PEMBERVILLE, Ohio — Experienced Eastwood looks primed to make a run at a third straight title in the Northern Buckeye Conference.
The Eagles have won four of the 11 NBC titles since the league's inaugural baseball season in 2012.
Eastwood was the unanimous pick to win the 2024 NBC title, earning all eight first-place votes from the coaches in a preseason poll.
“I think it’s a great sign of respect to be picked to win it for another year,” Leady said. “We graduated some great players, but we also return many guys with a lot of experience.”
Oak Harbor, a newcomer to the NBC, was picked to finish second followed by Otsego, Lake, Maumee, Genoa, Rossford, and Fostoria. Elmwood has left the league to join the Blanchard Valley Conference and Woodmore departed for the Sandusky Bay Conference.
Oak Harbor joined the NBC after leaving the SBC, and Maumee is in after departing the Northern Lakes League.
“The NBC will be a great challenge this year, any team can win on any given day,” Leady said. “We need to stay humble, and just focus on getting better each day. The team that plays the most consistent baseball throughout the season will win our league.”
Here is a look at all the teams in predicted order of finish.
EASTWOOD
■ Coach: Kevin Leady, 12th year
■ Last season: 26-2 overall, 14-0 NBC
■ Top players: Seniors Andrew Badenhop (P-3B; 8-0 record, 1.46 ERA); Brandon Falls (OF; .364); Xander Greulich (C; .417), Bryce Miller (3B-P). Juniors Colton Woodward (SS; .385 AVG, 15 RBIs), Kadyn Donnell (P-OF; 4-0 record, 1.16 ERA), Connor Norton (2B-P-C), Drew Kachmarik (1B-P), Paul Lautzenheiser (P-1B), Brock Messinger (OF), Austin Bonfiglio (OF).
■ Scouting report: Leady has compiled a 206-82 career record with four NBC titles and four district titles. Eastwood, which reached the Division III district semifinals last year, has four seniors, five starters, six letterwinners returning. A weapon at the plate and on the mound, Badenhop posted an 8-0 record with a 1.46 earned run average with 50 strikeouts in 43 innings. He also batted .398 with eight doubles, 29 runs scored, and 30 runs batted in as he earned All-Ohio second-team honors. Badenhop earned the NBC's pitcher of the year award as a junior. Woodward earned all-league second-team honors at second base. Greulich will play at Bluffton, while Woodward had six doubles and scored 28 runs with 18 stolen bases. Donnell had 28 strikeouts in 24 innings, while batting .301 with 15 runs scored, 15 runs batted in, and 12 stolen bases. While Eastwood lost four all-league first-teamers to graduation, the junior varsity team went 22-4 last season.
■ Outlook: Leady said his team's strengths will be starting pitching, defense, leadership, and hitting.
“As a program we have many athletes going above and beyond to prepare for the upcoming season,” he said. “A lot has gone on behind the scenes that we want to make sure we show appreciation for. We have a great core returning and are excited to see how we gel. Expectations are high for this group, but we understand the work needed to be successful.”
OAK HARBOR
■ Coach: Nick Lance, eighth year
■ Last season: 19-7 overall, 7-3 SBC
■ Top players: Seniors Brayden Myerholtz (INF-P; 17 runs scored), Tim Marquette (INF-P). Juniors Michael Lalonde (SS-P, .388; 1.07 ERA); Brayden Butzin (C-P; .419, 29 RBIs), Karson Lash (INF). Sophomore Cooper Schultz (CF; .250, 28 runs). Freshman Nolan Bickelhaupt (OF-INF-P).
■ Scouting report: The Rockets enter the NBC with an eye on challenging for the title. Lalonde had six doubles, two triples, and 14 RBIs at the plate with 36 runs scored and 13 stolen bases. He went 6-1 on the mound with 66 strikeouts. Butzin had seven doubles and scored 32 runs with six stolen bases. Schultz drove in 11 runs, scored 28, and had 13 stolen bases. Myerholtz had five RBIs and four stolen bases. Bickelhaupt is highly ranked in his class by Prep Baseball Report.
■ Outlook: “We return a great group of experienced players who are eager and excited to continue the success that we had last season,” Lance said. “With us moving to the NBC this year, we are looking forward to the challenges that await us.”
OTSEGO
■ Coach: Chase Welker, 12th year
■ Last season: 16-9 overall, 9-5 NBC
■ Top players: Seniors Ty O’Brien (C-P; .385), Cohen Feehan (OF-P; 3-3 record, 3.92 ERA), Danny Shanahan (OF-P; .260), Jaxon Jeremy (1B; .292). Junior Bodde Simon (3B-P; .386, 5-1 record, 1.86 ERA).
■ Scouting report: Welker, who has a 153-113 record at Otsego, led the Knights to the title in 2013. He has seven returning starters with nine total letterwinners and five seniors on the roster. O’Brien smacked four home runs, drove in 22 runs and had a .553 on-base percentage. Shanahan threw two complete games and had one save. Jeremy had seven doubles, a .420 on-base percentage, and a .977 fielding percentage. Senior Michael Obringer, juniors Mason Roe and Collin Wendt and sophomore Devin Silva also will be key contributors.
