Jacob Daftari is winding up what has been productive college career — in the classroom and on the baseball field. A fifth-year senior at Indiana Tech in Fort Wayne, Daftari has earned a undergraduate degree in Business Administration with concentration in Sport Management and is about to complete a Master of Business Administration (MBA). Commencement is slated for Saturday, May 13. A four-time scholar-athlete in high school, he has been an NAIA Scholar-Athlete and Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference All-Academic while at Indiana Tech. “My parents are always stressing that academics come first,” says Jacob, the oldest child of Dr. Sanju Daftari and Dr. Julie Daftari, who met while attending the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine. “My parents have always stressed getting all your school work done before extracurricular activities or hanging out with friends.” Younger brother Jackson Daftari is an Agricultural Business major at Purdue University who is planning to attend law school. Sister Jillian Daftari is a cheerleader at Hamilton Southeastern High School in Fishers, Ind. As a righty-swinging second baseman batting second in the Indiana Tech Warriors batting order, Jacob Daftari is hitting .328 (44-of-134) with nine home runs, six doubles, 32 runs batted in, 41 runs scored and 21 walks. “To me it’s all about comfortability,” says Daftari, who carries a .1012 OPS (.437 on-base percentage plus .575 slugging average) in 41 games (39 starts). “I like to see what the pitcher does to the lead-off batter. I know I’ll get pitched similarly.” Daftari, 23, has three two-homer games in 2023 (Feb. 25 and Feb. 26 against Saint Ambrose of Iowa and March 4 vs. Bryan of Tennessee). He was named WHAC Player of the Week after going 7-for-14 with seven RBIs in the four-game sweep of Saint Ambrose. For his college career (2019-23), Daftari has played in 176 games (148 starts) and is hitting .329 (168-of-510) with 23 homers, 30 doubles, 117 RBIs, 123 runs, 65 walks and a .965 OPS (.535/.430). “My mentality is that even if I don’t barrel a ball I want to get on safely as much as I can for my teammates behind me,” says Daftari, a 5-foot-9, 175-pounder. “It’s all about passing the bat to the next guy and keeping an inning alive.” Daftari appeared in 21 games as a freshman, hit .190 and was on the team that went to the 2019 NAIA World Series. He hit .359 during the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season. He put up marks of .341 in 2021 and .329 in 2022. A middle infielder when he arrived at Indiana Tech, he was moved to third base and played there until moving to second base this spring. “It’s what I’m most comfortable with,” says Daftari of second base. “I feel I can play a greater role there. “At third base, anything but a routine play I could easily. Those routine plays got to my head a little bit.” As well as hitters, Brent Alwine coaches Warrior infielders. “He does a great job of ways at teaching us different ways we can think outside of the box in terms of making plays,” says Daftari. “There are plays where you need to think on your feet.” Kip McWilliams is Indiana Tech’s head coach and Daftari has kind words for him. “He’s a great individual,” says Daftari. “He’s also very knowledgeable about the game. “He does what he can to put our team in position to win. Even when things aren’t going well he’s always motivating us to stay together and play for each other.” Daftari played for the Indiana Summer Collegiate Baseball League’s Fort Wayne-based Kekiongas in 2019 and was an all-star in the College Summer League at Grand Park in Westfield, Ind., in 2020. He worked on his game, but did not play the past two summers. Born in Indianapolis, Daftari grew up in Lawrence and played his early baseball at what is now Skiles Test Baseball and Softball and counted the Indiana Prospects, Indiana Nitro, Travelers Baseball and the Kevin Christman-coached San Francisco Giants Scout Team (the fall squad won a Perfect Game World Wood Bat Association title in Florida) among his travel ball teams. Jacob’s family moved to Fishers and he began attending Hamilton Southeastern Schools in the middle of his seventh grade year. Daftari was a two-year varsity player at Hamilton Southeastern, where he graduated in 2018. His head coach was Scott Henson. “He was more of a nitty-gritty coach,” says Daftari. “He wanted to make sure things were done correctly. He pushed us to be the best so we could eventually play at a higher level. “We had a lot of guys who could play. Almost seems like Hamilton County breeds athletes.” Indiana Tech (29-12, 15-8) goes to Cleary for two regular-season-ending WHAC doubleheaders. The games are slated for 1 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, April 29-30. The top six teams in the conference will play in the WHAC tournament begins May 4-5. The Warriors are currently seventh.
Indiana Tech’s Jacob Daftari. (University of Northwestern Ohio Sports Information Photo)
Jack Van Remortel was born and raised in the middle of America. Baseball has allowed him to see the USA from from coast-to-coast. And he’s only 23. Carmel, Ind., native Van Remortel is a fifth-year senior first baseman at the University of Michigan. The Wolverines were to open the 2023 home season today (March 8) after games in Arizona, California and Texas. “It’s good to play some high-quality opponents early in the season,” says Van Remortel, whose already gone against Fresno State, Michigan State, UC San Diego, Grand Canyton, Cal State Fullerton, UCLA, UC Irvine, UCLA, Texas Christian, Texas Tech and Louisville. “You learn the things you need to work on as a team. “I always think about how awesome it is where the game of baseball takes you. Being able to see these cool parks and places is really neat.” Van Remortel went to the Wolverines after graduating from Carmel High School in 2018. He appeared in 16 Michigan games as a pinch-hitter and in the infield in 2019 then played for the New England Collegiate Baseball League’s Sanford (Maine) Mariners. “That was a great experience,” says Van Remortel. “I got my first taste of summer ball.” The 2020 NCAA season was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic and Van Remortel got into two U-M games with one at-bat. At the suggestion of then-Wolverines head coach Erik Bakich, Van Remortel went to Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Ore., to play for Jeremiah Robbins in 2020-21 with the idea of coming back to Michigan. “I went to get some at-bats and some experience,” says Van Remortel, who appeared in 37 games and rapped four home runs and drove in 28 runs in for the IronHawks. Relationships and connections took Van Remortel to Oregon. Michigan catcher Casey Buckley, who also went from Michigan to Umpqua and back to the Wolverines, is a California native and the son of Troy Buckley (now pitching coach at Fresno State). The elder Buckley is a friend of Bakich and Robbins, who led Lewis and Clark State to three titles (2015, 2016 and 2017) and two runner-up finishes at the NAIA World Series in Lewiston, Idaho. “I went out there for Coach Robbins and to learn under him,” says Van Remortel, who briefly played with the 2021 Bellingham (Wash.) Bells of the West Coast League before experiencing a ankle injury and went back to that team for a month in the summer of 2022. “I’ve been all over the country,” says Van Remortel. Primarily