2012 Kent State Golden Flashes baseball team

The 2012 Kent State Golden Flashes baseball team represented Kent State University in the 2012 NCAA Division I baseball season. The Golden Flashes were coached by 8th year head coach Scott Stricklin and played their home games at Schoonover Stadium. Kent State finished the regular season 37–17 overall and 24–3 in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) to win the MAC regular-season and East division titles, and the top seed in the 2012 Mid-American Conference baseball tournament. At the tournament, Kent State went 4–0 to win the tenth Mid-American Conference baseball tournament title in program history and advance to the 2012 NCAA Division I baseball tournament, the 12th appearance in team history.

2012 Kent State Golden Flashes baseball
Eugene Super Regional champions Gary Regional Champions MAC Tournament champions MAC Champions
Conference	Mid-American Conference
Record	47–20 (24–3 MAC)
Head coach	Scott Stricklin (8th season)
Assistant coaches	Mike Birkbeck (14th season) Scott Daeley (7th season) Doug Sanders
Home stadium	Schoonover Stadium

2012 Mid-American Conference baseball standings

	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
East Division
Kent State  x‍‍‡‍y	24	–	3		.889			47	–	20		.701
Ohio  ‍‍‍	16	–	11		.593			28	–	29		.491
Miami  ‍‍‍	12	–	15		.444			30	–	29		.508
Buffalo  ‍‍‍	10	–	16		.385			20	–	36		.357
Akron  ‍‍‍	10	–	17		.370			17	–	38		.309
Bowling Green  ‍‍‍	9	–	18		.333			20	–	33		.377
West Division
Toledo  x‍‍‍	19	–	8		.704			30	–	27		.526
Central Michigan  ‍‍‍	17	–	10		.630			34	–	29		.540
Western Michigan  ‍‍‍	14	–	12		.538			26	–	29		.473
Eastern Michigan  ‍‍‍	14	–	13		.519			25	–	31		.446
Ball State  ‍‍‍	9	–	18		.333			14	–	36		.280
Northern Illinois  ‍‍‍	7	–	20		.259			15	–	40		.273
x – Division champion ‡ – Tournament champion y – Invited to the 2012 NCAA Division I baseball tournament As of May 30, 2012 Rankings from Coaches' Poll

In the NCAA tournament, the team went 3–0 in the Gary Regional at U.S. Steel Yard to claim the program's first regional championship, which included a 21-inning, 7–6 win over 12th-ranked Kentucky. The Flashes advanced to the Super Regional round against the 10th-ranked Oregon Ducks where they defeated the Ducks two games to one at PK Park to claim the first super regional championship and appearance in the College World Series in school history. At the 2012 College World Series the Golden Flashes fell to Arkansas in the opening round, but eliminated top-ranked Florida 5–4 in the elimination bracket. Kent State was eliminated in the second round by South Carolina. Kent State finished 1–2 at the College World Series, and 6–3 in the NCAA tournament.

The season featured a 21-game winning streak, which began with a 16–5 home win over Western Michigan on April 27, and ended with a 3–2 road loss to Oregon in the second game of the super regional series in Eugene, Oregon. Kent State finished the season with an overall record of 47–20 and tied for 5th nationally by virtue of their second-round elimination in the College World Series. They finished the season ranked in the top ten in all major polls.

