NEIBA announces ’23 Dick Crumback Player of the Year Watch List

BY STEVE KRAH
http://www.IndianaRBI.com

IHSAA baseball practice has arrived and the Northeast Indiana Baseball Association has announced its Dick Crumback/NEIBA High School Player of the Year watch list for 2023.
An email was sent out to the baseball coaches from Adams, Allen, DeKalb, Noble, Huntington, Wells and Whitley counties. These are the counties that the NEIBA covers when choosing their Hall of Fame members. Each coach was asked to nominate any player(s) that he feels could be in the running for such an honor. 
The watch list features 70 players. The list will be narrowed down in early May and finalists will be announced.
The Dick Crumback/NEIBA High School Player of the Year will be honored May 24 to coincide with the start of the IHSAA state tournament.
The Player of the Year will be honored at a Fort Wayne TinCaps game and at the June 11 Hall of Fame banquet.
Past winners of the award include Grant Besser (South Adams) in 2019, Carter Mathison (Homestead) in 2021 and Dalton Wasson (Heritage) in 2022.
The organization has honored local baseball players, personnel and ambassadors since 1961.
For more information, contact Gary Rogers at grogers@eacs.k.in.us or Brett Windmiller at brett.windmiller@nacs.k.in.us. 

DICK CRUMBACK/NEIBA
HIGH SCHOOL PLAYER OF THE YEAR
WATCH LIST
2023
Adams Central (Coach Josh Foster)
Sr. Logan Uhlman
Jr. Trevor Currie
Jr. Dakota Perry
Jr. Keegan Bluhm
Jr. Jack Hamilton
Sr. Ethan Poling
Jr. Keagen Combs
Sr. Ryan Black
Jr. Ryan Tester

Bishop Dwenger (Coach Jason Garrett)
Jr. Brayton Thomas
Sr. Keegan McMahon
Sr. Carter Bradley

Bishop Luers (Coach Jeff Stanski)
Sr. Nate Heflin
Sr. Qwenton Roach
Sr. Johnny Bloom
Sr. Brayden McInturf
Jr. Isaac Zay

Bluffton (Coach Jason Pierce)
Jr. Braxton Betancourt
Sr. Andrew Onuegbu
Sr. Andrew Pressler

Carroll (Coach Dave Ginder)
Sr. Will Worrel
Sr. Gabe Starks
Sr. Andrew Sinish
Sr. Cameron Saunders
Sr. Cooper Rudolph
Sr. Daniel Kirk
Sr. Camden Herschberger
Sr. Michael Dierckman
Jr. Conner Barkel

Churubusco (Coach Jordan Turner)
Sr. Croix Haberstock
Jr. Keaton Blessing
Sr. Wyatt Marks

Columbia City (Coach Rob Bell)
Jr. Brady Schroeder
Sr. Landyn Iden

DeKalb (Coach Collin Bice
Sr. Parker Smith
Sr. Ethan Jordan
Sr. Alex Leslie
Sr. Elijah Ehmke
Sr. Donnie Wiley
Sr. Tegan Irk
Jr. Aaden Lytle
Sr. Will Seigel

Eastside (Coach Cade Willard)
So. Jace Mayberry
Jr. Ryder Reed

Fort Wayne Northrop (Coach Austin Mannan)
Jr. Pernell Whitsett
Jr. Nathan Jessup
Jr. Jayden Sloniker

Garrett (Coach Jason Richards)
Sr. Peyton Simmons
Sr. Luke Byers
Jr. Luke Holcomb

Heritage (Coach Dean Lehrman)
Sr. Jackson Bearman
Sr. Morgan Andrews
Jr. Andrew Mirelez

Homestead (Coach Nick Byall)
Sr. Bryce Yoder
Sr. Jake Goode
Jr. Alex Graber
Sr. Griffin Tinkel
Jr. Mason Weaver

Lakewood Park Christian (Coach Scott Boles)
Jr. Corbin White
Jr. Gabe Dager

Leo (Coach Gary Rogers)
Sr. Jevon Walker
Sr. Gray Hoeppner
Sr. Christian Griewank
Jr. Kylar Decker

