Since graduating from Vincennes University in 1998, Jon Adams held assistant baseball coaching positions at Oakland City University, Wabash Valley College and most recently at Purdue University in the spring of 2006.
Adams became well-acquainted with the wealth of baseball talent in the Wabash Valley during those stops, and when he was named last summer as head coach at his alma mater, he didn’t forget some of the talented players he had previously recruited.
Adams brought in Terre Haute North’s John Rosselli and Northview’s John Reberger for the recently-completed school year, and has now signed Cole Vicars of Terre Haute South, Skyler Pearson of Terre Haute North (after one year at Indiana State) and T.J. Amerman of Riverton Parke for his second VU season, which will begin this fall.
“I cannot tell you how excited I am to have established a connection from Terre Haute to VU,” Adams said this week. “There is a lot of talent in the Terre Haute area, and I consider us fortunate to sign all of these guys.”
Adams has now acquired four members of the Wayne Newton Post 346 national runner-up team of 2006, including that entire group of five players except Amerman.
“They all come from great high school programs and the Post 346 summer program is second to none,” he added. “I am thrilled to have landed all of them and look for each of them to be major contributors.”
Vicars is unquestionably one of the best players in South history. Besides leading the Braves to a sectional title this year, Vicars ended his career as the school’s career leader in at-bats (373), hits (156), doubles (37), triples (10), runs (118) and walks (65) while ranking third in RBI with 108 and second in batting average at .417.
South Coach Kyle Kraemer, the only Brave with a higher batting average than Vicars during his career in the mid-1980s, cites the tough-as-nails nature of Vicars as one of the many qualities he thinks will be beneficial at the collegiate level.
“Obviously, Vincennes is getting a terrific competitor,” Kraemer said. “Cole will get even better offensively and defensively if/when he is allowed to concentrate on playing only second base or whatever defensive position they are going to play him at.
“Another one of his strong points is that he is versatile enough to play any infield or outfield position,” Kraemer added. “He will do well at whatever position he plays because he is such a competitor.”
Adams agrees.
“When I got this job, Cole was at the top of our radar screen,” he said. “There are a couple things that stand out about Cole. One is his versatility. I know I can play him in the infield or outfield and he won't skip a beat.
“The other is his attitude and passion for the game. It is second to none and I see him stepping right in and being an instant difference maker for us.”
Amerman hit eight home runs for Riverton Parke this spring, but is being looked at by Vincennes as a pitcher.
“T.J. is a guy that has a lot of potential,” Adams said. “He throws 84-87 mph from the 3/4 arm slot with a pretty good curve. He is going to need to develop a third pitch to be successful, but I see him being in a middle relief role for us.”
Suffering through some occasional lapses of defensive support, Amerman had only a 6-5 pitching record this year but compiled a sparkling 2.34 ERA and struck out 116 batters in 64 innings.
RP Coach Hank Lopez is sorry to see Amerman go, but is glad his career is not yet over.
“T.J. has worked hard and I know it has been a goal for him to play college baseball,” Lopez said. “Vincennes has most of their starting rotation back, so I think they are looking at him as a reliever, setup type guy out of the bullpen.
“We are very happy that T.J. gets to continue his baseball career at the next level.”
Pearson was used exclusively as a pitcher this spring by ISU Coach Lindsay Meggs, and the right-hander compiled a 5-1 record in 20 appearances with eight starts and one complete game.
Pearson had a 5.65 ERA, and walked 41 batters and struck out 37 in 651/3 innings of work.
“Signing Skyler is very big for us,” Adams said. “We return our entire rotation from a year ago and a pretty good one at that [4.47 team ERA]. Skyler will instantly jump right to the top of that rotation and I expect big things out of him.
“There is also the possibility of making him a two-way guy,” Adams said. “I know he hasn’t hit in a year, but we’ll give him a shot and I know from watching him last summer that he is pretty good defensively around the first base bag.”
Rosselli hit .266 this season for the 18-23 Trailblazers in 40 games with four doubles, three home runs and 17 RBI.
“John did a great job for us this year,” Adams said. “He was very solid at second base and was definitely one of our leaders.
