Tigers focusing on the controllables entering the 2021 season

MITCHELL, S.D. – With 343 days separating their final game of last season to their 2021 season opener, it is safe to say the Dakota Wesleyan University baseball team is anxious to begin a new season. The focus for the Tigers after so long off is to focus on themselves and control what they can control.

 Charlie Dubanoski was announced as the head baseball coach almost one month ago on Jan. 15. With just over five weeks to prepare his team for the season opener, the Burnsville, Minn., native got right to work. Knowing the season was quickly approaching, Dubanoski is telling his team to focus on what they can control.

 "The biggest thing we have talked about is to control what we can control," the first-year head coach stated. "We can control our effort, our attitude and our energy every day. Unfortunately, there are a lot of things outside of our control. But the message to our guys is controlling what we can on a daily basis."

 He not only had to learn the names of his 47-man roster, but also create a starting rotation for his squad. Hopefully making it easier on him will be the senior leadership of the 11 seniors on the squad. After the 2020 season was ripped from them, a handful of seniors from last year returned for one final curtain call to leave their stamp on the program forever.

Key Returners

 Entering his final season, Drew DeMers (Winner, S.D.) looks to be a game changer in the batter's box for the Tigers. Through a shortened 16-game season last year, DeMers finished with a .323 batting average along with 20 hits, three RBIs and eight runs.

 Returning for his second senior season is Reed Harter (Colome, S.D.) who looks to return to top form. Despite a few down games in 2020, Harter was named All-GPAC Second Team in 2019 and 2018 following impressive seasons. In 2019, Harter finished with a .305 batting average, 35 RBIs, 46 hits, 26 runs, six doubles and a pair of homeruns.

 Looking to be the ace on the mound will be a plethora of talent as Ethan Davis (Billings, Mont.), Patrick Starr (Overland Park, Kan.), Rick Strubel (Huron, S.D.), Cole Barthel (Tea, S.D.), Jereko Martinez (Riverton, Wyo.), Layne Stafford (Arlington, Neb.) and Nick Haivala (Sturgis, S.D.) all return to the mound.

 After losing the 2019 GPAC Pitcher-of-the-Year in Dominique Boerger, the next pitcher with the most innings pitched from last year is Davis. The 6-foot-4 pitcher threw 23.1 innings and finished with a 2-1 record after a 4.24 ERA last year. He ranked second nationally with one walk allowed all season and second in walks allowed per nine innings pitched at .39. In his first season with the Tigers in 2019, Davis totaled a 5-3 record on the mound, along with 55 strikeouts and a 3.47 ERA through 70 innings pitched.

 Joseph Hanisch (Hartford, S.D.) and Cameron Quigley (Newcastle, Wyo.) look to solidify their positions in the field as they had impressive outings in 2020. Quigley finished the short season with 20 putouts and a 1.000 fielding percentage. Meanwhile, Hanisch finished with 11 putouts and a .917 fielding percentage.

 Quigley also produced 14 hits, 11 runs scored and three RBIs along with a .275 batting average. Hanisch finished with a .238 batting average, as well as five hits and a pair of runs scored through the 2020 season.

 Tyler Torres (Novato, Calif.) will also close out his collegiate career after an impressive pair of years with DWU in 2019 and 2020. In his career, Torres has posted 29 hits, 21 RBIs three doubles a homerun and a batting average of .220. In the field, the 5-foot-10 infielder recorded a fielding percentage of .917 last year along with three putouts and eight assists.

 Along with the experience returning, Dubanoski looks towards staying healthy as being a key factor to success not only early on, but as the season progresses. He also will rely on progression throughout the early moments of the season to help build confidence going into conference play.

 "Some of those key factors are just being ready to go health wise," the Burnsville, Minn., native mentioned. "We need to make sure we're building up our pitchers the right way instead of cranking them up right away. Another thing is that we have to see enough ground balls to be ready to go. It is always hard for the first few games to prepare, especially with teams like us that are up north and indoors at this point of the year."

Newcomers

 Complementing the experienced returners on the roster will be a plethora of newcomers that look to make an immediate impact. Of the new members on the squad, Jared Jones (Edmond, Okla.), Jacob Hammons (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) and Seth Christiansen (Victor, Idaho) are just a few that are anticipated to provide depth at multiple positions.

 Jones is a transfer from Central Christian College of Kansas. He will look to add experience to the outfield for DWU. Hammons enters his sophomore year after coming to DWU from Colorado. He will add depth to the rotation on the mound and play in the infield for the Tigers. Christiansen is in his freshman year with the Tigers and he looks for playing time as a pitcher. He was a four-year starter for Teton High School, while being named an All-State First Team member his sophomore year and an All-State Second Team selection his junior year. He finished with a 12-1 record as a pitcher and led his team to a runner-up finish in the state championship.

 Despite only being on campus for a little over a month, Dubanoski says the leadership and accountability of this team makes him excited for what is to come. He also tips his hat to previous head coach John Greicar for building such a strong foundation to make it an easy program to step into right away.

 "I think Greicar did a great job," Dubanoski said. "I think I walked into a team that has really good leadership and accountability already on the roster. As a coach, that is something that you really hope for to have those 'dudes' on the team."

Schedule

 The Tigers will be making their second home down in Missouri. After beginning the season with a four-game stand at Missouri Valley College on Feb. 20-21, DWU returns to the state for another four-game series with Graceland University in Joplin, Mo., on Feb. 27-28.

 Following a scheduled home opener against in-state rival Dakota State University on March 2, the Tigers head back south for four games against Benedictine in Atchison, Kan., on March 6-7. After that, DWU takes on William Penn University in a double-header in Joplin on March 8.

 The conference opener is slated to be against Dordt University on March 19 at home. After the Tigers play six of their next eight games on the road, they finish the season with four-straight doubleheaders at home.