Bison Baseball Heads to Northern Colorado

Friday, March 6

Greeley, Colo.

3 p.m.

North Dakota State

Northern Colorado

Photo by: Alyson Vander Steen

Bison Baseball Heads to Northern Colorado

3/5/2020 5:19:00 PM | Baseball

NDSU Baseball Notes - Northern Colorado

Scene Setter:
The North Dakota State (6-7, 0-0 Summit) baseball team hits the road for the final non-conference series of the season this weekend, playing four games against Northern Colorado (2-9, 0-0 WAC). First pitch for the opener on Friday is scheduled for 3 p.m. (central), while the two teams will play a doubleheader starting at 1 p.m. (central) on Saturday. The series finale is scheduled for Sunday at 1 p.m. (central).

Media Coverage:
Live stats for the games will be available at UNCBears.com.

Series History:
Northern Colorado holds an 18-17 advantage in the all-time series that dates back to a 13-0 Bears victory in Greeley, Colo. on April 4, 1962. This will mark the fourth-straight season the two teams have met in Greeley, with the Bears holding a 7-4 advantage in the last three years.

Previewing 2020:
Experience will be the key for the North Dakota State baseball team heading into the 2020 season. The Bison return 18 letterwinners from last year, but more importantly return seven offensive starters and nine pitchers that tossed at least 10 innings. All-Summit League Second Team selection Charley Hesse led the Bison with a .299 batting average last year and returns at third base. Jack Simonsen led the Bison with 40 hits with his .280 batting average. Brock Anderson set a school record with 39 walks in 2019 and brings his .277 average back. Peter Brookshaw hit 12 doubles last year, while Bennett Hostetler returns at shortstop, where he hit six home runs last season. On the mound, the Bison return Summit League Newcomer of the Year Max Loven. An All-Summit League First Team selection, Loven was 4-2 with a 2.74 ERA last season, tallying 75 strikeouts and just 15 walks in 88.2 innings. The Bison also return Ben Smith and Zach Smith from the weekend rotation. After missing the 2019 season, Riley Johnson returns to the mound in 2020. Johnson went 5-6 with a 4.57 ERA in 86.2 innings with 66 strikeouts in 2018.

Scouting the Bears:
Northern Colorado is 2-9 on the year and has dropped eight-straight games after winning two of the first three games of the year. The Bears rank 48th in the nation in triples with four on the year, while ranking 50th with .36 triples per game. Sam Leach has a pair of triples on the year to rank 18th in the nation. Josh Glenn leads the Bears with a .323 average, with four of his 10 hits going for extra bases. Northern Colorado has eight home runs and 20 doubles, tallying a .356 slugging percentage.

Opening Day Streak:
With a 3-1 victory at Hawaii to open the season, North Dakota State has now won five-straight season openers. Last year, the Bison beat Sacramento State 9-1. NDSU beat Incarnate Word 8-2 in 2018, Mississippi Valley State 10-4 in 2017 and Arkansas-Pine Bluff 2-0 in 2016.

Double Vision:
NDSU has turned 11 double plays on the season, ranking 24th in the nation. NDSU also ranks 47th with .85 double plays per game. The Bison lead the Summit League in double plays.

Leave The Guy Alone:
Senior Bennett Hostetler ranks ninth in the nation in hit by pitch, having been hit seven times in the first 13 games. He also ranks 30th with .54 hit by pitches per game. Hostetler has been hit by pitch 26 times in his career, ranking 49th among active career players at the NCAA Division I level.

Loven Is Dealin':
Max Loven ranks 69th in the country in walks allowed per nine innings at 1.00, while also ranking 97th in strikeout-to-walk radio at 7.5. He leads the Summit League in both categories.

Road Warriors:
NDSU was the last NCAA Division I baseball team to play a home game last season. The Bison played 26-straight games away from Newman Outdoor Field to start the season in 2019. In 2020, the Bison are scheduled to play the first 27 games away from home, with the series against Omaha on April 3-5 set for the home opener.

Making the Sacrifice:
Peter Brookshaw ranks ninth in the nation with three sacrifice flies on the season. Tyler Silva has a pair of sacrifice bunts, ranking 76th in the country. Bennett Hostetler has 11 career sacrifice flies, tied for the second most in school history and the 21st most among active NCAA Division I players.

