UVU SERIES NOTES (pdf)

Series Preview
Utah Valley at Oregon State Tournament
Feb. 19-21, Surprise, Arizona

Utah Valley vs Ball State | Friday, Feb. 19 | 5 p.m. MT
Live Stats | Live Audio

Utah Valley vs Minnesota | Saturday, Feb. 20 | 10 a.m. MT
Live Stats | Live Audio

Utah Valley vs #5 Oregon State | Saturday, Feb. 20 | 2 p.m. MT
Live Stats | Live Audio

Utah Valley vs Ball State | Sunday, Feb. 21 | 10 a.m. MT
Live Stats | Live Audio

Pitching Probables
Gm1 | RHP Danny Beddes (5-6, 4.71) vs LHP Matt Haro (2-0, 5.24) or LHP Kevin Marnon (DNP in 2015)
Gm2 | RHP Jake Mayer (1-7, 7.36) vs LHP Dalton Sawyer (4-3, 4.53)
Gm3 | LHP Jackson Cofer (1-5, 4.50) vs RHP Jake Thompson (0-1, 9.95)
Gm4 | RHP Kaden Schmitt (1-5, 6.41) vs RHP Brendan Burns (4-1, 7.58) or or LHP Kevin Marnon (DNP in 2015)

On Deck
UVU at San Francisco | Wednesday, Feb. 24 | 3 p.m. MT/2 p.m. PT

2016 Season Preview
In terms of returning veteran leadership, the 2016 Utah Valley University baseball roster rivals any of the program's last four teams. With six starting position players, the Friday night starter, and the key arm out of the bullpen returning, the Wolverines will rely on that experience to improve on last season's result.

Despite the struggles in 2015, including a win-loss record that was below expectation, head coach Eric Madsen is confident his returning seniors and letterwinners understand the magnitude of what it takes to be successful.

"The guys are determined and recognize what our shortcomings were," Madsen said. "Now they need to utilize their experience and knowledge as a driver to improve. They can see where the breakdowns were, see the things that cost us games and now need to be able to rectify those things."

The Friday night starter is Danny Beddes, and he'll take the hill for the season opener on Friday against Ball State. UVU opens 2016 in Surprise, Arizona -- at the Spring Training complex of the Kansas City Royals and Texas Rangers - in a tournament hosted by No. 5 Oregon State.

In between games against Ball State on Friday at 5 p.m. MT and Sunday at 10 a.m. MT, Utah Valley will face Minnesota on Saturday at 10 a.m. MT and the Pac 12 favorite Beavers the same day at 2 p.m. MT.

After Beddes, three sophomores are slated to start for the Wolverines: Jake Mayer vs. Minnesota, southpaw Jackson Cofer against Oregon State, and Kaden Schmitt in the weekend finale.

All four return from 2015, as does Kyle Valgardson, who was the top arm out of the bullpen in 2015. Valgardson went 3-3 with a 3.32 ERA and six saves in a team-high 25 appearances. Also among the many returning possibilities to fill several roles on the mound are Patrick Wolfe and Eric Olguin. Flamethrower Chad Michaud is back after missing most of 2015 to injury and could figure into the late innings.

"I think we do have a deep staff. Now it's just a matter of guys going out and doing what they're capable of," Madsen said. "That applies to the entire roster. We have a lot of the tools to be successful, we just need to have it translate night in and night out."

In the lineup, Mark Krueger is back for his final season and, despite a dip in power and average from his sophomore to junior season, will be expected to provide both from the middle of the lineup. He is listed No. 4 in Baseball America's list of top prospects in the Western Athletic Conference with Beddes coming in at No. 6.

The other returning seniors starters are shortstop Greyson Bogden, first baseman Spencer Gothberg, third baseman Jordan Schlehuber, and outfielder Craig Brinkerhoff. Sophomore catcher Jake Atkinson is the other returner among the starting position players.

While not a newcomer to the program, infielder Stone Ramsey will provide a bat that wasn't on the 2015 roster after recently returning from an LDS mission. Ramsey batted .307 as a freshman in 2013.

Among the newcomers are a handful of junior college transfers: Garrett Bowman (Mesa CC), Justin Erlandson (Scottsdale CC), Evan Fresquez (Mesa CC), Jason Jourdan (Salt Lake CC), and Zac Willis (Salt Lake CC). The freshmen class includes Jeff Arens, Paul Estrada, Trevor Howell, and Ryne Edmondson, who will all see action this season.

"Our freshmen and newcomers all bring different strengths and could all have chances to help us. It's created a lot of good, healthy competitiveness and helped improve our depth," Madsen said.

After the opening weekend in Arizona, the Wolverines head to the Bay Area for midweek at San Francisco before a tournament at Santa Clara where they'll face the host Broncos, Saint Joseph's and play two games against UC Davis.

A four-game series at Washington State and a midweek at BYU all precede the home opener, slated for a four-game series against Portland beginning March 10. The following week UVU hosts Big 10 Minnesota in a three-game set. The rest of the non-conference schedule includes three midweek games against Utah, two more vs. BYU and a single game at Arizona.

The WAC schedule begins at defending regular season champion Grand Canyon. The Antelopes were picked to finish atop the league again with Utah Valley selected sixth by the coaches, both right where they finished in 2015.

The home conference series will be North Dakota, Northern Colorado, Seattle U, 2015 WAC Tournament champion CSU Bakersfield, and UT Rio Grande Valley. The remaining road series in conference are New Mexico State, Sacramento State and Chicago State.

The series at Chicago State is the weekend prior to the WAC Tournament, which will be held at Hohokam Park in Mesa, Arizona for the second straight year. The top six teams in the WAC regular season - with the exception of Grand Canyon - will qualify for a shot at the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

"The top of the conference is very talented. Starting WAC play at the defending champion, who brings a lot of talent back, is going to be a big test for us," said Madsen. "We've got to be ready to play every week. We've recognized what we need to do, what our weaknesses have been, and now we need to correct those."