a third baseman in high school, Van Remortel has found a home at first base and explains how he approaches the position. “When I’m on the field I always like to be talking and communicating,” says Van Remortel. “That’s important. And then just being the steady force over there. Having some stability at that spot is key. A lot of plays go through first base. “Baseball is really catching and throwing the ball when you break it down on defense. Being able to make those long throws is an advantage.” A Sport Management major, Van Remortel is scheduled to graduate in the spring. What’s next? “My passion is in baseball,” says Van Remortel. “I’ve always wanted to stay in sports. Recently I’ve leaned toward coaching. “Coaching college players is something I’d be really passionate about. I’ve learned a lot in college. It’s a great age to grow and develop.” Van Remortel got his start in travel ball with Indiana Mustangs and played for the Indiana Nitro then several years with the Indiana Bulls. A four-year varsity player at Carmel, Van Remortel had Dan Roman as head coach his freshman and sophomore seasons and Matt Buczkowski for his junior and senior campaigns for the Greyhounds. “It’s kind of cool to see how different people approach the game. Having two different perspectives from Coach Roman and Coach Buczkowski is really good,” says Van Remortel, who was all-state and all-conference in baseball and all-conference in football at Carmel. He is seeing another perspective this season in Ann Arbor. Tracy Smith, a graduate of South Newton High School in Kentland, Ind., and former head coach at Miami University (Oxford, Ohio), Indiana University and Arizona State University, is now head coach at Michigan. Three members of Smith’s staff — associate head coach/recruiting coordinator Ben Greenspan, pitching coach Brock Huntzinger and director of operations Danny Stolper — worked with him at ASU. Former big league catcher, Indiana University and Terre Haute North Vigo High School product Josh Phegley is Director of Player Development for the Wolverines. Tyler Graham is volunteer coach/hitting instructor. Hunter Satterthwaite is director of data analytics. Jack is the oldest of David and Kelly Van Remortel’s two children. Lauren Van Remortel is 21 and a senior volleyball player at Northern Michigan University. David Van Remortel played rugby at University of Wisconsin-Lacrosse. Kelly (Niedbalski) Van Remortel played volleyball at Purdue University. Uncle Chris Gambol played offensive line at the University of Iowa and in the National Football League for the Indianapolis Colts, San Diego Chargers, Detroit Lions and New England Patriots.
Mark Walther helps run a business dedicated to the improvement of those who move and compete, particularly those in baseball, softball, football and golf. He is the Director of Operations at Pro X Athlete Development, which is at Grand Park Sports Campus in Westfield, Ind. “I wear a lot of hats here,” says Walther, a former collegiate and professional pitcher. “There isn’t much that I don’t do here.” Walther, 33, started as a lead instructor and taught velocity programs for pitchers and position players and gave pitching lessons. As Director of Operations, he is charged with everything from scheduling cages and turf time to making sure machines are in order to the cleanliness of the facility. He makes sure financials and daily reporting lines up with what’s coming into Pro X. After coaching at Parkland College in Champaign, Ill., and the University of Indianapolis, Walther worked briefly for Bullpen Tournaments at Grand Park and still helps with that company while also serving as the commissioner of the College Summer League at Grand Park, which had its third season in 2022. The CSL came about out of players needing a place to compete and train (at Pro X) with many leagues being shut down in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. A lot of athletes had spring seasons that were cut short or didn’t start at all. “We had a lot of time on our hands,” says Walther. “Both of our businesses were shut down about the time (Indiana) opened up (from the lockdown) is when we were able to open up the league.” Walther says he was one of six people who created the CSL and other people were brought in to make it a reality. “To start up a league like that you want high-profile players,” says Walther. “It’s tough to get high-profile players if they’ve never heard of your league before. “Right way we wanted to be able to compete with the Northwoods, the Prospect and the Coastal Plain. I don’t know if anybody’s ever going to compete with the Cape, but we wanted to be up there.” Walther says getting the amount of players and talent that the CSL did (in 2020) is the whole reason it still exists. “We just want to make sure that the product we’re putting out there is good for college players as a whole,” says Walther. “It’s good for their development in games and while they’re training (at Pro X) and getting better. “We want to meet every ask of a college coach. If they have a redshirt and they need them ready for sophomore year when they return to school then we can get them 30, 40, 50 innings. If they want them to throw 20 innings and two innings a week in relief, we’ll follow that, too. “That’s really what’s set the College Summer League apart.” Over the past two years, Walther’s commissioner responsibilities have included finding and getting commitments from coaches, recruiting and placing players and taking care of everything from payments to jersey sizes to host families. He coordinates gameday operations and hires sports information interns for the eight-team league. Those positions are posted in November and December with interviews coming in January and February. Walther grew up on a farm on the west side of Kankakee, Ill., and is a 2007 graduate of Herscher (Ill.) High School, where his head coach was Eric Regez. His junior year, Walther was the last one to make cuts for the Tigers varsity and helped his team as a right-handed reliever. As a senior, he was a starter. “I played the underdog throughout my entire college career,” says Walther, who worked hard to grow his knowledge base while improving his athletic skill set. “I was a P.O. (Pitcher Only) before P.O. was even a thing. I think I had seven career varsity at-bats. “I just kept working at it.” Mark is the son of Eugene and Beth Walther and is about six years younger than brother Todd Walther. Eugene Walther died of brain cancer when Mark was 18. “Going into college that pushed me forward,” says Walther. “It always gave me something to work for: Trying to make him proud.” Walther showed up at walk-on tryouts at Parkland. “I wasn’t a preferred walk-on or anything,” says Walther. “I found a way to earn a spot.” The Cobras coaching staff changed Walther’s arm slot from overhand to sidearm/submarine. “That gave me a whole new life in college baseball,” says Walther, who was frequently used as a freshman and was on scholarship as a sophomore. The latter team won the 2009 National Junior College Athletic Association Division II national championship. After two years at Parkland playing for Mitch Rosenthal and Matt Kennedy, Walther transferred to NCAA Division II University of Southern Indiana in Evansville. He came out of the bullpen for Tracy Archuleta’s Screaming Eagles (which won an NCAA Division II national crown in 2010). “I tried to just