2015 VCU Rams baseball team

American college baseball season

2015 VCU Rams baseball

A10 Tournament champions NCAA Dallas Regional champions
NCAA Coral Gables Super Regional, L, 0–2
Conference	Atlantic 10 Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 15
AP	No. 18
Record	40–25 (14–10 A-10)
Head coach	Shawn Stiffler (4th season)
Assistant coaches	Kurt Elbin (3rd season) Steve Hay (1st season) ML Morgan (1st season)
Home stadium	The Diamond
Seasons ← 2014 2016 →

2015 Atlantic 10 Conference baseball standings
v t e	Conf						Overall
Team	W		L		T	PCT	W		L		T	PCT
Saint Louis ‍†‍‍	16	–	8	–	0	.667	35	–	21	–	0	.625
Richmond ‍‍‍	15	–	9	–	0	.625	28	–	25	–	0	.528
Rhode Island ‍‍‍	15	–	9	–	0	.625	26	–	25	–	1	.510
No. 15 VCU ‍‍‡‍^y	14	–	10	–	0	.583	40	–	25	–	0	.615
Davidson ‍‍‍	14	–	10	–	0	.583	28	–	22	–	0	.560
George Washington ‍‍‍	13	–	10	–	0	.565	32	–	22	–	0	.593
Fordham ‍‍‍	13	–	11	–	0	.542	22	–	32	–	0	.407
La Salle ‍‍‍	12	–	12	–	0	.500	24	–	27	–	1	.471
George Mason ‍‍‍	12	–	12	–	0	.500	23	–	27	–	1	.461
UMass ‍‍‍	12	–	12	–	0	.500	16	–	27	–	0	.372
Saint Joseph's ‍‍‍	11	–	12	–	0	.478	21	–	28	–	0	.429
Dayton ‍‍‍	5	–	19	–	0	.208	16	–	38	–	0	.296
St. Bonaventure ‍‍‍	3	–	21	–	0	.125	16	–	28	–	2	.370

† – Conference champion ‡ – Tournament champion y – Invited to the NCAA tournament As of June 30, 2015^[1] Rankings from Collegiate Baseball

The 2015 VCU Rams baseball team was the program's 45th season fielding a varsity baseball program, and their third season the Atlantic 10 Conference.

Led by Shawn Stiffler for his third season, the Rams had their most successful baseball season in program history. The Rams advanced to the NCAA Super Regional for the first time ever, and won their first ever Atlantic 10 Conference baseball tournament. It was the program's return to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2010.

Personnel

2015 roster

2015 VCU Rams Roster^[2]

Pitchers

13 - Matt Lees - Junior
14 - Logan Kanuik - Senior
16 - Michael Carpenter - Sophomore
20 - Seth Greene - RS Senior
23 - Matt Jamer - Freshman
30 - Brian Goodling - Freshman
31 - Tyler Buckley - Junior
32 - Daniel Concepcion - Junior
33 - Dan Black - Sophomore
34 - Matt Blanchard - Junior
35 - Heath Dwyer - Junior
37 - Thomas Gill - Junior
38 - Jordan Storey - RS Senior
40 - JoJo Howie - Junior

Infielders

4 - Joey Cujas - Junior
10 - Tom Crimi - Senior
15 - Darian Carpenter - Freshman
17 - Matt Davis - Freshman
18 - Bryce Lee - Senior
25 - Vimael Machin - Junior
26 - Trevor Marino - Senior
27 - Shane Dressler - Freshman

Utility

8 - Logan Farrar - Freshman

Catchers

7 - Chris Ayers - Senior
11 - Walker Haymaker - Sophomore
19 - Brett Hileman - Freshman
21 - Nick Octavi - Senior
24 - Joe Bugas - Freshman

Outfielders

1 - James Bunn - Sophomore
2 - Bill Cullen - Senior
3 - Landon Prentiss - Senior
9 - Cody Acker - Sophomore
12 - Alex Gransback - Freshman

Schedule

2015 VCU Rams baseball game log^[3]

Regular season (33–22)