North Side (Coach Mike Werling)
Sr. Gabriel Oliva
So. Jamison Tindall

Norwell (Coach Dave Goodmiller)
Jr. Cade Shelton
So. Drew Graft

Snider (Coach Josh Clinkenbeard)
So. Landen Fry
So. Brandon Logan

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Ivy Tech’s Smith honing two-way skills this summer in Kansas

BY STEVE KRAH
http://www.IndianaRBI.com

Gage Smith grew up in the small town of Garrett, Ind.
The third baseman/right-handed pitcher is playing in another bantam burg this summer while playing for the Wellington Heat in Kansas Collegiate League Baseball.
“The community is close-knit and we have great group of guys here,” says Smith, a 2021 graduate of Garrett High School who has completed one season of college ball for the Connor Wilkins-coached Ivy Tech Northeast Titans in Fort Wayne.
Heat home games are played under the lights at Hibbs-Hooten Stadium in the seat of Summer County — Wellington. Road trips in the KCBL are as short as 30 minutes and as long as 1 hour, 40 minutes.
Wellington won the National Baseball Congress title in 2007 and were NBC World Series runners-up in 2013.
In his first eight games with the 2022 Heat, Smith is hitting .238 (5-of-21) with two home runs, four runs batted in and five runs scored. He has pitched in five games (all in relief) and is 0-0 with one save, a 2.70 earned run average, 11 strikeouts and two walks for 6 2/3 innings.
In 26 games at Ivy Tech in the spring, Smith hit .341 (29-of-85) with one homer, four triples, six doubles,15 RBIs and a .952 OPS (.411 on-base percentage plus .541 slugging average). The righty batter has also scored 16 runs and swiped 10 bases.
In four mound appearances (one start), Smith was 0-0 with a 4.91 ERA, nine strikeouts and four walks over 7 1/3 innings.
Smith does not wish to choose between infielder/hitter and pitcher as his favorite.
“I love both equally,” says Smith, 19. “I’d like to be a two-way for my whole career. I try to balance out the work with both positions.
“As a fielder my strength is putting it all on the line while backing my pitchers. At the plate, I try to spray it anywhere and be a tough out.”
While working with Ivy Tech pitching coach Javier DeJesus, Smith took the velocity on the four-seam fastball from 83 mph to 88 mph from the fall to the spring.
But Smith does not focus on speed.
“I try to be dominant on the mound,” says Smith. “I’m pitching in the (strike) zone and attacking hitters with their weaknesses.
“Every hitter has a tell about what he’s going to chase. The catcher will also help you with that.”
Throwing over the top, Smith has a 12-to-6 curveball and “circle” change-up and he has been working on a two-seamer.
Smith calls DeJesus “a pitching genius.”
“He’s been moving the ball around in our hand to get the best break we can on (pitches),” says Smith.
Another Titans hurler that has benefitted from working with DeJesus is Matt Peters, who is moving on to NCAA Division I Miami University (Oxford, Ohio).
“It was awesome playing with him,” says Smith of Peters, who throws the ball in the high 90’s. “We got to face him in live (at-bats).
“He made an impact on all of us.”
Smith has three Ivy Tech teammates at Wellington — Joel Deakins, Coby Griffith and Noah Matheson. Deakins is an outfielder, Griffith a pitcher and Matheson an infielder.
Another — Zach Green — plays for KCBL’s Park City Rangers as a catcher. Smith and Matheson are roomies with host family parents James and Jodie McCarthy.
“They are some sweet people,” says Smith. “They are willing to have people live there and care for them.
“It’s definitely more comfortable having (Ivy Tech mates) around.”
At Ivy Tech — an National Junior Collegiate Athletic Association Division II team — Smith has embraced the idea of a “JUCO Bandit.”
“I means you have some sort of grit to you. You’re dirtbags,” says Smith. “You train hard and play the game hard.
“That’s what a ‘JUCO Bandit’ means to me.”
Smith is in Kansas this summer and plans to return to Ivy Tech in the fall as a General Studies major with the idea of attracting a four-year school who will give him the opportunity to continue his baseball career.
Born in Fort Wayne, Smith grew up in Garrett and played about eight years at what is now Garrett Youth Baseball. The summers before and after his last high school season, he played for the Brett Ratcliffe-coached DeKalb County Thunder.
Ratcliffe was head coach at Garrett High in Smith’s freshman and sophomore years with Jason Richards leading the Railroaders in 2019-20 (the season was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic) and 2020-21.
“(Ratcliffe) was kind of an old school coach,” says Smith. “He taught me the basics of baseball and got me to where I wanted to play college baseball.
“(Richards) coached me in football in middle school. He was a guy I knew really well and could trust and depend on him.”
Gage’s parents are Pamela Smith and Chris Smith. He has a twin sister, Morgan Smith. Tori Smith is a few years older. Austin Carroll is second oldest sibling. Beau Carroll (who died in 2021 at 29) was the oldest.

