FROM CBB NEWS SOURCE
MILWAUKEE – The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee baseball team has announced the addition of five student-athletes who will compete next season for the Panthers.
Milwaukee head coach Scott Doffek stated today that Jordan Guth of Onalaska, Wis., Jim Lundstrom of Crete, Ill., Drew Pearson of Racine, Wis., Kyle Spurley of Linden, Wis., and Mark Strey of Marshfield, Wis., will all enroll at UWM and participate next season.
Guth finished up his career at Onalaska High School this season by earning Wisconsin Baseball Coaches Association All-District Second Team and All-Mississippi Valley Conference Second Team honors. He went 7-1 with an ERA of 1.53, striking out 94 batters while allowing just 18 walks and 42 hits in 64 innings of work while his team went 16-11 overall. As a junior, he went 8-0 with a 1.66 ERA in nine games, leading Onalaska to a 24-4 record overall. He finished with five complete games and two shutouts. The all-conference pitcher has played in the WBCA Brewers Classic All-Star game and is also a National Honor Society member who has earned all-academic honors. A member of the 2008 Wisconsin State Baseball Legion championship team, Guth was also an all-state hockey player.
"Jordan is a tall, lanky pitcher with long levers and a good arm," Doffek said. "He is an upper-80’s to 90-mph kid with a prototypical pitcher’s body and a hockey mentality. He has a very bright future on the mound for the Panthers and brings a high ceiling."
Pearson played at Racine Horlick High School, earning All-Southeast Conference and All-Racine County honors as a catcher on the diamond. He was a two-time WBCA Brewers Classic All-Star and also played three years with the Racine Hitters Premier team, batting .454 in 44 games last season, driving in 39 runs and recording a team-high .708 slugging percentage.
"Drew is a very hardworking player who is physically strong," Doffek said. "He comes from a great program with the Racine Hitters so he has been out there playing good competition and will know what it takes. He is a kid that, as his bat develops and catches up with the speed of the game, will press for playing time."
Lundstrom, Spurley and Strey have all been teammates for the past two seasons at MATC in Madison, Wis. Each helped lead the team to a 37-12 record overall in 2009, winning its 18th-straight league title and advancing to the district championship.
Lundstrom just wrapped up his second season as an infielder with the Wolfpack, making 44 starts. In addition to 44 runs scored and 18 runs batted in, he was one of the team leaders with 16 stolen bases. That followed a freshman campaign where he batted .326 in 46 games, driving in 27 runs, scoring 41 times, stealing 10 bases and recording a .437 on-base percentage on his way to WTCC All-Conference honors and all-academic honors. That followed a prep career at Crete-Monee High School (Ill.) where he was all-region twice and all-conference three times.
"Jimmy’s biggest asset as a baseball player is exceptional instincts for the game," Doffek said. "He is flexible and can play a few positions for us so he gives us added depth at a few different spots. We love his makeup as a player."
Spurley is a pitcher who went 5-0 in 19 games over his two seasons. This past spring, he went 4-0 in nine games, hurling two complete-game shutouts. In 34.1 innings on the mound, he struck out 27 and walked just nine batters. He was a standout athlete at Iowa-Grant High School, earning all-conference honors four times and honorable mention all-state accolades. He won over 30 games and recorded over 250 strikeouts in his prep career, earning Southwest Wisconsin Activities League Player of the Year honors.
"Kyle is a pitcher with a good frame and he possesses a quick hand," Doffek said. "He is a good athlete and I think his strength is in his competitiveness. He has the ability to move the ball in and out, an upper 80-mph type kid. He definitely has more potential for added velocity and brings a good mentality and competitive nature to the mound."
Strey was a two-year starter in the outfield at MATC and batted .322 in 45 games in 2009. He scored 26 runs and knocked in 31 runs, while recording a .416 on-base percentage. As a freshman, he started 25 times in 33 appearances, batting .286 with 25 runs scored and 20 runs batted in. He was a two-time all-conference pick at Marshfield High School, earning WBCA Honorable Mention All-State honors as a senior when he batted .413. The all-district selection batted .354 as a junior and was also selected to play in the WBCA All-Star Classic and as team MVP.
"Mark is a `toolsy’ kid, a fast-twitch kid with a good arm," Doffek said. "He is a good runner and has shown some bat speed. It should be fun to watch him develop as he certainly has the tools to work with. We are excited to have him here at UWM."
