Complete Release

The UNO baseball team hits the road again this week, traveling to Minnesota for a two-game midweek series at the Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minn. Tuesday's game is set for an 6:30 p.m. first pitch, followed by a 3:05 p.m. finale on Wednesday. Links to live video, live audio and live stats will be available on OMavs.com, and Yano Mangiameli will provide play-by-play and commentary.

Nebraska Omaha is in its first year as a reclassifying Division I school in 2011-12 and will officially join The Summit League next year with a full conference schedule in 2013. The Mavericks are led by Head Coach Bob Herold, who is in his 13th year at the helm of the UNO program with a career record of 419-269-2.

Briefly
•Senior Brady Hohl and sophomore Caleb Palensky both enter Tuesday's game on a six-game hitting streak. Hohl was previously on a stretch of 21 games with a hit from Feb. 28 to April 7, when it was halted by North Dakota State.
•Nebraska Omaha is 8-0 on the year when leading after eight innings.
•While playing in the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational earlier this month, Nebraska Omaha played in the longest game of any Division I team this year. The marathon against LIU Brooklyn lasted 19 innings and clocked in at over five hours, resulting in a thrilling 3-2 win for the Mavericks. Senior Andrew Reck keyed the game-winning hit in the bottom of the 19th, singling past the diving third baseman to score sophomore Caleb Palensky.
•The Mavericks' most notable loss in 2012 is righthanded pitcher Joe Holtmeyer, who was drafted in the 22nd round (No. 682 overall) of the 2011 Major League Baseball amateur draft by the Boston Red Sox. Holtmeyer was the fifth Maverick drafted under Head Coach Bob Herold and the highest pick of any player during the Herold era at UNO.

Last Time Out
UNO last took the field on Sunday, April 15, falling 20-1 at UNLV in Las Vegas, Nev. Senior Colby McCord (2-for-5) and freshman Alex Mortensen (2-for-3) both had multi-hit games, while sophomore Ryan Tomlinson had a hit and a run scored. UNLV pounded out 20 runs on 22 hits for the day.

UNLV starter Brandon Borden (1-3) earned the win, surrendering one run on five hits. Over his six-inning outing, Borden struck out four and walked three. The loss went to redshirt freshman Zach Williamsen (2-2), who gave up seven runs on nine hits over 3.1 innings with a strikeout and a walk.

Scouting the Minnesota Gophers
Minnesota enters the weekend with an overall record of 20-17 (6-3 Big Ten) and a three-game win streak after sweeping a weekend series with Northwestern. The Gophers defeated the visiting Wildcats by a score of 2-1 in the first two games and closed the series with a 6-0 shutout on Sunday. Austin Lubinsky starred on the mound in the finale, tossing seven innings of scoreless ball while allowing five hits with five strikeouts and a walk. Jake Bergren, Matt Halloran and Bobby Juan tallied two hits apiece in the win, and five different players drove in runs.

This weekend marks the first meeting in program history with Minnesota.

McCord On the Board
Senior Colby McCord has worn a variety of hats for the Mavericks this season, serving as UNO's starting catcher while also seeing time at first base and putting in one appearance as a relief pitcher. The Papillion, Neb., native is batting a team-leading .371 with 16 doubles, 22 runs scored and 19 RBI. He also tops the Mavs with a .564 slugging percentage and a .443 on-base percentage.

In the 19-inning game against LIU Brooklyn in Florida, McCord (1-0) earned the win on the mound after starting behind the plate. Over the last seven innings, he struck out a career-high 11 batters and issued just one walk while allowing two hits in relief. It marked his first appearance on the hill in two years, as he last pitched in 2010.

Hohl's Hitting Streak Highlights Senior Season
Senior Brady Hohl carried a team-best 21-game hitting streak into UNO's doubleheader against North Dakota State on April 7, in place since Feb. 28. In game one, the Bison limited Hohl to an 0-4 effort at the plate before he went 1-for-3 in both of the last two games of the weekend. Sunday's contest saw him drive in four runs for the day.

The Omaha native and product of Millard North is second among active players on the squad with a .296 batting average, 12 doubles, two home runs, 19 runs scored and 18 RBI. Hohl is also 12-for-14 in stolen bases.

In 2011, Hohl's outstanding play earned him a slew of awards to cap his junior season. He was selected as a second-team all-region honoree by Daktronics, the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association and Rawlings/the American Baseball Coaches Association. Hohl started all 55 games of his junior season, batting a team-leading .408 with 59 runs scored, 35 RBI, 11 doubles and five homers. He also drew a team-leading 23 walks and had a team-high 15 stolen bases.

Hohl grabbed further attention during summer ball, playing for the Anchorage Glacier Pilots of the Alaska Baseball League. He was named to the All-ABL All-Star Team and batted .302 with a team-leading 26 RBI, 20 runs, seven doubles and a pair of home runs. Hohl was the third-ranked hitter in the league during ABL play.

Mortensen Makes Strong Debut
True freshman Alex Mortensen has had a solid start to his Maverick career, posting a team-leading 22 RBI over 35 games. For the year, the Millard North product is batting .281 with eight doubles, a triple and three home runs. In the Mavs' 3-2 win over Creighton, it was Mortensen's bat that propelled UNO to victory, as he went 2-for-4 with a run scored and two driven in. After scoring UNO's first run in the seventh, he added a two-run single in the eighth that scored the tying and go-ahead runs to spot the 3-2 lead.

