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Diamond Notes: Truman To Face Mercyhurst At Division II National Finals

Truman Baseball NCAA Division II National Finals Notes (May 23-30, 2015) - PDF Version Of Notes
When:  Begins Saturday, May 23 and runs through Saturday, May 30 (double elimination)
Where: Cary, North Carolina |USA Baseball National Training Complex – Mount Olive College (Host)
Tournament Site: http://www.umotrojans.com/sports/bsb/2014-15/national_finals/index
Tournament Program || Tournament Bracket
Live Stream: Yes – Provided on schedule page once it is active
Live Stats: Yes – Provided on schedule page once it is active
Twitter: @TrumanAthletics || @TrumanBaseball || #TSUGameDay
 
 
Staff
Head Coach: Dan Davis
Career Record: 146-311 || .319 || 9th season (all at Truman)
GLVC Record: 39-33 || .541 || 2nd season
 
Assistant Head Coach: Chris Fletcher (1st Season)
 
Historic Season Continues:
After sweeping through their first NCAA regional last week in St. Charles, Missouri, the Truman Baseball team will play for a national championship beginning on Sunday at the USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, North Carolina. Truman will play the Atlantic Region champion, Mercyhurst (Pa.) at 3 p.m. (EDT) on Sunday.
 
The eight regional champions out of the 48-team tournament will meet in Cary as Mount Olive University and the City of Cary host the championship for the seventh year. Last season's Midwest champion, Southern Indiana took home the crown after defeating the University of Tampa for the championship in extra innings.
 
Truman NCAA Championship History:
Truman State University, located in Kirksville, Missouri, has been a NCAA Division II member since its inception in 1973. The women's swimming team lays claim to the only team national title in school history as they won seven titles, six straight with the last coming in 2008.
 
The women's volleyball program has advanced to the Division II Finals site on five separate occasions and played in the championship game, coming up short in 2002 and 2004.
 
The men's basketball squad advanced to the NCAA Elite Eight in 1999 and played in the national semifinals before being eliminated.
 
The Championship Field:
The Bulldogs (35-20) will join three other schools in making their first trips to the National Finals. Sunday's opponent Mercyhurst (Pa.) is ranked 10th in Division II with a record of 39-9, Central champion Henderson State (Ark.) is 31-19 and East champ Wilmington (Del.) is 37-13.
 
Catawba College (N.C.) is ranked #12 and making their second trip as champions of the Southeast Region. Angelo State returns for the second time with a record of 41-16 and ranked #23 out of the South Central Region. Cal. Poly Pomona has won three national titles, the last in 1983 and is making their fifth finals site with a record of 45-13 and a #13 national ranking.
 
The South champion, the University of Tampa (Fla.) was in the final game last year after winning their sixth title in 2013. They are 39-13 overall and the highest ranked team in the field at #8.
 
Tournament Format: (Bracket Link)
Two predetermined four-team brackets will be used for the first and second round games of the tournament. The Bulldogs are grouped with Mercyhurst, Cal Poly Pomona and Tampa while Henderson State, Angelo State, Wilmington and Catawba are on the opposite bracket.
 
The first round winners and first round losers will face off on Tuesday. The two bracket champions will play for the national title starting on Friday, May 29.
 
Bulldog/Lakers Starter:
Truman will face #10 Mercyhurst on Sunday at 3 p.m. (EDT). The two teams have met once before back in 1997 at a neutral site game played in Quincy, Illinois. The Lakers won that game by a score of 4-2.
 
Truman won four straight at the Midwest Regional played in St. Charles, Missouri last weekend to claim their first regional title in their first tournament appearance. They enter the game with a 35-20 overall record.
 
The Bulldogs have four players hitting over .300 this season and a team batting average of .299. Dave Gambino (.381) and Paul Trenhaile (.374) lead the team in hitting. Trenhaile has a team-leading 45 RBIs with Gambino and Jarod Hahn each driving in 42.
 
