GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- The Tusculum University baseball team will open the 2023 campaign this weekend with three games in Florida.
The Pioneers will open against Palm Beach Atlantic and Barry on Friday and wrap up the road trip on Sunday at Lynn.
Tusculum head coach Brandon Steele is entering his fifth season as the Pioneers' skipper. TU returns 20 lettermen from last year's 17-30 squad which finished 11th in the South Atlantic Conference.
The Pioneers top-five hitters return from a season ago including All-SAC outfielder Zane Keener. The Knoxville, Tennessee junior led the Pioneers with his .338 batting average. He was tops on the squad in total hits (51), doubles (10), RBI (36), runs scored (32) and hit by pitch (15). His 15 times hit by a pitch were the second-most in the conference and 22nd in the country. They were also the fourth-most by a Pioneer in a single-season.
Keener led the team with his .589 slugging percentage and his .457 on-base percentage. He finished the year with eight home runs and accounted for two triples, 18 walks and three stolen bases. His 13 multiple-hit game led the team while his 10 multiple-RBI contests were tops on the club.
Wes Reynolds, a senior outfielder from Cherryville, North Carolina was tabbed to the Preseason All-SAC third team. He batted. 301 with 34 hits including seven doubles, five home runs, 23 RBI and 25 runs scored. He went 6-of-6 in stolen bases and finished with 10 multiple-hit games.
Junior Will Samuelson (Charlotte, N.C.) appeared in 40 games with 35 starts last season for the Pioneers. He batted .290 with 40 hits including nine doubles, three home runs, 21 RBI and 24 runs scored. Samuelson also tallied a dozen multiple-hit games. He saw action in the infield, behind the plate as well as designated hitter.
Senior infielder Rudy Fernandez (Russellville, Ala.) played in 41 games with 37 starts at second base and shortstop. He recorded 38 total hits with five doubles, three triples, four home runs and 19 RBI. He added 12 walks and five times hit by pitch, while scoring 24 runs.
Senior Christian Ortega (Miami, Fla.) returns as the Pioneers top home run threat from last season. In his 45 contests, he led TU with his nine home runs. He batted .245 with 40 hits including three doubles with 26 RBI, 16 walks and nine hit by pitch. He posted a team-high 21-game on-base streak last season which included a 10-game hitting streak.
Senior catcher Blaze McCauley (Dacula, Ga.) is back after making 29 starts behind the plate for the Black & Orange. He batted .235 with 24 hits including a pair of doubles and 12 RBI. He finished second on the team with 218 putouts and posted a .982 fielding percentage as he threw out 14 base runners on the season.
Senior outfielder Tyler Ranel (Lawrenceville, Ga.) returns after playing in only 15 games a year ago due to injury. He batted .400 as he tallied 14 hits with a double, one triple and three home runs including a grand slam at Coker. He finished the year with 11 RBI, 10 runs scored and had 19 putouts with zero errors in the field.
Another player returning for his senior campaign is Murphy Flood (Dalton, Ga.). Flood season was halted prematurely due to injury after making 14 appearances with 12 starts. He batted .297 with 11 hits with three doubles and five RBI. In 2021, he finished fourth on the team with his .337 average as he totaled 32 hits with five doubles, one triple and three home runs, which included a rare inside-the-park grand slam.
Also returning to the field for the Pioneers are Dylan Symonds (Wellington, Fla.), Zach Brunet (Commerce, Mich.), Britten Robinson (Berea, Ky.) and Kaden Swaim (Winston-Salem, N.C.).
Seven pitchers from last year's club are back with sophomore reliever Drew Sliwinski having the most innings of the returners. The sophomore right-hander led the team with 18 appearances where he went 2-4 with a 3.64 earned run average. He pitched in 42 innings where he tallied a save and 38 strikeouts, which were second on the roster.
Jacob Willett, a graduate student from Greeneville, made 13 relief appearances last year where he logged a 4.09 ERA with one save in his 22 innings of work. He posted 20 strikeouts and nine walks while limiting the opposition to a .197 batting average.
Junior right-hander Brady Salyards (Bakersfield, Calif.) made 12 appearances in his inaugural TU campaign last season. He pitched in 20.2 innings where he finished with 22 strikeouts and an 8.71 ERA.
Also returning from last year's pitching staff are Tyler White (Huntersville, N.C.), Jonathan Nelson (Knoxville, Tenn.), Corey Binion (Morehead, Ky.), and Trejen Fox-Birdwell (Rockledge, Fla.). Also back from last year's roster are PJ Maldonado (Isabela, P.R.), Luke Holland (Tampa, Fla.), Seth Sherman (Orlando, Fla.), Caleb Mulcahy (Dover, Tenn.), Justin Montenegro (Sugar Hill, Ga.), Cameron Hailey (Millington, Tenn.) and Grant Van Rossum (Atlanta, Ga.).
