Guided by Head Coach Scott Laverty, the University of Redlands baseball team completed its 2009 campaign at 25-15 (14-7 SCIAC) and ended up above the 20-win mark for the fifth straight season.

No class in the history of the program accumulated more wins than the 2009 team’s four-year seniors. These men accrued 108 victories throughout their career, including a Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) Championship in 2006.

The Bulldogs fought their way into a third-place finish in the SCIAC in 2009, placing behind two nationally-ranked teams in Pomona-Pitzer Colleges and Cal Lutheran University.

Redlands started off its non-conference season with a tough 8-9 loss to Cal Baptist University, which was decided in the bottom of the ninth. Ten days later, the Maroon and Gray chalked up its first victory of the year in game one of a doubleheader against Pacific Lutheran University (WA) as senior pitcher Nolan Nicholson (Fullerton, CA) tossed a complete-game shutout against the Lutes. The Bulldogs tuned up for the start of their conference slate with a competitive exhibition duel with the University of British Columbia before diving into conference play with a three-game set versus Occidental College.

Nicholson surrendered just one run in 8 ?? innings of work on the mound as the team garnered its first SCIAC win with a 9-1 thrashing of Occidental. The series moved to Eagle Rock where junior catcher Jefre Johnson (Canby, OR) blasted two home runs in the front end of the Saturday doubleheader before senior first baseman Matt Goldstein (Lincoln, CA) went 3-for-4 in the second contest as the Bulldogs rolled during both tilts.

After compiling a series sweep against the Tigers, the Bulldogs traveled up to Hayward and took two of three from the host Pioneers of Cal State East Bay. With the wins, Redlands improved its record to 6-3 overall before facing off against the defending SCIAC Champions, the Leopards of the University of La Verne.

Sophomore designated hitter Manny Cardeiro (San Diego, CA) and Goldstein both homered as the Maroon and Gray captured the first of a three-game set, 6-2, in La Verne. The Bulldogs, guided by Goldstein’s bat, won decisively in both ends of the Saturday twin bill against the Leopards, and with a win in the nightcap, Coach Laverty recorded his 100th career SCIAC victory.

Redlands then took a three-week respite from its conference schedule as it entertained a host of teams in both the California Classic and the California Invitational. In the California Classic, the Bulldogs downed Menlo College and split with the University of Puget Sound (WA) before ending the event with a 16-7 romp over Rutgers University-Camden (NJ). Before the team started up its California Invitational contests, it matched up with perennial powerhouse Kean University (NJ), who held a No. 4 national ranking at the time. Nicholson surrendered just three runs in six full innings of service on the mound while senior third baseman Tony Stutevoss (Portland, OR) went 3-for-4 with three runs and two RBI to lift the Bulldogs over Kean, 8-5.

Following losses to Whittier College and Rutgers University-Newark (NJ) and a win against Rutgers-Camden, Coach Laverty notched win No. 200 on his career with an 11-4 triumph over SCIAC foe Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges in the Bulldogs’ final game of the California Invitational. Junior pitcher Michael Lessig (Fountain Hills, AZ) received the starting nod on the hill for the Maroon and Gray, and he gave up just one earned run in seven frames to garner the victory for the Bulldogs.

Continuing on with SCIAC competition, Redlands faced a tough stretch, dropping a three-game set versus Pomona-Pitzer Colleges before taking one of three against Cal Lutheran University. The Bulldogs sought revenge when they squared off against regional rival Chapman University on April 9, and the Maroon and Gray eked out a thrilling 10-9 victory. Redlands plated seven runs in the fourth, but the Panthers clawed back, tallying five in the ninth. Sophomore pitcher Derek Johnson (Canby, OR) held on, ending the game with the tying run on second. Goldstein powered the Bulldog offense, compiling four hits in five at-bats.

The team averaged 17.3 runs per game in a conference series against Caltech and easily dispatched the Beavers. D. Johnson etched his name in the record books in the first tilt of the ensuing three-game set, notching a program-record-tying seventh save on the season in a 10-9 clipping of Whittier at The Yard. After surrendering the front end of the twin bill in Whittier, D. Johnson became the sole owner of the single-season saves record with an 11-6 triumph over the Poets.

With just one SCIAC series remaining, the Bulldogs faced a final tune-up against Menlo College, Chapman University and Cal State East Bay at the Chapman Invitational. Nicholson outdueled Menlo’s pitching staff in the first game of the invitational as the Maroon and Gray won, 2-1. For his elite performance on the mound against the Oaks, he was named to the Chapman Invitational All-Tournament Team. Redlands fell against Chapman and Cal State East Bay in the final two contests of the invite, setting the table for a fiery series against the Stags of Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges.

Game one featured a come-from-behind victory in Claremont as senior right fielder Corey Vane (Simi Valley, CA) and senior left fielder Kyle Rizzo (Redlands, CA) scored three times apiece, propelling the Maroon and Gray past the Stags by a score of 15-10. The two teams put on a dazzling display of power hitting in game one of the Senior Day doubleheader in Redlands as they combined for six home runs. In the fourth inning, Rizzo swiped his 29th base of the season, tying the program’s single-season record for steals. Redlands held the upper hand in the end, staving off Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, 12-10. After rattling off wins in the first two bouts of the three-game set, the Bulldogs saw their season come to an end with a heartbreaking 2-9 defeat at the hands of the Stags.

The conference head coaches recognized Nicholson, Goldstein and J. Johnson as Second-Team All-SCIAC honorees while Nicholson and Vane reaped the rewards of exhibiting academic and athletic excellence with a spot on the ESPN The Magazine/College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-District Team.

Nicholson, who compiled a 10-2 record with a 3.83 ERA, gained Third-Team Rawlings-American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) All-West Region honors. This marked the second time in as many years that he has garnered All-Region recognition from the ABCA.

Four Redlands players finished the season nationally ranked in four separate statistical categories. Goldstein’s nine triples tied for the third-best total among NCAA Division III hitters, Rizzo’s 29 stolen bases tied him for 23rd among Division III base runners, Nicholson’s 10 victories tied for the fourth-highest win total among Division III pitchers and D. Johnson’s 11 saves ranked second among Division III relievers.

Despite losing a number of four-year contributors following the end of the 2009 season, the Bulldog baseball program looks to cultivate its young and promising talent. With an experienced coaching staff and gifted returning student-athletes, Redlands will once again battle with the best of the SCIAC next season.