Gage Smith (Ivy Tech Northeast Photo)

Gage Smith (Ivy Tech Northeast Photo)

Gage Smith (Ivy Tech Northeast Photo)

Gage Smith (Ivy Tech Northeast Photo)

Gage Smith with the Wellington (Kan.) Heat (R .Newberry Photo)

Gage Smith with the Wellington (Kan.) Heat (R .Newberry Photo)

NEIBA names finalists for ’22 Dick Crumback Player of the Year

BY STEVE KRAH
http://www.IndianaRBI.com

The 2022 high school baseball regular season is entering its last week.
The finalists for the Dick Crumback/Northeast Indiana Baseball Association High School Player of the Year Award have been determined and winner will be announced the week of IHSAA sectionals (May 25-30).
The list:

DICK CRUMBACK/NEIBA
HIGH SCHOOL PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Finalists
2022
Bishop Dwenger (Coach Jason Garrett)
So. Brayton Thomas
Sr. Xavier Aguirre
Bluffton (Coach Jason Pierce)
So. Braxton Betancourt
Carroll (Coach Dave Ginder)
Sr. Jordan Malott
Sr. Jaydan Duba
Jr. Cameron Saunders
Sr. Alex Smith
Jr. Andrew Sinish
Churubusco (Coach Jordan Turner)
Sr. Cal Ostrowski
East Noble (Coach Aaron Desmonds)
Sr. Brayden Risedorph
Garrett (Coach Jason Richards)
Sr. Trey Richards
So. Luke Holcomb
Heritage (Coach Dean Lehrman)
Sr. Dalton D. Wasson
Homestead (Coach Nick Byall)
Sr. Brennen Weigert
Leo (Coach Gary Rogers)
Sr. Cohden Brubaker
Sr. Donavin Massing
So. Kylar Decker
South Side (Coach Will Coursen-Carr)
Sr. Perry Stow

NEIBA releases ’22 Dick Crumback Player of the Year Watch List

BY STEVE KRAH
http://www.IndianaRBI.com

With the beginning of IHSAA baseball practice, the Northeast Indiana Baseball Association has put out its Dick Crumback/NEIBA High School Player of the Year Watch List for 2022.
An email was sent to baseball coaches in Adams, Allen, DeKalb, Noble, Huntington, Wells and Whitley counties. These are the counties that the NEIBA covers when choosing their Hall of Famers. Each coach was asked to nominated any player(s) that he feels could be in the running for such an honor.
The list of 72 will be narrowed down in finalists in early May and the Dick Crumback/NEIBA Player of the Year will be announced May 25 to coincide with the beginning of the IHSAA baseball tournament series.
The player of the year will be honored at a Fort Wayne TinCaps game in early June and at the NEIBA Hall of Fame banquet June 12.
Homestead’s Carter Mathison was the 2021 honoree.
The organization has honored local baseball players, personnel and ambassadors since 1961.
For more information, contact Gary Rogers at grogers@eacs.k.in.us or Brett Windmiller at brett.windmiller@nacs.k.in.us. 