On the mound, Kent Frantz and Cody Gardner share team-high honors in wins with nine apiece. Frantz has a 2.61 ERA and was the GLVC Freshman of the Year. Gardner is the Bulldog career leader in wins with 15 and has a 3.23 ERA.
 
The Lakers had to fight back in elimination games to win the Atlantic Region. They were the top seed and host of the tournament.
 
They defeated #6 West Virginia State 3-1 in the opener then fell to #3 Seaton Hill 8-1. The Lakers stayed off elimination with an 11-inning victory over #5 West Chester 6-4 then defeated #4 Winston-Salem State 2-1. In the title game, Jake Hall earned his 10th save by pitching the final 2.2 innings in a 2-0 victory over Millersville.
 
Mercyhurst hits .322 as a team with eight players hitting over .300. Angel Martinez (.376) lead the squad with Brendan Cox (.359) and Giancarlo Saia (.353) following. Saia had a team-leading 39 RBIs.
 
Pitching, Colin McKee is 7-2 with a 1.82 ERA and had four complete-games. Jon Klein is 8-2 with a 2.25 ERA. Hall was named the Atlantic Region MVP and has 10 saves with a 3.25 ERA.
 
What Happens Next:
A win by the Bulldogs will send them to the 7 p.m. Tuesday night game against the winner of the Cal Poly Pomona/Tampa contest. A loss will put the Bulldogs against the loser of that same game to be played at 3 p.m. on Tuesday.
 
Truman has never faced Cal Poly Pomona or Tampa in baseball. In fact, of all eight teams at the finals site, only Mercyhurst and Henderson State have appeared on the Bulldog schedule. The Reddies are 8-2 against Truman last playing in 2009
 
Finals Team Breakdown: (Complete NCAA Stats for All Teams)
TeamRecordLast 15B avg.Runs/GHRSB/SBAERASOBBFLD%
Mercyhurst39-910-5.3225.833159/793.22423132.972
HSU31-1910-5.2925.702650/663.99260163.958
WU37-1312-3.3097.1417100/1313.039086.960
Truman35-209-6.2995.652173/974.07185125.969
Tampa39-1313-2.3358.766656/714.27370148.961
Catawba44-1311-4.3158.431753/653.40479165.959
Angelo St.41-1613-2.3025.734156/883.17512166.968
CPP45-1311-4.2885.602926/462.63455166.972
 
 
Bulldogs Regional Recap:
Cody Gardner was named the Most Valuable Player in the Tournament after starting two games and pitching 16 innings allowing two earned runs and striking out eight. He pitched a complete-game shutout in the opener against William Jewell in which Truman won 6-0 and won the starter in the title game against Ashland (Ohio) going seven innings.
 
Other Bulldogs on the All-Tournament team were third baseman Zak Larkin, shortstop Blake Deaton, first baseman Dave Gambino and centerfielder T.J. Wood. Larkin hit .267 and had the bases clearing double that gave Truman a 6-3 lead in the finale against Ashland. Deaton flashed the leather on several occasions during the tournament while adding a pair of sacrifices and an RBI. Gambino hit .368 with a team-high five RBIs and Wood hit .400 with four RBIs and made his allotment of spectacular catches while roaming center field.  
 
After Truman knocked off William Jewell, they defeated Drury (Mo.) on consecutive nights to reach the title game undefeated. A seven-run second inning was key in the Bulldogs 9-5 winner on Friday night. In Saturday's rematch, Truman took advantage of a pair of Panthers errors in the seventh to score the go-ahead runs in a 5-3 victory. Peter Young earned the save as he followed Matt Tometz and Mark Roberts to the hill.
 
Gardner started the title game and gave Truman seven strong innings. He left with the game tied at two entering the eighth inning. The Bulldogs retook the lead with a pair in the top of the eighth but Ashland tied the game and could have added more if not for some outstanding defensive plays by the Bulldogs. Michael Venturella started a 4-6-3 DP to end the inning.
 
After Truman loaded the bases in the top of the ninth, the Eagles summoned their closer Alex Smith to the game. On the first pitch, Larkin ripped a ball over third into the corner to send Truman to the title.
 
