As the Cavaliers head into National Junior College Athletic Association baseball tournament play, they have combined to whiff a school-record 530 batters in 57 games. Punch-outs have come at a rate of 10.82 per nine innings.
A good many of those whiffs have come from pitchers who hail from Indiana high schools, including team leader freshman right-hander Cole Martz (Huntington North Class of 2023) 89 plus freshman Peyton Niksch (Andrean Class of 2022) 69, freshman Jackson Peeler (Hebron Class of 2023) 43, freshman J.J. Calmes (Warren Central Class of 2023) 18, freshman Kolton Floor (North Miami Class of 2023) 13, sophomore Hunter Niksch (Andrean Class of 2021) 11, freshman Brett Cook (Andrean Class of 2023) 5 and sophomore Leroy Lepper (Heritage Class of 2022) 2.
“That record is something that we don’t really set our sights on,” says Shafer. “I honestly didn’t know were were threatening it until a few days before we broke it.
“We are really deep on the mound and most of our guys have the ability to go and got a big strikeout when we need it and that takes some pressure off our defense. That record gets broken when you have aggressive pitchers that have good stuff and that is credit to our arms and how hared they have worked.”
Kankakee (35-21-1) plays in the National Junior College Athletic Association Division II Region IV tournament slated for May 16-18 at Robin Roberts Field in Madison, Wis. The Cavs’ first game is 9 a.m. Central Time today (May 16) against Madison. Black Hawk and Rock Valley are the other two teams in the field for the double-elimination event.
The Grant Bellak-coached Panthers (30-15) won the 2024 HCAC tournament in Kokomo and earned an NCAA D-III regional berth. Hanover goes to a site hosted by Denison and also featuring Rowan and Millikin. The regional is May 17-19.
At the Upland (Ind.) Bracket, the five teams are No. 1 seed Missouri Baptist, No. 2 Taylor (Ind.), No. 3 Mid-America Nazarene (Kan.), No. 4 Indiana Southeast and No. 5 Indiana Tech.
At Williamsburg (Ky.) Bracket, there’s No. 1 Cumberlands (Ky.), No. 2 Bellevue (Neb), No. 3 Loyola (La.), No. 4 Saint Francis (Ind.) and No. 5 Park (Mo.).
The Kyle Gould-coached Taylor Trojans (41-14) won the Crossroads League regular-season and tournament titles.
Brett Neffendorf’s Indiana Southeast Grenadiers (32-18) were River States Conference tournament runners-up.
Kip McWilliams’ Indiana Tech Warriors (32-22) won the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference tournament. The team is on an 11-game win streak.
Dustin Butcher’s Saint Francis Cougars (37-17) finished second in the Crossroads League tournament.
The Brett Neffendorf-coached Grenadiers await their NAIA Opening Round assignment.
Three teams remain in the NAIA’s Crossroads League tournament in Winterholter Field in Upland, Ind. — regular-season champion and No. 1 seed Taylor (40-14) takes on the winner of the 3 p.m. Monday, May 6 game between No. 3 Saint Francis (36-16) vs. No. 6 Marian (25-26) at 6 for the title. A second championship game called will be played if necessary in the double-elimination format.
Indiana Tech (30-22) has made the best-of-three championship series in the NAIA’s Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference tournament at Warrior Field in Fort Wayne, Ind. Those games against Madonna are slated for 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. today (May 6) and — if necessary — Tuesday (May 7).
Kip McWilliams’ Indiana Tech team has won nine games in a row. The Warriors began the 2024 season at 0-6 and 2-16.
Regular season champion Indianapolis (34-16) is the No. 1 seed in an eight-team field. The Al Ready-coached Greyhounds play Lewis at 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time/7:30 p.m. Central Time on Wednesday, May 8.
Hanover (26-14) is the No. 1 seed, followed by No. 2 Transylvania, No. 3 Rose-Hulman (23-17), No. 4 Mount St. Joseph, No. 5 Anderson (23-17) and No. 6 Franklin (20-20).
Four teams made NCAA D-III’s North Coast Athletic Conference — No. 1 seed Wittenberg, No. 2 Denison, No. 3 DePauw (23-15) and No. 4 Kenyon. The event is May 9-11 in Chillicothe, Ohio.
