WAVERLY, Iowa-- The Wartburg baseball team (28-12 overall) will be the No. 1 seed for the Iowa Conference Tournament this weekend as it won its third-straight and 22nd overall regular season conference title this past Saturday. The Knights will face Coe at 7:30 p.m. Thursday.

The Orange and Black are 57-30 all-time in the tournament.

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Wartburg
Junior Eric Willis (Waverly) has a team-best .392 batting average. Five teammates join him above .300: junior Blake Mahoney (Des Moines) at .386, junior Cody Hyler (Des Moines) at .382, senior Jacob Thumann (DeWitt) at .349, senior Austin Lechtenberg (DeWitt) at .327, and junior David Fitzgerald (Dubuque) at .311.

Thumann leads the team with 39 RBIs, and Mahoney follows with 38.

Senior Max Langheinrich (Minnetonka, Minn.) leads the starting pitchers with a 2.90 ERA and is 5-1 in 71.1 innings pitched with 61 strikeouts.

Career Record Watch
Thumann is now the program's leader in career home runs. He broke the record of 28, which was set by Wartburg Athletics Hall of Fame member Matt Thede in 2001. Senior Gavin Nadermann (Epworth) is second in saves (9).

National Stat Rankings
Wartburg ranks in the top 100 of 11 stat categories. The Knights are: seventh in strikeout/walk ratio (3.34) and walks allowed/nine innings (2.35), eighth in WHIP (1.19), 13th in fielding percentage (.971), 19th in ERA (3.24), 22nd in hits allowed/nine innings (8.38), 41st in WL percentage (.700), 42nd in strikeouts per nine innings (7.8), 50th in hits (429), 57th in batting average (.316), and 74th in on base percentage ( 0.397).

Individually, three players rank in five categories.

Willis is 25th in hits (62) and junior Tanner Eckhart (Monticello, Minn.) is 42nd in strikeout to walk ratio (6.11).

Thumann is 18th in home runs (10), 33rd home runs/ game (0.25), and 50th in total bases (96).

Tickets
Single-day tickets are $6 for adults and $3 for students with a college ID or younger. Iowa Conference faculty and staff may present their IDs for free admission as well. An "All-Sessions" pass will be available as well at a price of $16 for adults and $8 for students. Tickets can be purchased in advance by contacting the Kernels office at 319.363.3887.
 

Thursday, May, 11
Game 1 1:00p  Buena Vista (#3) vs Central (#6)  - Veterans Memorial Stadium
Game 2 1:00p  Luther (#4) vs Coe (#5) at Daniels Park - Coe College
Game 3 4:00p  Dubuque (#2) v. BV/Central Winner - Veterans Memorial Stadium
Game 4 7:00p  Wartburg (#1) v. Luther/Coe Winner - Veterans Memorial Stadium

Friday, May 12
Game 5 10:00a Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser
Game 6 1:00p Game 3 Winner vs. Game 4 Winner
Game 7 4:00p Game 5 Winner vs. Lower Seeded Loser of Games 3 & 4
Game 8 7:00p Game 7 Winner vs. Higher Seeded Loser of Games 3 & 4
(Exception: If one of the Game 3 or 4 Losers already has had a bye, that team will play in Game 7,regardless of seed.)

Saturday, May 13
Game 9 10:00a Game 8 Winner vs. Game 6 Loser
Game 10 1:00p Game 6 Winner vs. Game 9 Winner
Game 11 4:00p Game 6 Winner vs. Game 9 Winner (if necessary)

[Sunday is a permissible rain date.]