WICHITA, Kan. - Wichita State opens a three-game series this weekend vs. UT Arlington with game one on Friday, March 9 at 6 p.m. in Eck Stadium.
Quick Hits
• All three games will be broadcast on KNSS 1330 AM and on goshockers.com with Shane Dennis calling the action and on Shocker HD with Denning Gerig and Tim Slack.
• Wichita State leads the overall series with UT Arlington 5-2. The Shockers also lead the series in Wichita 5-0.
• The Shockers are ranked No. 22 in the Collegiate Baseball poll and No. 26 in the USA Today Coaches poll.
• Alec Bohm is a Collegiate Baseball National Player of the Week and a member of The American Honor Roll this week.
• WSU's 8-0 start was the best since the 2005 team started 11-0.
• Alec Bohm already has three grand slams this season.
• The Shockers are 4-for-6 with the bases loaded this season with four grand slams. Alec Bohm is 3-for-3 with three grand slams with the bases loaded.
• Head Coach Todd Butler collected his 200th career victory on Feb. 24 against Omaha.
• All 11 Shockers, who have a home run in their career, have homered in their last 72 at bats.
• Seven Shockers have double-digit errorless streaks including Jacob Katzfey at 26, Dayton Dugas at 28, Jordan Boyer at 23, Greyson Jenista at 21, Josh DeBacker at 17, Noah Croft at 14 and Mason O'Brien at 10.
• Junior Greyson Jenista has made 108-straight starts while junior Alec Bohm has started 91 straight. Senior Trey Vickers had his streak of 89 straight starts broken opening weekend.
• Freshman Hunter Gibson homered in his first collegiate plate appearance on Feb. 25 against Omaha. He is just the second Shocker to do that joining teammate Alec Bohm who did it in 2016.
• Greyson Jenista and Alec Bohm have both been named preseason All-Americans and to the watch list for the Golden Spikes Award.
• WSU is 12-6 on March 9 since 1978. The Shockers are 18-7 on March 10 and 15-9 on March 11.
• WSU is 583-238-2 all-time in the month of March.
• WSU is now 30-11 in season openers since 1978.
• WSU is now 38-3 in home openers since 1978.
• Greyson Jenista and Alec Bohm have both been named preseason All-Americans and to the watch list for the Golden Spikes Award.
• The Shockers were picked sixth in The American Preseason Poll.
• Junior third baseman Alec Bohm and junior outfielder Greyson Jenista were named to the preseason all-conference team.
• The Shockers welcome nine newcomers in 2018.
• WSU returns nine starters and 24 letterwinners from the 2017 team.
• The Shocker pitching staff returns five pitchers who started games in 2017 including Codi Heuer, Cody Tyler, Keylan Killgore, Tommy Barnhouse and Robby Evans.
• Wichita State is playing its first season in the American Athletic Conference. The Shocker baseball program was a member of the Missouri Valley Conference from 1948-2017
• Head Coach Todd Butler is in his fifth season as coach of the Shockers.
• Assistant Coach Sammy Esposito is the third base coach and Volunteer Assistant Coach Willie Schwanke is the first base coach.
Scouting UT Arlington
The Mavs are 4-6 overall with wins over Texas A&M-CC, Stephen F. Austin twice and Wright State. Losses have come against Texas A&M-CC twice, No. 3 TCU, Wright State twice and Baylor. Leading the way offensively is Noah Vaughan who is hitting .333 with three home runs and eight RBI. The team is hitting .242 with a 6.30 ERA and .973 fielding percentage. The Mavs are led by head coach Darin Thomas.
Series History vs. the Mavs
Wichita State leads the overall series with UT Arlington 5-2. The Shockers also lead the series in Wichita 5-0.
Last Meeting vs. UTA
The last meeting between the two teams was a two-game series March 6-7, 2012 in Wichita. The Shockers won by scores of 5-4 and 5-1. Erik Harbutz went 4-for-8 with a double and two RBI in the series. A.J. Ladwig and Aaron LaBrie each earned a win.
Shockers Ranked 22nd
The Wichita State baseball team is ranked No. 22 in the March 5 Collegiate Baseball Poll. It is the first time the Shockers have been ranked in the top-25 since March 27, 2011 when they were No. 24. The Shockers are off to an 8-1 start with sweeps of McNeese State and Omaha and a series win over Nebraska. WSU is also receiving votes in the USA Today Coaches Poll and is just outside the top-25 at No. 26.
School Record
Junior Alec Bohm already has three grand slams this season, which is a school record for grand slams in a season. He needs just one more to tie for the career record of four at Wichita State held by Phil Stephenson and Randy Walter.