DICK CRUMBACK/NEIBA
HIGH SCHOOL PLAYER OF THE YEAR
WATCH LIST
2022
Adams Central (Coach Dave Neuenschwander)
Sr. Alex Currie
Jr. Ryan Black
Sr. Jaron Hildebrand
Sr. Blake Heyerly
Bishop Dwenger (Coach Jason Garrett)
So. Brayton Thomas
Sr. Xavier Aguirre
Sr. Jack Tippmann
Bishop Luers (Coach Jeff Stanski)
Jr. Cam Martinez
Sr. Paul Birkmeier
Carroll (Coach Dave Ginder)
Sr. Alex Smith
Sr. Jaydan Duba
Sr. Jordan Malott
Jr. Will Worrel
Jr. Thomas Tratnyek
Jr. Andrew Sinish
Jr. Daniel Kirk
So. Conner Barkel
Central Noble (Coach Tyler Graybeal)
Sr. Will Hoover
Churubusco (Coach Jordan Turner)
Sr. Keenan Hendricks
Sr. Cal Ostrowski
Columbia City (Coach Rob Bell)
Sr. Sam Gladd
Sr. Adin Miller
Sr. Julian Osselaer
DeKalb (Coach Collin Bice)
Sr. Bryce Dobson
Sr. Logan Jordan
Jr. Eli Ehmke
Jr. Tegan Irk
Jr. Ethan Jordan
Jr. Alex Leslie
Jr. Logan Montoya
Jr. Parker Smith
Jr. Donnie Wiley
East Noble (Coach Aaron Desmonds)
Sr. Brayden Risedorph
Eastside (Coach Aaron Willard)
Sr. Jack Buchanan
Sr. Nick Snyder
Sr. Owen Willard
Garrett (Coach Jason Richards)
Sr. Graham Kelham
Sr. Trey Richards
Sr. Kail Baughman
Jr. Luke Byers
So. Luke Holcomb
Heritage (Coach Dean Lehrman)
Sr. Dalton D. Wasson
Homestead (Coach Nick Byall)
Sr. Brennen Weigert
Sr. Nick Hockemeyer
Sr. Caden Tarango
Jr. Jake Goode
Jr. Bryce Yoder
Sr. Braydon Quintana
Sr. Carter Dixon
Sr. Jackson Todor
Huntington North (Coach Jarod Hammel)
Sr. Austin Oswalt
Leo (Coach Gary Rogers)
Sr. Cohden Brubaker
Sr. Donavin Massing
Jr. Jevon Walker
So. Kylar Decker
New Haven (Coach Dave Bischoff)
Sr. Connor Cannon
Northrop (Coach Matt Brumbaugh)
Sr. Luke Siren
So. Pernell Whitsett
North Side (Coach Austin Mannan)
Jr. Gabriel Oliva
Snider (Coach Josh Clinkenbeard)
Sr. Trevor Newman
Sr. Cade Hinton
Fr. Landen Fry
Fr. Brandon Logan
Sr. Aaron Fenn
Sr. Domanic Moon
Sr. Jakob Byler
South Adams (Coach Brad Buckingham)
Sr. A.J. Dull
South Side (Coach Will Coursen-Carr)
Sr. Perry Stow
So. Evan Harl
Southern Wells (Coach Blade Rheinhart)
Sr. Branson Rheinhart
Sr. Evan Reynolds
Sr. Owen Vickrey

Here’s Dick Crumback/NEIBA Player of the Year Watch List

BY STEVE KRAH

http://www.IndianaRBI.com

Baseball coaches from Adams, Allen, DeKalb, Noble, Huntington, Wells and Whitley counties were surveyed and 69 names appear on the 2021 Dick Crumback/Northeast Indiana Baseball Association (NEIBA) High School Player of the Year Watch List.

The list will be narrowed in early May to a group of award finalists. The winner will be announced May 26 to coincide with the start the IHSAA state tournament series. The winner will be honored at a Fort Wayne TinCaps game since the NEIBA banquet has been postponed until Sept. 12.

Since 1961, the NEIBA has recognized local baseball players, personnel and ambassadors through a Hall of Fame and honors program. South Adams’ Grant Besser was named Dick Crumback/NEIBA High School Player of the Year in 201. With the 2020 season being canceled because of the COVID-1 pandenic, there was no award given for 2020.

For more information, contact Gary Rogers at grogers@eacs.k.in.us or Brett Windmiller at brett.windmiller@nacs.k.in.us. 

