Baseball Preview, Part 5: Wright State

Feb. 13, 2007

Just 227 days after making their first trip to the NCAA Tournament in 12 seasons, the Wright State baseball team will take to the field for one of the toughest seasons in school history. The Green and Gold return five starters, including their entire infield, but will have to replace two major parts of their pitching staff and the heart of their offensive lineup.

The Green and Gold tough job to duplicate the performance from a season ago, but 14 newcomers and a solid core of veterans will look to sustain the momentum from 2006 and carry the torch during the 2007 season. Ten seniors and an experienced core of underclassmen bring a passion to the field that is unmatched by most teams in the nation. The 2007 squad will carry a new feeling into the season, a feeling of optimism, an optimism that they hope can be a breath into the lungs of the solid tradition of Wright State baseball.

Catchers
Behind the plate in 2007 is a core of young guns that look to fill the shoe of Garcia and command the pitching staff through a tough schedule. Nick Allsop has the most experience of the bunch, appearing in 11 games behind the plate in '06. Allsop launched one home run in a handful of at-bats, but was a solid receiver behind the plate. Vying for the starting spot will be freshman Gerald Ogrinc from Twinsburg, Ohio and Tony Scott out of Detroit. Ogrinc is a solid framed catcher who helped lead his high school team to the Final Four of the Ohio High School Athletic Association State Championships. Ogrinc garnered All-Western Reserve Conference twice and was selected to the All-Ohio team after his senior campaign. Scott was the starting catcher on the University of Detroit Jesuit High School team that advanced to the title game in MHSAA during his senior season.

Corner Infielders
On the corners, the Raiders will have a pair of solid options at both first and third base to open up the season. First Team All-Horizon League third baseman Dan Biedenharn returns for his senior season and will look to anchor his defensive presence at the hot corner and continue after a breakout season at the plate in '06. Brian Shoup will see some action at third base, as well as playing in the outfield. Shoup started 16 games at third base last season and batted .289. At first base, Jeremy Hamilton will return after his freshman campaign finished with All-Newcomer and All-Tournament Team honors. Hamilton set the single-season school record for putouts in a season with 520 and posted a .282 batting average with 31 RBI's. Putting the pressure on Hamilton at first base will be junior college transfer J.C. Ramatowski from Maplewoods Junior College in St. Louis, Missouri. The junior helped lead Maplewoods to a 30-28 record last season, smacking ten home runs and driving in 31 RBI.

Middle Infielders
The record-setting tandem of Ross Oeder and Justin Parker return for the second season as a unit, but will have some competition from a pair of talented newcomers. Oeder will look to continue his assault on opposing pitchers after hitting .369 last season. Oeder, a preseason Player of the Year candidate, will sure up second base while Parker returns for his second season at shortstop, hoping for another productive year at the plate. Parker posted a .302 average during the '06 campaign and was a solid option late in the lineup. Parker was selected to the All-Newcomer team during his rookie campaign, driving in 30 RBI's and scoring 32 runs. Miamisburg product, Sam Mote, and Detroit Jesuit star, Aaron Fields, will challenge the duo for playing time this season. Mote was an All-Ohio performer as a senior, setting the school record for hits in a season and leading the Vikings to the OHSAA State Semifinal game. Fields, the son of major league hitting coach Bruce Fields, was an All-State selection as a senior, guiding Detroit Jesuit High School to the MHSAA State Title game.

Outfielders
In the outfield the Green and Gold will return only one starter from last season and will have to replace both corner outfielders. Centerfielder John Kopilchack will patrol centerfield for the third season after belting out 14 extra-base hits and driving in 20 RBI's last year. Nick Mahon, Steven Marquez, Kris Steffen and Shoup will all return from last years team and compete for time in the outfield. Newcomers Casey McGrew and Rick Masson will also look to make a contribution in the outfield. McGrew, a left-handed hitter, joins the Green and Gold after a solid high school career at Delaware Hayes and Masson was a four year starter at Christian Brothers College High School in Missouri.

Starting Pitchers
The Raiders head into 2007 looking to fill the gap left by the graduated Robert Barrett at the top of the rotation. The Raiders will look to a quartet of arms to fill that gap and continue to improve throughout the season. Erich Schanz, Garret Holleran and Kyle Kearcher all return for their senior seasons, while Ohio State transfer Dan Barker will look to make an impact this season. Schanz won six games last season and was named to the Horizon League All-Newcomer Team. Holleran was a steady hand in the Raiders rotation last season, posting four wins and logging 64 innings in 20 appearances. Kearcher battled arm problems last season, but will look to regain form as the only left-handed starter in the rotation. Barker had a solid season for the Buckeyes in '06, posting a 4-1 record and a 2.97 ERA.

Bullpen
The Raiders bullpen will consist of four returning relievers and seven newcomers when the '07 season begins. Nate Stevens and Jason Bennion will return to fill the vacant closer roll, with the departure of Joe Smith, while Chris Nighland and Ross Vagedes will each look to contribute solid innings out of the pen. Vagedes was a starter last season, before his season was shortened by injury, posting a 1-1 record in four starts. Bennion set a single season school record for appearances in a season with 31 and struck out 12 batters in 20.2 innings of work. Stevens made 19 appearances last season and logged 30 innings, including three starts, with 21 strikeouts. The newcomers will consist of two freshman left-handers, Jordan Wolfe and John Lambert, and two freshman right-handers, Alex Kaminsky and Greg Robinson. Jon Durket joins the Raiders after a season at the University of California-San Diego, while Glenoaks (MI) teammates Scott Ruthven and Griffin Knapp will complete the Raiders bullpen.

Schedule
The Raiders will compete against four teams ranked among the Preseason Top-25 in the nation and have to navigate a 30-game Horizon League loop during 2007. The Green and Gold will square off with four preseason Top-25 teams, all on the road, including #25 Mississippi, #15 Tulane, #11 Tennessee and #2 Miami (FL). The Raiders will open their home schedule on March ? against Wilmington College and play non-conference home games against Bluffton Bowling Green , Cedarville, Dayton and Toledo. The Raiders travel to play Air Force, Bowling Green, Cincinnati and Dayton. The Horizon League schedule includes 15 home contests and 15 road contests before converging on Chicago for the Horizon League Championship.

Story provided by Wright State Office of Sports Information