Designated hitter Brendan Trimble led the Bulldogs in hitting for the tournament going 6-of-13 (.462) with three RBIs.
 
 
Season Honors:
Six Bulldogs earned all-conference honors from the GLVC. (Release)
 
Kent Frantz was the GLVC Freshman of the Year and a first-team all-GLVC pitcher. He was joined on the first-team by seniors Paul Trenhaile and Jarod Hahn.
 
Second-team honorees were senior pitcher Cody Gardner, senior Zak Larkin and freshman Brendan Trimble.
 
In addition to all-GLVC, Trenhaile was named a Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-District selection for the second straight year and was Truman's Male Outstanding Senior Student-Athlete winner.
 
Trenhaile, Dave Gambino and Blake Deaton all earned GLVC Hitter of the Week awards during the season and Frantz earned it on consecutive weeks back in mid-March.
 
Trenhaile was a Daktronics first team all-region selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America. He was joined on the first time by Frantz. Trenhaile also earned second team all-region honors from the America Baseball Coaches Association and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers of America.
 
Frantz is a semi-finalist for the Willingham Award that is presented by PerfectGame.com. The award has been presented three times to the most valuable player in Division II Baseball.  
 
Jarod Hahn is an ABCA Gold Glove Nominee out of the Midwest Region.
 
 
Vs. Cancer Foundation:
The Bulldogs joined with the Vs-Cancer Foundation to raise money to cure kids' cancer this season. They have raised $5,708 dollars and are ranked 25 out of 66 teams during the challenge. The team goal was $5000 dollars.
 
As part of the campaign, following the March 22 game against McKendree, the Bulldogs shaved their heads in support. Here is a link to a story about the haircuts what was produced by KTVO http://www.heartlandconnection.com/news/story.aspx?id=1181092
 
For more information or to donate visit: https://team.vs-cancer.org/fundraise/team?ftid=38051
 
Records Watch:
The Bulldogs have already shattered the school record for wins this year with 35. The previous high was last year with 26 and before that 21 in 1999. It is first time Truman will finish a season above the .500 mark since 1982 (17-12).
 
As a team, Truman has broken school records in runs (311) hits (531), doubles (85), RBIs (276), Total Bases (699) and Saves (11). The .299 batting average is third best in single-season history and currently has the best fielding percentage of any Bulldog squad a .969. The previous best was .961 in 2014.
 
Individual offensive season records, Paul Trenhaile broke his hits record from last year. Trenhaile has 80 this year after 71 in 2014. Dave Gambino has 74 which is second best.  Gambino is one triple away from tying the record with five. Trenhaile and Jarod Hahn are tied for second in runs scored with 46, three away from tying the record. Zak Larkin is fifth with 43.
 
Trenhaile, Gambino and Hahn are all in the top 10 in RBIs. Trenhaile and Gambino each have 45 and Hahn has 42. The record is 50 held by Tony Vandemore in 1999.
 
Larkin's 26 stolen bases are fourth in a season, nine off the school record held by Corbin Williams and four away from his 31 last year.
 
Individual pitching records look like this. Kent Frantz and Cody Gardner share the single season wins record with nine each. Peter Young has six saves for a new single-season Truman high in that category.
 
Gardner is the first Bulldog pitcher to eclipse 100 innings pitched in a season and sits at 103.0 entering the finals.
 
Career Legacies:
 
Four Bulldogs seniors will be featured in future editions of the Truman Baseball Record Book:
 
Paul Trenhaile
  • Has a career .358 batting average which is currently third all-time (1st - .370 – Aaron Royster)
  • 653 at bats, currently fourth all-time (Next: Jarod Hahn – 654)
  • 234 hits, currently first  all-time
  • 34 doubles, currently fourth all-time (Next: Josh Rubin - 36)
  • 6 triples, currently tied ninth all-time (Next: Three Players – 7)
  • 129 RBIs, currently first all time
  • 128 runs scored, currently third all time (Next: Mike Kubinski - 133)
  • 313 total bases, currently first all time
  • 1428 total chances, currently first all time
  • 1324 putouts, currently first all time
 