DICK CRUMBACK/NEIBA 

HIGH SCHOOL PLAYER OF THE YEAR 

WATCH LIST

2021

Adams Central (Coach Dave Neuenschwander)

Sr. Justin Bultemeier

Sr. Chase Murray

Jr. Alex Currie

Jr. Blake Heyerly

Bellmont (Coach Tom Montgomery)

Sr. Tanner Hirn

Sr.  Tyler James

Jr.  Kobe Baker

Jr.  Magnuss Lee

Jr. Ethan Garner

Jr. Trevor Walker

Bishop Dwenger (Coach Jason Garrett)

Sr.  Brenden Lytle

Sr. Sam Pesa

Sr.  Callan Stauffer

Sr.  Xavier Nolan

Jr. Jack Tippmann

Fr.  Brayton Thomas

Jr. Beau Jacquay

Bishop Luers (Coach Jeff Stanski)

Sr.  Lukas North

Carroll (Coach Dave Ginder)

Sr.  Jerod Handshoe

Sr.  Cameron Niedens

Jr.  Alex Smith

Sr.  Conner Miller

Sr.  Josh Kuhns

Sr. Jaycob McCullough

Churubusco (Coach Jordan Turner)

Sr.  Brayten Gordon

Sr.  Evan Snyder

Jr.  Keenan Hendricks

Jr.  Callahan Ostrowski

Sr.  Seth Abel

Columbia City (Coach Rob Bell)

Jr.  Sam Gladd

Jr.  Adin Miller

Sr.  Preston Henschen

DeKalb (Coach Tim Murdock)

Sr.  Steele Jackson

East Noble (Coach Aaron Desmonds)

Jr.  Brayden Risedorph

Eastside (Coach Aaron Willard)

Jr.  Owen Willard

Sr.  Dylan Herig

Sr.  Wade Miller

Jr.  Jack Buchanan

Garrett (Coach Jason Richards)

Sr.  Gage Smith

Jr.  Trey Richards

Jr.  Graham Kelham

Heritage (Coach Dean Lehrman)

Jr.  Dalton Wasson

Homestead (Coach Nick Byall)

Sr.  Carter Mathison

Sr.  Luke Palmer

Sr.  Kaleb Kolpien

Sr.  Graham Kollen

Sr. Grant Simmons

Sr. Cole Elkins

Sr. Jayden Lepper

Leo (Coach Gary Rogers)

Sr.  Tyler Papenbrock

Sr.  Coley Stevens

Sr.  Damien Gudakunst

Sr.  Quinten Peters

Sr.  Gannon Brown

Sr. Michael O’Brien

Sr. Dakota Patterson

New Haven (Coach Dave Bischoff)

Sr. Jacob Kortenber

Sr. Augie Difederico

Northrop (Coach Matt Brumbaugh)

Sr.  Tarron White

Jr.  Luke Siren

Norwell (Coach Dave Goodmiller)

Sr. Rocco Hanes

Sr. Eli Riley

South Adams (Coach Brad Buckingham)

Sr. Adam Besser

Sr. James Arnold

Jr. A.J. Dull

Jr. Conner Young

Southern Wells (Coach Blade Rheinhart)

Sr.  Tanner Johnson

Whitko (Coach Jorell Tucker)

Sr.  Bryce Tucker

Sr. Evan Wilson

Northeast Indiana Baseball Association

Hard work, fun mix for Richards, Garrett Railroaders

By STEVE KRAH

http://www.IndianaRBI.com

Diligence and amusement don’t have to be mutually exclusive.

Not the way Garrett (Ind.) High School head baseball coach Jason Richards sees it.

“I do demand a lot from my players,” says Richards, who spent a decade of coaching in the Railroaders softball program then took over the baseball post prior to the 2020 season which was taken away by COVID-19. “At the same time, baseball has to still be fun for everybody.

“We want to still work hard for our goals.”

Richards was a softball assistant to Scott Bishop for eight seasons before leading the Garrett team in 2018 and 2019.

“(Bishop) demands perfection,” says Richards. “You’re only going to get that through hard work.”

Prior to Garrett, Richards was a baseball assistant at Central Noble for head coach Jim Sickafoose and baseball assistant Eastside for head coach Jason Pierce.

