Van Horn-like coach Hill has K-State on rise

 No comments  
 E-mail Story
 Print Story
  Share

 digg it!
 Facebook
 del.icio.us
Seed Newsvine
Fark It
Reddit

Text Size: 

Tools Sponsor

by curt McKeever

While trying to build a nationally-competitive baseball program, Kansas State has borrowed a page from Nebraska and hired a coach who could be the next Dave Van Horn.

Ever hear of Brad Hill? It's OK, 10 years ago Van Horn's name was worth a blank stare, too.

Ten years ago, Van Horn was leading Central Missouri State to the NCAADivision II national championship. It was his only year at the school, and after spending three seasons at Northwestern (La.)State, he came to Lincoln to begin molding the Huskers' downtrodden program into a powerhouse.

Hill comes from the same coaching lineage.

Having been an assistant at Kansas for four years, during which the Jayhawks made their only trip to the College World Series, Hill was hired to replace Van Horn at Central Missouri State. Over the next nine seasons, Hill's teams compiled an .821 winning percentage, qualified for seven Division II College World Series, and finally won it all last year.

No wonder Kansas State athletics director Tim Weiser was quick to call on Hill shortly after long-time coach Mike Clark stepped down last summer.

"He hired his best friend, who's also a great baseball coach," Nebraska's Mike Anderson said of Weiser.

Anderson - whose 17th-ranked Huskers play a three-game series against K-State in Manhattan, Kan., this weekend - was kidding about the best friends part. But the fact he's had Hill speak at a Nebraska coaching clinic shows the sincere respect he has for Hill's baseball knowledge.

"He's a short-game guy," Anderson said. "They'll bunt. They'll run. They're very similar to us."

Surprisingly, even in record.

While Nebraska takes an 18-5 mark into the weekend, the Wildcats, even with 21 of their 35 players in their first season, are 19-7.

They've had an 11-game winning streak (their longest since 1912). And last weekend, they opened Big 12 Conference action winning two of three games at Missouri, despite hitting just .167 and compiling a 6.58 earned run average.

"We've pretty much come in and established what we consider a pretty strong work ethic, and tried to stay very positive," Hill said. "Ilike the fact we play with expectations. We expect to be successful. If we don't swing the bats very well, our lineup has some holes. We've pitched OK, but we're flirting with disaster with walks, so we've got plenty of things to keep working on."

Steve Murphy has a feeling Hill will find solutions.

As a freshman last season, Murphy helped lead Central Missouri to the Division IIcrown. Now, he's K-State's starting right fielder and is hitting a team-high .382.

"I knew if Ihad a shot at going (to Kansas State)Iwas going to," said Murphy, who brings an eight-game hitting streak into the Nebraska series. "The way he (Hill)teaches and the way, fundamentally, he gets teams to play, it was a no-brainer."

After accepting the Kansas State job in June, Hill went through a scramble to fill his coaching staff, find out what talent he had and what he might be able to add.

Weiser -who played baseball at Emporia State, then later lived in apartment above Hill when Hill was a sophomore at the school -has been a best friend to his new coach by getting a new batting cage and renovating the Wildcats' indoor facility. K-State also recently put the finishing touches on $3.1 million of improvements to Tointon Stadium, a process that took three years.

"He understands where we're coming from," Hill said of Weiser. "Most everyone seems to think it's that five-year plan (for building a program in other sports), but what you do is start and take what's here, get the kids to buy in and build from that.

"Coach Clark went through the tough stuff, had to fight for a lot of things that are in place. It's still going to be hard work. We haven't had a lot of tradition and we're in the Midwest. But Nebraska went through the same thing."

And if the Huskers can get their program turned around with a Central Missouri coaching product, why not Kansas State?

"It's a good model," Hill said.

n Kansas State's starting pitching rotation this weekend will feature three seniors:left-hander Brett Bagley (4-2) and right-handers Carlos Torres (5-0) and Jim Ripley (3-1). Torres is a transfer from San Jose State, while Ripley was a national pitcher of the week last month for his effort in a 2-1 win against Alabama.

All three of Nebraska's starting pitchers, left-hander Zach Kroenke, right-hander Phil Shirek and left-hander Justin Pekarek, are 4-0.

n NUthird baseman Alex Gordon leads the Big 12 in on-base percentage (.532)and slugging percentage (.866). His .415 batting average is second to Kansas' Matt Baty (.416).

Reach Curt McKeever at 473-7441 or cmckeever@;journalstar.com.