“He is definitely my type of player from the sense that when he steps between the lines he is all business,” Adams added. “I look for him to have a big year in ’08”
Reberger only played in 15 games this spring, but impressed Adams by hitting .371 with 10 RBI in 35 at-bats.
“If I gave out a ‘Most Improved’ award, there is no doubt that Reberger would get it,” Adams said. “The strides he made from the fall to the spring were remarkable. With a lot of hard work, he turned himself into a pretty good college hitter.”
Also included in the 2007 recruiting class for the Trailblazers are former Vincennes Alices standouts Craig Heinz and Justin Blinn. Heinz may also play basketball at VU.
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• Others moving on — There were not many other additions to the list in the last installment of this column which listed Wabash Valley athletes going on to play in college.
It had been previously reported that Brice Humpolick of Terre Haute South would go to Illinois Wesleyan to play soccer.
Two softball players also made their choices as Terre Haute North’s Brandalynn Mowbray announced this week in Andy Amey’s column she is going to Bethel, and all-state Casey-Westfield junior second baseman Megan Murphy earlier verbally committed to Illinois for the 2008-2009 school year.
Please send any other signings or commitments to the e-mail address listed below.
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• Many get postseason baseball honors — Huntington outfielder Korey Grow of Sullivan earned his second straight all-Mid Central Conference team honor as an outfielder.
Grow, a junior, batted .370 this season with 17 doubles, two home runs, 30 RBI and only five strikeouts in 135 at-bats. He also made only one error in 51 chances for a .980 fielding percentage.
• Junior outfielder Shane Noble, also of Sullivan, was one of six Bellarmine University baseball players to earn a spot on the Great Lakes Valley All-Conference awards list.
Noble was named to the GLVC second team. He hit .276 for the season, but boosted that average to a team-best .316 in GLVC games. In conference action, he also led the Knights with a .453 slugging percentage and three triples. For the season, he led the team in walks per at-bat and had the second fewest strikeouts per game of any Bellarmine starter.
• Senior first baseman Tyler Evans of Armstrong Atlantic, a Bloomfield graduate, was named to the National Collegiate Baseball Writer’s Association’s second team All-Region squad as an infielder as he became AASU's first player to hit .400 for an entire season since 2002.
Evans finished the year with a .403 average and collected 98 hits, just three shy of the single-season record, and smashed the single-season record for singles with 91.
Evans was also honored as a first-team all-Peach Belt Conference selection at the Division II school.
• North Central grad Kevin Greve was voted Earlham College’s “most improved player.” The sophomore pitcher had an 0-3 record and appeared in 11 games, four as a starting pitcher, with one complete game.
He had a 9.95 ERA, which was third-best on the team, and walked only 11 batters in 31 innings with eight strikeouts.
• Junior infielder Jeff Grantham of St. John’s was named a first team Academic All-American by the College Sports Information Directors Association and ESPN The Magazine last month.
Grantham, a former Terre Haute resident, has posted a 3.98 grade point average in physics to earn his first Academic All-America honors. He attended Dixie Bee Elementary School.
Grantham was also an Academic All-District 1 choice for the second straight year.
Grantham started at shortstop in 46 games this season and batted .340 with eight doubles, four triples and 30 RBI. He had both a 14-game hit streak and a streak of 74 consecutive defensive chances without an error.
In the classroom, Grantham has posted his remarkable GPA in St. John’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and is a Presidential Scholarship award recipient.
• • •
• Phegley playing on Cape Cod — Indiana University sophomore catcher Josh Phegley is looking to regain the hitting form this summer while playing in the prestigious Cape Cod League that earned him Mr. Baseball honors in 2006 at Terre Haute North
“I need to find the swing I came into the [IU] season with,” Phegley told the Indiana Daily Student.
In his senior year at North, Phegley hit .592 with 13 home runs, 16 doubles and 50 RBIs, winning Indiana’s Mr. Baseball Award.
Last season, he finished with a .232 average, no home runs, eight doubles and 16 RBI.
“Josh definitely is strong and has power,” IU Coach Tracy Smith told the IDS. “He just needs to mature as a hitter.”