Through the Week of April 29-May 5, the longest win streaks among the state’s NCAA Division I teams belong to Indiana State (34-10) and Southern Indiana (22-26) at three games apiece.
Mitch Hannahs’ ISU Sycamores are 17-4 in the Missouri Valley Conference and have MVC series left against Evansville and Valparaiso to wrap the regular season plus a mid-week game against Ball State.
Tracy Archuleta’s Screaming Eagles are 11-10 in the Ohio Valley Conference and have OVC series left with Arkansas-Little Rock and Western Illinois plus mid-weeks with Evansville and Middle Tennessee State.
The junior left-hander at NAIA member St. Ambrose University in Davenport, Iowa, threw an eight-inning complete game with a career high-tying 12 strikeouts and four walks in a 14-1 win against Judson University. He had a shutout going until the seventh inning.
In eight mound outings (all starts) for the 2024 Fighting Bees, Bosse is 2-1 with a 6.00 earned run average, 53 strikeouts and 36 walks in 36 innings. Opponents are hitting .218 against him.
In his first season at St. Ambrose in 2023, he pitched 11 times (six as a starter) and was 1-0 with a 3.82 ERA, 53 strikeouts and 38 walks in 30 2/3 innings.
SAU head coach Tony Huntley and pitching coach Hunter Keim could decide to send Bosse to the bump Sunday, April 28 against visiting Calumet College of St. Joseph (the school in Whiting, Ind., has players familiar to Bosse including Jorge Santos) or save him for next week’s CCAC Tournament in Joliet, Ill.
Pitching wasn’t always the thing for Bosse.
Growing up in Crown Point, Ind.,and playing Little League and Cal Ripken/Babe Ruth ball and travel ball with Top Tier, he was an outfielder.
“I’d go in if we needed a guy,” says Bosse. “I had no real feel for how to be a pitcher.”
He went up the ladder for the Bulldogs, playing on the frosh team as a freshman, junior varsity squad as a sophomore and varsity as a junior. He could be found in left field or center field.
Indiana High School Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Famer Steve Strayer leads the CPHS program.
“He’s probably one of the best coaches I’ll ever have,” says Bosse of Strayer. “He’s a great guy. He really gave me confidence.
“He helped me become a better baseball player and a better person.”
While working out for a 2020 senior season that wound up canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Bosse began to get serious about pitching.
After graduation, the left-hander stuck with it.
As fits his personality, he threw himself the task of getting better at the craft.
“I’m a very fierce competitor,” says Bosse, 22. “I care a lot about what and how I’m doing. If goes beyond the game for me. I’m planning my days out around what I’m going to do to get better.
“My competitiveness and hunger to do better every day are my best qualities.”
Delivering from a high three-quarter arm slot, the 5-foot-11, 170-pound Bosse mixes a four-seam fastball, “circle” change-up, 12-to-6 curveball and a slider.
He has topped out at 92 mph and sits at 87 to 91 mph with his fastball. His change travels at 75 to 78, curve at 70 to 74 and slider at 76 to 79.
“I try to get more arm-side sink (with the change-up),” says Bosse. “I try to get a lot of fade to it to miss more barrels. It plays really well off my fastball.
“I do get a lot of natural run. When I pull it down, I get more back spin than side spin. I try to create a rise effect with it.”
Toeing the slab for the Steve Ruzich-coached Bulldogs, Bosse pitched in 37 games (29 as a reliever) in 2021 and 2022 and went 5-3 with 5.72 ERA, 96 strikeouts and 70 walks in 74 innings.
Pitching for the NWI Rippers in a Babe Ruth district game in the summer of 2021, Bosse struck out a record 20 batters. He faced 24 batters and gave up one hit in 6 2/3 innings. Of 106 pitches, 69 were strikes.
“I do consider myself to be a pretty high-strikeout pitcher,” says Bosse. “I do take into account how many pitches I’m using. If I can strike out a guy as fast as I can, I try to do that and really challenge him.”
Through Twitter (now X), Bosse was recruited to St. Ambrose by assistant coach Joe Vaccaro.
“I came out here for a visit, loved it and decided it was the place for me,” says Bosse. “It is a really nice place.”
A Sport Management major, Bosse expects to finish his undergraduate degree in the fall then begin masters classes. He says he plans to play 2025 might come back in 2026 as a graduate student. The pandemic plus his time in junior college has added to his eligibility clock.
