Leading Off
After 15 road games to start the season, the Omaha baseball team makes its home debut this weekend, hosting North Dakota for a three-game non-conference series, March 7-8 at Millard North High School. The series begins Saturday, March 7 with a doubleheader at 1 p.m, followed by a single game on Sunday, March 8 at 1 p.m. Links to live stats and audio will be available on OMavs.com, and student broadcasters Ryan Matheny and Adam Priester will have the call on the MavRadio.fm broadcast.
    
Quick Hits
•Omaha just completed a 15-game road stretch the open the season, its most since 15 in 2012.
•Freshman Adam Caniglia has reached base in nine straight games, while senior Daniel Jewett is on a five-game hitting streak entering this weekend.
•Junior Clayton Taylor finished 3-for-4 against Saint Leo last Thursday at the Snowbird Classic, crushing two solo home runs. The last Maverick with multiple homers in one game was Caleb Palensky, who had two vs. North Dakota State on April 25, 2014.
•Over six games last week, junior Alex Schultz led the way at the plate, batting .346 (9-of-26) with a double, three runs scored and an RBI. Schultz also drew three walks and was a perfect 4-of-4 in stolen base attempts.
•Freshman Jake Cockle delivered the first hit of his young career last week with a double to left in the ninth inning against Mount St. Mary's. It also marked his first career start behind the dish.
•The Mavericks return 19 letterwinners and five All-Summit selections from a year ago: Taylor, Jewett and juniors Cole Gruber, Tyler Fox and Alex Schultz. Fox was also tabbed 2014 Summit League Pitcher of the Year.
•UNO's five returning all-conference selections are the most of any team in the Summit League.
•UNO ended the 2014 season on a seven-game win streak, and in two years in the Summit League, the Mavericks have compiled a 35-15 record in conference play.
•UNO is 114-91 all-time against the five other teams in the Summit League and 227-230 against all opponents on the schedule this year.

Scouting North Dakota
North Dakota enters the weekend with a record of 1-6 (0-0 WAC) after a four-game series at Washington last weekend. UND opened with its first win of the season on Friday, defeating the Huskies 6-4 in 10 innings. They then dropped three straight, 17-3, 5-3, 4-1 over Saturday and Sunday.

Jeff Dodson (Livingstone, 1993) is in his seventh season at UND with a career record of 100-193-1.

Omaha leads the all-time series against North Dakota, 29-18. The two squads last met March 8-9, 2013 in Omaha for a three-game series, which UND took 2-1. It opened with wins of 2-0 and 5-3 in the first two games, after which UNO rebounded for a 13-2 victory in the finale.

Last Time Out: Mount St. Mary's Defeats Omaha, 8-2
Omaha played its final game at the Snowbird Classic last Sunday, falling 8-2 to Mount St. Mary's at North Charlotte Regional Park. Freshman Riley Sweeney (0-1) earned his first collegiate start, throwing 3.1 innings. He allowed three runs on five hits and three walks while striking out three batters. Chad Diehl (1-0) earned the win for the Mount, going 6.0 innings while surrendering one run on three hits and four walks with four strikeouts.

Junior Alex Schultz led Omaha at the plate, going 1-for-4 with a run scored. Junior Clayton Taylor and freshman Cole Patterson each drove in a run, while junior Alex Mortensen scored UNO's only other run.

Hamer Named Summit League Pitcher of the Week
Senior right-handed pitcher Tyler Hamer was selected as Summit League Pitcher of the Week for his performances Feb. 23 – March 1, the conference office announced Monday. Hamer earned the first weekly league honor of his career after tossing a complete game against ACC opponent Boston College at the Snowbird Classic last week. The Elburn, Ill., native surrendered just five hits in a career-long nine innings pitched with one run scored and a career-high-tying four strikeouts.

Senior right-handed pitcher Zach Williamsen was also named Summit League Pitcher of the Week on Feb. 23.

Hamer the Hammer
Senior right-handed pitcher Tyler Hamer has thrown the most innings of any pitcher on the Maverick staff this season, tying with fellow senior Zach Williamsen for the team lead with 16.0 innings pitched. Over three appearances, the Elburn, Ill., native has gone 1-0 with a 0.56 ERA, and opponents are hitting just .111 against him.

