Senior Mike Deese made it clear where he wants to be spending the start of his summer: Omaha.

After a third place finish in the Big Ten last year, the Penn State baseball team wants to go one step further and reach the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship tournament and ultimately Omaha, Neb., the site of the College World Series.

"We preach it every time we can," Deese said. "We want to go to Omaha. We have a great group of guys this year and we're coming together. It's going to be a lot of fun. We're gonna win some ball games. We definitely want to run down the Big Ten first and take care of that. From there, you just want to get in a regional and see where it takes you."

Nittany Lion head coach Robbie Wine said although Omaha is "in our minds," he said his club hasn't mentioned it very much.

Instead, he wants to see his team improve everyday.

When comparing this year's club to the ones from the last few seasons, Wine said one difference is that he has an older group this time.

He also said there isn't a star among the group, unlike last season when Penn State finished 27-31 and 17-15 in the Big Ten and had closer Drew O'Neil.

A fourth-round draft pick by the Chicago White Sox, O'Neil had 11 saves and posted a 1.88 ERA.

As for who takes over the closer's role, Wine said Drew Palen, who was at Scottsdale Community College last year, has struggled.

But Wine added he is looking at other options.

Despite uncertainties at other roles including starting pitching and position players, Wine said having openness is "the way it should be" because competition makes the team better.

Besides wanting to get off to a fast start when Penn State starts its season this weekend, Deese seems to have an extra incentive to beginning the campaign.

After making six consecutive starts to start last season, third baseman/outfielder Deese suffered a wrist injury and missed the rest of the season. After a year of rehab, he said he is "stoked" about starting.

"I'm ready to go," Deese said. "I'm ready to play. The 20th couldn't come soon enough for me. I think it's going to be a great year. We have a lot of guys who are just as excited as I am to start playing this year."

After conference champion Michigan was the only Big Ten representative in the national tournament last season, Wine said his team can't dig itself a hole early because the Big Ten is tough and it doesn't get a lot of respect.

As for handicapping the conference, Wine said his club doesn't pay too much attention to preseason predictions.

Last year, Wine remembered his club being picked near the bottom of the Big Ten, but, months later, his club stood alone in third place.

By not paying much attention to the preseason prognosticators, Wine instead is focusing more on his team and how he assesses it.

"In the fall meetings, at the end of the fall when you go over it with everybody, 99 percent of the guys' first comment was 'This is a close group,' " Wine said.

"The older guys took the younger guys. There wasn't any separation there. The new guys fit in with the veteran guys and the returning guys. The chemistry is off the chart. I think that's what takes championship teams down the road."