Leading Off
The Omaha baseball team begins an 11-game road swing this weekend, visiting Fort Wayne for a three-game series, April 29-30, at Mastodon Field in Fort Wayne, Ind. First pitch for Friday's doubleheader is set for 10 a.m. (CT), followed by 2 p.m. (CT) for a single game on Saturday. Live stats and video will be linked on OMavs.com.

Quick Hits
•Senior infielder Clayton Taylor is riding a career-long 31-game reaching base streak, the longest of any Maverick since Bryan Frew (31) in 2008.
•Taylor also holds the longest active hitting streak of any Maverick at eight games. In that span, he has hit .364.
•UNO has scored at least one run in the first inning 18 times this season. That includes eight times in 18 conference games, going 6-2 in those contests.
•Senior outfielder Alex Schultz keyed his 200th career hit on April 6 vs. Nebraska. He is one of just seven players in school history with 200 or more career hits, joining two fellow seniors who reached the milestone earlier this season -- Taylor (March 27 vs. North Dakota State) and senior outfielder Cole Gruber (March 20 vs. Fort Wayne).
•Gruber became Omaha's all-time career stolen base leader on March 9 at Air Force, while senior right-hander Tyler Fox became UNO's all-time leader for innings pitched on March 18 vs. Fort Wayne and batters faced on March 25 vs. North Dakota State.
•On Feb. 20, head coach Bob Herold earned his 500th career victory in 17 seasons of directing the Omaha program.
•The 2016 season marks Omaha's first with full NCAA Division I postseason eligibility for the Summit League and NCAA Tournaments. The Mavericks completed a required four-year Division I reclassification period from 2012 to 2015.
•The Mavericks return 18 letterwinners, including five position starters: Gruber, Taylor, Schultz, sophomore infielder Ryan Cate and senior catcher Collin Leif.
•Four All-Summit selections highlight the Mavericks' returning corps with Taylor, Gruber, Schultz and Fox.
•UNO was picked fourth in the Summit League Preseason Coaches' Poll.
•Omaha is 232-258 against all opponents on the schedule this year and 136-117 all-time against the five other teams in the Summit League. The Mavericks have compiled a 56-39 record in Summit League play since 2012-13.

Scouting the Fort Wayne Mastodons
Fort Wayne enters the weekend with a record of 20-21 (5-13 Summit League) after dropping two of three contests to Oral Roberts last weekend, then rebounding for a 10-0 win Wednesday vs. IU South Bend. Evan VanSumeren leads the Mastodons with a .306 batting average this season.

Head coach Bobby Pierce (New Mexico State, 2001) is in his eighth season at IPFW with a record of 151-165 and a career mark of 206-219 over 10 seasons of coaching.

The all-time series between Omaha and Fort Wayne is tied at an even 12-12. Omaha swept the first weekend series this season -- 14-7, 7-0 and 9-5 -- at the Ballpark at Boys Town. The Mavericks' last win in Fort Wayne was April 11, 2015 with a 13-3 triumph in eight innings, though IPFW took the other two games that weekend, 7-6 and 5-2.

Last Time Out: Mavericks Take Down Air Force, 7-4
Omaha took on Air Force Tuesday afternoon, triumphing 7-4 at Werner Park. The victory went to sophomore right-hander Corey Binger (5-3), who held Air Force to two singles and a walk over 4.0 innings with two strikeouts. The loss went to Tyler Mortenson (2-1), who gave up two runs -- one earned -- on one hit while walking five and punching out two in 3.0 innings. Sophomore right-hander Ryan Cate buckled down for his fifth save of the season, limiting the Falcons to one hit and one walk with two strikeouts over 2.1 shutout innings to close the game.

Offensively, senior Collin Leif was 2-for-3 and scored three times for the day. Senior Clayton Taylor was also 2-for-5 with an RBI, and freshman Grant Suponchick drove in a pair of runs as well. Senior Alex Schultz drew four walks for the afternoon and finished 1-for-1 with three runs scored and an RBI.

Road Warriors
UNO's upcoming 11-game road stretch over the next three weeks is its second-longest of the year, behind its 18 away from Omaha to open the season. It also marks the Mavericks' longest mid-season road stretch since they left for 11 straight March 12-29, 2013.

Fox Earns Summit League Pitcher of the Week Nod
Senior right-hander Tyler Fox was named Summit League Co-Pitcher of the Week for his performances the week of April 18-24, the conference office announced Monday.