February (2–5)
Date	Opponent	Rank	Site/stadium	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Overall record	A10 record
Winston-Salem Series
February 13	vs. Georgetown*		David F. Couch Ballpark Winston-Salem, North Carolina	W 6–3	Dwyer (1–0)	Hollenback (0–1)	Concepcion (1)	128	1–0	—
February 14	at Wake Forest*		David F. Couch Ballpark	L 0–1	Dunshee (1–0)	Howie (0–1)	Fossas (1)	718	1–1	—

February 17	at Virginia*		Davenport Field Charlottesville, Virginia	Postponed (inclement weather)						—
Myrtle Beach Invitational
February 21	vs. Bucknell*		Griffith Field Myrtle Beach, South Carolina	L 1–5	Hough (2–0)	Dwyer (1–1)	Castellani (1)	35	1–2	—
February 21 (DH)	vs. Bucknell		Griffith Field	L 4–6	Hammond (1–0)	Blanchard (0–1)	none	43	1–3	—
February 22	vs. Bucknell		Griffith Field	L 2–3	Gambon (1–0)	Howie (0–2)	Rafferty (1)	82	1–4	—
February 27	vs. Pitt*		Griffith Field	W 5–4	Concepcion (1–0)	Harris (0–1)	none	127	2–4	—
February 28	vs. Pitt*		Griffith Field	L 1–6	Sandefur (1–0)	Blanchard (0–2)	none	105	2–5	—

March (13–7)
Date	Opponent	Rank	Site/stadium	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Overall record	A10 record
Myrtle Beach Invitational
March 1	vs. Pitt*		Griffith Field	W 3–2	Lees (1–0)	Mattson (0–1)	none	96	3–5	—

March 4	at No. 16 North Carolina*		Boshamer Stadium Chapel Hill, North Carolina	L 5–6	Raquet (1–0)	Thompson (0–1)	none	872	3–6	—
March 6	at Jacksonville*		John Sessions Stadium Jacksonville, Florida	L 1–2	Disch (1–0)	Gill (0–1)	none	85	3–7	—
March 7	at Jacksonville*		John Sessions Stadium	W 4–3	Howie (1–2)	Tanner (1–2)	Concepcion (2)	179	4–7	—
March 8	at Jacksonville*		John Sessions Stadium	W 5–4	Dwyer (2–1)	Russell (1–3)	Lees (1)	188	5–7	—
March 10	Penn*		The Diamond Richmond, Virginia	W 12–5	Thompson (1–1)	Reitcheck (1–1)	none	237	6–7	—
March 11	Penn*		The Diamond	W 5–1	Blanchard (1–2)	Hammonds (0–1)	none	181	7–7	—
March 13	Monmouth*		The Diamond	L 0–3	Hunt (1–2)	Howie (1–3)	none	204	7–8	—
Central Virginia Classic
March 15	James Madison*		The Diamond	W 7–1	Dwyer (3–1)	Bradshaw (1–1)	none	373	8–8	—
March 16	Minnesota*		The Diamond	W 11–4	Lees (2–0)	Thonvold (0–1)	none	258	9–8	—
March 17	Monmouth*		The Diamond	L 0–7	Trimarco (1–2)	Thompson (1–2)	none	227	9–9	—

March 20	at East Carolina*		Clark–LeClair Stadium Greenville, North Carolina	W 4–3	Lees (3–0)	Boyd (2–4)	Concepcion (3)	2,069	10–9	—
March 21	at East Carolina*		Clark–LeClair Stadium	L 3–9	Morgan (4–0)	Gill (0–2)	none	2,862	10–10	—
March 22	at East Carolina*		Clark–LeClair Stadium	W 3–2	Lees (4–0)	Boyd (2–5)	Concepcion (4)	2,295	11–10	—
March 24	VMI*		The Diamond	W 18–0	Thompson (2–2)	Eagle (0–2)	none	606	12–10	—
March 25	Longwood*		The Diamond	W 8–1	Buckley (4–0)	Catlin (3–1)	none	404	13–10	—
March 27	UMass		The Diamond	W 16–3	Howie (2–3)	LeBlanc (1–2)	none	307	14–10	1–0
March 28	UMass		The Diamond	L 2–3	Moloney (2–1)	Concepcion (1–1)	Mackintosh (1)	343	14–11	1–1
March 29	UMass		The Diamond	W 8–0	Dwyer (4–1)	Grant (1–1)	none	327	15–11	2–1
Duel at the Diamond
March 31	Virginia* Duel at the Diamond		The Diamond	L 3–5	Casey (2–1)	Concepcion (1–2)	Sborz (8)	3,233	15–12	—

