BLUFFTON, Ohio - The Bluffton University baseball team struggled with consistency in 2019, winning three straight games just one time, but with an experienced core of returners back the Beavers have a return to the Heartland Conference tournament in their sights. Despite injuries to key personnel that besieged the Beavers all season, Bluffton was just two victories away from its fifth 20-win season in school history.
A pair of all-time greats leave big shoes to fill following their graduation in 2019. D'Andrea, a three-time All-Heartland Conference honoree, was outstanding in his final season as a Beaver. His 1.70 earned run average was the lowest at Bluffton in nearly 30 years and it also topped the HCAC. His six wins are tied for 2nd all-time at Bluffton and they placed him 3rd in the Heartland Conference. The jack of all trades for Bluffton's pitching staff, D'Andrea finished his career with the lowest opponent batting average of any Beaver with a .232 OBA.
Colin Gregory hit two of Bluffton's most memorable home runs during the final week of the 2018 season and he picked right up where he left off with five homers in Florida en route to a school-record and HCAC-leading 11 dingers in 2019! He drove in 38 runs, 5th all-time for a single season and 4th in the conference this year. Gregory's 38 runs scored is 5th in the conference and tied for 8th all-time at Bluffton.
Parker Reynolds (Avon), led the Beavers with a .333 batting average and .429 on-base percentage, is back for his senior campaign in 2020. His 45 hits equaled Gregory for top honors in 2019. He drove in 28 runs, scored 17 times and smacked 11 doubles for the Beavers. Reynolds made the most of his first season as Bluffton's starting backstop, managing the Beaver pitching staff while throwing out eight would-be base stealers. Fellow senior Adam Duncan (Northwood/Lake) stole nine bases while being a fixture in Bluffton's outfield last season, his second as a starter for the Beavers.
Juniors Jaxon Rogan (Marysville), Jacob Latkofsky (Temperence, MI/Ida), Lenny Winiarski (Cincinnati/LaSalle) and Reid Ruhl (Hamilton) have the talent and experience to be the cornerstones for Bluffton when they take the field this season. Rogan had a breakout campaign in 2019, hitting .319 with a team-high 18 walks and 10 stolen bases. Latkofsky, the 2018 HCAC Freshmen of the Year, hit .282 and stole a team-high 11 bases. Winiarski was second on the team with three homers while splitting his time behind the plate and at first base.
Brantley Curnutte (Hilliard/Hilliard-Davidson) struck out 30 batters with a 5.57 ERA and outstanding .230 opponent batting average. Curnutte and fellow senior Tommy Siemer (Liberty Township/Lakota East) give the Beavers a dominating one-two punch in 2020. Siemer fanned a team-high 38 batters in 36.1 innings as a junior.
Garrett O'Reilly (Galena/Orange) has been a key component on Bluffton's pitching staff and in the infield his first two years. O'Reilly hit .306 in 2018 when he earned First Team All-HCAC honors as a freshman.
Freshman Elisha Tressler (Bryan) hit .269 and he saw time in center last season.
Franklin collected its second straight Heartland Conference tournament championship in 2019 and they followed that up with their best-ever NCAA tourney run when they played for the regional title. Rose-Hulman claimed the regular-season championship with a dominating 14-2 run through the conference.
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