Jarod Hahn
  • 201 games played, currently first all time
  • 654 at bats, currently third all time (Next: Steven Rose - 669)
  • 189 hits, currently fifth all time (Next: Steve Rose - 190)
  • 124 runs scored, currently fourth all time (Next: Zak Larkin - 131)
  • 32 doubles, currently tied for seventh all time (Next: Keaton Jones & Pat Hardin - 33)
  • 108 RBIs, currently fourth all time (Next: Devon Myers - 111)
  • 262 total bases, currently tied for fifth all time (Next: Devon Myers - 286)
 
Zak Larkin
  • 200 games played, currently second all time (Next Jarod Hahn: 197)
  • 699 at bats, currently first all time
  • 140  runs scored, currently first all time
  • 198 hits, currently second all time (Next: Paul Trenhaile - 234)
  • 89 walks, currently first all time
  • 86 stolen bases, currently first all time
  • 112  stolen base attempts, currently first all time
  • 798 total chances, currently fifth all time (Next: Larry Hall - 812)
  • 452 assists, currently second all time (Next: Steve Rose – 582)
 
Cody Gardner
  • 15 career wins, first all time
  • 53 appearances, tied third all time  (Next: Michael Stair – 55)
  • 14 complete games, fourth all time (Next: Mike Dahlberg – 15)
  • 197.0 innings pitched, tied for fourth all time (Next Brant Kraner – 208.1)
 
 
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Players Mentioned

Blake Deaton

#12 Blake Deaton

SS
5' 11"
Senior
R/R
Kent Frantz

#3 Kent Frantz

RHP
5' 11"
Redshirt Freshman
R/R
Dave Gambino

#6 Dave Gambino

OF/1B
6' 2"
Sophomore
L/L
Cody Gardner

#17 Cody Gardner

LHP
6' 2"
Senior
R/L
Jarod Hahn

#5 Jarod Hahn

OF
6' 0"
Senior
L/R
Zak Larkin.

#2 Zak Larkin.

SS/2B
6' 1"
Senior
R/R
Mark Roberts

#11 Mark Roberts

RHP
6' 1"
Junior
R/R
Paul Trenhaile

#34 Paul Trenhaile

1B
6' 5"
Senior
R/R
Michael Venturella

#16 Michael Venturella

SS/2B
5' 9"
Redshirt Freshman
R/R
T.J. Wood

#10 T.J. Wood

OF
5' 10"
Junior
L/L
Matt Tometz

#1 Matt Tometz

LHP
6' 0"
Freshman
R/L
Brendan Trimble

#7 Brendan Trimble

3B/2B
6' 2"
Freshman
L/R

Players Mentioned

Blake Deaton

#12 Blake Deaton

5' 11"
Senior
R/R
SS
Kent Frantz

#3 Kent Frantz

5' 11"
Redshirt Freshman
R/R
RHP
Dave Gambino

#6 Dave Gambino

6' 2"
Sophomore
L/L
OF/1B
Cody Gardner

#17 Cody Gardner

6' 2"
Senior
R/L
LHP
Jarod Hahn

#5 Jarod Hahn

6' 0"
Senior
L/R
OF
Zak Larkin.

#2 Zak Larkin.

6' 1"
Senior
R/R
SS/2B
Mark Roberts

#11 Mark Roberts

6' 1"
Junior
R/R
RHP
Paul Trenhaile

#34 Paul Trenhaile

6' 5"
Senior
R/R
1B
Michael Venturella

#16 Michael Venturella

5' 9"
Redshirt Freshman
R/R
SS/2B
T.J. Wood

#10 T.J. Wood

5' 10"
Junior
L/L
OF
Matt Tometz

#1 Matt Tometz

6' 0"
Freshman
R/L
LHP
Brendan Trimble

#7 Brendan Trimble

6' 2"
Freshman
L/R
3B/2B