Northwestern University Athletics
Raising Arizona; Wildcats Begin 2004 in Grand Canyon State
2/10/2004 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 10, 2004
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EVANSTON, Ill. - After being picked at the bottom of the Big Ten the last couple years, Northwestern has surprised a lot of conference foes, qualifying for the postseason Big Ten Tournament-only the top six advance-three of the last four years.
This year there will be no surprises.
Armed with 18 returning letterwinners, including three starting pitchers with All-Big Ten credentials, NU is not only looking for its fourth Big Ten Tournament trip in five years, but that elusive conference championship.
The strength of NU's squad in the early season will be its pitching staff. The Wildcats return an entire staff that led the Big Ten and finished 39th in NCAA Division I with a 3.99 ERA in 2003. NU was even better during the conference season, ending last year atop the Big Ten with a 3.61 ERA.
Three of NU's four weekend starters earned All-Big Ten recognition, led by junior J.A. Happ who garnered his second consecutive first-team distinction. Happ is the first Wildcat since Jeremy Kurella (1999-2000) to receive consecutive first-team kudos. Senior Dan Konecny (second-team) and sophomore Dan Brauer (third-team) earned their first conference distinctions in 2003.
Shortstop Jon Mikrut, who doubles as the team's closer, returns after leading the team a year ago with a .317 batting average. A starter in all 50 games in 2003, Mikrut led the team in just about every major offensive category, including hits (57), doubles (14) and triples (3).
Not to be outdone, sophomore Anthony Wycklendt took full advantage of limited opportunities in 2003. In only 59 at-bats, Wycklendt hit six home runs, drove in 23 and finished with an outstanding .407 batting average.
Not only does NU have a strong nucleus returning, but the 2003 freshman class was tabbed honorable mention by Collegiate Baseball.
With strong pitching and fundamental baseball, head coach Paul Stevens will try to duplicate last year's trip to Phoenix (3-0).
"The flexibility of the team is tremendous right now," said Stevens. "It is just a matter of how well we can blend the old with the new and figure out how to make it all work together."
Northwestern (0-0, 0-0 Big Ten) Opponent (record) Feb. 12 vs. Pacific (1-2) Feb. 13 vs. Washington State (0-0) Feb. 14 vs. San Francisco (0-2) Feb. 15 vs. Missouri (0-0)Coach Record at School NU Paul Stevens 422-456-4 (16 seasons) UP Ed Sprague 1-2 (first season) WSU Tim Mooney 55-109 (three seasons) USF Nino Giarratano 118-164 (five seasons) UM Tim Jamieson 286-216-1 (nine seasons)
Cat Nips
* Junior Jon Mikrut has 11 saves in his first two seasons as a Wildcat. He is just six shy of the NU career record of 17 held by Greg Ziesemer (1994-96).
* Lefthander J.A. Happ is seventh on NU's career ERA list with a 3.02 earned-run average in 134.1 innings pitched.
* Sophomore Anthony Wycklendt has his picture in the 2004 NCAA Baseball Record Book for hitting safely in seven of his eight at-bats vs. Chicago State (4/15/03) last year. His seven hits in one game tied the third-best single-game total in NCAA history.
* Assistant Coach Tim Stoddard, who mainly works with the pitchers, is the only man in history to win an NCAA Basketball Championship and a Major League Baseball World Series Ring. Stoddard was part of NC State's 1974 NCAA Championship basketball team and a pitcher for the 1983 World Championship Orioles.
* Junior Luke Sundheim, originally from Glencoe, Ill., a suburb of Chicago, won the Ron Klein Award playing for New Trier High School. Assistant coach Ron Klein was New Trier High School's head coach for 33 years, compiling a 967-468-7 overall record.
* Junior Chris Hayes pitched in nine games in 2003, boasting a 0.77 ERA in 11.2 innings. But Hayes is best known for being able to play every position on the field. A true 'utility' player, Hayes played all six infield positions in 2003.
* Freshman George Kontos will likely start a game on the mound for Northwestern this weekend. As of Feb. 3, Kontos is scheduled to start the San Francisco game on Valentines Day (Feb. 14). He will be making his collegiate debut on the mound against a team NU has never competed against.
* Only two players on the roster will be making trips to their respective home state in NU's 20-game nonconference schedule. Junior Julian Romero (Albuquerque, N.M.) and sophomore Julio Siberio (Davie, Fla.). Romero is a back-up first baseman an Siberio is a reliever on the Wildcat pitching staff.