Bosse’s favorite MLB team is the Los Angeles Dodgers. A recreational basketball player growing up, his favorite athlete is former Chicago Bulls point guard Derrick Rose.
“I got to see him play a couple of times when I was a kid,” says Bosse. “That’s how I grew to love Chicago.”
Jacob is the oldest of Brad and Diana Bosse’s two children. Allyson Bosse is studying Business at Indiana University South Bend.
Jacob Bosse. (St. Ambrose University Photo)
Jacob Bosse. (St. Ambrose University Photo)
Jacob Bosse. (St. Ambrose University Photo)
Jacob Bosse. (Lake County CornDogs Photo)
Jacob Bosse. (Lake County CornDogs Photo)
Jacob Bosse. (South Suburban College Photo)
Jacob Bosse.
Jacob Bosse with sister Allyson, father Brad and mother Diana.
Kyle Iwinski has been pitching a baseball since about the time he started school.
The youngest son of former Mount Carmel High School (Chicago) and South Suburban College (South Holland, Ill.) player Kevin Iwinski was on a mound at 5 or 6.
“He had some professional tryouts,” says Iwinski of his father, who has a shortstop and pitcher. “He knows what it takes for you to successful in a game and mentally how to approach the game.”
“It’s just a winning mentality,” says Iwinski of Jennings’ approach. “We won all those sectional championships in a row and he was always striving for his players to be great and doing what it takes to get to the next level.”
Like older siblings Chris Iwinski (who played football at Griffith) and Samantha Iwinski (who played volleyball at Crete-Monee High School in Illinois, Prairie State College and Brown Mackie College), Kyle was born in Blue Island, Ill. His father is from Dolton, Ill., and mother Gail Albrecht is from Riverdale, Ill.
Chris Iwinski, who is familiar with the rigors of the gridiron and also studies nutrition and performance, is another mentor for his brother.
“If I ever have a question about that I’ll go straight to him,” says Iwinski.
Now 23, Kyle Iwinski relishes the role of starting pitcher.
“It means coaches have faith in me,” says Iwinski, who is on a team with Greg Goff as head coach and Kyle Newman as pitching coach. “They trust me to start the game and get the win for the team.”
His goals?
“Getting easy outs, rollovers, fly balls,” says Iwinski. “I’m not worried about the strikeouts.
“I’m just trying to put my team in a position to win.”
The 2024 season is the last as a collegian for the 6-foot-2, 220-pound right-hander. In three mound starts (vs. Stony Brook, George Mason and Cal State Fullerton), he is 1-0 with a 6.75 earned run average, six strikeouts and two walks in 13 1/3 innings. He is expected to start again Saturday, March 9 against Albany at Purdue.
In 2023, Iwinski made 15 appearances (11 starts) for the Boilermakers and went 3-5 with a 4.54 earned run average, 39 strikeouts and 19 walks in 69 1/3 innings. He induced seven ground ball double plays — second on the team.
On March 6, Iwinski was named both the Collegiate Baseball National Pitcher of the Week and Big Ten Conference Pitcher of the Week after tossing a seven-inning one-hitter with eight strikeouts and no walks March 4 against Akron in Holly Springs, N.C.
He was Purdue’s most effective weekend starter at home since 2016, posting a 2.06 ERA and .215 batting average against in 35 innings at Alexander Field.
Prior to Purdue, Iwinski spent three seasons at Kankakee (Ill.) Community College — the 2020 COVID-19 season plus 2021 and 2022. In 22 starts, he went 13-4 with a 3.45 ERA, 152 strikeouts and 40 walks in 138 1/3 innings. His pitching coach with the Cavaliers was Bryce Shafer (who is now KCC head coach).
Iwinski was second-team National Junior College Athletic Association all-region in 2022 as the staff ace averaging 10.48 strikeouts per nine innings.
It’s the unity of baseball that appeals to Iwinski.
“It’s the camaraderie with teammates, building a family and sticking together even when times go bad,” says Iwinski. “The team we have here at Purdue I believe is a true family. No matter what goes on we’re going to stick together and fight through it.”
In summer collegiate ball, Iwinski pitched for the Northwest Indiana Oilmen in Whiting in 2019, the Beecher (Ill.) Muskies in 2020 and 2021. He was bound for the Northwoods League’s Traverse City (Mich.) Pit Spitters in 2022, but with such a large work load at Kankakee in the spring he spent the summer working out and focusing on strength and mobility. He did the same in the summer of 2023 after his first season at Purdue.