extend the game and get us to the next guy,” says Walther. “My job was to get us out of jams. There’s not better feeling in the world than coming into the game with the bases loaded and one out and you’re trying to get a ground ball. I lived for those moments. “Being out there when the adrenaline’s pumping, I’ve yet to find anything to match it.” After pitching at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wis., Todd Walther wound up on the baseball operations side with the Texas Rangers. Mark used the connection to his advantage. “I was able to bounce ideas off of him when thing weren’t going my way in bullpens or games,” says Walther. He got to see video of major league pitchers like Cody Bradford, Darren O’Day and Pat Neshek and could study their mechanics, grips and release points. Walther was on a path to become a Physical Education teacher and high school coach when a curriculum change at USI that would have taken him longer to get his degree caused him to change his major to Sport Management. “I started learning more about facility management and running a sports business,” says Walther, who took classes on sports marketing and sports law — things that help him in his position at Pro X. But Walther did pursue coaching out of college. He was an assistant at Parkland for a year and helped Kennedy with outfielders, operations and recruiting. He started what turned out to be a four-year stint at the UIndy as a volunteer learning from Greyhounds pitching coach Jordan Tiegs and serving for head coaches Gary Vaught and Al Ready. When Tiegs left for Indiana State University, Walther took became pitching coach and recruiting coordinator. Tiegs is now Drector of Pitching Research and Development for the Rangers — Todd Walther’s former job “I loved college baseball,” says Mark Walther. “I loved coaching it. “I really loved the recruiting aspect of college. (Players) need to come to us because we’re going to do a better job of developing them as a player. “I’m very appreciate of Coach Vaught and Coach Ready for everything they did for me.” Walther then went into tech recruiting for three months and decided he wanted to get back into baseball. Pro X has just launched into the travel world with its Phoenix softball teams. While travel baseball organizations, including the Indiana Bulls, Indiana Nitro and Indiana Prospects, partner with Pro X, there is currently no plans to field travel baseball teams under the Pro X banner. “Travel baseball really wasn’t a thing when I grew up,” says Walther. “I played community baseball until I was 16 years old. Shortly after that it began to grow a little more.” His first experience came when the Indiana Bulls and others brought teams to play fall exhibition games his first year at Parkland. Walther notes that he was lucky enough to be on a winning team from age 10 on. But that was not the case in his early community baseball days. “I got put on a terrible team,” says Walther. “I had to find a way to try to help the team win and to help players develop themselves and rely on our coaches to do the same. “Depending on where your talent is you can be put on an elite team and rarely ever have to deal with failure, losing or any kind of adversity and learn to overcome that. “Being on winning teams is also a positive because you learn what it takes to win. Whether you’re on the field or not you can find ways to help the team win.” Walther says travel ball is all about finding the right fit for you as a player. “You want to go where you have a chance to play or have a chance to compete for playing time,” says Walther. “You should never shy away from competing and trying to beat someone out to earn playing time. “In the game of baseball you’re going to have guys on the bench no matter what. It’s what type of bench guys you have. Do you have guys who are going to work and push themselves and the people that are technically in front of them? Or are they going to just roll over and complain until they move on or join another team?” Players should make sure the team will be doing what they want to do. Will it be mostly local tournaments are really hitting the road? Is the coaching staff going to help develop them as a player? Among the things coming up at Pro X are “Hard 90” classes with about 30 minutes each of hitting, defense and speed and agility. In September, the pitching academy and elite training academy for offense and defense cranks up. Pro X — with its staff of instructors including Jay Lehr, trainers and medical professionals and former big leaguer Joe Thatcher as president — is also an off-season place to train for professionals, including major leaguers Tucker Barnhart, Lance Lynn and Carlos Rodon and minor leaguers Parker Dunshee and Collin Ledbetter. Rodon came to Pro X while doing rehab from Tommy John surgery. “He learned a lot about the body and how it moves and how to become efficient on the mound and use his lower half to try to stay as healthy as possible,” says Walther. “We just do whatever we can to service them whether that’s completely help them with their program or stay out of their way and let them use the weight room.”
Mark Walther, Director of Operations at Pro X Athlete Development and commissioner of the College Summer League at Grand Park, both in Westfield, Ind. (Steve Krah Photo)
Competition. It’s one of the things Carter Lohman likes most about baseball. As a left-handed pitcher, the 2018 Hamilton Southeastern High School graduate enjoys the challenge of facing hitters. In four seasons at the University of Louisville (2019-22), he appeared in 38 games (30 in relief) and went 3-4 with a 5.59 earned run average, 62 strikeouts and 52 walks in 58 innings. The Cardinals went 134-65-1 during Lohman’s time with the program, including 51-18 and a College World Series appearance in 2019. Each season was preceded by the Omaha Challenge — a series of competitions to get the team ready for the season and focused on the goal of ending the season at the CWS. For a week or two, the red and black teams took part in swimming, tire flips, 100-meter dashes, lifting and running and more. There was a truck push around the Kentucky State Fairgrounds. Lohman was in the individual top 10 and on the winning team a couple of times. In high school, he played four varsity seasons (all but his junior year as a pitcher-only) for then-HSE head coach Scott Henson and the Royals did the Victory Challenge (the IHSAA State Finals are at Victory Field) early in the spring semester. “It helped make us mentally and physically tougher,” says Lohman. “(Coach Henson) pushed everyone to get the most out of themselves on the field. Our practices were scheduled nicely. There was no lollygagging. That was our time to get better. “At the same time he knew that baseball is fun so let it be fun.” He struck out 125 batters during his prep career and was ranked as Indiana’s top left-handed pitcher by Perfect Game. He also earned two football letters at HSE. Lohman has also enjoyed development at PRP Baseball at Mojo Up Sports Complex in Noblesville, Ind., working with Greg Vogt, Anthony Gomez and others and going against other players on Fridays. “It’s a good atmosphere for competing and getting better,” says Lohman. Dan McDonnell is Louisville’s head coach. Lohman worked closely with associate head coach/pitching coach Roger Williams. “He did not take a cookie-cutter approach (to each pitcher),” says