MILWAUKEE, Wis. - The Milwaukee baseball team heads to Arizona to meet up with the defending Pac-12 Champions in a four-game series beginning on Thursday, February 24.
 
Riley Frey will get the ball in game one of the series with first pitch set for 7:00 pm on Thursday. The two will face off in another night contest with Jack Mahoney earning the start. First pitch for Saturday is set for 3:00 pm CT before the two teams wrap up the series at 11:00 am CT on Sunday, February 27.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Milwaukee earned a three-game sweep of Alabama A&M, scoring 36 runs on 46 hits against the Bulldogs. It marks the first 3-0 start for the Panthers since also beginning 3-0 in 2019 with wins over Marshall, Villanova, and Pittsburgh. MKE also began the 2015 campaign 3-0. 
 
Over the weekend, the Panthers got two gems from Riley Frey and AJ Blubaugh and relied on the bats to do the rest. Frey struck out 10 in five innings while Blubaugh allowed just two hits across six shutout innings in his start.
 
SCOUTING THE WILDCATS
Arizona impressed in the opening weekend of action, going 3-0 with wins over Kansas State, Oklahoma, and No. 14 Texas Tech.
 
The Wildcats racked up the numbers, hitting .342 with 20 extra-base hits and 35 runs scored in three games.
 
On Tuesday, the Wildcats suffered their first loss of the year, getting tagged up for 19 runs in a 19-3 loss to Grand Canyon.
 
Defending Pac-12 Champion Arizona was predicted third in the preseason poll with 77 poll points. Reigning Pac-12 Freshman of the Year and preseason All-American Daniel Susac returns with the Wildcats looking to make the College World Series for the second straight year, something Arizona has not done since the mid-1980s when new head coach Chip Hale was a player on the team. The Wildcats are ranked No. 15 in the USA Today poll and No. 11 by D1Baseball.com.
 
SERIES HISTORY
This weekend marks the second all-time series for Milwaukee and Arizona with the Wildcats winning two of three in 2019. Arizona scored five unearned runs in the bottom of the ninth for a walkoff win in the opener but MKE responded with a 10-4 victory in game two on the series. The Wildcats then took the series with a 14-6 win in the finale.
 
HORIZON LEAGUE HONOR
Mitchell Buban was pegged Horizon League Batter of the Week thanks to an impressive start to the year in Alabama. Buban finished the weekend 7-for-14 (.500) at the plate with a home run and five RBI. He reached base a total of 10 times, recording with a slash line of .500/.588/.714. The Kenosha, Wis. native also scored five runs and was a perfect 4-for-4 in stolen bases.
 
STEALING A SWEEP
In Sunday's 12-2 victory over Alabama A&M, the Panthers were a perfect 11-for-11 in stolen bases.
 
MKE recorded seven stolen bases alone in the sixth-run third inning.
 
The 11 swipes set a new program record, topping the previous mark of 10 which was set against Butler on April 10, 2010.
 
NOVAK NUKES
Jake Novak made the most of his first start of the season on Saturday, finishing 3-for-3 with a pair of home runs.
 
The sophomore got the scoring going in the fifth inning for MKE with a solo homer and added a sacrifice fly in the sixth inning and another solo shot in the ninth.
 
The final home run was the eventual game-winner as Milwaukee hung on to top Alabama A&M 8-7.
 
Novak's two-homer game is the first by a Milwaukee player since Conner Goodman blasted two in a 14-13 win over Oakland last season on April 3.
 
STARTERS ARE SIZZLIN'
Riley Frey wasted no time picking up where he left off last season, earning the win in the season opener against Alabama A&M.
 
The sophomore tossed five complete innings, scattering three hits and allowing just one earned run. He walked one and struck out a career-high 10 in the win.
 
AJ Blubaugh also rolled in his first career start, striking out six batters in six complete scoreless innings. Blubaugh allowed just two hits to earn the third victory of his career.
 
2022 RECAP
Milwaukee closed the regular season 22-33 but made a solid run in the Horizon League Tournament, ultimately finishing runner-up for the second consecutive tourney. After falling to top-seeded Wright State in the opener, MKE earned wins over Youngstown State and UIC to reach the title game. The Raiders won the crown and advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
 
MKE also was Horizon League Tournament runner-up in 2019 and 2020 was canceled due to COVID-19.
 
The Panthers have finished fourth or better in the Horizon League standings in 12 of the last 13 full seasons.
 
LOOKING AT THE LEAGUE
The 2022 Horizon League Preseason Baseball Coaches' poll was released on Thursday and with 30 poll points, the Panthers were predicted to finish third. MKE trailed defending regular season and tournament champions Wright State (42) and UIC (34).
 
Youngstown State was selected fourth in the preseason poll with 24 poll points while Northern Kentucky (15), Oakland (13), and Purdue Fort Wayne (9) rounded out the poll.
 
D1 BASBEALL TOP PROSPECTS
In D1Baseball.com's Horizon League preview,a trio of Panthers' pitchers were recognized as top prospects.
 
AJ Blubaugh was listed as a top prospect for 2022 while Riley Frey made the list for 20212 and newcomer Logan Schulfer was named an impact freshman. The nationally recognized publication also predicted Frey as Horizon League Pitcher of the Year.
 