Delivering the ball from a three-quarter arm slot, Iwinski uses a four-seam fastball, sinker, change-up and slider. The four-seamer and sinker both travel around 91 to 93 mph. The sinker runs into right-handed batters. A “circle” change goes 84 to 86 mph. A slider, which is more horizontal than vertical, is generally clocked at 82 to 84 mph.
Iwinski lists endurance, physical frame and the ability to go deep into games as his best athletic qualities.
He has a routine between starts. The day after, he is running to get out the lactic acid and does a heavy lift with strength coach Tony “Ty” Webb.
“I just stay with whatever he has to say just try to push through it.”
The next day, there’s no throwing and some tempo runs to flush out more fluids.
The third day after a start typically features a moderate lift and lateral squats to activate the legs and hips.
The fourth day is a bullpen to tune up for the next start.
The fifth day features a light lift to get the nerves working.
“I was not a big weight lifter in high school or junior college,” says Iwinski, who was around 175 pounds at Griffith. He credits his genetics for the size he is now.
Interested in knowing “why people think they way they think,” Iwinski is a Sociology major. One his courses this semester is Criminology.
I’m big into Criminal Minds, The First 48 and those kinds of shows,” says Iwinski. “Maybe one day I’ll be a detective myself.”
The Mitch Hannahs-coached Sycamores are 7-0 after a 4-0 week (Feb. 19-25) — one win each against Florida Gulf Coast and Michigan State and two against Marshall.
Offensive leaders of NCAA Division I ISU include Yorktown (Ind.) High School graduate Parker Stinson (.360 with three home runs and seven runs batted in) plus Randal Diaz (.357-1-7). Edgewood High alum Luke Hayden (1-0, 0.00 earned run average) and Yorktown graduate Jacob Pruitt (1-0, 0.77) have both started two games on the mound.
After losing its first game of 2024, Indiana is 6-1.
Devin Taylor (.552-3-8) and Center Grove High graduate Tyler Cerny (.406-1-7) are among the top hitters for Jeff Mercer’s red-hot Hoosiers. Jasper High alum Conner Foley (1-0, 0.00) has started on the bump twice.
At 3-2, Anderson boasts the best start in NCAA D-III. Among the top hitters in Ravens coach Matt Bair’s lineup are Martinsville High alum Justin Reed (.533 with 7 RBIs) and Carmel High graduate Griffin Wolf (.500-2-6). Pitching wins have been earned by Woodlan High alum Carter Knoblauch, Clinton Prairie High graduate Landen Southern and Avon High alum Jacob Hoffman.
Xander Willis (.357-3-13) has started all 17 games for the Andy Lasher-coached Mighty Oaks. Evansville Harrison graduate Benjamen Simmons (4-0, 0.95) has won all his pitching starts.
For Dustin Butcher’s USF Cougars, Norwell High alum Eli Riley (.469-2-10) plus Fort Wayne Bishop Dwenger High graduates Brenden Lytle (.417-6) and Sam Pesa (.350-1-10) are among the offensive leaders. Fort Wayne Snider High alum Deron Swanson (3-0, 1.20) has won all of his mound starts.
“Coaching staff and players will be held to a high standard both on and off of the field,” says Segal, whose hiring came in October 2023. “We represent a great community that supports great educational opportunities and extracurricular activities.
“The accumulation of great days with discipline and focus will determine how successful this program can become.”
The Titans are part of an IHSAA Class 3A sectional grouping in 2024 with Boonville, Evansville Bosse, Evansville Memorial. Mt. Vernon and Princeton Community. Gibson Southern has won nine sectional titles — the last in 2014.
“With the size of school and the amount of athletes that compete on other teams, we started baseball-related and weight training workouts in December,” says Segal, who is just the third head coach in program history after Jim Reid and Chris May. “The emphasis was to have a detailed plan of work that would help our players in their skill development by position, and to prepare for upcoming game situations.”
Segal is a 2002 graduate of North Central High School in Indianapolis where he played for Rick Shadiow and Indiana University where he played three seasons for Bob Morgan (2003) and one for Tracy Smith (2004-06).
