2019 Schedule | 2019 Roster

ARDEN HILLS, Minn. – The defending MIAC Tournament champion Bethel University baseball team has released the 2019 schedule. A few different twists will be noticed in 2019 with no indoor baseball games to be played as U.S. Bank Stadium is unable to host college baseball because of the NCAA Final Four basketball tournament being held at the venue. Bethel's spring break also falls a week later in March than has been the case in recent history thus giving the Royals their latest scheduled start to a season since 2011, the year of the Metrodome roof collapse. Bethel is coming off a 32-11 campaign in 2018 that saw the Royals finish second in the MIAC during the regular season before sweeping through the MIAC Tournament and going on to an NCAA Regional for the first time in program history. The Royals have won 30 or more games in three of the last four years while winning a pair of MIAC regular season championships and the MIAC Tournament championship.
 
For the first time in the eighth-year head coach Brian Raabe's tenure the Royals season opener is scheduled to be in Fort Myers, Florida on the annual spring break trip. The 2011 season was the last time Bethel had not played at least two games prior to the spring break schedule. The 2011 season also marked the last time Bethel played 12 games during the spring trip which is what the 2019 Royals are scheduled for. In 2018 Bethel played their fewest amount of games in Florida – seven - while winning all seven to complete a perfect trip for the first time in program history. Overall under Raabe, the Royals are 45-19 (.703) in the Sunshine State.
 
The 2019 trip features seven games in the first four days before single games each of the last five days. Bethel will face some familiar foes along with some new faces either not faced before or in recent history. The opening day will be a split 9-inning doubleheader against Lakeland University and Johns Hopkins University. Bethel downed Lakeland 12-0 last season and finished the 2018 trip with a thrilling, come-from-behind, 12-inning 6-5 victory over perennial power JHU. The Royals will play Johns Hopkins a second time later in the trip along with familiar spring break opponents Edgewood College, and Plymouth St. Bethel will face first time opponents Old Westbury and Bethany (W.V.), to go along with Williams College and St. Lawrence University who BU has faced just twice in their history. The Royals will then finish the trip with preseason No. 1 ranked College of Wooster, a team Bethel has not defeated in five previous tries, most recently in 2014.
 
The other seven games of the non-conference schedule will take place in Minnesota or just across the border in Superior, Wisconsin. Bethel is scheduled to take on Bethany Lutheran College, the defending UMAC Tournament champion and fellow 2018 NCAA Midwest Regional participant, in Mankato, Minnesota. The doubleheader on March 27^th will take place at the newly renovated Franklin Rogers Park in Mankato which is also the home of the Northwoods League's Mankato MoonDogs and features an all-turf field. Bethel's other non-conference action will be doubleheaders at UW-Superior on April 19^th before hosting the University of Northwestern at Hargis Park on April 22. The final regular season game of the year will be with the College of St. Scholastica in a single game at Hargis Park on Sunday, May 5^th.
 
Bethel opens MIAC play against St. Thomas and Hamline University on March 30^th and April 3^rd respectively with both doubleheaders scheduled for Hargis Park. Other opponents coming to Bethel include Saint John's, St. Olaf and Concordia. Bethel will travel to Gustavus Adolphus in St. Peter, along with Carleton in Northfield, Augsburg at Parade Stadium in downtown Minneapolis, Macalester in St. Paul and Saint Mary's in Winona. The Royals have put together a 54-24 (.692) record against the MIAC over the past four seasons.  

Bethel Against the MIAC under Brian Raabe
 

Opponent	Regular Season	MIAC Playoffs
Augsburg	8-6
Carleton	11-3
Concordia	10-4
Gustavus	10-4
Hamline	11-3
Macalester	9-5	0-2
Saint John's	8-6	4-2
Saint Mary's	9-5	2-0
St. Olaf	7-5
St. Thomas	6-8	2-5
Totals	89-49	6-7

 
 















Bethel returns three regulars from the 2018 lineup. Senior center fielder Sam Horner who will be a four-year starter and has racked up such awards as MIAC All-Conference, ABCA/Rawlings All-Region and MIAC All-Defensive Team over his career thus far. Junior infielder Joey Fredrickson has also raked in the awards in his first two seasons at Bethel, including MIAC All-Conference, MIAC All-Defensive Team, and First Team All-Region by both ABCA/Rawlings and D3baseball.com. Junior catcher/outfielder Mitch Butvilas who was second on the team in doubles in 2018 and hit .305 also returns. The Royals pitching staff, which led all levels of college baseball in 2018 with an MIAC record 1.98 ERA returns staff ace Michael Bohlke and relief ace Jake Marsh. The Wayzata products where both All-Region and MIAC All-Conference picks in 2018. Bohlke is a two-time MIAC All-Conference selection and a two-time MIAC Elite 22 Award winner while also being named a Google Cloud/CoSIDA Academic All-American in 2018. Marsh is Bethel's All-Time leader in saves and was recently named a Preseason All-America Honorable Mention selection by D3baseball.com, the only MIAC player on the list. Also returning on the mound are juniors Connor Malcolm and Brady Leahy along with sophomore Peyton Gallagher, who combined to throw 49.2 innings last spring giving up just 14 earned runs in those innings (2.56 ERA).
 
The Royals will begin practices in preparation for the 2019 campaign on February 4^th as Bethel will welcome a group of 22 newcomers along with 24 total returners. The group of newcomers is highlighted by eight freshman who were Minnesota All-State selections in their senior seasons along with one Wisconsin WIAA State Scholar Athlete.