The Crimson Tide and Crusaders will meet for the first time in the history of the two programs
2/15/2018
TUSCALOOSA, AL – Alabama welcomes Valparaiso to Tuscaloosa this weekend to kick off the 2018 season with a three-game series from Friday through Sunday at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The Crimson Tide and Crusaders are set for a 3 p.m. CT first pitch on Opening Day and will follow with a 2 p.m. start on Saturday. The series finale is scheduled to start at 1 p.m. All three games can be seen live on SEC Network+.
FOLLOW THE TIDE
Fans can follow this weekend's series via the below outlets:
Watch: SEC Network+
Listen: 102.9 FM / CTSN / TuneIn App
Twitter: @AlabamaBSB
Live Stats: RollTide.com
LEADING OFF
• Alabama and Valparaiso will meet for the first time in the history of the two programs.
• Valpo travels to Tuscaloosa to start its 2018 season. The Crusaders finished 24-29 overall and 13-15 in Horizon League play a season ago. Valparaiso joined the Missouri Valley Conference for baseball in 2018 and welcomes back 26 letterwinners, including six positional starters and two starting pitchers from the 2017 squad.
• The Crimson Tide will start its new season with junior right-hander Sam Finnerty on the hill for Friday's opener. Senior righty Jake Walters will get the nod on Saturday for UA, while Sunday's Tide starter is to be announced.
• The Crusaders' rotation will feature a trio of right-handers, with sophomore Jon Tieman earning the start on Opening Day. Saturday's starter is scheduled to be senior Trey Ferketic with Valpo looking to fellow senior Wes Gordon in Sunday's series finale.
PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS
FRIDAY: UA – Sam Finnerty (Jr., RHP) vs. VU – Jon Tieman (So., RHP)
SATURDAY: UA – Jake Walters (Sr., RHP) vs. VU – Trey Ferketic (Sr., RHP)
SUNDAY: UA – TBA vs. VU – Wes Gordon (Sr., RHP)
SCOUTING VALPARAISO
• Valparaiso finished the 2017 campaign with a 24-29 overall record and owned a 13-15 mark in Horizon League play. The Crusaders joined the Missouri Valley Conference for baseball at the start of the 2018 season.
• Valparaiso returns 26 letterwinners, including six positional starters and two starting pitchers from last season's 24-29 squad. The Crusaders finished fourth in the Horizon League and made it to the league tournament before falling in the opening round.
• Brian Schmack was named head coach at Valparaiso on July 24, 2013, and became the 17th head baseball coach in the history of the VU program. Schmack played collegiately at Northern Illinois from 1992-95 and went on to play professional baseball from 1995-2004 in the Chicago White Sox, Texas Rangers and Detroit Tigers organizations.
• Valparaiso University is a private university located in Valparaiso, Ind., and boasts an enrollment of 4,500 students. It was founded in 1859 as Valparaiso Male and Female College and was one of the first coeducation colleges in the United States.
ALABAMA VS. THE MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE
• The Crimson Tide will square off with Valparaiso for the first time in the history of the two programs this weekend. Valpo is one of two current MVC teams Alabama has never faced in its history, with Missouri State being the other.
• Alabama owns a winning record against five of the other six member schools with Southern Illinois holding a 2-0 advantage over UA in their two meetings.
• The Tide holds a perfect record against Indiana State (4-0), Illinois State (2-0), and Dallas Baptist and Evansville, each at 1-0, while maintaining a 3-1 mark against Bradley.
• The last time Alabama squared off with a current Missouri Valley Conference member was on March 1, 2008, when UA took down Dallas Baptist, 8-1, in a neutral site contest. The two teams met for the Tide's third of four games in the Southwest Diamond Classic in Frisco, Texas.
BRAD BOHANNON ERA BEGINS
• Head coach Brad Bohannon enters his first season at the helm of the Crimson Tide baseball program after being named the 32nd head coach in Alabama baseball history on June 1, 2017.
• Bohannon brings 14 years of Southeastern Conference coaching experience to Alabama after having served as an assistant at Kentucky from 2004-15 and, most recently, Auburn from 2016-17.
• The first-year head coach is known most for his recruiting abilities, earning the distinction of the American Baseball Coaches Association and Baseball America National Assistant Coach of the Year in 2015.
