The Prairie Fire have all the pieces in place to make a run for a Midwest Conference championship in 2013.
Knox finished second in the MWC South Division in 2012 with a 7-5 record and qualified for the conference tournament for the first time since the 2008 season, the year the Prairie Fire won their last league title. Knox had 16 victories a year ago, the most since the 1992 squad won 18 games.
The Prairie Fire return 22 players from last year’s team, including eight seniors and nine juniors. Five sophomores and nine first-year players are also in the mix.
Knox, led by head coach Jami Isaacson, who is entering his 14th season, returns all five of last year’s All-MWC selections, more than any other team in the league. Also back are seven players that hit more than .300 and six pitchers that appeared in 11 or more games, including five that logged more than 30 innings on the mound.
Isaacson said the expectation in 2013 is no different than previous seasons: “To compete for a Midwest Conference championship.”
The All-MWC players back this season for the Fire are junior outfielders Jackson White (Grayslake, IL, Grayslake Central) and Erik Smoy (Hoffman Estates, IL, Hoffman Estates), senior infielder/outfielder/pitcher Caleb Weaver (Galesburg, IL, Galesburg), senior catcher Ryan Hoffman (Sugar Grove, IL, Marmion Academy), and sophomore pitcher Nathaniel Grady (Antelope, CA, Oakmont).
White is a two-time all-conference pick. He led the team last season with a .371 batting average, which tied for sixth in the MWC, was second with 39 hits and a .448 on base percentage, and he struck out only 14 times in 122 plate appearances. Defensively he played in the outfield and at first base. The versatile White also made five appearances on the mound, posting a 3.18 ERA in 5.2 innings pitched.
Smoy and Weaver both hit .346, tying for second on the team and 14th in the MWC. Weaver was the main run producer, smacking six home runs (tied for #4 MWC), 11 doubles, and two triples while driving in 38 runs (#4 MWC). He batted .469 with runners in scoring position. Weaver’s slugging percentage of .600 ranked fourth in the conference and he led the team with 28 runs and 78 total bases (tied for #4 MWC). Despite his big frame, Weaver swiped eight bases in eight attempts, the second-most on the squad.
Smoy led the Prairie Fire with 45 hits and was second behind Weaver with 46 total bases and a slugging percentage of .430. He batted .500 with runners in scoring position and was one of six Knox regulars with an on base percentage above .400 (.432). On defense, Smoy did not commit an error.
Hoffman hit .321 with one home run and 16 RBI. Patient at the plate, Hoffman led the team in walks (21) and on base percentage (.451). He was a .412 hitter with runners in scoring position and had a .996 fielding percentage on defense.
Grady, in his first season as a member of the Prairie Fire baseball team, started five of the 11 games he appeared in and had a deceiving 2-4 record. He posted a 3.53 ERA, the fifth-lowest in the MWC, in 35.2 innings pitched and allowed a .240 average to opposing hitters. Grady was even better in conference play. He had a 1-1 record in five appearances -- three of them starts -- with a 1.71 ERA in 21 innings. League opponents managed just 13 hits against Grady and batted .173.
Two other players coming off of strong seasons for Knox in 2012 are seniors Michael Schroeder (Glenview, IL, Glenbrook South) and Kyle Walenga (San Francisco, CA, Waldorf). The team is counting on them for leadership and production this season.
Schroeder, an infielder, batted .313 and drove in 24 runs, the second-most on the team. He was the Prairie Fire’s top base stealer with nine, and his .438 on-base percentage was the third-highest on the squad.
Walenga, an infielder and catcher, hit .303 and drove in 16 runs. He had 30 hits, 13 walks, a .400 on base percentage, and scored 18 runs. Walenga was also busy defensively, recording a team-high 82 assists in the field.
Knox also received valuable contributions from juniors Phil Tallman (Park Ridge, IL, Maine South) and Michael O'Connell (Park Ridge, IL, Maine South), and senior Matt Lee (Fullerton, CA, Servite).
Knox has an experienced and deep pitching staff as well with 11 of the 13 hurlers that took the mound last season returning in 2013.
Senior Gabe Ayers (Hanna City, IL, Farmington) led the staff with 18 appearances and 44.2 innings pitched out of the bullpen. He had a 1-2 record and a 3.63 earned run average with 19 strikeouts.
Two three-game winners will be back on the bump this year. Junior Bryan Leslie (Richmond, IL, Richmond-Burton) had a 3-0 record with a 3.72 ERA in 12 relief appearances. Junior Peter Marquardt (Clarendon Hills, lL, Hinsdale Central) appeared in 11 games for the Prairie Fire, eight of them starting assignments -- the most on the staff. He finished the season with a 3-3 record in 40.1 innings of work and struck out 19 batters.
Juniors Dustin Armstrong (Cincinnati, OH, Country Day) and Paul Mills (Moline, IL, Moline) both pitched as starters and relievers. Armstrong made 16 appearances; six of them starts, and tossed 30.1 innings. He had all three of the team’s saves and topped the staff with 24 strikeouts. Mills pitched in 14 games, starting three of them, and had a 2-2 record. He worked 31.2 innings and recorded 14 strikeouts.
Other pitching contributions came from seniors Ryan Stoens (Bartonville, IL, Limestone) and Nikko Juarez (Momence, IL, Bishop McNamara), sophomore Andrew Sparrow (Sullivan, IL, Sullivan), and Weaver.
Eight first-year players include two that are exclusively pitchers and one that could pitch and play another position.
Isaacson said while the new players are capable of competing for playing time immediately, they won’t need to be rushed along because of a strong core of returning players.
The MWC coaches picked the Prairie Fire to finish third in the South Division in the 2013 preseason poll behind defending division champ Grinnell College and Illinois College. Knox received one first-place vote, while Grinnell and IC each received two first-place votes in the poll.
St. Norbert College is the coaches’ choice to repeat as the MWC North Division champion. The Green Knights posted a 27-13 overall record, including a 14-2 mark in division play, and won the 2012 MWC title to advance to the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament.
Knox begins the new season on March 7 with a non-conference game against MacMurray College. The game will be played at Lenz Field in Jacksonville, Illinois.