Back-to-Back
The Bash Brothers went back-to-back for the first time this season in game three against Omaha. Greyson Jenista hit a two-run home run to left field and on the very next pitch Alec Bohm homered to right-center. The Bash Brothers went back-to-back for the second time this season in game two against Nebraska. Greyson Jenista hit a three-run home run to right field and Alec Bohm followed with a homer to left field.
Bohm Honored
Wichita State baseball student-athlete Alec Bohm has been named a Collegiate Baseball National Player of the Week and to the American Athletic Conference honor roll for the week of Feb. 26-March 4. Bohm, a junior third baseman from Omaha, Neb., led the Shockers to a series win over Nebraska. In the three-game series, he went 3-for-11 (.273) with seven runs, three home runs (two grand slams), nine RBI and three walks. He homered in each game of the series and hit grand slams in games one and three. In the game one win, he went 1-for-3 with three runs, four RBI, a walk and a grand slam. In the game two win, he went 1-for-4 with a run, a RBI and a home run and in game three he went 1-for-4 with three runs, four RBI, two walks and a grand slam. He pushed his hitting streak to 11 games and is now hitting .452 this season with five home runs and 17 RBI.
O'Brien Gets Hot vs. Nebraska
Junior first baseman Mason O'Brien led the Shockers to a series win over Nebraska. In the three-game series, he went 7-for-12 (.583) with one run, one home run (a grand slam) and nine RBI. In the game one win, he went 3-for-3 with a run, five RBI and a grand slam. In the game two win, he went 1-for-4 with a RBI and in game three he went 3-for-5 with three RBI.
Stout Defense
The Shockers continued to play great defense this season in the three-game series with Nebraska. WSU made just one error in the three games and already has six errorless games in nine total games this season. The Shockers are fielding .988 overall.
8-0 Start
Wichita State started the 2018 season 8-0 which is the best start since 2005 when the Shockers started 11-0.
Sanburn Emerges
Senior reliever Chandler Sanburn has emerged as the Shockers top relief pitcher. In his last four appearances, he has pitched six shutout innings and has not allowed a hit. He has one save with two walks and 11 strikeouts.
Grand Slams for Everyone
On March 2 in game one of the series against Nebraska, Mason O'Brien and Alec Bohm both hit grand slams for the Shockers. It was the first time the Shockers had two grand slams in a game since April 25, 2008 when Dusty Coleman and Conor Gillaspie did it at Indiana State.
Bohm's Slams
Alec Bohm already has three grand slams this season (Feb. 16 at McNeese, March 2 vs. Nebraska, March 4 vs. Nebraska). The last Shocker to have multiple grand slams in a season was Casey Gillaspie in 2013 with two.
Four-Straight
Alec Bohm hit a home run in four-straight games this season (Feb. 25-March 4). He is the first Shocker to do that since Sam Hilliard hit one in four-straight from May 14-20, 2015.
Bases Loaded
With the bases loaded this season, the Shockers are 4-for-6 with four grand slams. Alec Bohm is 3-for-3 with the bases loaded with three grand slams.
Steady Eddy
Freshman pitcher Liam Eddy picked up his third win of the year in the game two victory over Nebraska. He pitched six innings and gave up one run on six hits with one walk and two strikeouts. He improved to 3-0 on the year and lowered his ERA to 1.45.
Gibson Homers in Debut
Freshman Hunter Gibson pinch hit in game three of the series against Omaha for his first collegiate at bat. He hit an opposite field home run and became just the second player in Shocker history to hit a home run in their first collegiate plate appearance. The other is his teammate Alec Bohm who did it in 2016.
Newcomers Debut
Five Shockers made their collegiate debut in the three-game series at McNeese State. Redshirt freshmen Alex Segal and Preston Minor both pitched, while true freshmen Ross Cadena, Tyler Davis and Liam Eddy also played. Three more made appearances in the series with Omaha including Hunter Gibson, Paxton Wallace and Garrett Kocis and Trent Allen made his debut against Nebraska.
Road Series Win
With the sweep of McNeese State, Wichita State won its first road series since 2015 at Southern Illinois. It was the first non-conference road series win for the Shockers since sweeping Hawaii in 2007.
Jenista and Bohm Named to Watch List
Two Wichita State baseball student-athletes have been named to the USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award watch list. Junior third baseman Alec Bohm and junior outfielder Greyson Jenista are both on the 55-player list. The award goes to the top amateur baseball player in the country and will be presented on June 28 in Los Angeles. Darren Dreifort is the only Shocker to win the award. He won it in 1993 after being a finalist in 1992.