YOUNG GUNS EARN ALL-LEAGUE HONORS
AJ Blubaugh was named Horizon League Reliever of the Year and freshmen Riley Frey and James Severson also earned recognition a season ago.
 
One of the most dominant pitchers in the Horizon League, Blubaugh finished the regular season with a 1.96 earned run average and seven saves in 17 appearances. He struck out 30 in 23.0 total innings, an average of 11.7 strikeouts per nine innings, and held opposing batters to a .165 average at the plate.
 
Frey had one of the best freshman campaigns for the Panthers in recent program history as he finished top 10 in the Horizon League in earned run average (6th, 3.37), innings pitched (4th, 74.2), and strikeouts (8th, 63) on his way to All-League Second Team and All-Freshman Team honors.
 
Severson joined Frey on the All-Freshman Team totaling 24 strikeouts in 20.0 total innings with a 3.60 earned run average. Outside of one extended relief outing and one tough spot against UIC, Severson allowed just two earned runs in his 10 other outings scattering nine hits in those appearances.
 
A GRAND MILESTONE
Last season, the Panthers picked up their 1,000th victory as a program to become just the third team in Milwaukee history to accomplish that feat. The MKE men's basketball team was the first with over 1,400 victories while volleyball has over 1,100 victories under its belt.
 
PLENTY TO LEARN
The 2022 Panthers are relatively light on experience with just two position players having appeared in over 100 games and two pitchers with at least 100 innings logged.
 
Mitchell Buban has been a mainstay in Milwaukee's lineup since 2018, having started 169 of 172 possible contests. With consistency this season, Buban could crack the top five in games played. Sam Koenig (2011-15) is fifth with 207 games played while Luke Meeteer (2012-16) and Doug Dokoning (2008-11) own the program record with 222 games played.
 
Zach Nogalski is the other Milwaukee starter with a load of experience, having played in 122 contests.
 
Mike Edwards (175.1 innings pitched) and Jack Mahoney (140.1) are the Panthers' most experienced on the hill but beyond this group of four, Doffek's roster has plenty of room to learn. In total, 24 of 39 Panthers on the roster are considered underclassmen.
 
ROAD WARRIORS
The Panthers are no strangers to beginning the season on the road, opening with 21 consecutive contests away from Milwaukee. It marks the most road games to open a season since 2018 when the Panthers played a program record 34 consecutive road games to being the year.
 
Milwaukee is scheduled to open the home schedule on Wednesday, March 30 against MSOE.
 
TAKING ON TOP COMPETITION
The Panthers are no strangers to top competition and this year is no different as Milwaukee is scheduled to take on Arizona, who was pegged No. 15 on the USA TODAY baseball coaches poll. The Wildcats finished 45-18 in 2021 reaching the College World Series before falling to Vanderbilt and Stanford to end their season.
 
Milwaukee has posted a handful of wins over ranked opponents including topping No. 17/18 Wake Forest in 2020. The Panthers' first and biggest ranked win came in 1999 when MKE knocked off then-No. 1 Rice in the NCAA Regionals. In total, Milwaukee has recorded eight wins against ranked opponents.
 
February 15, 2020: W, 8-6 at #17/18 Wake Forest
February 20, 2016: W, 10-3 at #25 Texas Tech
April 8, 2015: W, 4-3 at #15 Iowa
February 27, 2009: W, 19-11 vs. #25 Michigan
March 5, 2006: W 7-2 at #20 Missouri
April 25, 2000: W 9-7 at #15 Nebraska
March 29, 2000: W 14-3 at #21 Notre Dame
May 28, 1999: W 8-4 vs. #1 Rice
 
ANY WAY ON
Last year, Mitchell Buban ranked second on the team with a .380 on base percentage. The senior finished the season with 50 hits and 14 walks while reaching 18 times via hit by pitch.
 
That number tied for fourth all-time for a single season in program history.
 
Buban currently ranks second in program history with 43 hit by pitch for his career, trailing Clay Schwartz (1994-97) who recorded 68 which was a NCAA record upon his graduation.
 
CATCH ALL THE ACTION
The Milwaukee Athletic department announced that it will broadcast 13 select home baseball games this spring on ESPN+. Additionally, all 22 of the Panthers home games will feature either live audio or video. Scott Warras will handle all broadcasts for the Panthers.
 
ESPN+, which will host the Horizon League baseball championships, offers fans thousands of live events, on-demand content, and original programing not available on ESPN's linear TV or digital networks. Fans can subscribe to ESPN+ for just $6.99 a month (or $69.99 per year) and cancel at any time. Launched in April of 2018, ESPN+ is an integrated part of a completely redesigned ESPN App.
 
For road games, visit MKEPanthers.com for live coverage links.
 
WHAT'S ON DECK
Milwaukee next heads to Provo, Utah for a three-game series against BYU. The series begins on Thursday, March 3 at 4:00 pm. The Panthers' first home game is set for March 30 against Concordia Wisconsin at 3:00 pm. All updates and live coverage links can be found on MKEPanthers.com.