Lohman of Williams, who has been at the U of L for 16 seasons. “The emphasis was on learning the game and becoming a better player.” Lohman learned about things like bunting scenarios and first-and-third situations. “I could go for days talking about pitch sequencing,” says Lohman. “You can use your pitches in different ways to get the batters out.” Lohman’s been good enough at it to get paid for it. The 22-year-old southpaw was signed Aug. 1 as a minor league free agent by the Los Angeles Dodgers is now at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz., throwing regular bullpen sessions and expecting to make his pro debut soon in the Arizona Complex League. Lohman, a 6-foot-2, 210-pounder, throws from a high three-quarter arm slot. His four-seam fastball has gotten up to 96 mph. His two-seamer has similar velocity with more horizontal movement to the arm side as opposed to the glove side for the four-seamer. To get more feel for the pitch, Lohman positions his index finger to throw a “spike” curve ball. Thrown harder than his curve, his slider has more horizontal break. His uses a “circle” grip for his change-up. Born in Indianapolis on Christmas Day 1999, Carter is the oldest of Northwestern High School graduates Brian and Andrea Lohman’s four children. Brian Lohman, a sales engineer, played baseball and football in high school and lettered as a defensive back at Purdue University (1992-95). Andrea Lohman, an actuary, was a high school cheerleader. Griffin Lohman, 21, is a right-handed pitcher at Purdue. Ava and Sydney have played volleyball at HSE. The Lohman brothers were teammates briefly during Carter’s senior year of high school and with the Tropics of the 2021 College Summer League at Grand Park in Westfield, Ind. What was it like growing up with a ball-playing brother? “The biggest thing was playing catch,” says Carter. “We eventually passed up our dad so we had no one else to throw with.” Carter played recreation ball in Fishers until 8 then travel ball for the Fisher Cats, Indiana Bulls and Evoshield Canes (now Canes Midwest) at 16U and 17U. He met Jared Poland around 10 while both were on the Bulls. Right-hander Poland went on to pitch at Indianapolis Cathedral High School and was selected in the sixth round of the 2022 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft by the Miami Marlins. “We definitely talk about (pitching),” says Lohman of some of his conversations with Poland. Lohman played briefly with the Indiana Nitro in the summer of 2018 before joining other freshmen on the Louisville campus. He had a short stint in the Cape Cod Baseball League with the Orleans Firebirds in 2019 and was with the CSL’s Snapping Turtles in 2020. In May, Lohman earned a degree in Exercise Science. “I’ve always been interested in how the body moves,” says Lohman. “It can help me on the field.” Away from baseball, the knowledge gives Lohman many options including athletic trainer, strength and conditioning coach and physical therapist. But now it’s about competing on the pitcher’s mound.
Carter Lohman at the University of Louisville. (Bryan Green Photo)
Brothers Carter and Griffin Lohman with Tropics of 2021 College Summer League at Grand Park.
Carter Lohman signs pro baseball contract. (Los Angeles Dodgers Photo)
Damien Wallace is finally getting to see what it’s like to be a college baseball pitcher again. The right-hander got to toe the rubber in the spring for Marian University in Indianapolis and competed this summer for the Local Legends in the College Summer League at Grand Park in Westfield, Ind. The 6-foot-5, 175-pounder made 14 mound appearances (all starts) for the MU Knights and went 4-6 with a 6.92 earned run average, 72 strikeouts and 28 walks in 66 1/3 innings. Wallace was a once-a-week starter at Grand Park. Before his first outing on Feb. 4, 2022, Wallace had not thrown a gameday pitch since Feb. 8, 2020 at Bethel (Tenn.). Entering in relief in the third inning, Wallace got three outs including a pair of strikeouts. But 20 pitches in, he hurt his arm. He wound up having Tommy John (Ulnar Collateral Ligament) surgery in November 2020 and began throwing again in May 2021 while taking that season as a medical redshirt. “It was like (2022) was my first season of college baseball,” says Wallace, who turns 22 in September and will head back to Marian in August with three years of eligibility. Todd Bacon has been the Knights head coach since the 2014 season. The 2022 season was Jason Taulman’s second as pitching coach at the NAIA Crossroads League member school. “(Bacon) is a real hard-nosed guy,” says Wallace. “He wants you to keep yourself accountable out there. Somebody will always be watching and know if you did it or not. “(Taulman) is great with understanding the game of baseball. He knows that not every pitcher is the same. We have an open relationship with him. You get what you want to get out of the program from him.” Throwing from a high three-quarter arm slot, Wallace uses a four-seam fastball (which got up to 92 mph in the spring), a two-seamer, slider and curveball. “My two-seamer has normal run action,” says Wallace. “It comes in on a right-handed batter (and away from a lefty). I have two separate grips for the slider — sweeping and a two-seam slider (which is thrown harder). My curveball is like 1-to-7 is a more vertical than my slider.” As a student, Wallace is about a year from completing a Bachelor of Science degree in Sports Performance. After that he says he is leaning toward pursuing a Psychology degree. “Being hurt and going through the whole injury progression has brought to light the psychological part and understanding the mind of the athlete,” says Wallace. “I like being able to dive deep.” He has already taken psychology classes, Exercise and Sports among them. Born in Indianapolis, Wallace spent his early years in Normandy Farms around the Traders Point area. In elementary school, he moved to Richmond, Ind., for a few years and then back to Indy. He played at Eagle Creek Little League and was on teams that lost in the major state championship when he was 12 and won back-to-back junior state titles when he was 13 and 14. His travel ball experiences include the Indy Thrashers then the Chad Newhard-coached 17U Indiana Nitro in the summer of 2018 and occasional appearances with the 18U Indiana Astros in the summer of 2019. A 2019 graduate of Indianapolis Cardinal Ritter High School, Wallace was on varsity for three years including the 2017 season when the Raiders won the IHSAA Class 2A state championship. Senior Blake Malatestnic was the winning pitcher in the title game. Alex Vela, a 2017 Ritter graduate, went on to play at Ivy Tech Northeast Community College in Fort Wayne and the University of Indianapolis, is an assistant this summer to Local Legends head coach/manager Adam Cornwell. Dave Scott was and still is Ritter’s head coach. “Hands down he is one of my favorite coaches,” says Wallace, who was chosen for the 2019 Indiana High School Baseball Coaches Association North/South All-Star Series. “He loves the game and loves teaching it right. “Making the game fun is one of his biggest things. Treating the game with respect is another thing.” Damien is the son of Sarah Dufek. His stepfather is Craig McIntyre. His mother helps run the family business, Andy’s Backflow Irrigation. Siblings are Layla Shoemaker (11), Liam Shoemaker (8) and Lachlan McIntyre (4).
