BURNSVILLE — The Southwest Minnesota State University baseball team was picked 14th in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Preseason Coaches’ Poll as voted on by the head coaches. The announcement came Wednesday morning from the NSIC office.

SMSU finished the 2022 season 17-26 overall, 10-21 NSIC, but closed the season as one of the hottest teams in the league. The Mustangs ended the season winning nine of its last 12 games, which included winning two weekend series and sweeping two mid-week doubleheaders. 

SMSU, under the direction of head coach Paul Blanchard, who is back for his 27th season, returns 25 letter winners, including its top five hitters and nearly the entire pitching staff from last season’s squad.

“We return every starting position player and all starting pitchers,” Blanchard said. “We’re hoping all that experience will help our chances this spring.”

SMSU junior outfielder Isaac Nett and sophomore left-handed pitcher Ryan Chmielewski were both named “Players to Watch” in the conference this season.

Nett, a native of Albany, started 40 games last season and batted a team-high .380 with six home runs, seven doubles, one triple and tied for the team-lead with 29 RBIs. Nett, who had more had more walks and hit by pitches (19) than strikeouts (14), racked up a team-high eight multi-RBI games, tied for the team lead with 15 multi-hit games. He also led the team in both slugging percentage (.570) and on-base percentage (.451).

 Nett, an All-NSIC first team and ABCA All-Region second team honoree last spring, ranked 16th in the NSIC in batting average at .358 (NSIC games only) and ranked 17th in home runs (five). He ended the season on a 13-game hitting streak.

Chmielewski, a native of Foley, Minn., made a team-high 11 starts and finished with a 4-5 record and a 6.42 ERA in a team-high 61 2/3 innings during his rookie season in 2022. He ranked third on the team with 42 strikeouts and finished with two complete games and one shutout. He pitched six or more innings in seven starts and closed the season tossing a seven-inning six-hit shutout at Northern State.

Several players join Nett as key returners in 2023, including junior first baseman Jaxon Haase, who batted .356 and tied for the team lead in both RBIs (29) and doubles (8). Junior shortstop Chase McDaniel, a 2022 NSIC All-Defensive team honoree, started 39 games last season and committed just seven errors, while registering 86 assists and 63 putouts for a .955 fielding percentage. McDaniel batted .338, tied for the team lead with eight doubles, while adding one triple, 24 RBIs and eight stolen bases. 

Senior second baseman Keenan Wenzel returns after making 35 starts in 2022 and batting .324 with seven doubles, two triples, two home runs and 16 RBIs. Junior third baseman Max Kalenberg led the team with 18 walks, while hitting .281 with six doubles, two home runs and 22 RBIs. Senior outfielder Robbie Smith is back this spring after batting .270 with seven doubles, a team-high four triples and a team-leading 13 stolen bases.

Sophomore outfielder/pitcher Owen Latendresse belted five home runs and four doubles, while batting .259 last season. Sophomores Caleb Gardow and Nick Brown both saw a majority of the time at catcher in 2022 and combined for six doubles, two home runs and 18 RBIs.

Numerous key returners join Chmielewski on a veteran pitching staff in 2023, including junior left-hander Kobe Lovell, who appeared in a team-high 13 games and struck out 21 batters in 26 innings with a 4.50 ERA. Junior righty Craig Lasley finished with a 3.78 ERA in 16 2/3 innings earning one victory and one save while striking out 11.

Junior right-hander Ansen Dulas made nine appearances with eight starts and compiled a 6.28 ERA in 43 innings, while leading the team with 57 strikeouts. Another junior righty, Kolby Kiser, made 12 appearances with 10 starts and finished with a 6.95 ERA in 45 1/3 innings with 49 strikeouts. Latendresse pitched in five games with three starts and struck out 17 batters in 17 2/3 innings and had a 2-2 record.

Other pitchers returning include juniors Hayden Molva and Brady Brosz along with sophomores Theo Giedd, Jerod Cyrus and Cameron Jensen, who all appeared in five or more games last season and combined to make nine starts. 

The Mustangs are currently conducting practice inside the PE Gym and R/A Facility and are scheduled to open the regular season on March 1 with a doubleheader at Briar Cliff (Iowa). SMSU will travel to Tucson, Ariz., for more than a week of games from March 4-13, before opening the 35-game NSIC season at Augustana on March 18-19. SMSU will have its first home games on March 25 versus Wayne State.

 Minnesota State, the defending 2022 NSIC tournament champions, were chosen as the preseason favorite earning 188 points, including eight first place votes, while Augustana, which won the 2022 NSIC regular season title was picked to finish second receiving 185 points and five first place votes. St. Cloud State was picked to finish third with 174 points and two first place votes, while Minot State and UMary were both selected fourth with 128 points to round out the top five.

Winona State was selected sixth earning 126 points, followed by Minnesota Duluth (113), Sioux Falls (108), Minnesota Crookston (98) and Wayne State (97) rounding out the top 10. Concordia-St. Paul and Northern State were each picked 11th with 66 points, followed by Upper Iowa (41), SMSU (40) and Bemidji State (17).

The 2023 NSIC Tournament will take the top eight teams in the final NSIC standings. The double elimination tournament takes place May 10-13, hosted by the UMary in Mandan and Bismarck, N.D.