first of 47 regular-season games for the Lions, who will play 25 home games.
"When you only intrasquad among yourselves, you really have no idea where you are at. The hitters know who is throwing and what they are throwing, and the pitchers know who they are facing," said Holland, who begins his fifth season as Lions coach. "It's going to be good to see another team, and it will really help us tell where we stack up. Hopefully, we will gel together and get after it."
There are lots of new names scattered among the returning players on the Lions roster this spring. Only 15 players, including five freshmen who redshirted last season, return from last season's team that finished 32-19 and qualified for the Heartland Conference Tournament as a No. 4 seed.
That group will be joined by 27 new players, including two NCAA Division I transfers and 11 junior college transfers.
Still, the Lions boast a lot of experience, especially in the outfield.
Junior right fielder
Logan Allen returns after a solid sophomore season in which he led the team in batting average (0.370), hits (61), doubles (17) and stolen bases (16) and tied for second in RBIs (33) despite missing the final 10 games because of injury. He was named First Team All-Heartland Conference and named to the Heartland Conference All-Defensive Team last season.
This preseason, Allen, who is from Bryant, Ark., has been named NCAA Division II South Central Region Preseason All-America by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, Preseason First Team NCBWA All-South Central Region and Preseason All-Heartland Conference.
Allen will be joined in the outfield by senior left fielder
Tremarcus Koontz from Mount Pleasant, Texas, and senior center fielder
Travis Young from Wichita, Kan.
Koontz started nine of the 23 games he played last season for the Lions, batting 0.184 with one double and one triple, and Young, a transfer from NCAA Division I Wichita State, batted 0.257 with 11 doubles, one triple, one home run and 20 RBIs for the Shockers last spring.
Senior
Kyle Love from Blanchard, Okla., returns at first base, where batted 0.341 with seven doubles, one triple, two home runs and 20 RBIs. He was named Second Team All-Heartland Conference.
Senior
Brandan Warner from Bryant, Ark., returns for his fourth season at third base, where batted 0.312 with eight doubles, three triples, two home runs, 29 RBIs and 10 stolen bases.
Junior
Dylan Hurt from Bryant, Ark., returns at catcher, where he caught 32 of the Lions' 36 games last spring. Hurt compiled a 0279 batting average with seven doubles and 16 RBIs and was named to the Heartland Conference All-Defensive Team.
Freshman
Brooks Sunny from Eldridge, Iowa, will start at second base, and redshirt freshman
Logan Easley from Rogers, Ark., who transferred from Wichita State, will start at shortstop.
Redshirt senior pitcher
Javon Rigsby will start Friday's series opener.
Rigsby made 13 appearances and 10 starts last season for the Lions. He led all starters in ERA (3.33) and shutouts (two), tied for the staff lead in complete games (seven) and was second in wins (six). The right-hander compiled a 6-5 record with 54 strikeouts over 78 1/3 innings and was named Heartland Conference Pitcher of the Week, NCBWA South Central Region Pitcher of the Week and Second Team All-Heartland Conference.
Junior right-hander
Foster Pace from Flower Mound, Texas, who transferred from Paris Junior College, likely will be in the starting pitcher rotation, and junior right-hander
Christian Goshen from Little Rock, Ark., who transferred from Independence Community College, and freshman right-hander
Andrew McGlynn from Rogers, Ark., will be competing for a spot, too.
Senior right-hander
Korbin Polly from Cedarville, Ark., returns as a relief pitcher. He made 14 relief appearances last spring and tied for the staff lead in ERA (1.93) and was third on the staff in wins (five). Polly compiled a 5-1 record with 22 strikeouts over 28 innings and was named Second Team All-Heartland Conference.
This preseason, he was named NCAA Division II South Central Region Preseason All-America by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper.
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