Feb. 18, 2004

ROMEOVILLE, Ill. - Lewis University head baseball coach Irish O'Reilly believes his 2004 Flyers will be significantly better than last year's squad that finished with a 17-37 record and tied for 10th place in the increasingly tough Great Lakes Valley Conference.

"We'll be young, probably the youngest team in the GLVC," O'Reilly said. "But I believe our young players bring a lot of potential to the program.

"I was really impressed by the way our freshmen adapted to wood bats during fall practice," O'Reilly said. "I think they're farther along than past freshman classes in that regard. And I'm also impressed by our speed. We have the ability to make defensive plays we haven't made in recent years."

One of Lewis' young guns, freshman Brian Davis, has earned the starting nod in center field and the leadoff spot in the batting order. Davis helped lead Lyons Township High School to the 2003 state title, batting .362 with seven home runs and 35 RBI.

"Brian is an exciting all-around player who puts the ball in play very well and has pro-level speed," O'Reilly said. "He is as good an outfielder as we've recruited in recent years."

Another newcomer, sophomore transfer Kevin Tyrrell, will play second base and bat second. Tyrrell played on the 2003 Carthage College team that won a conference championship.

"Kevin will bring energy to the lineup and make things happen offensively," O'Reilly said. "He's a second baseman with a shortstop's arm strength."

Senior Ahren Baranski anchors the Lewis infield at shortstop. Baranski hit .285 with 19 RBI and team bests in doubles (17), slugging percentage (.441) and walks (31) a year ago.

"Ahren had a solid season last year and is quite capable of improving offensively and defensively," O'Reilly said.

The Flyers' corner infielders will occupy the fourth and fifth spots in the lineup, although O'Reilly is unsure about the order. Sophomore Victor Naut will play first base and freshman Matt Newquist will be across the diamond at third.

"Victor did well at the junior-varsity level last season and has a lot of pop in his bat," O'Reilly said. "He also can play third.

"Matt had a productive fall, hitting for power and average and playing a solid third base. He put up some big numbers (.406, 33 RBI) last year to help his team (Neuqua Valley High School) win the conference, regional and sectional."

Junior transfer Andy Radak has earned the starting job in right field and is projected to bat sixth. Radak hit .362 at Joliet Junior College a year ago.

"Andy is a very good contact hitter and a fine defensive outfielder with an excellent throwing arm," O'Reilly said.

Two sophomores who saw considerable playing time last season will share the catching and designated-hitter duties and occupy the seventh and eighth slots in the batting order. Andy Sweet started 28 games and produced a .253 batting mark in 2003, while Phil Marchinski started 27 games and hit .268.

"Andy is a switch-hitter who gives our lineup flexibility, and Phil improved his hitting over the summer," O'Reilly said. "A year of experience should help them be more productive."

Sophomore Brandon Niewinski will be the Flyers' left fielder and ninth-place hitter, with freshman Matt Flavin pushing hard for playing time.

"Brandon hit well in the fall and earned the chance to start," O'Reilly said. "Matt produced some impressive hitting numbers for Brother Rice's regional championship team last season."

The status of senior co-captain Chris Carbonaro, last year's starting first baseman who tied for the team lead with 26 RBI, is questionable. Carbonaro suffered a partial tear of his left Achilles tendon in preseason workouts.

"Chris has worked hard and has been a steady player," O'Reilly said. "We'll miss his leadership if he can't go."

The Flyers' top reserves are freshman Mike Smith at the middle-infield spots; Flavin and fellow freshmen Randy Biela and Micah Holland in left field, center field and right field, respectively; and Mike Loprieno at catcher.

O'Reilly thinks pitching will be the team's biggest question mark. The Flyers feature several experienced hurlers looking to put together career years.

The mound staff is led by senior right-hander and co-captain Matt Petrusek, whose 4-7 record a year ago is deceiving. A three-year starter, Petrusek led the 2003 team in ERA (3.66), innings (103 1/3), complete games (seven) and strikeouts (87) and had a strikeouts-to-walks ratio of better than 3:1.

"We feel Matt can be the GLVC's top pitcher," O'Reilly said. "He's pitched a lot of innings, put up some very good numbers and provided great leadership on and off the field. He's close to becoming a good professional prospect in my estimation."

Senior right-handers Chad Dahlman (1-1, 6.23) and Matt Tanton (1-6, 4.43), sophomore left-hander Justin Barr (1-1, 4.09) and freshman Greg Moss round out the starting rotation, with sophomore transfer Dave Scheibe (Saint Joseph's) and redshirt freshman Matt Rolle vying for the occasional No. 6 starter's role.

"Chad has to step into a starter's role after pitching in a variety of relief situations, and Matt Tanton has pitched better than his record shows," O'Reilly said. "Justin did a good job for the junior varsity and showed a couple of flashes on the varsity last year. We thought Greg would compete for the closer's role but he impressed us as a starter in the fall."

Ryan Johnson (0-3, 6.35) returns to the Flyer bullpen, hoping to revisit the success he enjoyed as a sophomore (5-1, 2.50, five saves in 28 appearances). The senior right-hander will be joined by junior right-hander Kevin Jakubauskas, junior left-hander John Bradley, sophomore right-hander Jeremy Taylor and freshman left-hander Dave Tolchin.

The Flyers' schedule takes on a different look this season, as the GLVC has switched from a 30-game to a 40-game schedule. Each team will play two doubleheaders against the league's other 10 teams, leaving just 16 non-conference games. For Lewis, 12 of those non-conference contests are scheduled for the team's annual trip to south Florida.

"Many of our conference opponents have a lot of returning upperclassmen, so the league will be very tough," O'Reilly said. "Our goals are to have a winning record, finish among the top six in the GLVC and return to the conference tournament.

"We've fallen down, but I believe we've taken measures to improve," O'Reilly added. "Our players are accepting the challenge to earn back the respect for our program."