On Feb. 21, Hamer was part of UNO's no-hit shutout of Chicago State, going 3.0 innings with a walk and four Ks. He earned his first win of the year with a complete-game victory over Boston College last weekend, allowing one run on five hits in 9.0 innings with four strikeouts.

Going the Extra Mile
When registering three or more extra-base hits in a game, UNO went 14-7 last season, and the Mavericks have started the 2015 in similar fashion with a 2-0 mark. The 2014 Omaha squad finished with 107 extra-base hits, the most  of any team since registering 159 in 2011, the Mavericks' last year in Division II.

Turning to the Bullpen
Omaha's bullpen has traditionally held its own late in the game, as the Mavericks are 412-34-1 in the Bob Herold era when leading after the sixth inning. UNO was 25-4 in such games in 2014 and 23-1 in the 2013 season, both of which were years in which the Mavericks went on to win Summit League regular-season titles. This season, they are 3-0 when leading after the sixth.

Offense Keying Wins
In the last three seasons in 2013, 2014 and 2015, Omaha has gone a combined 43-7 when outhitting its opponent. In 2014, the Mavericks were 21-2 when registering more hits than its opposition, up from 20-5 in 2013. This year, UNO has started out 3-1 in such games.

Over 16 seasons in the Bob Herold era, UNO is 395-69-1 when outhitting the other team.
    
Double Digits
As a team, Omaha produced double-digit hits in 22 games last season, including a season-high 23 hits against Chicago State on Feb. 28, 2014. Last year, UNO was 18-4 when producing 10 or more hits in a game, similar to its mark of 18-6 for double-digit hits in 2013. Already this season, the Mavericks are 2-1 with a double-digit hit total.

Home Sweet Home
The 2015 season will see Omaha play 23 home contests, including 15 conference tilts. UNO will play at three venues, with 18 games at the Ballpark at Boys Town, three this weekend that were moved to Millard North High School and a pair of premier games at Werner Park with Nebraska (April 1) and Kansas State (April 8).

Since moving to Division I in 2011-12, UNO has enjoyed a combined record of 25-19 at home.

Herold at the Helm
Head Coach Bob Herold is in his 16th year as the skipper of the Omaha baseball program in 2014, having compiled a career record of 483-329-2. Herold earned his 400th career win 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 with Omaha's 7-0 shutout at Bradley on April 22, 2014, he officially became the winningest coach in UNO history with his 465th victory.

Over his Maverick career, Herold has guided Omaha to seven NCAA Division II postseason appearances and four conference championships. In 2013 and 2014, he was honored as Summit League Coach of the Year.

Herold's most recent draft pick was right-handed pitcher Joe Holtmeyer, who was taken 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 Herold and the second-highest pick of any player during the Herold era.

Herold is assisted by assistant coaches Chris Gadsden, in his 16th year, and Evan Porter, in his third year, as well as volunteer assistant coach Brian Strawn, who is in his first year.

Mixed Schedule Takes Mavericks Around the Nation
Omaha's 2015 schedule includes 53 games against 18 different opponents, and the team will play in 11 states and three time zones across the country. UNO will match up with opponents from 13 other conferences: the ACC, Big 12, BIG EAST, Big Sky, Big Ten, Colonial, Missouri Valley, Mountain West, Northeast, SEC, Southland, Sunshine State and WAC.

Two foes -- North Dakota State and Nebraska -- were 2014 NCAA Tournament qualifiers. NDSU, which finished fifth in the Summit League's regular-season standings and went on to win the tournament championship for a berth to the NCAA Tournament, lost to Oregon State and UNLV in the Corvallis Regional. Nebraska played in the Stillwater Regional, where it defeated Binghamton and lost twice to Cal State Fullerton.

Additionally, three opponents finished in the top 100 for RPI in 2014: Nebraska (No. 32), Creighton (No. 70) and Oral Roberts (No. 96).

The Mavericks have never faced six of their 2015 opponents: Saint Leo, Kentucky, Boston College, Mount St. Mary's, Oral Roberts and Incarnate Word. Omaha holds a combined all-time record of 227-230 against all teams on the slate this season.

Next Up
Omaha opens Summit League play next weekend, hosting South Dakota State, March 13-15, at the Ballpark at Boys Town. First pitch for all three games is at 1 p.m., and links to live stats, audio and video will be available on OMavs.com.