Jenista & Bohm Named Preseason All-Americans
Greyson Jenista and Alec Bohm enter the 2018 season with many preseason accolades. Jenista has been named a preseason All-American by five publications, while Bohm has been honored by four. Jenista was named to the first team by Baseball America and College Sports Madness, second team by Collegiate Baseball and Perfect Game and to the third team by D1Baseball. Bohm was named to the first team by Perfect Game, College Sports Madness and Baseball America and the third team by Collegiate Baseball. Bohm, a junior from Omaha, Neb., hit .305 last season with 71 hits, 44 runs, 13 doubles, two triples, 11 home runs, 40 RBI and five stolen bases to earn first team all-conference honors. During the summer, he helped the Falmouth Commodores to the Western Division Cape Cod League Playoffs and earned All-Star honors, while finishing second in the Cape in batting average (.351), third in RBI (28), third in doubles (10) and 10th in home runs (5). Jenista, a junior from Eudora, Kan., hit .320 last season with 73 hits, 45 runs, 14 doubles, one triple, nine home runs, 41 RBI and six stolen bases to earn second team all-conference honors. During the summer, he helped the Cotuit Kettleers to the Western Division Cape Cod League Playoffs and earned Cape Cod League MVP honors after hitting .310 with 24 runs, 44 hits, four doubles, three home runs, 16 RBI and nine stolen bases.
Family Tradition
Junior first baseman Mason O'Brien is carrying on a Shocker baseball family tradition. His uncles Charlie O'Brien (1980-82) and Erik Sonberg (1981-83) and cousins Chris O'Brien (2009-11) and Tim Kelley (2008-11) all played for the Shockers.
WSU Joins The American
On April 7, 2017, Wichita State accepted an invitation to the American Athletic Conference. Commissioner Mike Aresco announced the addition of Wichita State to the American Athletic Conference beginning on July 1, 2017. The American's Board of Directors unanimously voted to accept Wichita State as its newest member. The Shockers officially joined The American on July 1, 2017 and conference members include the University of Central Florida, the University of Cincinnati, the University of Connecticut, East Carolina University, the University of Houston, the University of Memphis, Southern Methodist University, the University of South Florida, Temple University, Tulane University, University of Tulsa, the U.S. Naval Academy and Wichita State University. Navy is a football-only member and Wichita State is a basketball and Olympic sports-only member.
Shockers Picked Sixth in The American
The Shockers were sixth in The American preseason poll done by the league's coaches. WSU totaled 29 points. Houston received five first-place votes and 59 points to finish first. UConn was picked second with three first-place votes and 50 points.
Two Named to Preseason All-Conference Team
Junior third baseman Alec Bohm and junior outfielder Greyson Jenista were named to the preseason all-conference team. Bohm earned first team all-Valley honors in 2017, while Jenista was named to the second team.
Nine Starters Return
WSU returns nine starters from the 2017 team in senior shortstop Trey Vickers, junior third baseman Alec Bohm, junior outfielders Dayton Dugas and Travis Young, junior utility player Luke Ritter, junior second baseman Jordan Boyer, junior first baseman Greyson Jenista, sophomore catcher Noah Croft and sophomore outfielder Alex Jackson.
Shockers to Play 32 Home Games
WSU will play 32 home games in 2018 including 2017 NCAA Tourney participants Nebraska, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Oral Roberts and USF. The Shockers also host Omaha, SIUE, UT Arlington, Furman, Tulane, UConn, Central Arkansas, Kansas, Cincinnati, South Dakota State and Kansas State.
Newcomers Look to Make Impact
WSU welcomes nine newcomers to the 2018 team including junior Mason O'Brien and freshmen Logan Easley, Ross Cadena, Hunter Gibson, Paxton Wallace, Tyler Davis, Liam Eddy, Garrett Kocis, and Jacob Lindemann.
WSU Baseball on Facebook & Twitter
Become a fan of Wichita State Baseball on Facebook. Also follow the Shockers on Twitter @GoShockersBSB for in game updates.
The Todd Butler Show
The Todd Butler radio show airs on 1330 KNSS from 6-7/7-8/8-9 p.m. on Monday's. It is hosted by Mike Kennedy and starts on Feb. 19.
2017 Season Review
In 2017, the Shockers finished 28-30 overall and 10-11 in the Valley. Alec Bohm and Zach Lewis earned first team all-Valley honors, while Greyson Jenista was named to the second team. Trey Vickers and Noah Croft were named honorable mention.