A catcher, Segal helped IU qualify for the 2003 Big Ten Conference tournament and was and letterwinner and academic all-Big Ten 2004-06.
After his playing career, Segal embarked on a career as a baseball coach and instructor.
Most recently, Segal was hitting coach for the independent professional Frontier League’s Evansville (Ind.) Otters (2016-23). He was the FL Coach of the Year in 2017.
The owner of more than 800 wins as a manager and assistant coach, Segal won two league championships and one league runner-up as hitting coach with the independent pro Gary SouthShore RailCats.
Segal has been part of seven playoff series and had more than 30 players signed by Major League Baseball organizations.
Collegiately, Segal has served on staffs at Butler, Tarleton State (Texas), Wabash Valley College, Iowa Western and Union (Kentucky). He was a part of seven nationally-ranked squads and has made both a World Series appearance in both the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) and National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA).
In his nine seasons as a collegiate coach, more 70 players went on sign pro contracts.
Segal was the head coach for the summer collegiate North Adams (Mass.) SteepleCats in 2010 and Terre Haute (Ind.) Rex in 2015. With the SteepCats, he managed in the New England Collegiate Baseball League All-Star Game, The Rex won the Prospect League and Segal was named PL Manager of the Year.
In 2007, Segal was a baseball operations intern with the Cincinnati Reds, preparing advanced scouting reports and providing support to the Director of Scouting Administration.
Segal has also been an instructor at Britton’s Bullpen in Boonville, Ind.
“I was very fortunate to have played for and coached with many highly-motivated, positive individuals that had a true passion for the game,” says Segal. “The key is to pull certain nuggets from all of those you come in contact with, so that you can continue to grow and share in the industry.”
At Gibson Southern, Segal’s coaching staff will include May, Zach Pullum, Reed Farmer, Chris Wilkerson and Axel Freudenberg.
May, a former Indiana State University-Evansville (now University of Southern Indiana) infielder, was Titans head coach the past 16 seasons.
Pullum, an Indiana State University graduate, enters his seventh season at Gibson Southern. He is Director of Baseball Operations and bullpen coach for the Titans as well as an IT Computer Support Specialist for the school.
Farmer, an Oakland City University alum, is going into his fourth season of coaching high school baseball.
Wilkerson is also going into his seventh campaign at Gibson Southern.
Freudenberg, another OCU graduate, is heading into his third season.
Titan Baseball Field, located on-campus, has natural grass. Dimensions are 309 feet down the left field line, 370 to center and 305 to right.
Feeder system includes the Fort Branch, Haubstadt and Owensville youth baseball programs. Local travel teams in Gibson County include South Gibson Heat and Southern Smoke.
Segal says no one on the current roster is committed, but there are players who are interested in taking that path.
Bobby and wife Rachel Segal live in Fort Branch with children Asher, Jacob and Lillian.
Bobby Segal, who has a Master of Education degree from Union College in Barbourville, Ky., is to being teaching at Gibson Southern in the fall of 2024.
At 24, Daylan Nanny just might be the youngest recruiting coordinator in college baseball.
Nanny, a 2017 graduate of Plainfield (Ind.) High School who hit .313 (197-of-629) in 161 games as lefty-swinging outfielder with National Junior College Athletic Association member Arizona Western College (2018) and NCAA Division I Western Carolina University (2019-21), was put in charge of talent procurement when he became a full-time assistant on the staff of Brad Neffendorf at LSU Shreveport in July.
“My paid title is recruiting coordinator,” says Nanny of his position at the institution on northwest Louisiana. “It’s one of the 392 hats I wear.
“I’m blessed. I really am. They took a chance on a young guy for a big role. The bloodline of your program is recruiting. I’ve been able to take it and run with it and be aggressive.”
Right-handed pitcher and Lawrence North High School graduate Calvin Shepherd (who pitched at the University of Illinois in 2022 and Black Hawk College in Moline, Ill., in 2023) is part of the NAIA’s No. 1 junior college recruiting class according to college baseball influencer Noah Sharp.
LSUS is 167-38 in Brad Neffendorf’s four seasons in Shreveport and went to the NAIA World Series in Lewiston, Idaho, in 2021 and 2022 and earned Red River Athletic Conference regular-season titles in 2022 and 2023. The RRAC has schools from Louisiana, Texas and New Mexico.