April (11–6)
Date	Opponent	Rank	Site/stadium	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Overall record	A10 record
April 4	at Dayton		Woerner Field Dayton, Ohio	W 5–2	Lees (5–0)	Dant (1–6)	Concepcion (5)	188	16–12	3–1
April 4	at Dayton (DH)		Woerner Field	L 2–5	Buettgen (2–3)	Howie (2–4)	none	188	16–13	3–2
April 5	at Dayton		Woerner Field	W 6–0	Dwyer (5–1)	Horn (1–2)	Concepcion (6)	151	17–13	4–2
Old Dominion–VCU series
April 8	at Old Dominion*		Bud Metheny Baseball Complex Norfolk, Virginia	W 10–2	Thompson (3–2)	Matheson (1–2)	none	591	18–13	—
George Mason–VCU series
April 10	George Mason*		The Diamond	L 1–8	Kalish (3–3)	Blanchard (1–3)	none	307	18–14	4–3
April 11	George Mason*		The Diamond	W 9–1	Howie (3–4)	Williams (4–4)	none	399	19–14	5–3
April 12	George Mason*		The Diamond	L 6–7	Zombro (4–1)	Lees (5–1)	Tobin (4)	407	19–15	5–4

April 14	at VMI*		Gray–Minor Stadium Lexington, Virginia	Canceled (inclement weather)^[4]					19–15	—
April 15	at Longwood*		Bolding Stadium Farmville, Virginia	W 11–5	Thompson (4–2)	Kuebbing (1–4)	none	154	20–15	—
April 17	at Saint Joseph's		Smithson Field Merion, Pennsylvania	W 15–9	Buckley (2–0)	Vanderslice (3–5)	none	217	21–15	6–4
April 18	at Saint Joseph's		Smithson Field	W 4–2	Howie (4–4)	Manion (2–3)	Concepcion (7)	400	22–15	7–4
April 19	at Saint Joseph's		Smithson Field	L 1–5	August (2–0)	Dwyer (5–2)	none	278	22–16	7–5
April 21	Maryland*		The Diamond	W 2–1	Concepcion (2–2)	Morris (3–2)	none	622	23–16	—
April 22	at Maryland*		Turtle Smith Stadium College Park, Maryland	W 3–1	Stine (1–0)	Bloom (0–1)	Concepcion (8)	237	24–16	—
April 24	Rhode Island		Hugh Stephens Field Ashland, Virginia	L 3–7	Distasio (4–4)	Howie (4–5)	none	190	24–17	7–6
April 25	Rhode Island		Hugh Stephens Field	L 3–6	Wilson (6–0)	Lees (5–2)	Moyers (1)	146	24–18	7–7
April 26	Rhode Island		Hugh Stephens Field	W 7–0	Dwyer (6–2)	Kawlewski (0–2)	Concepcion (9)	201	25–18	8–7
April 29	Norfolk State*		The Diamond	W 14–6	Gill (1–2)	Parmentier (2–1)	none	494	26–18	—

May
Date	Opponent	Rank	Site/stadium	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Overall record	A10 record
May 1	at Saint Louis		Billiken Sports Center St. Louis, Missouri	L 1–7					26–19	8–8
May 2	at Saint Louis		Billiken Sports Center	L 2–3					26–20	8–9
May 3	at Saint Louis		Billiken Sports Center	L 9–12					26–21	8–10
May 5	at Norfolk State*		Marty L. Miller Field Norfolk, Virginia	L 3–6					26–22	—
May 7	Fordham		The Diamond	W 7–2					27–22	9–10
May 8	Fordham		The Diamond	W 2–1					28–22	10–10
May 9	Fordham		The Diamond	W 3–2					29–22	11–10
Keydog Classic
May 12	vs. Old Dominion*		War Memorial Stadium Hampton, Virginia	W 9–3					30–22	—