■ Outlook: “We return the core of our starters from last year and add some talented underclassmen to round out the roster,” Welker said. “We feel the depth of our pitching staff and defensive play will be key to having a successful 2024 campaign.”
LAKE
■ Coach: Casey Witt, third year
■ Last season: 15-11 overall, 7-7 NBC
■ Top players: Senior Ryan Wagner (3B-P-1B). Juniors Drew Tajblik (SS-P), Jay Blazevich (2B-P). Sophomores Gavin Kohlhofer (C), Jack Sobzack (IF-P).
■ Scouting report: The Flyers have six of nine starters back with seven letterwinners and five seniors on the roster. Lake, which won back-to-back NBC titles in 2019 and 2021 (the 2020 season was canceled due to the pandemic), has captured four titles since the league's inception in 2012. Tajblik, who has committed to play at the University of Toledo, batted .444 with 29 runs batted in. Kohlhofer hit .410 as a freshman with 20 RBIs. Tobias went 6-2 with a 1.57 ERA, while Tajblik (4-3) had a 3.85 ERA. Blazevich (3-0) had a 4.60 ERA.
■ Outlook: “We are healthy this year and return a core group of veteran guys who enjoy being around each other,” Witt said. “I'm looking forward to getting better every day and competing for a league title.”
MAUMEE
■ Coach: Todd Ery, fourth season
■ Last season: 10-17, 5-9 Northern Lakes League
■ Top players: Seniors Chase Maulucci (CF-P; 2.05 ERA), Austin Dwyer (SS; .366 OBP), Jack Dauer (1B-P; .237). Junior Carter Koepfler (OF).
■ Scouting report: The Panthers join the NBC after playing in the highly competitive NLL. Ery has three returning starters among five letterwinners on the roster. Maulucci had a .376 on-base percentage with 17 runs scored, and eight RBIs. He pitched 44 innings and had a 2.05 earned-run average. Dwyer scored 12 runs and had five RBIs. Dauer scored 10 runs and drove in seven runs.
■ Outlook: Led by a large senior class (12), the Panthers still must replace 10 departed seniors.
“We’re looking forward to competing in the NBC this season, which is historically a very solid baseball conference,” Ery said. “We will have to play fundamental baseball on a consistent basis to find success here, and that’s where our focus will be.”
GENOA
■ Coach: Gary Nissen, 14th year
■ Last season: 13-13 overall, 5-8 NBC
■ Top players: Seniors Jack Hartman (DH, .329, 24 RBI), Denver Stewart (C-OF), Jagger Magnone (OF-P), Denver Stewart (C-OF). Juniors Alex Spencer (SS, .329, 14 RBI), Caleb Klatt (1B/P, 4-2 record, 1.13 ERA). Sophomore Evan Millner (2B/P, .273,12 RBI).
■ Scouting report: The Comets have six starters back among seven letterwinners. Hartman, who had five doubles and earned all-league honorable mention, is among three seniors. Spencer scored 23 runs and stole 12 bases to earn All-NBC second-team honors. Hartman had five doubles and five stolen bases as he was named honorable mention all-league. Millner was second-team all-league, while Klatt had 19 strikeouts.
■ Outlook: “Our student-athletes have done an excellent job of preparing for the upcoming season in our off-season program,” Nissen said. “We have a talented group of young players and if we gel together and play solid fundamental baseball we can be competitive and have a successful season.”
ROSSFORD
■ Coach: Marc Diels, second year
■ Last season: 13-11 overall, 8-6 NBC
■ Top players: Seniors Logan Walder (CF-P; .413), Landen Reiter (SS-P; 2-2, 2.05 ERA), Nick Taddonio (OF), Brody Nusbaum (2B-P), Kaden Kirkman (SS-P). Juniors Owen Swonger (1B), Jackson Yerkes, (3B/P; 5-2, 1.56 ERA)
■ Scouting report: Walder earned All-NBC first-team honors after driving in 14 runs and scoring 19. Walder is among seven seniors and seven starters for the Bulldogs, who have eight returning letter winners.
■ Outlook: Rossford last won an NBC title in 2017.
“We have a great returning group of guys who are really close,” Diels said. “We're all excited for the season.”
FOSTORIA
■ Coach: Brad Bowser, fifth year
■ Last season: 5-21 overall, 4-10 NBC
■ Top players: Seniors Julius Robinson (1B-P), Matthew Gierke (P-2B), Derrick Kleinmark (3B-P; 3.00 ERA), Matthew Balderama (CF-C), Jordan Faber (CF). Juniors Trent Smith (SS-P; .303 batting average), Devon Miller (P-C; 3.61). Sophomore Emmanuel Jiminez-Reza (OF-P).
■ Scouting report: With six returning starters back among eight letterwinners, the Redmen have plenty of experience. Bowser has five seniors. Miller (48 strikeouts) and Kleinmark are back on the bump. Smith led the offense with 11 runs batted in and three stolen bases.
■ Outlook: “We are a more experienced team with guys that have been playing in our system for three and four years,” Bowser said. “We'll lean heavily on their athleticism and experience.”
First Published March 24, 2024, 8:33 p.m.
