Upper Iowa’s Ische named SMSU baseball head coach
Trending
MARSHALL -- The Southwest Minnesota State baseball team hired Upper Iowa University's Jeremy Ische as the program's next coach on Thursday morning, according to a press release from the university's athletic department.
"It's a great program with a ton of tradition. I really enjoyed my experience here as a graduate assistant for [former SMSU head coach Paul] Blanchard in 2012 and 2014. We did some really good things there," Ische said when asked about his decision to return to the team. "They won 27 games this year and, in 2014, we also won 27 games together as a group, so I'm obviously excited about the veteran group.
"My wife is from Marshall, we were married in Marshall, Minnesota. Grandma and grandpa for our three little kids, they live in Marshall. So a lot of really good things pointing us that way."
After two years as an assistant coach and five years as a head coach at Upper Iowa, Ische returns to SMSU.
"We are very excited to welcome Jeremy and his family back to SMSU," Flowers said. "I am confident Jeremy will be a tremendous leader for our baseball program and a great ambassador for SMSU. His commitment and passion for the game, along with his previous head coaching experience in the NSIC and his connection to SMSU, is a winning combination that will strengthen our baseball program and support our efforts to provide our young men with a fantastic student-athlete experience."
Ische is a native of Norwood Young America and played two years of college baseball for North Iowa Area Community College before transferring to St. Cloud State University, where he graduated with a degree in sport management and recreation. While Ische is coming to the school to coach baseball, he emphasized the idea that the team is about more than just a game.
"We want great people. We want high-character kids. I saw this the first time this past summer at Upper Iowa where a couple of guys that we had recruited and coached got married. It's true, their best man at their wedding was their roommate and their groomsmen are all their baseball buddies. To see that come full circle for the first time, it kind of gives you goosebumps," Ische said. "Really trying to grow those relationships and connecting with the guys and going through as many things ass you can to get to know them... You want to win on the field, but you also want to win the 40-year scoreboard and have great future community members, husbands and fathers."
During his time at Upper Iowa, Ische compiled a 45-88 record in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference and a 57-125 overall record. The program put together its best season under Ische this year, going 19-27 overall and 15-19 in conference play.
Ische takes over for Paul Blanchard, who had coached the Mustangs for 27 years, compiling a 591-573-2 record during his time with the team. The Mustangs went 27-17 in 2023, securing their first NSIC tournament berth since 2014.
"The guys we have coming back and incomers are certainly capable of a return trip," Ische said. "I told the guys last night on a Zoom call, I think a lot of stuff's going to stay the same. We're going to put our own twist on it, put our own stamp on some things from how we go about our business, but our identity is going to be locked in pitching and defense.
"We've got a really good group of guys, so making sure that they continue to be great leaders in the program and bring along the young guys, that'll be fairly consistent with how things have run. I'm really looking forward to getting involved with the alumni base. They're a hungry group of people, Marshall area loves athletics and we're really looking forward to giving them a good product on and off the field."