Richards says Sickafoose has an “old school” way of doing things.

“We had a good team,” says Richards, who helped the Cougars win an IHSAA Class 2A LaVille Sectional title and compete in the Whiting Regional in 2012. “(Coach Sickafoose) wanted to get the most out of everything you can do each day.

“(Coach Pierce) brought a fire for the game. He kept the kids on their toes, letting them know they can’t just go through the motions.”

A 1996 Churubusuco (Ind.) High School graduate, Richards played for Mark Grove.

“(Coach Grove) demanded perfection and hard work,” says Richards. “He was no-nonsense.”

Before class baseball, ‘Busco won Warsaw Sectional and Plymouth Regional crowns and competed in the Fort Wayne Semistate championship against eventual state runner-up Fort Wayne Concordia Lutheran at Fort Wayne’s Memorial Stadium in 1995. 

Richards went on to be a student at Indiana Purdue-Fort Wayne, where he earned a Education degree with a focus on middle school Social Studies and Science and later gained a School Counseling masters from the University of the Cumberlands in Williamsburg, Ky.

An attendee of several coaching clinics, Richards likes to run an organized practice. 

Everyday players show up they know everything is thought out and in a certain order.

“Anything after 2 1/2 hours and you start to see bad habits,” says Richards. “In 1 1/2 hours, we can get in there, word hard, get good habits formed and have fun.”

Garrett (enrollment around 580) is a member of the Northeast Corner Conference (along with Angola, Central Noble, Churubusco, Eastside, Fairfield, Fremont, Hamilton, Lakeland, Prairie Heights, West Noble and Westview). NECC teams play each other once apiece plus there’s a conference tournament.

“I hope we have a season,” says Richards. “I think we have a lot to look forward to.

“We should be competitive in a really competitive NECC.”

The Railroaders are in an IHSAA Class 3A sectional grouping with Angola, Fort Wayne Bishop Dwenger, Fort Wayne Bishop Luers, Fort Wayne Concordia Lutheran, Leo and New Haven. Garrett has won three sectional titles — the last in 1973. In recent years, the Railroaders have been rotating as a sectional and regional host.

At its size, the multi-sport athlete is the norm at Garrett. Many baseball players are on the football team and Richards is an assistant in program led by Chris DePew. That means Garrett had just a few participate in practices during fall IHSAA Limited Contact Period for baseball.

Winter workouts — bat and ball activities plus speed and agility and weight work — have regularly been drawing about 17 with the others involved in winter sports. Richards expects to have around 30 players for varsity and junior varsity teams.

Last March, Garrett was two days away from its first official day of practice when the pandemic caused a shutdown and loss of the 2020 season.

“What a crazy year,” says Richards. “We had like four kids play travel ball last year and no (Garrett Youth Baseball for ages 5-16). 

“COVID can really hurt a small program.”

A third year as a guidance counselor at Garrett Middle School (he was a science teacher prior to that), Richards gets to see student-athletes grow and mature for six years — grades 7-12.

“I build a relationship with them in middle school and earn that trust,” says Richards. “In high school, we get them what they need.”

Richards counts Rudy Fuentes as a varsity assistant coach for 2021. Other assistants are Clay Evans, Steve Orth, Bobby York and Cody Camp. Joe Fuentes (Rudy’s son) is GYB president.

The youth league will base its draft on performance at camps held at the high school in February.

“We work really well together,” says Richards of the accord between GHS and GYB.

Garrett graduate Tristan Taylor is a freshman on the baseball roster at Earlham College in Richmond, Ind. Current Railroaders senior Gage Smith is expected to make a college baseball commitment and a number of juniors also have college diamond aspirations.

Jason and wife Emily Richards have three children — Kierra (19), Trey (16) and Brady (8). Kierra Richards is a softball player and Exercise Science major at Grace College in Winona Lake, Ind. Trey Richards is a junior football and baseball players at Garrett. Third grader Brady Richards, who tuns 9 next week, is involved in football, wrestling and baseball.

Jason Richards is head baseball coach at Garrett (Ind.) High School. He is also a guidance counselor at Garrett Middle School.