May 14	at St. Bonaventure		Fred Handler Park Olean, New York	W 12–2					31–22	12–10
May 15	at St. Bonaventure		Fred Handler Park	W 11–0					32–22	13–10
May 16	at St. Bonaventure		Fred Handler Park	W 7–2					33–22	14–10

Postseason (7–3)

Atlantic 10 tournament (4–0)
Date	Opponent	Rank	Site/stadium	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Overall record	A10T record
May 20	vs. (4) Davidson	(5)	Barcroft Park Arlington, Virginia	W 11–0					34–22	1–0
May 21	vs. (1) Saint Louis	(5)	Barcroft Park	W 14–3					35–22	2–0
May 22	vs. (2) Rhode Island	(5)	Barcroft Park	W 8–2					36–22	3–0
May 23	vs. (2) Rhode Island	(5)	Barcroft Park	W 5–3					37–22	4–0

NCAA Dallas Regional (3–1)
Date	Opponent	Rank	Site/stadium	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Overall record	NCAAT record
May 29	at No. 14 (1) Dallas Baptist*	(4)	Horner Ballpark Dallas, Texas	W 7–2					38–22	1–0
May 31	vs. No. 18 (2) Oregon State*	(4)	Horner Ballpark	W 5–1					39–22	2–0
June 1	at No. 15 (1) Dallas Baptist*	No. 18 (4)	Horner Ballpark	L 1–2					39–23	2–1
June 1	at No. 15 (1) Dallas Baptist*	No. 18 (4)	Horner Ballpark	W 3–1					40–23	3–1

NCAA Coral Gables Super Regional (0–2)
Date	Opponent	Rank	Site/stadium	Score	Win	Loss	Save	Attendance	Overall record	NCAAT record
June 5	at No. 5 (5) Miami (FL)*	No. 15	Alex Rodriguez Park at Mark Light Field Coral Gables, Florida	L 2–3					40–24	3–2
June 6	at No. 5 (5) Miami (FL)*	No. 15	Alex Rodriguez Park at Mark Light Field Coral Gables, Florida	L 3–10					40–25	3–3

Legend: = Win = Loss = Canceled
Bold =VCU team member
Rankings are based on the team's current ranking in the Collegiate Baseball poll.

^[5]

Rankings

Ranking movements
**Legend:** ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes
	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	Final
Coaches'^[6]	—	—*	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	19	19	19
Baseball America^[7]	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	17	16	16
Collegiate Baseball^^[8]	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	RV	15	15	15
NCBWA†^[9]	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	RV	18	17	17

^ 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.

References

^ "Atlantic 10 Conference Baseball Standings and Leaders". Atlantic 10 Conference. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
^ "2013-14 VCU Baseball Roster". VCU Athletics. Retrieved March 22, 2014.
^ "VCU Rams baseball schedule". VCU Rams. Retrieved June 1, 2015.
^ "VCU's Tuesday Game at VMI has been Canceled". Virginia Commonwealth University. April 14, 2015. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
^ "2015 Baseball Schedule". vcuathletics.com. Retrieved August 1, 2015.
^ "USA TODAY/ESPN Top 25 coaches' baseball poll". Archived from the original on January 25, 2012. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
^ "Baseball America College: Top 25". Baseball America.
^ "NCAA DIV I Baseball Polls". Collegiate Baseball Newspaper. Archived from the original on June 16, 2009. Retrieved March 21, 2015.
^ "NCBWA Division I poll". National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.

v t e VCU Rams baseball
Venue	Parker Field (1948–1984) The Diamond (1985–present)
Rivalries	George Mason Richmond
People	Head Coaches
Seasons	1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024