Walk This Way:
Last season, Brock Anderson set a school record with 39 base on balls. In 13 games this season, Anderson has 10 walks and ranks 99th in the nation.

How Low Can You Go?
Max Loven ranks 26th among active NCAA Division I players with a 2.62 career ERA. He also ranks ninth in NCAA Division I allowing 1.43 walks per nine innings and 29th in all NCAA divisions among active players.

Harm Not Allowing Hits
Senior Parker Harm has allowed just 6.47 hits per nine innings over the course of his career. That ranks 46th overall among active players at all NCAA levels and the 27th best among NCAA Division I players.

Hesse Gets it Done on and off Diamond:
Charley Hesse picked up All-Summit League Second Team honors last year, while also being voted to the All-Summit League Academic Team. Hesse led the Bison with a .299 average on the year, scoring 20 runs on 32 hits in 107 at-bats. He had five doubles and a home run with a .374 slugging percentage and .420 on-base percentage. A marketing major, Hesse has a 3.59 cumulative GPA.

Loven Named to Collegiate Baseball's Freshmen All-American Team:
On top of being named the Summit League Newcomer of the Year, Max Loven was named to the Collegiate Baseball Freshmen All-American Team. In his rookie campaign, Loven was 4-2 with a 2.74 ERA. In 13 starts, he threw 88.2 innings with three complete games. Loven allowed 30 runs (27 earned) on 78 hits, while walking 15 and striking out 75. Loven ranked 28th in the nation with 1.52 walks allowed per nine innings, while ranking 45th with a 5-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He also ranked 56th in WHIP at 1.05 and 87th in ERA. His three complete games ranked 13th in the nation. He led the Summit League in complete games, strikeout-to-walk ratio and walks allowed per nine innings. Loven was one of three freshman in the country to throw three or more complete games this season. He was one of two pitchers that allowed 1.52 or less walks per nine innings. Loven was the only freshman pitcher in the nation with an ERA below 2.94 with over 88.2 innings pitched.

Summit League Preseason Poll:
The North Dakota State baseball team has been picked to finish fourth in the Summit League preseason poll, as released by the league office on Thursday, Feb. 6. Oral Roberts was picked first in the poll with 23 points, earning three of a possible five first place votes. Defending champion Omaha was second with 19 points and one first place vote. South Dakota State earned two first place votes and edged NDSU for third with 18 points. The Bison tallied 16 points, followed by Western Illinois (nine points) and Purdue Fort Wayne (five points). Senior shortstop Bennett Hostetler and sophomore pitcher Max Loven were named to the Summit League Players to Watch list. Hostetler led the Bison with 35 runs, six home runs and a .413 slugging percentage last season. Loven was a 2019 All-Summit League First Team selection and the 2019 Summit League Newcomer of the Year. Loven went 4-2 with a 2.74 ERA, striking out 75 and allowing just 15 walks in 88.2 innings pitched.

Brown Making Moves in Summit League Record Books:
North Dakota State Head Coach Tod Brown moved up the charts of the Summit League record books last year and looks to do the same this season. Brown ranks fourth in Summit League history with 297 wins. Brown also joined Valparaiso's Paul Twenge as the only two coaches in Summit League history to have coached 300 or more league games. Last year, he became the third coach in Summit League history to coach in 600 or more games, joining Twenge and Dean Refakes.

Bison Earn ABCA Team Academic Excellence Award:
The North Dakota State University baseball team earned the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Team Academic Excellence Award for the second-straight season last year. NDSU and Oral Roberts were the only Summit League schools to earn the honor. The ABCA Team Academic Excellence Award honors high school and college programs coached by ABCA members that post a GPA over 3.0 on a 4.0 scale for the current academic year. The Bison had a 3.3 GPA in the fall and 3.36 in the spring for a 3.33 cumulative for the 2018-19 school year.

Up Next:
The Bison will open Summit League play March 13 at Omaha. The three-game series is set for a 4 p.m. first pitch in the series opener, while playing single games on Saturday and Sunday.