Josh Phegley is still clinging to a slim hope of being named to USA Baseball’s National Team, which continues a series of exhibition games through Tuesdays and then departs for Europe.
The Indiana University junior catcher was not named to the 20-man roster last week after struggling at the plate during a 12-game series of games at the team’s trials. The final two spots on the team’s roster were to be added this weekend, and on Saturday the team added Fresno State shortstop Tommy Mendonca.
Only two catchers — Micah Gibbs of Louisiana State and Ryan Lipkin of San Francisco — are currently on the roster.
Phegley played in eight of the 12 games in the trials, starting five, and was the starting catcher batting third in the order in the first game. Phegley was 2-for-9 at the plate after his first two games, but did not get another hit in 14 at-bats and finished the trials hitting .087 with two doubles, two runs and three RBI.
Three other catchers are also waiting to see if they can be given the team’s final spot, Ryan Ortiz of Oregon State, Tommy Medica of Santa Clara and Ben Petralli of Oral Roberts.
A total of 38 players were in contention for the 22 spots on the team.
The USA team will play Chinese Taipei today at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park, then will travel to the USA National Training Center at Cary, N.C., on Monday for two final exhibitions before taking off for the Netherlands and the Czech Republic.
Meanwhile, the post-season honors for Phegley continue to roll in. The Terre Haute North grad and 2006 Mr. Baseball was named an ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Division I All-American by the American Baseball Coaches Association, and also to the 2008 ABCA/Rawlings All-Mideast Region Team. Phegley was a first team selection at catcher,
In other college news:
• Bassett visits Arkansas — Former Terre Haute South and Indiana University guard Armon Bassett made an official visit to Arkansas on Thursday, according to hawgsillustrated.com.
Bassett was dismissed from Indiana’s team after his sophomore season.
• Bretscher at Olympic Trials — Greencastle graduate Andrew Bretscher is in Omaha, Neb., this week trying to earn a spot on the U.S. Olympic swimming team. in the United States will be converging on Omaha, Neb. next week, all of them seeking a spot at the U.S. Olympic team and a chance to compete in August Olympic games in Beijing.
Bretscher, who will be a junior member of Ohio State’s team next winter, swam a 55.05 in the 100-meter butterfly in the Olympic Trials to qualify. That time was .54 seconds better than the Olympic standard.
The odds will be tough for Bretscher, whose seed time tied him for the 64th best in the 109-man field.
The top seed is world and American record holder Ian Crocker, with his time of 50.40.
“I was really excited when I got the cut,” Bretscher said. “Just to get a chance to compete against these guys and make an Olympic Team, that's really a dream for any swimmer.”
• Huffman to IUPUI — IUPUI volleyball coach Steve Payne has officially announced the addition of Northview graduate Kaley Huffman to his team as a walk-on.
Huffman helped Northview High School go 31-4 in her senior year, filling both offensive and defensive roles with the Knights. The 5-foot-6 team captain finished tied for 35th in the state of Indiana with 3.5 kills per game while also leading the team in digs. For the third straight season, Huffman was named First Team All-Western Indiana Conference.
A member of the Crossroads of America Volleyball Club, Huffman will primarily focus on the back row at IUPUI. “Kaley will help add depth and solidify our back row,” Payne said. “On the defensive end of the court, her ball control skills will play a vital role.”
• Greenville gets LIC trio — Three former Little Illini Conference basketball standouts are taking their skills to Greenville College this fall.
Casey-Westfield graduate Logan Boyd and Martinsville’s Chase Lee will suit up for Greensville’s men’s team, while Brittani Wolfe of Martinsville will join the women’s program.
Lee is a 6-3 guard who averaged 14.6 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.4 steals and 1.9 assists per game.
Boyd is a six-foot point guard averaged 13. 5 points, 2.7 rebounds, 2.5 steals and 5.9 assists per game for the 14-12 Warriors.
Wolfe averaged 11.4 points and 10.2 rebounds per game for the 25-3 Lady Bluestreaks.
• Timm to Marian — Jered Timm of Northview will become the fourth ex-Knight to play football at Marian College this fall.
Timm — a standout wide receiver — joins Jaime Bays, Matt Crooks and Dayne Upperman at the Indianapolis school.
He was a four-year Scholar Athlete who also earned Academic All-Conference honors at Northview. Timm was named team's Most Valuable Player and was a two-time All-Conference selection in football, and also was named Offensive Most Valuable Player.
Joey Bennett is a former Tribune-Star sports reporter and copy editor who now teaches and coaches at Northview High School in Brazil. He can be reached at tribstarcollegereport@yahoo.com.
College Report
College report: Phegley holding out hope to make national baseball team
- 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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