Fox collected the fourth pitcher of the week honor of his career and his second of the season after recording a 4-1 win against South Dakota State last Friday. The Thornton, Colo., native went the distance, capturing his league-leading seventh victory of the year to improve to 7-2. He issued a season-high 10 strikeouts with no walks and allowed just one earned run.

Senior infielder Clayton Taylor was previously honored as Summit League Player of the Week on Feb. 22 and March 14, as was senior outfielder Cole Gruber on March 28. Fox was previously named Summit League Pitcher of the Week on Feb. 29, while sophomore lefty Corey Binger earned the same award March 14 and junior lefty Sam Murphy did so on April 4.

Clayton's the Catalyst
Omaha is 13-2 this season when senior Clayton Taylor registers a multi-hit game. The Mount Michael product is a catalyst for the Mavericks' offensive production, hitting .409 with runners on base, and he has success advancing runners 57 percent of the time. In games when Taylor has at least two hits, UNO as a team averages 12.0 hits and 8.7 runs scored per game.

Climbing the Career Charts
Seniors Cole Gruber, Clayton Taylor and Alex Schultz have been four-year starters at Omaha and have steadily climbed their way up the UNO career charts. Gruber is first in school history for stolen bases (95), second for sacrifice hits (32), fourth for hits (226) and walks (95), fifth for runs scored (146), sixth for games started (176), seventh for at-bats (652) and 10th for games played (182) and total bases (275).

Taylor is second for RBI (162), fourth for home runs (26), fifth for hits (219), walks (89), total bases (348), sacrifice flies (13) and games started (178), sixth for at-bats (658) and eighth for doubles (40) and games played (184).

Schultz is third for walks (99) and runs scored (151), fourth for at-bats (700) and games started (184), sixth for games played (185) and seventh for hits (207) and doubles (41).

What Does the Fox Say?
Senior right-handed pitcher Tyler Fox is back as Omaha's Friday starter in 2016, and he has been the Mavericks' most celebrated hurler over the last three seasons. The Thornton, Colo., native was the 2014 Summit League Pitcher of the Year and an All-Summit selection as a sophomore, and he has led UNO in both strikeouts and innings pitched each of the last two years. His 93.2 innings thrown as a junior were the third-highest single-season total in school history, behind only Ben Percival (100.1) in 2009 and Troy Cloyd (96.0) in 2005.

Fox has compiled a career record of 27-9 with a 3.03 ERA, and he sits two victories away from tying the school record for career wins. On March 18, he became Omaha's all-time leader for career innings pitched, passing former Maverick Mike Metz (1975-78), who had 255.2. In addition to his 294.1 innings pitched, Fox also ranks first in school history for batters faced (1,239) and games started (49). Additionally, he is second for wins (27), fourth for strikeouts (219) and seventh for appearances (50).

Counting on Cate
Sophomore right-hander Ryan Cate earned his fifth save of the season Tuesday against Air Force, which moved him into the top 10 in school history for career saves. His mark matches former Mavericks Mike Jones (1985-86) and Anthony Falcone (2011-14) for eighth in that category.

Breaking Out the Bats
UNO has put together a big offensive push in Summit League play, as the Mavericks have hit .285 in non-conference games and .292 in their 18 league contests. They have also increased their team slugging percentage from .371 to .397 and their on-base percentage from .360 to .393 in conference play. Omaha's league batting burst has been led by Grant Suponchick's .373 batting average in those contests.

Better on the Bump
While Omaha's offense has come alive in Summit League play, so has its pitching staff. In non-conference games, UNO's staff has a 6.01 ERA but has lowered that to 4.93 in league contests.

New Leif
After being sidelined with an injury on April 1, senior catcher Collin Leif returned to the lineup for the first time in three weeks on April 22. The Bemidji, Minn., native has helped the Mavericks go 3-1 since then and has hit .400 (4-for-10) with four runs scored, three RBI and three walks.

Stealing the Spotlight
Senior Cole Gruber has made a name for himself in the Summit League for his sneaky work on the basepaths, as he led the league with 34 stolen bases in 2014 and was second with 22 swiped bags in 2015. Gruber has steadily worked his way up Omaha's career stolen bases chart, and on March 9 at Air Force became the Mavericks' all-time career stolen base leader. He registered two in the game, passing previous record holder Bryan Frew, who had 72 from 2005-08.

Gruber's career mark is now up to 95, which ties for fourth in Summit League history with Illinois Chicago's Kelly Kropp (1988-91).

Thou Shalt Steal
As a team, Omaha is 40th nationally with 59 stolen bases this year and 42nd with 1.48 stolen bases per game. Gruber owns 33 of those stolen bases, while the rest of the squad has a combined 26.

