February 14, 2001
Having put together his largest squad in recent years, Bluffton College head baseball coach Greg Brooks is hopeful that depth along with the efforts of several key returnees will take the Beavers a few notches higher among the ranks of the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference.
Bluffton will suit up 24 players this season, 13 of which are freshmen, with expectations of collecting it’s fifth straight double-digit win total season and a berth in the HCAC tournament, which will admit the top four teams in the league at the end of the regular season.
“We are gearing our efforts towards finishing among the top four in the Heartland Conference,” said Brooks as practice got under way in January. “We are counting on improvement from the returnees and splitting time among our freshmen, who make up over half the team. We will rely on them for immediate pitching help.”
And it may take a handful of throwers to replace the Joel Parrett-Bob Sierer duo that led Bluffton through the 2000 season last spring before graduating in May. Parrett set a new school record with 22 career victories, while Sierer racked up a team-high 51 strikeouts last season with a mid-90 mph fastball that led him to sign a minor league contract with the Cleveland Indians last June.
Three returning All-HCAC selections highlight the list of returnees, which includes seven position players and two pitchers. Junior Dustin Kreis (Richwood/North Union) was named first team All-HCAC last season, while juniors Brad Buckingham (Berne, Ind./South Adams) and Todd Pickthorn (Miamisburg) picked up All-HCAC honorable mention awards.
Often batting 1-2-3 in the lineup, that trio combined for 108 hits last season, which registered more than 43% of the entire Bluffton hit production. Kreis led the squad with a .380 average and .477 on base percentage, and he increased his batting average to .464 with runners in scoring position and produced 17 RBI. Buckingham hit .314 with three homers and 25 RBI, both team-highs, while Pickthorn batted .350 and led BC with 41 hits and 15 walks led the team, and he added 16 RBI. Kreis and Pickthorn were named to the All-Tournament team of the EMU Sarasota Spring Classic last March.
“We need better hitting throughout our lineup,” said Brooks, “and our depth will lead to competition for playing time, so I’m confident that we’ll have people step up and produce.”
Seniors Bill Bechtel (Wapakoneta), Luke Habegger (Berne, Ind./South Adams) and Jeff Haulman (Troy/Miami East) aim to chief among those producers, as all three return to the starting lineup. Habegger notched a .269 average last season and collected four triples, two homers and 22 RBI, while Haulman batted .253 and nine RBI. Bechtel, a left handed pitcher, chalked up one win out of three starts on the mound last season and saw eight relief appearances.
Rounding out the returnees is starting catcher junior Ben Schwab (New Bavaria/Holgate, .122, 2 HR), starting pitcher Eric Humpal (Medina, 2-4), along with sophomore utility infielders Dave Snow (Groveport/Tree of Life, .205) and Tony Boenker (Willshire/Parkway, .045).
A new HCAC schedule format will have league games played in Friday/Saturday three game series, making the need for a deep pitching staff all the more crucial.
“We are counting on improvement from Bechtel, Humpal and Snow,” said Brooks in analyzing his pitchers, “and we’ll split time among our freshmen pitchers. We will be relying on them for immediate help.”
The list of first year pitchers includes Bob Heitkamp (Ft. Recovery), Josh Underwood (Bluffton/Cory-Rawson), Ryan Whitaker (Hicksville), Mike Hadley (Frazeysburg/East Knox), Dan Crider (Bellville/Clear Fork), Matt McMahan (Richwood/North Union), Kyle Alberson (Berne, Ind./South Adams) and sophomore transfer Wes Hall (Huntsville/Indian Lake).
Rounding out the list of newcomers are Collin Bechtol (Ft. Recovery), Jim Dwenger (Minster), Ryan Fiely (Greenville), Scott Flathers (Swanton), Scott Remaklus (Lorain/Southview) and Scott Van Eman (Elida).