• He has signed recruits from 25 different states and Canada, three of which have gone on to be first-round picks in the Major League Baseball Draft.
• While at Kentucky, Bohannon served under two SEC Coach of the Year honorees in John Cohen and Gary Henderson.
• Bohannon was responsible for signing 13 Wildcat student-athletes that went on to play in the Major Leagues, including 2014 Golden Spikes Award winner A.J. Reed.
• A combined 69 Wildcat student-athletes were chosen in the Major League Baseball Draft or signed as a free agent during Bohannon's tenure as recruiting coordinator. He had nine recruits selected in the 2012 Draft, which set a new Kentucky record and was second-most in the NCAA.
• His efforts as an assistant were key in turning around both Kentucky and Auburn within three years on the job. The Wildcats became the first team in SEC history to go from worst to first in only one season, winning 44 games and the program's first league title in 2006, while the Tigers won 12 more games in 2017 than in 2016 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
• Since 2008, all of Bohannon's recruiting classes have been ranked in the top 25 by Perfect Game USA with the 2008 class coming in at No. 4, the 2009 class at No. 6, the 2010 class at No. 16, the 2011 class at No. 25, the 2012 class at No. 11, the 2013 class at No. 25, the 2014 class at No. 16 and both the 2015 and 2016 classes ranking ninth. Most recently, his 2017 recruiting class at Auburn was tabbed as the No. 6 overall class nationally.
• Prior to his stint at Kentucky, Bohannon worked for two seasons at Wake Forest as an assistant. In his two seasons in Winston-Salem, the Demon Deacons advanced to the NCAA Tournament twice and capture the ACC title in 2001.
• Bohannon earned his undergraduate degree from Berry College in 1998 and then went on to earn a master's degree from Wake Forest in 2002. He began his collegiate playing career at Vanderbilt and Georgia Tech before finishing up at Berry.
• A native of Rome, Ga., he is married to the former Kim Traylor.
ON DECK
Alabama will return to The Joe on Tuesday for a single midweek contest with Middle Tennessee. The Crimson Tide and Blue Raiders are set for a 3 p.m. CT first pitch with the game airing live on SEC Network+.
-UA-
RTR,
Diamond Tide :biga:
2/15/2018
TUSCALOOSA, AL – Alabama welcomes Valparaiso to Tuscaloosa this weekend to kick off the 2018 season with a three-game series from Friday through Sunday at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The Crimson Tide and Crusaders are set for a 3 p.m. CT first pitch on Opening Day and will follow with a 2 p.m. start on Saturday. The series finale is scheduled to start at 1 p.m. All three games can be seen live on SEC Network+.
FOLLOW THE TIDE
Fans can follow this weekend's series via the below outlets:
Watch: SEC Network+
Listen: 102.9 FM / CTSN / TuneIn App
Twitter: @AlabamaBSB
Live Stats: RollTide.com
LEADING OFF
• Alabama and Valparaiso will meet for the first time in the history of the two programs.
• Valpo travels to Tuscaloosa to start its 2018 season. The Crusaders finished 24-29 overall and 13-15 in Horizon League play a season ago. Valparaiso joined the Missouri Valley Conference for baseball in 2018 and welcomes back 26 letterwinners, including six positional starters and two starting pitchers from the 2017 squad.
• The Crimson Tide will start its new season with junior right-hander Sam Finnerty on the hill for Friday's opener. Senior righty Jake Walters will get the nod on Saturday for UA, while Sunday's Tide starter is to be announced.
• The Crusaders' rotation will feature a trio of right-handers, with sophomore Jon Tieman earning the start on Opening Day. Saturday's starter is scheduled to be senior Trey Ferketic with Valpo looking to fellow senior Wes Gordon in Sunday's series finale.
PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS
FRIDAY: UA – Sam Finnerty (Jr., RHP) vs. VU – Jon Tieman (So., RHP)
SATURDAY: UA – Jake Walters (Sr., RHP) vs. VU – Trey Ferketic (Sr., RHP)
SUNDAY: UA – TBA vs. VU – Wes Gordon (Sr., RHP)
SCOUTING VALPARAISO
• Valparaiso finished the 2017 campaign with a 24-29 overall record and owned a 13-15 mark in Horizon League play. The Crusaders joined the Missouri Valley Conference for baseball at the start of the 2018 season.