Blake Malatestnic’s prep baseball ended with a flourish. The right-handed pitcher helped Indianapolis Cardinal Ritter to the 2017 IHSAA Class 2A state championship by hurling a complete game in a 10-4 win against Wapahani. Malatestnic went seven innings and threw 95 pitches while yielding nine hits and four runs (three earned), striking out four and walking one. He finished the season at 12-1 and was also named as the L.V. Phillips Mental Attitude Award recipient. But at 5-foot-9 and 150 pounds, he received just one college baseball offer. That came from Eastern Illinois University. “Eastern was my only school,” says Malatestnic, 23. “They saw something in a 5-foot-9, 150-pound kid. I was a small kid, but I had quick arm and I competed. (EIU head coach Jason Anderson) took a chance on me. “It’s something I’m forever thankful for.” More than five years later — including a pandemic and a major medical procedure — Malatestnic is preparing for one last go-round with the Panthers in 2023. Now up to a solid 175, Malatestic can look back on three competitive seasons so far. He pitched in 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2022. The 2021 season was lost when he needed Tommy John (Ulnar Collateral Ligament) surgery. In 55 games (35 in relief), the righty is 10-11 with four saves, 149 strikeouts and 72 walks in 169 innings. During the 2022 season, he appeared in 16 games (10 starts) and was 4-4 with 6.09 earned run average, 51 strikeouts and 21 walks in 54 2/3 innings. Malatestnic went to the summer collegiate wood-bat Northwoods League’s Kenosha (Wis.) Kingfish and pitched in 13 games and 20 1/3 innings before reaching his limit of combined frames for the spring and summer. “The surgeon and (Anderson) wanted me at about 75 (total innings),” says Malatestnic, who hurt himself doing velocity training just days before he was going to the Coastal Plains League to pitch for the Wilson High-Tobs in 2020 following a COVID-19-shortened EIU season in which he went 3-0 in four games (three in relief) with a 1.69 ERA, 23 strikeouts and six walks in 26 2/3 innings. A 32-week rehab program began in October 2020 and concluded in April 2021. “It was a roller coaster of feelings and situations,” says Malatestnic. “But I knew I could do it.” The pitcher was with the 2021 Northwoods League’s Lakeshore Chinooks (Mequon, Wis.). He made seven rehab starts capped at about 65 pitches each. He worked 24 innings with 29 strikeouts and seven walks. “Lakeshore was fantastic,” says Malatestnic. “They saw the long-term goal of why I was there in the first place. “(Chinooks manager Travis Akre) was a great communicator with the whole process.” Malatestnic pitched for the Prospect League‘s Danville (Ill.) Dans in the summers of 2018 and 2019 Over the years, Malatestnic’s relationship with Anderson has also grown. “He has a real open office,” says Malatestnic. “He behind me on Tommy John and did what he could with the school being shut down and all this COVID compliance stuff.” Throwing from a high three-quarter arm slot, Malatestnic uses a four-seam fastball (clocked as high as 94 mph when he was coming out of the bullpen at the end of the 2022 spring slate). He also uses a slider and change-up and — this summer — developed a two-seam sinker. “On the days when the slider’s sharp it has more of a cutter action,” says Malatestnic. “It moves more right to left without a ton of depth. I feel comfortable throwing it a lot. It plays off my fastball. “My change-up goes down and to the arm-side. There are so many good hitters in the Ohio Valley Conference to get fastballs by them.” Malatestnic credits Kenosha pitching coach Steve Andrade, who pitched in the majors and counts Indiana Tech among his coaching stops, for aiding him. “He had me using classical mechanics and posture and staying over the rubber,” says Malatestic. “Those helped me finish my pitches with the right grip and a quick arm.” Born in Indianapolis, Malatestnic grew up in Avon, Ind. He played T-ball through junior league at Ben Davis Little League. He was on a team that won district and went to the state tournament at 12. He played travel ball from 13U to 15U with the Indy Predators — coached by his father (Dave Malatestnic) and Terrance Davis. Going into his junior year of high school (16U), he was with the Indy Raiders. The next summer it was the Eric Osborn-coached Indiana Nitro. Malatestnic dressed for selected varsity games as a Ritter freshman and and even made his first start as a shortstop against Indianapolis Cathedral. He was a varsity player his last three seasons. He was three-time all-Indiana Crossroads Conference, two-time all-city, all-city Player of the Year (2017), Indiana High School Baseball Coaches Association District L Player of the Year (2017), IHSBCA All-State and a North/South All-Star Series participant (2017) and a MaxPreps Small School All-American honoree (2017). He went a combined 15-5 on the mound his sophomore and junior seasons while helping Ritter to sectional titles. “Coach (Dave) Scott gave me tests and little benchmarks and I passed those,” says Malatestnic. “He really had an attention to detail which was a really good foundation for success. “He was a hard-nosed kind of guy. We were a pretty scrappy bunch.” While there were not many future college players on the team, the 2017 Raiders hustled. “We would run hard, put down bunts and were not afraid of being down two strikes,” says Malatestnic. “We were aggressively calm.” Malatestnic still stays in-contact with Scott and makes it a point to look him up when he’s home from school. “You see a lot of guys go back to Ritter after the fact,” says Malatestnic. “That says a lot about Coach Scott. He invested a lot into his players and gave them a lot of life advice or baseball advice.” Malatestnic earned a degree in Elementary Education last winter then entered graduate school for Curriculum and Instruction. He is taking one online class this summer and plans to finish up next spring. Though he started out college on a Biology path, Malatestnic explains why he opted to pursue an education degree. “I started thinking about all the teachers I had growing up,” says Malatestnic. “Then I had to decide on what level I wanted to teach.” His senior year at Ritter he was a cadet teacher at St. Christopher School in Speedway with his fourth grade teacher, Miss Elizabeth Anderson. “It was a crazy amount of fun,” says Malatestnic. “I really enjoyed it.” Malatestnic did his student teaching the spring of 2021 while he was also rehabbing from his Tommy John. He is grateful for the time put in my graduate assistant athletic trainer Maria Garcia (now Assistant Director of Sports Medicine at Eastern Kentucky University). The graduate of Twin Lakes High School in Monticello, Ind., and Purdue University often met him early in the morning before he began his student-teaching day. Blake is the son of Dave (Karen) and Noelle Malatestnic. Dave Malatestnic works in IT at Hopebridge Autism Center. Noelle Malatestnic is an interior designed for Flaherty & Collins Properties. Blake’s siblings are Brenna Malatestnic (25), Jarek Malatestnic (21), Maddie Griffith (21) and Mary Griffith (19). Former Marian University soccer player Brenna lives in Indy. Jarek is a former track athlete at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Mich.