Walk It Out
After senior Alex Schultz's career-high-tying four walks vs. Air Force on Tuesday, his next free pass will be the 100th of his career. Only two other Mavericks -- Bryan Frew (2005-08), who had 149, and Greg Geary (1994-97), who had 145 -- have reached the 100 walks milestone.

Schultz previously had four walks in a single game two other times in his career -- vs. Fort Wayne on March 18 and vs. North Dakota State on April 25, 2014.

Stacking Up Nationally
In the latest NCAA statistical release, senior outfielder Cole Gruber is second for stolen bases (33) and stolen bases per game (0.83). Senior infielder Clayton Taylor is sixth in the nation for RBI (54) and seventh for RBI per game (1.35), and senior right-hander Tyler Fox is 16th for wins (seven).

League Leaders
Senior outfielder Cole Gruber paces the Summit League for hits (57), runs scored (38) and stolen bases (33), while senior infielder Clayton Taylor leads the league in RBI (54) and sacrifice flies (five). Senior outfielder Alex Schultz is also credited with the league high for runs (38) and walks (32), and junior infielder Sam Palensky is first in assists (129). On the mound, senior Tyler Fox has the league lead for wins (seven), games started (10) and complete games (one), and sophomore Corey Binger matches him for complete games (one) and games started (10).

As a team, Omaha leads the league in stolen bases (59).

Maverick Mound Notes
•Three pitchers on Omaha's staff have earned Summit League Pitcher of the Week awards, with senior righty Tyler Fox on Feb. 29 and April 25, sophomore righty Corey Binger on March 14 and junior southpaw Sam Murphy on April 4.
•The trio is in the top 10 in the Summit League for ERA, with Murphy second (3.20), Fox third (3.29) and Binger 10th (5.12). Fox (51) also ranks in the top 10 for strikeouts, coming in third.
•Fox threw the second complete game of his career last Friday, going the distance for the win over South Dakota State.

Production Up Top
Omaha's 1-3 batters in the lineup -- seniors Alex Schultz, Cole Gruber and Clayton Taylor -- have produced a significant portion of the Mavericks' offense this year, combining to hit .316. The 1-3 hitters have accounted for 37 percent of UNO's hits, including 44 percent of its extra-base hits, as well as 45 percent of its runs scored, 44 percent of its RBI, 48 percent of its walks and 85 percent of its stolen bases.

Double Digits
As a team, Omaha produced double-digit hits in 23 games last season, going 15-8 in those games. This season, UNO is 15-5 with double-digit hits, and the Mavericks posted a season-high 22 hits at South Dakota State on April 9.

Over the last five years of Division I play, UNO is a combined 83-34 when keying at least 10 hits.

Offense Keying Wins
In the last four seasons (2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016), Omaha has gone a combined 67-11 when outhitting its opponent. Last year alone, UNO was 15-4 in such games, and this season the Mavericks are off to an 11-0 showing.

Over 16 seasons in the Bob Herold era, UNO is 418-72-1 when outhitting the other team.

Turning to the Bullpen
Omaha's bullpen has traditionally held its own late in the game, as the Mavericks are 444-41-1 in the Bob Herold era when leading after the sixth. Last season, UNO was 17-5 when leading after the sixth, and this year it is 18-4.

Herold at the Helm
Head Coach Bob Herold is in his 17th year as the skipper of the Omaha baseball program in 2016, having compiled a career record of 519-373-2. Herold earned his 500th career win on Feb. 20, 2016 against Eastern Michigan, becoming the first coach in school history to reach the milestone. He previously became the winningest coach in UNO history with Omaha's 7-0 shutout at Bradley on April 22, 2014, which gave him 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 17th year, and Evan Porter, in his fourth year, as well as volunteer assistant coach Dan McGinn, who is in his 15th year.

2016 Slate Takes Mavericks Around the Nation
Omaha's 2016 schedule includes 54 games, and the team will play in 12 states against schools from 12 other Division I conferences. Three opponents – Iowa, Morehead State and defending Summit League champion Oral Roberts – played in the 2015 NCAA Tournament.

Entering the season, the Mavericks had never faced five of their opponents: NJIT, Morehead State, Presbyterian, Bowling Green and Seton Hall. Omaha holds a combined all-time record of 232-258 over all teams on the regular-season slate.

Next Up
Omaha returns to action on Friday, May 6, opening a three-game weekend series at North Dakota State. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m. in Fargo, N.D., and links to live stats and video will be available on OMavs.com.