Augustana’s 2012 baseball season is the fourth for Mark Moriarty as the Vikings’ pitching coach.
The past two campaigns have been monumental for Augustana’s baseball program with a school record 34 wins in 2010 and the first appearance in NCAA tournament play in 2011. The South Dakota Sports Writers Association tabbed Augustana the College Men’s Team of the Year for 2011.
A key to the success has been Moriarty’s mound corps.
Following the 2011 season, Augustana right-handed pitcher Bret Severtson signed with the Lake County Fielders of the North American League and soon after with the Saint Paul Saints of the American Association. Severtson, who set a school record with 10 saves in 2011, is the first pitcher coached by Moriarty to sign a pro contract.
Severtson is not the only Augustana hurler to fare well under Moriarty’s tutelage.
Junior right-hander Kye Winter, 4-1 last year, is included on Perfect Game USA’s 2011 list of pro prospects. Last summer, Winter pitched 0.2 innings for the North team in the Northwoods League All-Star Game, helping his squad to a 6-3 win. He earned a berth on the North roster after compiling a 3-2 record for the Brainerd Lakes Area Lunkers.
Two members of the Augustana staff earned NSIC Pitcher of the Week citations last season. Senior right-hander Casey Jacobson was selected following six shutout innings in a 1-0 win over Minnesota Duluth. Junior left-hander Derek Hansen received the nod after a half dozen shutout frames in a 3-1 decision against Winona State.
In 2010, Moriarity guided a Vikings staff that worked its way to 34 wins--the most in school history. He also coached Severtson to All-NSIC second-team honors. Moriarty made an immediate impact in his first season in 2009, helping the Viking pitching staff improve its team ERA by 1.44 points.
Moriarty pitched for the St. Paul Saints of the American Association during the summer of 2009, posting a 2-5 record with 47 strikeouts. He came to Augustana after earning a degree in business management and marketing from St. Scholastica in Duluth, Minn., where he was a four-year starting pitcher (2003 to 2007).
While playing for St. Scholastica, Moriarty finished his career with a 2.80 ERA and 23 wins, which ranked third all-time in school history. He also recorded 257 strikeouts, a statistic that ranked second in school history. Moriarty earned All-Upper Midwest Athletic Conference honors three times and All-America honors in 2006. He was inducted into the St. Scholastica Baseball Hall of Fame in 2011.
Moriarty was also the winning pitcher for the Madison Mallards in the 2004 Northwoods League championship game. While with the Mallards, he went 4-0 with a 0.00 ERA.
Since graduating from college, Moriarty has worked at the Minnesota Baseball Academy in Rogers, Minn., and Squeeze Play in Sioux Falls, where he is a pitching coach.