Blake Malatestnic (Eastern Illinois University Photo)
Blake Malatestnic (Eastern Illinois University Photo)
Andrew Morlen sees a future in public service — perhaps as a police officer or detective. That’s why he is pursuing a Criminology degree. “My dad is a first responder,” says Andrew of Greg Morlen, a firefighter in Fishers, Ind. “I have a lot of respect for the men and women in black and blue. “If I can contribute to and protect the city where I live I feel like I’m doing my part.” As a college baseball player, Andrew Morlen contributes now as a right-handed pitcher. Morlen, a 5-foot-11, 190-pounder, spent the 2022 season at Delta State University — an NCAA Division II program in Cleveland, Miss. He made 10 mound appearances (all in relief) with five scoreless outings while posting a 1-0 record with one save and a 3.75 earned run average. In 12 innings, the righty struck out eight and walked nine. After competing for the Bag Bandits during the 2022 season of the College Summer League at Grand Park in Westfield, Ind., Morlen plans to return to Delta State in the fall. He still has two years of eligibility and will consider his possible graduate school options based on how the 2023 season goes. He landed in Mississippi after the DSU Statesmen were attracted by a video posted by the coaching staff at Lake Land College in Mattoon, Ill., where Morlen pitched during the springs of 2020 and 2021. Andy Rincker, pitching coach and recruiting coordinator, reached out to Morlen and brought him in for a visit. “I just fell in love with the campus and atmosphere,” says Morlen. “We have a really good coaching staff (led by Rodney Batts) to go along with it.” Delta State went 32-17 with an appearance in the NCAA D-II South Regional in 2022. After spending the summers of 2019 and 2020 training — much of the time with Greg Vogt at PRP Baseball in Noblesville — Morlen hurled for the CSL’s Turf Monsters in 2021. Born and raised in Fishers, Morlen played local rec ball and then travel ball with the Indiana Nitro from ages 16 to 18. His head coach was Craig Huls (who is now pitching coach at Fishers High School). A 2018 graduate of Hamilton Southeastern High School in Fishers, Morlen played for then-Royals head coach Scott Henson. “He made sure you did the little things right,” says Morlen of Henson. “If we take care of the little things it will take care of the bigger things down the road.” Morlen was at NCAA D-III Anderson (Ind.) University in 2019 before transferring to National Junior College Athletic Association Division I member Lake Land. In the COVID-19 pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign, he got into five games and was 0-0 with four strikeouts and four walks in 4 2/3 innings. Playing for Lakers head coach Julio Godinez and pitching coach/recruiting coordinator Gordon Cardenas, Morlen started five times out of nine games in 2021 and went 3-1 with 4.81 earned run average. He fanned 33 and walked 17 in 24 1/3 innings. Throwing from an arm slot between three-quarter and over-the-top, Morlen uses a four-seam fastball (which has been recorded at 89 mph) with arm-side movement. “My slider is my go-to pitch (for swing-and-miss or light contact),” says Morlen. Greg and Susan Morlen have two sons — Andrew (22) and A.J. (19). Susan Morlen is a senior credit analyst for Delta Faucet in Fishers. A.J. Morlen, a 2021 HSE graduate and former baseball player, attends Purdue University.
Andrew Morlen (Delta State University Photo)
Andrew Morlen of the 2022 College Summer League at Grand Park’s Bag Bandits (Steve Krah Photo)
Treyvin Moss was a toddler when he got his first taste of baseball training. At 2, he had a bat in his hand and began to swing it as a right-hander. Father Randy — thinking of the advantages of seeing all those righty pitchers — quickly turned his son around. “I made him left-handed,” says Randy Moss. “He didn’t have a choice.” For much of Treyvin’s early life his dad was co-owner of Stars Baseball & Softball Academy near Fort Wayne, Ind. Treyvin got all the baseball reps he wanted. Two decades after first picking up that bat it’s still that way between father and son even though Treyvin is a 22-year-old redshirt junior at NCAA Division I Northern Kentucky University in Highland Heights, Ky. – less than 10 miles south of downtown Cincinnati. “I’ve never told T we couldn’t go hit,” says Randy Moss. “I’ve always made time for him.” Treyvin has been known to take BP seven days a week, getting to the field before practice or a game and coming back afterward. Oftentimes dad is there. “It’s cool because I get some swings in and he gets some swings in,” says Randy Moss. “I don’t miss a game. He’s my favorite player. I built him. He plays the game the right way. He makes my heart happy. “He’s just a dream come true for me.” The NKU Norse are the No. 6 seed in the six-team Horizon League tournament which begins today (May 25) at Wright State in Dayton, Ohio. In 51 games (all starts), Treyvin Moss is hitting .292 (62-of-212) with three home runs, one triple, 15 doubles, 35 runs batted in and 34 runs scored. He is also 10-of-12 in stolen bases. One of the highlights of 2022 for Moss was NKU’s three-game series at Mississippi State, home of the 2021 College World Series champions. “It was a great experience,” says Moss, who got to see famed Dudy Noble Field and the baseball-crazed MSU fans as the Norse lead-off hitter and right fielder. “That’s a different level of baseball.” “As a competitor you want to play against the best of the best. That’s what you prepare and train for.” Fans heckled but they also showed hospitality by sharing hamburgers and brats from their cookout with the NKU players. In 2021, Moss played in 47 games (46 starts) and hit .298 with 21 RBIs and 24 runs scored. In the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season, he started all 11 games and hit .297 with two RBIs and six runs. He also drew nine walks and posted a .460 on-base percentage. He has received the Bill Aker Scholarship from a fund endowed by NKU’s first head baseball coach. A middle infielder in high school and at the beginning of his college career, Moss has been used mostly in right field the past two seasons though he has played some second base when injuries cropped up on the team this spring. “I enjoy the outfield a lot,” says Treyvin Moss, who stands just shy of 6-foot-3 and weighs about 185 pounds. “I’m better suited there with arm and speed. I love the infield and I always will.” There’s not as much action in the outfield, but he needs to be ready when the time comes. “(In the outfield) you need to focus a little more make sure you don’t take a pitch off,” says Treyvin Moss. “You’ve got to stay disciplined.” Randy Moss knows that concept. His junior season at Fort Wayne North Side High School (1982), the team had just one senior was predicted to finish low in conference play and went 10-0. “It was all on incredible discipline and coaching,” says Randy Moss, who played for three head coaches at North Side — Myron Dickerson, Dale Doerffler and Jim Dyer — and was later junior varsity and head coach at his alma mater. After graduating North Side in 1983, Moss went to Vincennes (Ind.) University and San Diego State University, where he learned from Aztecs coach Jim Dietz (who coached 30 years before giving the reins to Tony Gwynn). Tearing his rotator cuff while chasing a ball in the gap while at SDSU, Randy underwent shoulder surgery and transferred to Huntington (Ind.) College (now Huntington University). For the Foresters, he hit .380 his last season and was a National Christian Collegiate Athletic Association