Mortensen homered in back-to-back games of the Northern Colorado series while scoring three times and accounting for five RBI. In the opening weekend at Texas A&M Corpus Christi, he went 3-for-6 at the plate over three games. He started twice, putting up a double and two RBI while scoring once. In Saturday's nightcap, Mortensen entered the game as a pinch hitter, drawing a bases-loaded walk that scored Tyler Splichal and gave the Mavs the 2-1 win. On Sunday, Mortensen added a 2-for-3 effort in the series finale.

Mavericks Reclassify to Division I
Nebraska Omaha announced in March 2011 its plan to reclassify from NCAA Division II to Division I, beginning with the 2011-12 school year. UNO, which was previously a member of the MIAA, accepted an invitation to join The Summit League and will compete as a full-fledged member with a regular-season conference schedule in 2012-13.

Mavs Return All-Conference Infield Trio
Nebraska Omaha has three players on its roster who have previously earned all-conference recognition in the Mavs' former league in Division II, the MIAA. Senior infielder Brady Hohl was a two-time All-MIAA honoree, taking a first-team award in 2011 and a second-team nod in 2010. Last season, Hohl topped the Mavericks with a .408 batting average while starting all 55 games at shortstop and third base. He led UNO with 59 runs scored, 23 walks and 15 stolen bases while adding 35 RBI, 11 doubles and five home runs.

Junior infielder Tyler Splichal was a second-team All-MIAA selection in 2010 and was voted MIAA Freshman of the Year that same season. As a freshman, Splichal had a team-best .410 batting average, and he followed up in 2011 with a .322 effort with 13 doubles, five homers, 35 runs scored and 29 RBI.

Sophomore infielder Caleb Palensky garnered All-MIAA honorable mention accolades after his freshman campaign, when he was also named the 2011 MIAA Freshman of the Year. Palensky started 47 games at second base, batting .366 with a team-leading 14 doubles, two triples, four home runs, 36 RBI and 35 runs scored.

Herold at the Helm
Head Coach Bob Herold is in his 13th year as the skipper of the Nebraska Omaha baseball program in 2012, having compiled a career record of 419-269-2. Herold earned his 400th career win last season on April 22, 2011 against Fort Hays State, becoming the third coach in school history to reach the milestone. He joined Bob Gates (464-273) and Virgil Yelkin (439-196) in the prestigious club, and Herold now needs 48 more wins to pass Gates as the all-time winningest coach in UNO history.

Over his Maverick career, Herold has guided Nebraska Omaha to seven NCAA Division II postseason appearances and three conference championships.

Mavs Open Division I Era at Texas A&M Corpus Christi
Nebraska Omaha began its first Division I season with a four-game series at Texas A&M Corpus Christi, going 1-3. After the Friday opener was rained out, the Mavericks began with a Saturday doubleheader, falling 3-0 before taking a 2-1 win in the nightcap. On Sunday, the Islanders won both games, 3-2 and 7-2.

Junior infielder Tyler Splichal had six hits and batted .375 for the weekend with an RBI and a run scored. He also tallied the game-winning run on Saturday. In the same game, redshirt freshman Zach Williamsen (1-0) made his career debut on the mound and earned his first victory in relief. Williamsen tossed 3.0 innings of scoreless ball, allowing just two hits.

New Kids on the Block
UNO's 2012 roster features 11 new faces, with eight true freshmen and three transfers. The Maverick freshmen include Papillion La-Vista South teammates Tyler Lane, Joe Mancuso and Justin Paul, as well as in-state products Alex Mortensen (Millard North), Sam Raetz (Lincoln Pius X) and Max Ayoub (Grand Island). Jared Patton comes to UNO from Basehor-Linwood High School in Kansas, and Cole Volkers played at Alta Loma High School in California.

Ryley Cidlik (Kansas State) has transferred from a fellow Division I program, Kansas State. Dylan McGill comes from Southeast Community College, while Steven Schoonover joins the program after beginning his career at Yakima Valley Community College.

After the first third of the season, nine newcomers have seen playing time: Mortensen, Mancuso, Patton, Lane, Schoonover, McGill, Cidlik, Volkers and Ayoub.

Mixed Schedule Takes Mavericks Around the Nation
UNO's 2012 schedule of 49 games, its first as a reclassifying institution, is composed entirely of Division I competition.  The team will play in 12 different states and all four time zones across the country. The slate matches UNO with one independent school and opponents from 12 different conferences: The Summit League, Pac-12, Big 12, Big Ten, West Coast, Missouri Valley, Ohio Valley, Southland, Mountain West, Great West, Patriot League and Northeast.

Three Summit League squads -- IPFW, North Dakota State and Oakland -- will give the Mavs their first taste of future conference competition, which begins officially in 2013.

UNO Finishes Final Year in Division II Among Nation's Best
UNO finished the 2011 season ranked 10th nationally in team batting average in the NCAA's final Division II statistical rankings released last June. The Mavericks, who compiled a team batting average of .332, were also 16th in home runs per game (0.91), 12th in total home runs (50), 13th in total hits (578) and 12th in slugging percentage (.487).

Up Next for the Mavs
UNO returns to action April 21-22, traveling to future Summit League foe Oakland for a three-game series in Rochester, Mich. Saturday's doubleheader will start at 11 a.m. (CT), followed by Saturday's finale at Noon (CT). Links to live stats, live video and live audio will be available on OMavs.com.