2002 Season Outlook

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Wittenberg University 2002 Captains (from left) Lance Dill, Brad Cerovac and Bryan Burke. Nate Williams crouching.

Optimism pervades the Wittenberg University Tiger baseball team for the 2002 season. Although the Tigers lost three outstanding seniors, they have not lost a step and expect to challenge the top teams again in the always-tough North Coast Athletic Conference.

Again, Wittenberg returns a strong nucleus of upperclassmen to lead the way while adding an excellent blend of young talent. Under the direction of Head Coach Jay Lewis (Wittenberg '94), who has compiled a 109-83-3 record in five years at the helm, the Tigers will be known for their fundamental, aggressive and determined style of play. The driving force behind this fine-tuned machine will again be the Tigers' explosive offense. Despite losing All-NCAC outfielder Ryan Peters, who was one of only two NCAA Division III players in the country to participate in the NCAA Home Run Challenge last June, the Tigers shouldn't miss a beat. The team's .349 batting average in 2001 set a school record, and much of the talent from that lineup returns in 2002 to create what is potentially an even more formidable one.

Leading the way will be first-team All-NCAC senior shortstop Bryan Burke (Brunswick, Ohio/Brunswick) and second-team All-NCAC senior centerfielder Lance Dill (Bellville, Ohio/Clear Fork). Burke batted a scorching .418 a year ago, and he will provide a solid anchor both offensively and defensively for the Tiger infield. Dill hit at a .394 clip in 2001 and was second on the team in RBIs.

But this offensive machine doesn't have just two players. Among the other returning players:

• Senior Scott Hirsch (Cincinnati, Ohio/Colerain), back after posting a .389 batting average and an amazing .509 on-base percentage;

• Senior catcher Nate Williams (Urbana, Ohio/Urbana), a stellar defensive performer who batted .304 last year;

• Senior third baseman/catcher Jeff Buelow (Oakland, Mich./Rochester), coming off a season in which he hit .333 and ranked third on the team in RBIs;

• Senior second baseman Karl Friedhoff (Sunman, Ind./East Central), a defensive specialist;

• Junior second baseman Shane Thomas (Columbus, Ohio/South), who came on strong in the late-going of the 2001 season to post a batting average of .337 and lead the squad in steals;

• Sophomore outfielder Shawn Jarecki (Parma Heights, Ohio/Valley Forge), who hit .314 and was perfect in steal attempts in 2001.

In addition, a slew of promising young players will provide the Tigers plenty of depth.

Another important component for the Tiger baseball machine is it's pitching staff. The staff, which held opponents to a .288 batting average, in expected to contribute greatly to the Tigers' expected success. Anchoring the rotation figures to be senior righthander Brad Cerovac (Brunswick, Ohio/Brunswick), who led the team with three complete games in 2001. He is joined as a starter in 2002 by senior Nick Allen (Dayton, Ohio/Vandalia Butler), junior Adam Abraham (Granville, Ohio/Granville), who led the team a year ago with an impressive 1.71 earned run average, sophomore Tom Fox (Urbana, Ohio/Urbana) and sophomore Kurt Hartfelder (Columbus, Ohio/Upper Arlington), who was tops on the staff in victories last season and was named Honorable Mention All-NCAC.

Proven depth on the pitching staff will be supplied by junior closer Brian Robinson (Columbus, Ohio/Centennial), who held the opposition to a .212 batting average, junior Jay Nunn (Bellefontaine, Ohio/Bellefontaine), senior Doug Farris (Harrison, Ohio/Harrison) and sophomore Jason Flick (Hamilton, Ohio/Middletown Fenwick). Furthermore, look for freshmen Ryan Goldschmidt (Ft. Loramie, Ohio/Ft. Loramie), Wayne Massie (New Carlisle, Ohio/Tecumseh) and Ron Estepp (Hilliard, Ohio/Darby) to contribute.