Roster

2012 Kent State Golden Flashes baseball team
Players	Coaches
# Pos. Name Bats/throws Height Weight Year Home town 1 INF Jimmy Rider R/R 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Sr Venetia, PA 2 INF Derek Toadvine R/R 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 165 lb (75 kg) So Springfield, OH 4 INF Cody Koch R/ 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 200 lb (91 kg) So Sandusky, OH 5 OF T.J. Sutton L/L 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Fr Uniontown, OH 6 INF George Roberts R/R 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Jr Summerhill, PA 7 INF Nick Hamilton s/R 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 190 lb (86 kg) RS Jr Avon Lake, OH 8 RHP Josh Pierce R/R 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 215 lb (98 kg) RS Fr Avon, OH 11 OF Joe Koch L/L 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) 165 lb (75 kg) RS Sr Youngstown, OH 12 OF Alex Miklos R/R 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 184 lb (83 kg) Fr Grove City, PA 13 RHP John Birkbeck R/R 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Fr Canton, OH 14 INF Evan Campbell L/R 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Jr Beloit, OH 16 RHP Eli Martin R/R 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 155 lb (70 kg) Fr Dresden, OH 17 OF Jacob Neuschaefer R/R 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Fr Elyria, OH 18 RHP Dan Slavik R/R 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) So St. Clairsville, OH 19 RHP Ryan Bores R/R 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Jr Strongsville, OH 21 INF Blake Bellman S/R 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 185 lb (84 kg) RS Fr Wooster, OH 22 RHP Casey Wilson R/R 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Jr Sagamore Hills, OH 23 C Tommy Monnot R/R 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Fr Canton, OH 24 INF Sawyer Polen R/R 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Fr Wooster, OH 25 OF Troy Summers R/R 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) RS So Minerva, OH 26 RHP Chuck Seacrist R/R 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Fr Painesville, OH 27 C Jeff Revesz R/R 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Fr Grove City, PA 28 RHP Spencer Bryant R/R 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) So Sandusky, OH 29 LHP Michael Clark L/L 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) RS So Akron, OH 30 LHP Brian Clark L/L 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Fr Munroe Falls, OH 31 RHP Tyler Skulina R/R 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 235 lb (107 kg) So Strongsville, OH 32 RHP Ryan Mace R/R 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Sr Tallmadge, OH 33 LHP Tim Faix L/L 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Fr Strongsville, OH 34 C Jason Bagoly R/R 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Jr Austintown, OH 36 C David Lyon S/R 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Sr Emporium, PA 37 LHP David Starn L/L 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Sr Hudson, OH 38 RHP Jason Revesz R/R 5 ft 7 in (1.7 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Fr Grove City, PA 39 RHP Dan Kopcak R/R 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 170 lb (77 kg) RS Fr Streetsboro, OH 40 RHP Eric Dorsch R/R 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 240 lb (109 kg) RS Fr Gibsonia, PA	Head coach Scott Stricklin Assistant coach(es) Mike Birkbeck Scott Daeley Doug Sanders Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Current redshirt Roster Last update: 2012-06-11