All-America selection. Randy Moss went on to play for the Portland (Ind.) Rockets, Fort Wayne Rangers and in the Men’s Senior Baseball League. He participated in the Roy Hobbs World Series for 35-and-over in Fort Myers, Fla. He was inducted into the National Semi-Pro Baseball Hall of Fame. He is now director of player development and vice president of the Fort Wayne-based Summit City Sluggers (Mark DeLaGarza is founder and president) and owns Moss Painting & Home Improvement. He has about 15 young training clients and is also very involved with the Sluggers 12U team. “I love teaching kids,” says Randy Moss, 57. “It’s so rewarding.” Besides Treyvin, Randy has three daughters — Nicole (33), Alaya (16) and Tatum (8). Treyvin Moss was born and raised in Fort Wayne and began playing for his father’s 10U Stars travel team at 8. From there he went to the Indiana Bulls, Indiana Nitro and Midwest Rangers. He played at Lakewood Park Christian School in Auburn, Ind., as a freshman. He went to Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian and did not play as a sophomore. His last two prep seasons came at Fort Wayne Concordia Lutheran, where Matt Urban was the head coach. “He was more of a relaxed positive guy,” says Moss of Urban. “But he really wanted to win.” Moss hit .540 as a senior in 2018 and received a few junior college offers. He played that summer with the Midwest Rangers. It was while playing a tournament on the NKU campus that he attracted the attention of the Norse coaching staff. He joined the team then got the news that he would be redshirted as a freshman. “It was tough,” says Treyvin Moss. “I was upset about the redshirt for sure. “But it’s outside my control. I kept working hard. “I’ve loved every single bit about NKU.” Long-time Norse assistant Dizzy Peyton took over as head coach in 2022. “Diz is probably one of my favorite coaches that I’ve had in my life,” says Treyvin Moss. “He’s very down to earth. You can tell he enjoys being around the game and being around his kids. “He has an open-door policy.” Steve Dintaman, who was head coach at Sinclair Community College in Dayton, is an NKU assistant. Hunter Losekamp, who played and coached at Huntington U., is the volunteer assistant. Moss, who has two years of college eligibility remaining and is a Business major on pace to graduate in the spring of 2023, is scheduled to play in the College Summer League at Grand Park in Westfield, Ind. The CSL’s third season is to begin June 5.
T.J. Bass came out of the gate producing at the plate in 2022. The righty swinger in his fourth baseball season at Taylor University in Upland, Ind., knocked in two run in the Trojans’ campaign-opening win against Kansas Wesleyan in Mesa, Ariz. Heading into the Crossroads League tournament which begins May 7 at Taylor (note the change because of rain), Bass leads all of NAIA in runs batted in with 84. Besides that, he’s hitting .382 (71-of-186) with 19 home runs, 14 doubles, 51 runs scored and a 1.254 OPS (.491 on-base percentage plus .763 slugging average). “I need to start by giving credit to the guys batting before me,” says Bass of his big RBI total. “It seems like I come up with two or three guys on every time.” Bass, who looks to be aggressive and barrel the ball up on the first good pitch he sees per at-bat, has been used by Trojans head coach Kyle Gould primarily in the No. 3 spot in the batting order with a few games in the 2-hole. He’s often found senior Nick Rusche (.337 with 63 hits) and freshman Kaleb Kolpein (.403 with 77 hits) — and for awhile — sophomore Camden Knepp (.282 with 44 hits)— reaching base before him. Rusche prepped at New Palestine (Ind.) High School, Kolpein at Homestead (Fort Wayne) and Knepp at Northridge (Middelbury). “The back half the lineup has also been pretty good,” says Bass, a 2018 graduate of Greenwood (Ind,) Community. Of his 19 homers, Bass has clouted three grand slams (vs. Reinhardt in Waleska, Ga., vs. Olivet Nazarene in Athens, Tenn., and vs. Indiana Wesleyan in Upland), four three-run bombs, seven two-run dingers and five solo shots. The enjoyed two-homer games against Reinhardt and Mount Vernon Nazarene. Bass belted 14 circuit clouts in Crossroads League regular-season play. Taylor (36-16) is the No. 2 seed in the eight-team Crossroads League tournament. Regular-season champion Mount Vernon Nazarene is No. 1. The turf at Winterholter Field will also be the site of an NAIA Opening Round May 16-19. “It’s incredible,” says Bass of playing at the facility located in the heart of the TU campus that was resurfaced after the 2021 season. “Coach Gould takes huge pride in how the field looks and it’s awesome to see so many fans come out.” Bass has started in all 52 of the Trojans’ games in 2022, mostly in center field or right field. But he’s also been used as a catcher and first baseman. During his college career, he’s played everywhere but the middle infield and on the mound. “It’s wherever the team needs me most based on who’s healthy if we need an offensive day or a defensive day,” says Bass. “Coach Gould does a good job of looking at Synergy in scouting teams.” Taylor players watch videos of opposing hitters and pitchers to study their strengths weaknesses. At 6-foot-2 and 235 pounds, Bass has gotten physically stronger and faster since arriving on-campus thanks to off-season programs led by assistant coach Justin Barber as well as Gould. When Bass arrived at Taylor in 2018-19, Josh Lane and Wyatt Whitman were seniors. “They they were both huge role models taking a freshman and hour and a half from home under their wings,” says Bass. “They took the strain off.” Bass was asked how they could help and if they could pray for him. When Whitman moved on and acted jersey No. 11, Bass took it. It was also during his first year at Taylor that Bass was undecided on a major. He landed on Elementary Education. A camp counselor at a community recreation center since his junior year of high school and the son of high school teacher (Andy Bass) and pre-kindergarten teacher (Jenni Bass) with other educators on both sides of the family, T.J. sees that as a natural career path. “I’ve been around teaching my whole life,” says Bass. “I really love to be able to work with kids and I like getting to know them and finding their interests. “It didn’t feel like I would do as well with secondary (students). God was calling me to work with elementary.” Andy Bass teaches Algebra II and Geometry at Greenwood Community, where he has been head baseball coach since 1998. Jenni Bass ran her own daycare for more than a decade and now works at Waverly Elementary School in the Mooresville corporation. Timothy James Bass, 22, is the oldest of Andy and Jenni’s four kids. Sam Bass is two years younger than T.J. and living and working in Fort Wayne. Mary Bass is a Greenwood Community freshman. Claire Bass is a sixth grader in the Mooresville system. T.J. was born and raised in Greenwood and played Little League baseball there. Around fifth grade, he played with the traveling Johnson County Jaguars. The summers following his freshman and sophomore years were spent with the Indiana Bulls. The next summer he played for the Indiana Nitro then was with Demand Command right before and right after his freshman year at Taylor. Bass did not play during the COVID-19 summer of 2020. In 2021, he split his time between the Prospect League’s Lafayette (Ind.) Aviators and the College Summer League at Grand Park in Westfield, Ind. With an extra year of eligibility because of the pandemic, Bass plans to come back for a fifth season at Taylor in 2023. He expects to do his student teaching this fall.