One out of every seven Major League Baseball players has played in the Cape Cod League, which is sponsored by MLB and attracts some of the best college players in the country.
Phegley is the first IU player ever to play for the Wareham (Mass.) Gatemen.
“It is a honor and a chance to bring the [IU baseball] program up,” Phegley told the IDS.
Smith hopes the experiences from this summer can help Phegley in the future
“This is a premier summer league and a prospect league that can skyrocket a player’s stock,” Smith said.
Phegley, one of only two catchers on the roster, is likely to get a lot of playing time. He and the Gatemen started their regular season Friday night at Falmouth, Mass., against the Commodores.
Joey Bennett is a former Tribune-Star sports reporter who now teaches at North Central Jr.-Sr. High School in Farmersburg. He can be reached at tribstarcollegereport@yahoo.com, and his Web site listing all former area athletes known to be competing in college can be found at www.tribstarcollegereport.com.
College Report
College Report: Vincennes University excited about connecting pipeline to Terre Haute baseball talent
- College Report
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Catching up as the school year winds down
Odds and ends from here and there as the school year quickly winds down. For starters, high jumper Nick Jaeger of Terre Haute South was named the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference’s male track & field newcomer of the year:
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College Report: Lively earned collegiate upgrade with strong play
Hillary Lively signed to play Division II basketball at Maryville (Mo.) during her senior year at North Vermillion, but those plans changed and she would up at nearby Danville Area Community College — where she recently concluded an outstanding two-year career.
Lively was impressive enough to earn a Division I scholarship to Southeast Missouri State of the Ohio Valley Conference, and both her future and past college coaches think she will continue to succeed there.
“She fits what we need,” SEMO coach Ty Margenthaler said. “She has college experience, she is strong and physical and plays well around the basket and moves well.
“Her strength, rebounding and touch around the basket will be a big help. On the defensive end, she’ll be able to guard a true center.” -
COLLEGE REPORT: Valley prep athletes getting ready for next level
The NCAA “regular” signing period begins Wednesday for all sports except football, field hockey, soccer, track and field, cross country and men’s water polo.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Conferences honor Valley softball players
Several Wabash Valley area college softball players have been honored by their respective conferences for outstanding play this spring.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Jake Newton makes big impact for Lincoln Trail College
Jake Newton had a long time between playing in competitive basketball games, a span of about 18 months, and used the frustration from that long dry spell to produce a stellar freshman season for Lincoln Trail College this winter.
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COLLEGE REPORT: A.J. Reed earns SEC Player of the Week honors
After belting three home runs during a five games last week, Kentucky sophomore left-handed pitcher/first baseman A.J. Reed was named Southeastern Conference Player of the Week.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Spring newcomers making marks
Several freshman baseball and softball NCAA Division I players from the Wabash Valley have already made immediate impacts at their new schools, while others are waiting for their turns to shine.
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COLLEGE REPORT: A.J. Reed named third-team preseason baseball All-American
Two-way sophomore standout A.J. Reed was one of three University of Kentucky players named third-team preseason All-America by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Sponsler honored after big week for Wabash men's hoops
Wabash College freshman Ross Sponsler of Terre Haute North was named the North Coast Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Week for the period ending Jan. 6.
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COLLEGE REPORT: North grad Hughes finds success after facing preseason adversity
A.J. Hughes knew he was in for a battle as he competed with three other walk-on punters in the preseason for the lone starting job on the Virginia Tech football team.
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Etling, Meggs enjoying great year
It’s been a great year so far with more to come for a pair of longtime friends and St. Patrick’s School classmates.
Former Terre Haute resident Jack Meggs quarterbacked the Bellevue Wolverines football team to the Washington Class 3A state championship this fall, culminating with a 35-3 win over Sammamish Eastside Catholic — Bellevue’s fifth straight crown.
