May 22, 1999

LAS VEGAS - The UNLV baseball team concluded the 1999 season at the WAC Tournament which was played at Fresno State's Beiden Field. UNLV, which finished with an overall record of 27-34, lost two games in the WAC Tournament on Wednesday-Thursday, May 19-20. San Jose State defeated UNLV 8-7 and No. 1 Rice rallied for six runs in its final two at bats to defeat UNLV, 9-6.

UNLV concluded the regular season at Beiden Field on May 14-16 and defeated Fresno State two out of three games (UNLV 8-1; FSU 6-3; UNLV 6-3) to qualify for the WAC Tournament as the No. 4 seed (16-14 record in WAC).

The 1999 season experienced many ups and downs. UNLV was 16-15 at Earl E. Wilson Stadium and the team played 30 road games. UNLV, after a 4-12 start, was 23-22 over the last 45 games of the season. UNLV's road record was 11-19 (9-15 road and 2-4 neutral sites). UNLV played perhaps the toughest schedule in school history. UNLV played four teams that were ranked in the Top 10. The Rebels defeated No. 1 Rice, in Houston, 9-6 on March 27; defeated No. 3 Texas A&M, at the Aggie Classic, 14-3 on March 19. UNLV faced No. 4 Cal State Fullerton and No. 8 Pepperdine. UNLV also played Arizona, Clemson, UNR and Washington who were ranked at the time of competition.

The Rebels had a potent offense which batted .339 (771-for-2271) which ranked 12th in the nation (as of May 10). UNLV scored 10 or more runs 22 times. Senior third baseman Chris Gillette led the team with a .387 average (79-for-204) and 21 doubles. Junior All-American outfielder Ryan Ludwick, a WAC first-team selection, had a solid season. He was the only player to appear in all 61 games. He batted .381 and led the team in hits (90), runs scored (70), home runs (13), RBI (69), stolen bases (19 in 20 attempts), slugging percentage (.657), walks (47) and on base percentage (.480). He was tied for the team lead in at bats (236) and was second with 18 doubles.

Senior left fielder Chris Adolph batted .352 (83-for-236) and was second on the team with 63 runs scored. Junior first baseman Brian Hertel batted .348 (80-for-230) and was second on the team with 11 home runs. Junior right fielder Nate Kaup batted .345 (60-for-174) with 6 home runs and 36 RBI. Junior designated hitter Tony DeMarco batted .344 (73-for-212) and was second on the team with 49 RBI. DeMarco and Gillette each hit for the cycle during the season. Junior second baseman Matt Stoner batted .335 (75-for-224) and concluded the season with a 15-game hitting streak. Senior shortstop Eliott Sarabia was the epitome of consistent play. He batted .332 (69-for-208) and had just 11 errors in 307 chances. His 24 sacrifices (5 SAC FLYS and 19 SAC HITS) were a school record. Junior catcher Harold Betts played well over the final month of the season and batted .317 (39-for-123).

The pitching staff, after a rough start to the season, came around at the midway point of the campaign which enabled the team to be competitive. Senior right-hander Jimmy Smith was selected second-team All-WAC for the second straight season. He led the team with 25 appearances, a 4.03 ERA and had 8 saves. His 16 career saves ties him for UNLV's all-time record. Senior right-hander Bill Scheffels was the team's most consistent pitcher. He had a misleading 5-5 record. At one point of the season, the offense had scored only nine runs in his four losses. He had a 4.98 ERA and led the team in innings pitched (97.2), complete games (5), and strikeouts (99). All marks were career-highs for Scheffels.

Junior right-hander Andy McCulloch was 4-8 with a 5.98 ERA. He pitched 90.1 innings and struck out 55. Freshman left-hander Ryan Olson was 3-2 with a 6.06 ERA in 65.1 innings pitched. Junior right-hander Bryan Gidge led the staff with 6 victories (2 losses). He pitched in 68.2 innings, allowed 66 hits and struck out 52 with a 6.16 ERA.

Sophomore right-hander Luke Anderson did a solid job as the set-up man. He appeared in 23 games and had a 1-2 record with a 7.05 ERA. He pitched 37 innings, allowed only 10 walks and struck out 40. Junior right-hander Toby Harris was 2-5 with a 8.80 ERA in 45 innings pitched. Freshman right-hander Joe Maruffi was 3-2 with a 9.78 ERA in 46 innings pitched.