Josh Pyne decided early in life that he wanted to play college baseball. And not just anywhere. Pyne desired to play at Indiana University, having been born in Bedford, Ind., and grown up near Bloomington in Linton, Ind. “We were a 25-minute drive away,” says Pyne, a 19-year-old freshman who has started all 31 games so far for the 2022 Hoosiers. “My dad a huge IU basketball fan and still is. I grew up an IU baseball fan.” Pyne verbally committed to IU his freshman year at Linton-Stockton High School when Chris Lemonis was Hoosiers head coach. Jared Pyne is a lineman superintendent for Greene County REMC. His wife, Brooke Pyne, works for a Navy contractor. Oldest son Jacob, 23, is a Daviess County REMC lineman. Daughter Adalyn, 17, is a Linton-Stockton junior involved in cheerleading and track and interested in animals. Middle child Josh followed Jacob into motocross as the family criss-crossed the country on that circuit. After Josh raced for a few years, along came baseball. He threw himself into the diamond sport, playing for the Smithville Scrappers at 9. Family friend Mike Vaughn coached that team and would be Pyne’s coach with the Indiana Nitro and Indiana Bulls through his 15U summer. “I appreciate everything he’s done for me,” says Pyne of Vaughn. Another summer with the Jeremy Honaker-coached Bulls was followed by a summer with Jay Hundley’s Canes Midwest team. In the fall of his junior year at Linton-Stockton, Pyne was with the Jeff Petty-coached Canes National squad. The next summer he played for Johnny Goodrich’s Orlando Scorpions. To help with the transition from high school to college, freshmen were brought on-campus last summer to take classes, get in the weight room and begin the bonding process. It’s a class that includes infielder Evan Goforth (Floyd Central), right-handed pitcher Luke Hayden (Edgewood) and outfielder Carter Mathison (Homestead). The latter has started in 29 games and appeared in 31 this spring. Business Management major Pyne already had a relationship with one Hoosier, having played baseball and basketball with Kip Fougerousse (who was a 1,000-point scorer on the hardwood) at Linton-Stockton. Josh and sophomore catcher/infielder Kip hang out a lot at IU. “I go over to his house almost everyday,” says Pyne. “We play cards or get some food. We have a background like nobody else on the team.” Pyne say it was a big adjustment going from high school to college, but that has been eased by the bonding, the leadership or older players and the coaching staff led by Jeff Mercer. The biggest difference in high school and college baseball to Pyne is the pace of play. “I see how much faster everything is,” says Pyne. “Balls are balls hit harder. Pitches are quicker. You have less reaction time.” To adapt to this, the Hoosiers practice and train at game speed. “You have to go full speed and push yourself to get used to that pace of play,” says Pyne. “Some drills uncomfortable because it speeds us up. But you have to be uncomfortable to be better.” Pyne, who was a shortstop in high school and travel ball, has gotten used to “27 outs” when Mercer or assistant Derek Simmons laces balls all over the field and Pyne can get live reads off the bat at 100 mph or more. Mercer has plenty of praise for Pyne. “Josh is just an A ++ kid. I’m super proud of him,” says Mercer. “He’s a southern Indiana kid at IU playing his tail off. He’s an awesome dude. He’s very talented. He can have a great at-bat. He’s a great defender and baserunner and an awesome teammate. “He’s everything a Hoosier should be.” Pyne was a four-year letterwinner and four-time captain at Linton-Stockton playing for Miners baseball head coach Matt Fougerousse, Kip’s father. As a senior, Pyne was an all-state selection and the team MVP. He was all-Southwestern Indiana Athletic Conference three times and set a single-season school record with 50 hits. As a basketball player for coach Joey Hart, Pyne was part of three IHSAA Class 2A sectional championships and played in the 2019 2A state championship game as a sophomore. “I played basketball to keep in shape and for the fun of it,” says Pyne. Josh recalls that Matt Fougerousse’s was always there for late-night batting practice after basketball games or practices. “He helped me for those four years,” says Pyne. “He even stayed and coached me for my senior year when he really didn’t have to.” Matt stepped away from coaching at the end of the 2021 season, giving himself more of a chance to see Indiana play. Going into a Big Ten Conference series April 15-17 at Rutgers, righty swinger Pyne is hitting .301 (37-of-103) with four home runs, seven doubles (tied for second on the team), 31 runs batted in (second on the team) and 19 runs scored. He carries an OPS of .820 (.365 on-base plus .455 slugging). Pyne produced a career highs three hits, four RBIs and two runs scored April 10 at Purdue. He rapped two doubles April 2 against Northwestern. Indiana 13-18 overall and 2-4 in the Big Ten. The Hoosiers are 3-5 in April. The team’s freshmen third baseman is confident IU will get rolling. “We just need to compete on the mound and at the plate,” says Pyne. “It will all fall into place. “We have the talent to do it.”
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