The 2023 Pilots finished 47-10 overall and 27-3 in RRAC and were ranked No. 2 in the final poll after finishing one win short of Lewiston as an Opening Round host under the brother of new Indiana University Southeast head coach Brett Neffendorf.
LSUS is ranked No. 5 in the 2024 NAIA preseason poll. One of the toughest schedules in the country awaits the Pilots with 17 of 26 opponents ranked or receiving votes.
Six of the team’s first 10 games are against Top 25 foes including an Opening Day doubleheader with No. 12 Webber International on Jan. 26.
In early February, the Pilots play preseason No. 23 Rheinhardt (Ga.) and No. 18 Mobile (Ala.).
LSUS will get what they hope is an early look at Harris Field in Lewiston with a four-game series at No. 3 Lewis-Clark State April 12-14.
Pilot Field features a turf infield and an indoor training facility.
“We’ve got a chance to do something special,” says Nanny. “Neff does a good job of making sure we’re all organized.”
The Pilots staff, which also includes two other newcomers in Robert Pickett and Zach Sanders, was to convene today (Dec. 28) after a holiday break and welcome players back Jan. 2.
Former IU Southeast head coach Ben Reel was among those who has given advice to the young coach.
“I was lucky to have so many people in my corner,” says Nanny.
“I’m excited to get down there and build relationships,” says Nanny, who has already built wide network in the baseball community. “I turn 25 in February. This is my window. I’m going to dive into this and try to make it a lifelong profession.”
Two Indiana schools and members of the Crossroads League — Taylor University and Indiana Wesleyan University — are preseason No. 9 and No. 14, respectively.
Two players from central Indiana — 2018 Ben Davis High School graduate Zyon Avery (2022 and 2023) and 2017 Indianapolis North Central High School alum Allbry Major (2022) — played at LSUS.
Nanny played against Avery at Ben Davis Little League and against Major during travel ball and then in the Cape Cod League (2019).
Prior to joining the LSUS Pilots, Nanny was a volunteer assistant specializing in recruiting and offensive player development for head coach Marc Rardin in his first season at NCAA D-I Western Kentucky University (2023).
During Nanny’s season in Bowling Green, the Hilltoppers won 33 games — a 15-win improvement from he previous season. WKU also got better in 18 different offensive categories.
Before Western Kentucky, Nanny was recruiting coordinator/hitting coach for Rob Fournier at perennial juco powerhouse Wabash Valley College in Mount Carmel, Ill.
Nanny followed Fournier to WKU when the veteran coach became a Hilltoppers assistant. Rardin and Fournier are both the the NJCAA Hall of Fame.
“I’m lucky to now have recruited at three levels,” says Nanny.
For a short time before becoming a college coach, Nanny joined buddies Kalib Clark (a 2016 Plainfield grad who played at Indiana University Kokomo and MidAmerica Nazarene University) and Cooper Trinkle (a 2017 Columbus North High School alum who played the University of Evansville, John A. Logan College, Indiana University and Saint Leo University) to form and briefly run HitClub Player Development Services.
One of Nanny’s other duties at LSUS is guiding hitters.
“Our mentality is to change the score and win pitches,” says Nanny. “We want to play the game pitch-to-pitch.
“Playing the scoreboard and the opponent is almost like a lost art.”
Nanny expects batters to produce no matter than ball-strike count.
“Our goal is to have hitters that are so comfortable within what they’re doing they don’t panic when they get to two strikes,” says Nanny. “You’ve got to take what the other team and the game is giving you.”
To do this, hitters will see many situations in practice so they are at ease in games.
It’s not always a home run or bust.
“Sometimes you hit it the other way and take your single,” says Nanny. “You don’t have to be a hero.”
Daylan Nanny (left) and Brayden Johnson at Western Kentucky University. (WKU Photo)
Daylan Nanny at Western Kentucky University. (WKU Photo)
Daylan Nanny at Western Kentucky University. (WKU Photo)
Baseball players from rural and inner-city areas in Indiana and from as far away as Canada, Puerto Rico and Texas are coming to a campus tucked in the woods near Donaldson, Ind., an unincorporated community in Marshall County.
They come to study and play at Marian University’s Ancilla College — a two-year institution that is tied to the four-year Marian University in Indianapolis with about 85 percent of the study body of around 280 being athletes.
