Dec. 20, 2005
Head Coach Terry Rupp recently announced four new additions to the baseball program, one coach and three players. Steve Braun and Assistant Coach Blaine Brown will join the squad this season, while Nick Pearce and Ian Schwalenberg are set to come aboard in 2007.
Blaine Brown, Assistant Coach
Blaine Brown enters his first season as an assistant coach for Terry Rupp. Brown's responsibilities at Maryland will include working with catchers, hitters, scouting, on-campus recruiting and coaching first base.
Before coming to Maryland, Brown spent two seasons as Jeff Messer's top assistant coach at Slippery Rock University. Brown was in charge of the catchers and hitters along with recruiting for the "Rock." While at Slippery Rock, Brown helped produce two All-Region players and 10 all-conference honorees. He helped Slippery Rock to a top-five national ranking his last year, as well as a berth in the NCAA Division II Regionals. He also helped supervise Slippery Rock camps along with running his own clinics.
Prior to Slippery Rock, Brown was an assistant at Drexel University, where he worked with the catchers and outfielders. Brown also was involved in camp coordination and recruiting efforts for Drexel. Following his stint with the Dragons, Brown spent time at Brescia University in Kentucky working with the catchers and hitters.
Before coaching at Drexel, he headed the Princeton Beavers, a high school select team in Kansas. In his two years at the helm, he led the Beavers to their best finish in franchise history, winning two district titles while earning second- and fourth-place finish in the state.
During the summer of 2003, Brown was in Sao Paulo, Brazil working for Major League Baseball. Serving as an MLB International Envoy, his responsibilities included player development, working with their national teams and organizing strategies to enhance the level of play for the Brazilian baseball federation. The past two summers, Brown has been head coach for the New Market Rebels, a member of the Valley Baseball League (one of only eight leagues sanctioned by the NCAA and MLB). He will be returning to lead the Rebels for a third summer in 2006.
Brown, a native of Richmond, Kansas, received his bachelor's degree in accounting from the University of Saint Mary in Leavenworth, Kan.
Steve Braun - 6-0, 180, IF, R/R, Granada Hills, Calif. (Granada Hills/Pierce JC)
Steve Braun, a transfer from Pierce College in Los Angeles, Calif., will join the team for the 2006 season.
In 2005, his only year at Pierce, the shortstop hit .314 with 21 RBIs, seven doubles, one home run and five stolen bases and was named All-Western State Conference. Braun was selected in the 35th round of the 2005 Draft by the Oakland Athletics. Prior to his season at Pierce, Braun spent one year at Fresno State, where he redshirted.
Braun was a three-time letterwinner at Granada Hills High School in Granada Hills, Calif., where he played centerfield, shortstop and third base. Twice, Braun was named All-West Valley League, earning a spot in the Valley Invitational All-Star game. As a senior, Braun batted .400 with two home runs and 16 steals and compiled a .475 on-base percentage. During his junior season, Braun hit .357 with three homers, 15 stolen bases and a .475 OBP. He earned numerous team accolades over the years, including MVP, Most Improved Player and Defensive Player of the Year (twice).
Braun's older brother, Ryan, also played ACC baseball at Miami and was recently selected with the fifth overall pick in the 2005 Draft by Milwaukee.
Nick Pearce - 6-5, 175, RHP, R/R, Silver Spring, Md. (DeMatha)
Nick Pearce has signed a National Letter of Intent to play for the Terps starting in 2007. The righthanded pitcher from Silver Spring, Md. is currently entering his senior season at DeMatha. In 2005, Pearce went 4-3 for the Mustangs, earning First Team All-WCAC honors. He was also selected as an honorable mention All-Met by the Washington Post. As a sophomore, Pearce was 3-0 for Dematha, helping the team to a 22-4 mark.
Ian Schwalenberg - 6-3, 194, IF/RHP, R/R, Huntingtown, Md. (Huntingtown)
Ian Schwalenberg has signed a National Letter of Intent to play for the Terps starting in 2007. The shortstop/pitcher is currently entering his senior season at Huntingtown High School in Huntintown, Md. In 2005, Schwalenberg batted .333 with four home runs, 19 RBIs and seven stolen bases for the Hurricanes. He also compiled a 1.79 ERA with 33 strikeouts in 27.1 innings on the hill. Schwalenberg has twice been named All-SMAC. As a junior he was named team MVP and was selected as Huntingtown's Offensive Player of the Year as a sophomore.