Danny Etling, meanwhile, has completed graduation requirements at Terre Haute South and is preparing for an upcoming high school all-star game and his first college classes in a couple of weeks. -
COLLEGE REPORT: Valley’s women’s college hoops players start strong
Several women’s college basketball players from the Wabash Valley have gotten off to good starts this season on the hardwood. Highlights:
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COLLEGE REPORT: Mayhew, Mascari provide fall highlights
Several dozen Wabash Valley athletes enjoyed successful fall seasons collegiately in cross country and tennis this year. -
COLLEGE REPORT: Former North teammates start strong in college
Former Terre Haute North teammates Ross Sponsler and Matt O’Leary made their college basketball debuts last week and had outstanding initial performances. -
COLLEGE REPORT: Shoemaker OBP leads Chisox farmhands
Former Indiana State, Olney Central and Northview baseball standout Brady Shoemaker opened a lot of eyes last summer in the Chicago White Sox farm system, earning him a spot on a mlb.com blog team that highlighted the team’s outstanding minor leaguers at each position.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Boeglin has plenty of ISU memories, but not all are related to basketball
Melanie Boeglin, an All-American who played on the women’s basketball team at Indiana State from 2002-2006, will be inducted into the 21st class of the Indiana State University Athletics Hall of Fame on Thursday.
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COLLEGE REPORT: North grad leading DePauw volleyball in winning streak
DePauw’s volleyball team has won seven straight matches entering this weekend’s DePauw Invitational, including four straight wins last weekend to capture the Rose-Hulman invitational title.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Engle moving up football coaching ranks
Michael Engle graduated from DePauw University in the spring of 2011 with a degree in political science and future plans to advance his studies in law school.
Being a coach’s son and a competitive athlete by nature, Engle has put those plans on hold for now. -
COLLEGE REPORT: From Terre Haute South to Division I competition to coaching careers
Adriane Wunderlich and Katelyn Bishop both turned stellar high school careers at Terre Haute South into Division I collegiate careers at Indiana State and Southern California, respectively.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Former prep athletes getting ready for fall college season
An impressive total of at least 122 Wabash Valley athletes and coaches will be competing collegiately for the first time during the upcoming school year or have changed schools to continue their careers.
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COLLEGE REPORT: SP’s Boetjer is Indiana’s Miss Softball
South Putnam’s Brooke Boetjer, who will be a freshman on the Indiana University softball team next spring, was named the 2012 Indiana Miss Softball last month between games at the North/South All-Star games in Carmel.
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College report: North grad Mayhew is second team all-American at IU
Indiana University running standout Zach Mayhew of Terre Haute North was honored earlier this month as a second-team All-American by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.
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College report: Bloomfield runner to join IUPUI track, cross country teams
Bloomfield track/cross country standout Julie Riggins will be joining the developing IUPUI program next fall as one of six incoming recruits.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Roberts takes coaching position at UNC-Greensboro
Terre Haute native Mike Roberts is continuing his climb up the college basketball coaching ladder, recently departing Rice for a spot as the associate head coach at North Carolina-Greensboro.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Valley grads playing role for No. 13 Vincennes
A few springtime odds and ends:
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COLLEGE REPORT: Shouse making his mark for Danville Community College
Derek Shouse definitely flew under the radar in his one season of playing for the Terre Haute South boys basketball team last winter.
Not highly recruited, he made his way to Danville Area Community College as a walk-on with the hopes he could find his way onto the court at some point. -
COLLEGE REPORT: Bullock finds sunny home to continue tennis career
Most college athletes progress along similar paths to get to their final destinations athletically, but Terre Haute South grad Taylor Bullock’s route to the Eckerd College women’s tennis team was a little different than most.
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COLLEGE REPORT: TH South QB entertains Division I offers
Danny Etling’s trek to being a big-time college quarterback took a huge step this week when the Terre Haute South junior picked up a scholarship offer from Purdue, according to 247sports.com.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Seibert stepping up her game
Terre Haute South grad Haley Seibert has seen the usual ups and downs of her freshman basketball season at Indiana-Purdue-Fort Wayne and is making the most of her opportunities this season.
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COLLEGE REPORT: Vikings Waters, Barton excited about college basketball
West Vigo grad Lauren Dailey helped the Lady Vikings basketball program to a lot of success at the end of the 1990s, and went on to play for Eastern Illinois from 2001-2004.
- More College Report Headlines
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Catching up as the school year winds down
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