“Degrees are not just Ancilla College degrees anymore,” says MUAC head baseball coach Chuck Bowen. “They’re Marian University and Ancilla College degrees so that all the courses and accreditations are going through the Indy campus. Students graduate here and now that’s a Marian University associate’s degree.
“If you choose to transfer to Marian to finish your four-year degree it’s half off tuition.”
MUAC offers on-campus housing and dining and there are also commuters.
Being away from the hustle and bustle is another selling point.
“One of the kids we signed today is from a smaller rural area,” says Bowen, who greeted recruits and parents at Commitment Day Nov. 10. “It’s not going to be anything different for him. That’s what he likes.
“There’s a quaint feeling on the campus here. There’s always a spot where you can go and find some quiet and some peace.
“A lot of kids coming from inner-cities and that is appealing to them. There’s not the traffic and all the noise.”
This seclusion also offers a chance to focus on academics while improving as an athlete and getting ready to move on to the next phase.
“You actually have to try hard not to do well academically here because there’s an 11-to-1 staff-to-student ratio,” says Bowen. “You’ve got teachers breathing down your neck to get your work done and stay in line.”
As a junior college, there are not as many restrictions as with NCAA and NAIA schools about practice time.
“It’s an opportunity to get a lot of reps,” says Bowen. “We can play just about as many games as we want in the fall.”
Bowen sent his team against only four-year schools this past fall to get exposure for his players.
“I just want to build a winning program,” says Bowen, who is assisted by James Bendy (Culver Community Class of 1984) and Matthew Pitney (an Elida, Ohio, High School alum).
Bowen hopes to have 40 to 45 players heading into the spring with the majority of those being pitchers.
The 2024 schedule is to open Feb. 10 and includes eight games in six days in Auburndale, Fla. March 2-8.
Bowen is a 2007 graduate of John Glenn High School in Walkerton, Ind., where he played for head coach John Nadolny. He was a two-year player for Joe Yonto at Ancilla College then transferred to Indiana University South Bend as a student. The school did not yet have baseball.
He helps Shawn Harper with the administration of the Michiana Brewers in the summer.
Bowen joined the MUAC coaching staff as an assistant/pitching coach in 2023-24 and wound up as interim head coach.
The approach for the Chargers focuses on doing the little things right and plenty of small ball.
“We like to hit-and-run,” says Bowen. “We’re not going to flash anything at you. Right now we don’t have guys throwing 90 (mph) and we don’t have guys hitting 450-foot home runs.
“We have a team of guys that we know are going to go out there and make the routine plays and execute some situational stuff. They’re able to put the ball in-play with runners in scoring position and so forth.”
“We want to cater to the Indiana population, but we also want to bring in some good quality guys from out-of-state that will help us win and bring a different perspective,” says Bowen.
Aiden Diaz, a 5-foot-8, 150-pound right-handed pitcher, hails from San Antonio, Texas. With a saturation of talent where he’s from, he looked for other avenues and got the word out of social media.
“We utilize a lot of stuff online because we play during the high school season,” says Bowen. “It’s not very easy to go out and scout these guys in-person. We rely heavily on videos and coach’s evaluations. Third-party evaluations are the best. They go to camps (and showcases) and they get velocity readings and metrics.”
Bowen is also a big believer in long toss to build arm strength and mobility.
“Arm strength is a metric that all coaches are looking at,” says Bowen. “There’s such an emphasis on metrics.
“We take the battle any day of the week because they’re good ballplayers and they work hard.”
From the Summit City to the Valley of the Sun, Nolan Lebamoff enjoyed his baseball playing career.
As a right-handed pitcher he competed at what is now Wallen Complex, took to the travel ball circuit with the Summit City Sluggers at 14 and spent his prep diamond days at Carroll High School — all in Fort Wayne, Ind.
He was a varsity player for Chargers head coach Dave Ginder as a sophomore and junior.
After breaking his arm while on the mound in the summer of 2017 playing for the Todd Armstrong-coached Sluggers, the son of Andy and Deb Lebamoff went to live with uncle Tommy and aunt Alexia Lebamoff, rehabbed with Mark Sheehan (who has trained with Dr. Tom House, founder of the National Pitching Association) and graduated from Neuqua Valley High School in Naperville, Ill., in 2018. He did not play for the Wildcats.