MEET THE NEWCOMERS
Four members of Caldwell Tech, who made a run at the NJCAA National Championship last year, join the Pioneers this season. The Cobras captured the NJCAA Region 10 title and advanced to the DIII World Series held in Greeneville as Caldwell finished 49-9 including 20-0 in conference play.
Joining the TU squad this season are the Caldwell quartet of Seth Willis, Darien Farley, Patrick Usher and Kayl Ratliff.
Willis, a right-handed pitcher from Vale, North Carolina, helped the Cobras to back-to-back conference titles and was named the league pitcher of the Year. Last season, he went 13-2 with a 2.44 ERA with 101 strikeouts and one save. He pitched seven complete games with four shutouts while leading the country in victories. During his JUCO career, he amassed a sterling 17-3 record with nine complete games, five shutouts and 156 strikeouts.
Ratliff, a junior infielder from Lubbock, Texas, played in 44 games last season where he posted a .315 batting average with 39 RBI, four home runs, nine doubles, nine stolen bases and 31 walks.
Farley, a junior infielder from Denver, North Carolina, batted .378 in the 2021 season with 31 hits including 11 doubles, two home runs and 19 walks. He appeared in 51 games while at Caldwell.
Usher, a junior from Starmount, North Carolina, batted .300 last season with the Cobras.
Ben Scartz comes to Tusculum after playing two seasons at Clark State College in Ohio. He was a first team All-American while also garnering NJCAA All-Region laurels. In 2023, he batted .423 where he belted six home runs and recorded 22 stolen bases. He was a two-time All-Conference selection where he was a Region Gold Glove shortstop.
Sophomore right-handed pitcher Billy Quinn played last season at Monroe Community College where he went 5-1 on the mound in his nine appearances, including eight starts. He posted 43 strikeouts as he went 5-0 in his first seven appearances.
Fellow Monroe CC teammate Max Schmarder also makes his Tusculum debut this spring. He was a two-time All-WNYAC selection where he batted .383 with 98 total hits including 41 of the extra-base variety during his JUCO career.
Alex Crosby, a junior right-handed pitcher from Wilson, North Carolina, played last year at North Carolina Wesleyan. He made seven mound appearances with a 4.05 ERA. He was an All-State selection at Faith Christian High School as he went 11-4 during his prep career.
Junior infielder Luis Reyes played the last two seasons at Mohawk Valley Community College. While at the Utica, New York school, he was a two-time NJCAA All-Region selection including 2022 where he was a third-team All-American. He batted .372 in his two seasons at Mohawk Valley and recorded 61 stolen bases.
Luke Absher, a junior pitcher from Lenoir, North Carolina, played two seasons at Wake Tech Community College where he made 29 appearances with 24 starts. He went 10-7 with a 4.28 ERA while pitching in 122 innings with 135 strikeouts and 45 walks.
Sophomore outfielder Lucas Chausse (Roan Mountain, Tenn.) posted a .500 batting average in his only season at Johnson University in Knoxville. He played his prep career at Happy Valley High School where he was an All-Conference performer and posted a career average of .444.
Sophomore right-hander Sam Bonilla (Richland, Wash.) played last season at NCAA Division III Cornell College where he made two relief appearances and pitched in 2.1 innings. Sophomore left-handed pitcher Kenny Kinzler (Hayward, Calif.) previously attended Santa Barbara City College and joins the TU program. Sophomore Jacob Kent (Atlanta, Ga.) is also new to the Pioneers as he attended Benedict College last year.
Incoming freshmen for the Pioneers include: Kohen Ponder (Statesville, N.C. / North Iredell HS), Noah Garrah (London, Ontario / Mother Teresa Secondary), Scout Martin (Murfreesboro, Tenn. / Blackmon HS), Cole Peaslee (Warrenville, Ill. / Wheaton Warrenville South HS), Justin Millsaps (Maryville, Tenn. / Maryville HS), Jack Gagen (Ashburn, Va. / Independence HS) and Jaylen Willett (Greeneville, Tenn. / Chuckey-Doak HS).
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Following this weekend's Florida road trip, the Pioneers will return to Greeneville to begin a season-long 16-game home-stand beginning with the Feb. 8 home opener against arch-rival Carson-Newman. The Pioneers and Eagles will play a mid-week, non-conference game at Pioneer Park.