Schedule

2012 Kent State Golden Flashes baseball game log
Regular season
February (4–2) # Date Opponent Site Score Overall MAC 1 February 17 #9 Georgia Tech Winthrop Ballpark • Rock Hill, SC 5–0 1–0 2 February 18 #9 Georgia Tech Winthrop Ballpark • Rock Hill, SC 2–6 1–1 3 February 18 Winthrop Winthrop Ballpark • Rock Hill, SC 11–3 2–1 4 February 24 Lipscomb Dugan Field • Nashville, TN 1–2 2–2 5 February 25 Lipscomb Dugan Field • Nashville, TN 16–3 3–2 6 February 26 Lipscomb Dugan Field • Nashville, TN 4–0 4–2
March (9–10, 5–0) # Date Opponent Site Score Overall MAC 7 March 3 Western Kentucky Nick Denes Field • Bowling Green, KY 2–5 4–3 8 March 4 Western Kentucky Nick Denes Field • Bowling Green, KY 13–3 5–3 9 March 5 Western Kentucky Nick Denes Field • Bowling Green, KY 1–2 5–4 10 March 9 New Mexico State Presley Askew Field • Las Cruces, NM 7–4 6–4 11 March 10 New Mexico State Presley Askew Field • Las Cruces, NM 10–9 7–4 12 March 11 New Mexico State Presley Askew Field • Las Cruces, NM 6–12 7–5 13 March 12 New Mexico State Presley Askew Field • Las Cruces, NM 4–14 7–6 14 March 16 Pepperdine Eddy D. Field Stadium • Malibu, CA 2–0 8–6 15 March 18 Pepperdine Eddy D. Field Stadium • Malibu, CA 4–10 8–7 16 March 19 Pepperdine Eddy D. Field Stadium • Malibu, CA 4–6 8–8 17 March 20 Fresno State Pete Beiden Field • Fresno, CA 2–14 8–9 18 March 21 Fresno State Pete Beiden Field • Fresno, CA 2–5 8–10 19 March 23 Northern Illinois Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 12–6 9–10 1–0 20 March 24 Northern Illinois Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 6–1 10–10 2–0 21 March 25 Northern Illinois Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 5–3 11–10 3–0 22 March 27 Toledo Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 3–4 (12) 11–11 3–0 23 March 28 Pittsburgh Cost Field • Pittsburgh, PA 5–6 11–12 3–0 24 March 30 Ball State Ball Diamond • Muncie, IN 7–4 (10) 12–12 4–0 25 March 31 Ball State Ball Diamond • Muncie, IN 4–2 (11) 13–12 5–0
April (14–5, 10–3) # Date Opponent Site Score Overall MAC 26 April 1 Ball State Ball Diamond • Muncie, IN 18–2 14–12 6–0 27 April 3 Penn State Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 7–9 14–13 6–0 28 April 4 Toledo Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 8–4 15–13 6–0 29 April 6 Buffalo Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 5–4 16–13 7–0 30 April 7 Buffalo Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 6–3 17–13 8–0 31 April 8 Buffalo Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 6–3 18–13 9–0 32 April 11 Youngstown State Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 14–4 19–13 9–0 33 April 13 Bowling Green Steller Field • Bowling Green, OH 5–6 19–14 9–1 34 April 14 Bowling Green Steller Field • Bowling Green, OH 6–9 19–15 9–2 35 April 15 Bowling Green Steller Field • Bowling Green, OH 31–20 20–15 10–2 36 April 17 Pittsburgh Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 6–5 21–15 10–2 37 April 20 Central Michigan Theunissen Stadium • Mt. Pleasant, MI 0–3 21–16 10–3 38 April 21 Central Michigan Theunissen Stadium • Mt. Pleasant, MI 6–3 22–16 11–3 39 April 22 Central Michigan Theunissen Stadium • Mt. Pleasant, MI 6–4 23–16 12–3 40 April 24 Niagara Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 8–4 24–16 12–3 41 April 25 Penn State Medlar Field • University Park, PA 4–6 24–17 12–3 42 April 27 Western Michigan Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 16–5 25–17 13–3 43 April 28 Western Michigan Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 4–0 26–17 14–3 44 April 29 Western Michigan Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 7–1 27–17 15–3
May (10–0, 9–0) # Date Opponent Site Score Overall MAC 45 May 4 Ohio Bob Wren Stadium • Athens, OH 4–1 28–17 16–3 46 May 5 Ohio Bob Wren Stadium • Athens, OH 8–1 29–17 17–3 47 May 6 Ohio Bob Wren Stadium • Athens, OH 13–4 30–17 18–3 48 May 11 Miami Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 3–0 31–17 19–3 49 May 12 Miami Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 7–6 32–17 20–3 50 May 13 Miami Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 10–4 33–17 21–3 51 May 15 Eastern Michigan All Pro Freight Stadium • Avon, OH 8–7 34–17 21–3 52 May 17 Akron Canal Park • Akron, OH 6–1 35–17 22–3 53 May 18 Akron Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 15–2 36–17 23–3 54 May 19 Akron Schoonover Stadium • Kent, OH 2–1 37–17 24–3
Post-season
MAC Tournament (4–0) # Date Opponent Site Score Overall MAC Tournament 55 May 23 (8) Buffalo All Pro Freight Stadium • Avon, OH 9–0 38–17 1–0 56 May 24 (4) Western Michigan All Pro Freight Stadium • Avon, OH 12–3 39–17 2–0 57 May 25 (8) Buffalo All Pro Freight Stadium • Avon, OH 8–3 40–17 3–0 58 May 26 (3) Central Michigan All Pro Freight Stadium • Avon, OH 3–1 41–17 4–0
Gary Regional (3–0) # Date Opponent Site Score Overall NCAAT 59 June 1 (2) Kentucky U.S. Steel Yard • Gary, IN 7–6 (21) 42–17 1–0 60 June 2 (1) Purdue U.S. Steel Yard • Gary, IN 7–3 43–17 2–0 61 June 3 (2) Kentucky U.S. Steel Yard • Gary, IN 3–2 44–17 3–0
Eugene Super Regional (2–1) # Date Opponent Site Score Overall Super Regional 62 June 9 #5 Oregon PK Park • Eugene, OR 7–6 45–17 4–0 63 June 10 #5 Oregon PK Park • Eugene, OR 2–3 45–18 4–1 64 June 11 #5 Oregon PK Park • Eugene, OR 3–2 46–18 5–1
College World Series (1–2) # Date Opponent Site Score Overall CWS 65 June 16 Arkansas TD Ameritrade Park • Omaha, NE 1–8 46–19 0–1 66 June 18 Florida TD Ameritrade Park • Omaha, NE 5–4 47–19 1–1 67 June 21 South Carolina TD Ameritrade Park • Omaha, NE 1–4 47–20 1–2

Rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	Final
Coaches'	—	—*	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	7
Baseball America	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	8
Collegiate Baseball^	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	27	25	13	8	—	6
NCBWA†	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	22	9	—	7

^ Collegiate Baseball ranked 40 teams in their preseason poll, but only ranked 30 teams weekly during the season.
† NCBWA ranks 35 teams in their preseason poll, but only ranks 30 teams weekly during the season.
* A new poll was not released for this week, so for comparison purposes, the previous week's ranking is inserted in this week's slot.