After a few games with the Todd Farr-coached 18U Summit City Sluggers that summer, Nolan launched into five collegiate springs and four summers.
Lebamoff credits words from Post for taking him through his college pitching career: “You don’t have to be great, you just can’t be bad. You just need to be level.”
Says Lebamoff, “You’ve rather be the guy who stays steady and consistent. I learned the mental part of baseball my freshman year and that carried me all the way through.”
“I wasn’t throwing very hard, maybe touching 83 (mph),” says Lebamoff. “But I had a really good year.”
Many conversations with Schmack involved making a mark.
“What do you want your legacy to be?,” says Lebamoff. “What do you want to be known for in life?”
The 6-foot-4, 205-pounder made 81 of 82 mound appearances in relief and went 9-3 with 12 saves (including 11 in 2019), a 4.03 earned run average, 127 strikeouts and 64 walks in 116 innings.
Those are the numbers, but they are not what stick out most to Lebamoff.
“I got a lot of friendships, a lot of good experiences, a lot of good memories and incredible stories,” says Lebamoff. “I took a lot of life lessons like how to deal with adversity.”
He is to be in the wedding of former Kankakee teammate Owen Behrens in November.
“That’s what I live for — meeting people, making friends and seeing where they go in life,” says Lebamoff.
Lebamoff follows the careers of many of his summer teammates and coaches.
“It’s fun to root for them and hope they chase their dreams just as much as I did,” says Lebamoff.
That final season of summer ball with Duluth, Lebamoff made 22 bullpen appearances and went 5-1 with three saves, a 1.38 ERA, 38 strikeouts and 12 walks in 32 2/3 innings.
He finished his year at Arizona State with 25 games, a 3-0 record, 4.50 ERA, 21 strikeouts and 18 walks in 26 innings for a squad that went 32-23 overall and 16-13 in the Pac-12 Conference.
Lebamoff, who turned 24 in April, earned a Political Science degree from Valpo U. and exhausted his playing eligibility at ASU in the spring.
“I wanted to be the best college baseball player I could,” says Lebamoff. “I think I achieved that.
“I wasn’t really sure what I wanted to do (next). I said I’ll figure it out and something will come my way.”
After the season, Bloomquist asked Lebamoff about his plans and the former pitcher is a graduate assistant coach for Sun Devils baseball while studying at the school in Tempe, Ariz., to be a Master of Organizational Leadership.
This past summer, he combed through the Transfer Portal and watched their Synergy Sports reels while doing research on players.
He also called donors and helped get Name Image Likeness (NIL) deals for ASU players and helping them grow their brand on social media.
“When I was playing NIL money didn’t entice me,” says Lebamoff. “I just wanted to play.”
Shirts with his name and Arizona State number (37) were produced and family members purchased them.
Lebamoff is in charge of 14 ASU student managers, serving as their line of contact with the coaching staff and organizing their schedules and practice duties.
During the season, Lebamoff will help out on the field. Right now, the team is in the individual skills phase of fall practice.
“I enjoy it,” says Lebamoff. “They’re good kids. A lot of them were here last year. I already know a lot of them.
“It’s a lot of fun.”
Lebamoff has become very close with Bloomquist, who played 14 years in the big leagues and became head coach his alma mater in June of 2021.
“I love him,” says Lebamoff. “In a way, he’s like a second father to me. “As soon as I got here I fell in love with the culture he brings. He’s a fun guy to play for. He expects a lot out of you.
“He works his butt off every single day. He loves this program more than anybody else. He takes great pride in it and expects that out of every player and every coach.”
Lebamoff says Bloomquist is always willing to learn.
“He’ll always listen to you,” says Lebamoff. “I’ve never been disrespected by him as a coach, staff member or player.
“He’ll shoot you straight. I have nothing but good things to say about him. He gave me two unbelievable great opportunities. I cannot thank him enough.”
Andy Lebamoff is retired from Cap n’ Cork in Fort Wayne. Deb Lebamoff was a stay-at-home mother since Nolan was young.
Nolan has two older sisters. Olivia (Lebamoff) Miller is married and lives in Park City, Utah. Natalie Lebamoff played soccer at Fort Wayne Bishop Dwenger High School and the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, earned her Master of Business Administration and Master Sports Administration at Ohio University and now works in corporate partnerships with the Chicago Bulls.
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