The Little Giants have taken two major steps toward securing a spot in the postseason tournament. Facing opposite ends of the North Coast Athletic Conference, Wabash secured three wins over their first four conference games.
The Scarlet & White started by sweeping the double-header against Hiram at Goodrich Ballpark before traveling to Denison where they would split the series against the Big Red.
The Terriers finished last in the NCAC last season and look to be heading in a similar direction this time around. Meanwhile, Denison won the conference tournament last season and are ranked third in Division III this year.
With final scores of 12-2 (first) and 9-5 (second), Wabash took the pair of games over Hiram without much trouble. The team only trailed for an inning and a half over both games.
Third baseman DJ Mendez ’28 recorded three hits and six RBIs between the two games, including a home run in the first game.
Caleb Everson ’26 and Robbie Mannuzzi ’25 were credited with the wins from the mound. Manuzzi, who came into the second game when the Little Giants trailed 4-2, threw four strikeouts over three and one third innings to close out the game.
“It’s important to get those home sweeps against teams that you feel like you match up well against,” said Head Baseball Coach Jake Martin ’03. “Our road midweek series this year with Denison and at Wittenberg [will be] tough to go sweep.
That makes it even more important that you take care of business at home.”
On April 1, Wabash traveled to Granville, Ohio to face the conference favorites. The team held their own through most of the first game, before a four-run seventh inning rally led Denison to a 6-1 victory. It was Mendez who drove in his team’s lone run with a sacrifice fly in the second inning.
Game two started with a quick run for Wabash, after an overthrown ball on a dropped third strike gave Camden Scheidt ’25 a chance to score. From there, the Little Giants stayed one step ahead of Denison the whole way, eventually winning 4-2.
The Crawfordsville native Jarrod Kirsch ’28 earned the win with seven stunning innings on the mound. He had the composure to pound the strike zone,while facing a lineup with the 33rd-best batting average in the country. Kirsch struck out six batters and gave up only two runs. Grant Stratton ’25 shutout the Big Red in the final two innings to seal the win.
“[For Kirsch] to get the ball in a game against a top three team in the country, and to go out there with the confidence of a veteran, it’s huge,” said Martin. “It lifted everybody else up. When you have somebody on the mound with that confidence, it’s contagious and it’s pretty special, coming from a freshman.”
“This win says that Wabash baseball is a fearless team that will not back down, no matter the situation,” said Kirsch. “The team really embodies the ‘Wabash Always Fights’ mentality and will fight until the last out of every game. This is a great group of guys and coaches that will do anything to get the win, and that says a lot about this program.”
On top of his run scored, Scheidt made the key offensive play for Wabash in the third inning when he drove in two runs with a single up the line. His first-inning run was a record setting one, crowning Scheidt as Wabash’s all-time runs leader.
“It’s a testament to how many great teammates I’ve had in my career here, as they were able to drive me in to score all these runs,” said Scheidt. “It was awesome to do it in a win against Denison, as runs are a premium against really good teams like them.”
As Wabash battles to take one of the four NCAC tournament spots, it will be important for them to split with the other top-5 teams and to close out against the bottom of the league. So far, they’re starting well. A win against Dension is something the other tournament hopefuls will not likely have, and it could be a possible edge when everything is tallied up.
However, three games into the conference season is too early to start packing suitcases. The team still has a month of tough matchups before the dust settles. Until then, it’s business as usual.
“A short-term memory is crucial, whether it’s after really good wins or really bad losses,” said Scheidt. “Taking things one game at a time and controlling what we can control is something that we have been stressing all year.”
“I think our team – more than most – understand how narrow the margin is in and out of the tournament,” said Martin. “So we’re just really focused on playing our best baseball and going 1-0 as many times as we can.”
Baseball will continue their season at home on Monday, April 7 with a pair of games against Oberlin.