Hiding freshman first baseman Ian Nielsen won't be such an easy task anymore for Ball State University baseball coach Greg Beals.
Nielsen hit .588 in his first weekend of college baseball and homered in his first at-bat. He finished the four-game series at Furman University with six RBIs, a 1.000 slugging percentage and a .650 on-base percentage. Nielsen's weekend was capped off with a Mid-American Conference West Division Player of the Week award Tuesday.
"The biggest problem is after he hit the first ball off the moon down in Furman, they started pitching him tough right away," Beals said. "He caught their attention pretty fast. I don't think it's going to be a case of opponents doing anything different against him. It's going to be a case of him keeping himself in that good consistent frame of mind."
Nielsen said he doesn't care if anyone knows his name before the game. He just wants to help his team.
"My job is to give the best at-bat I can, help out the team and glorify God," Nielsen said. "Whoever we're playing, that's my job. Another goal of mine is that if they know my name, hopefully they know I'm about God and teamwork."
Nielsen, a product of LaPorte High School is still trying to find his ideal spot in the Cardinals' lineup. Nielsen started the weekend hitting seventh in the lineup. Also, he hit in the sixth hole and fifth once.
"We're still playing around with the order," Beals said. "I'd like to keep him down there where he might fly under the radar in the seven hole, but if his average is .600, I don't think he's going to sneak under many radars."
Beals said he couldn't remember another Cardinal starting his career with a home run in his eight years at Ball State. It also happened Friday for University of California, Berkeley pinch hitter Danny Oh.
Nielsen said he was just trying to make contact off Furman starter Ian Parry.
"I was very nervous," Nielsen said. "I was trying to get a feel for the game. I got a good swing on it, and it went out. I'm just thankful I could do what I did."
The approach that Nielsen has toward the sport is what allowed him to be so successful so quickly, Beals said.
"It's no magic potion," Beals said. "Ian's got an amazing work ethic. He takes the game very seriously. We're hoping that we just continue to build on it."
The trip to Greenville, S.C., was the first time Nielsen had gone on a spring trip with his baseball team. He said he was thrilled to make the trip for his first games in college.
"I was excited to play down South in a venue like Furman," Nielsen said. "It was a new thing for me, a new scenery for me. It turned out to be more fun than I could ever imagine."
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