The St. Thomas baseball team started the 2012 season with two comeback wins in a doubleheader against St. Scholastica, kick-starting its pursuit for a 10th consecutive MIAC championship.
The Tommies were ranked No. 29 in the Division III preseason polls. However, coach Chris Olean said their sweep of the No. 18-ranked Saints is a positive sign for the squad.
“Anything early is never really a ‘must-win,’” Olean said. “They beat us all three times last year, which is kind of uncharacteristic, so for us to come back and sweep them to start the year was a big deal.”
Though the team is young this season, key players like senior third baseman Charles Bruchu, sophomore catcher J.D. Dorgan, and many of the team’s top pitchers return to the lineup. Dorgan was named 2011 MIAC Rookie of the Year, and both he and Bruchu were named to the all-conference team.
“We are very young,” Olean said. “We do have some experience, so I think we are bringing in a lot this year.”
The team also added several new players this season, and Olean said that freshmen center fielder Ben Podobinski, third baseman Adam Lemere and outfielders Dan Kellen and Jack Hogan will help right away.
The Tommies also picked up a few impact transfer players that include sophomore right-handed pitcher John Hayes, who played at Iowa Central Community College last season; junior right-handed pitcher Lee Frandrup, who played for D-II Minnesota-Duluth as a freshman and spent last season at Dakota Tech Community College; and junior right-handed pitcher Josh Kubitschek, who pitched for D-II MSU-Mankato last season. Olean said Kubitschek will likely become the team’s closing pitcher.
“When you look at the guys who came in, our pitching staff is bolstered by a lot of those newcomers,” Olean said.
Olean said that St. John’s, St. Olaf and Macalester are very good teams and potential threats to the team’s title hopes.
“I’d really like this team to make a run, but it depends how much we can fix,” Olean said.
However, Olean said that he has remained cautious of the things his team needs to improve upon.
“Offensively we’ve had some key hits, but I think that’s one of the biggest things we need to improve upon,” Olean said.
The Tommies will face Wisconsin-Lacrosse in a double-header Monday, March 5, at the Metrodome.
Nick McAndrews can be reached at mcan1933@stthomas.edu.