• Valparaiso returns 26 letterwinners, including six positional starters and two starting pitchers from last season's 24-29 squad. The Crusaders finished fourth in the Horizon League and made it to the league tournament before falling in the opening round.
• Brian Schmack was named head coach at Valparaiso on July 24, 2013, and became the 17th head baseball coach in the history of the VU program. Schmack played collegiately at Northern Illinois from 1992-95 and went on to play professional baseball from 1995-2004 in the Chicago White Sox, Texas Rangers and Detroit Tigers organizations.
• Valparaiso University is a private university located in Valparaiso, Ind., and boasts an enrollment of 4,500 students. It was founded in 1859 as Valparaiso Male and Female College and was one of the first coeducation colleges in the United States.
ALABAMA VS. THE MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE
• The Crimson Tide will square off with Valparaiso for the first time in the history of the two programs this weekend. Valpo is one of two current MVC teams Alabama has never faced in its history, with Missouri State being the other.
• Alabama owns a winning record against five of the other six member schools with Southern Illinois holding a 2-0 advantage over UA in their two meetings.
• The Tide holds a perfect record against Indiana State (4-0), Illinois State (2-0), and Dallas Baptist and Evansville, each at 1-0, while maintaining a 3-1 mark against Bradley.
• The last time Alabama squared off with a current Missouri Valley Conference member was on March 1, 2008, when UA took down Dallas Baptist, 8-1, in a neutral site contest. The two teams met for the Tide's third of four games in the Southwest Diamond Classic in Frisco, Texas.
BRAD BOHANNON ERA BEGINS
• Head coach Brad Bohannon enters his first season at the helm of the Crimson Tide baseball program after being named the 32nd head coach in Alabama baseball history on June 1, 2017.
• Bohannon brings 14 years of Southeastern Conference coaching experience to Alabama after having served as an assistant at Kentucky from 2004-15 and, most recently, Auburn from 2016-17.
• The first-year head coach is known most for his recruiting abilities, earning the distinction of the American Baseball Coaches Association and Baseball America National Assistant Coach of the Year in 2015.
• He has signed recruits from 25 different states and Canada, three of which have gone on to be first-round picks in the Major League Baseball Draft.
• While at Kentucky, Bohannon served under two SEC Coach of the Year honorees in John Cohen and Gary Henderson.
• Bohannon was responsible for signing 13 Wildcat student-athletes that went on to play in the Major Leagues, including 2014 Golden Spikes Award winner A.J. Reed.
• A combined 69 Wildcat student-athletes were chosen in the Major League Baseball Draft or signed as a free agent during Bohannon's tenure as recruiting coordinator. He had nine recruits selected in the 2012 Draft, which set a new Kentucky record and was second-most in the NCAA.
• His efforts as an assistant were key in turning around both Kentucky and Auburn within three years on the job. The Wildcats became the first team in SEC history to go from worst to first in only one season, winning 44 games and the program's first league title in 2006, while the Tigers won 12 more games in 2017 than in 2016 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
• Since 2008, all of Bohannon's recruiting classes have been ranked in the top 25 by Perfect Game USA with the 2008 class coming in at No. 4, the 2009 class at No. 6, the 2010 class at No. 16, the 2011 class at No. 25, the 2012 class at No. 11, the 2013 class at No. 25, the 2014 class at No. 16 and both the 2015 and 2016 classes ranking ninth. Most recently, his 2017 recruiting class at Auburn was tabbed as the No. 6 overall class nationally.
• Prior to his stint at Kentucky, Bohannon worked for two seasons at Wake Forest as an assistant. In his two seasons in Winston-Salem, the Demon Deacons advanced to the NCAA Tournament twice and capture the ACC title in 2001.
• Bohannon earned his undergraduate degree from Berry College in 1998 and then went on to earn a master's degree from Wake Forest in 2002. He began his collegiate playing career at Vanderbilt and Georgia Tech before finishing up at Berry.
• A native of Rome, Ga., he is married to the former Kim Traylor.
ON DECK
Alabama will return to The Joe on Tuesday for a single midweek contest with Middle Tennessee. The Crimson Tide and Blue Raiders are set for a 3 p.m. CT first pitch with the game airing live on SEC Network+.
-UA-
RTR,
Diamond Tide :biga:
