With just two weeks remaining in the 2025 regular reason, four Kentucky players were named in D1Baseball’s Week 12 Player Rankings.

Firstly, freshman shortstop Tyler Bell was ranked the highest at his position. In his first season of college baseball in the nation’s premier conference, Bell was ranked as the 17th best overall shortstop and best freshman shortstop in the country.

Bell, who has played and started in all 45 of Kentucky’s games, is hitting for a .315 batting average with 17 doubles, seven home runs and 42 RBI. He was named SEC Freshman of the Week earlier in the season and hit the second most doubles by a freshman in the country. He made a risky decision by bypassing Major League Baseball to play two seasons at Kentucky, but he is surely making the most of it and is likely increasing his draft stock for the 2026 Draft by the game.

Next, Kentucky had two of its three starting pitchers named among the top 60 starters in the country. Sophomore left-hander Ben Cleaver was ranked at No. 32 and senior right-hander Nic McCay was ranked at No. 59. Kentucky’s Saturday and Sunday starters have excelled this season, boasting a combined 3.49 ERA in 123 2/3 innings of work this season.

McCay turned in one of the best starts in Kentucky Baseball history earlier this season, as held No. 4 Tennessee to two hits and no runs with 12 strikeouts in 7 2/3 innings. He was named SEC Pitcher of the Week for his efforts, becoming just the seventh in the Mingione era to win the Award.

Cleaver was stellar this season as well, as his 3.46 ERA ranks 10th in the SEC. He took the sophomore leap in his second season of college baseball and became an extremely reliable start for his team, as the ‘Cats have won in seven of his 12 starts.

Finally, senior outfielder Cole Hage was ranked as the 40th best outfielder in all of college baseball. Although his best play may have come earlier in the season, Hage is still hitting for a .314 average with a team-leading 10 home runs and 33 RBI. Hage, who transferred from Columbia for his final season of eligibility, has been Kentucky’s most effective Transfer Portal pickup.

These four players will be back in action in a must-win series against No. 17 Oklahoma this weekend. First pitch for Friday’s series opener is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. EST at Kentucky Proud Park.

Rock Hill, S.C. – Coming off a midweek loss at The Citadel yesterday afternoon, Winthrop jumps back into Big South play by traveling to the Virginia mountains to face the Radford Highlanders in a three-game weekend series beginning on Friday, May 9 at 6:00 p.m. All three games will be televised on ESPN+.
 

A LOOK AT RADFORD

• The two schools will meet for the 91^st-93^rd time with Winthrop leading the series, 68-52
• Winthrop split a doubleheader from the Highlanders last season in 2024 by scores of 8-6 and 4-5 in Rock Hill on May 5
• The Eagles and the Highlanders met for the first time in a doubleheader on Mar. 28, 1985 in Rock Hill, with Winthrop winning 11-1 and 11-2 on the way to winning the first nine meetings from 1985-88
• Radford won 15 of the next 24 meetings from 1989-95 but Winthrop answered with a big 32-12 run from 1996-2009, including winning 11 straight from 2000-2004
• Radford won 24 of the next 32 meetings from 2010 to 2021 but it has been all Winthrop since then, with the Eagles winning seven of the last eight
• In their most recent series, the Highlanders were swept in a Sunday doubleheader at Duke by scores of 15-0 and 17-5

LAST TIME OUT

• Winthrop dropped a tight midweek contest at The Citadel Wednesday afternoon, 6-3
• Winthrop’s five-game win streak was snapped with the loss
• E. Wilson had the lone homer of the game for the Eagles

A LOOK BACK AT 2024 

• The Eagles finished the 2024 season with a 19-29-1 (8-15 Big South) record
• Jaylen Hernandez and Owen Sarna were both named to the Big South All-Freshman Team
• The Sacramento Athletics in the 13th round selected Riley Huge in the MLB Draft
• Overall, Huge marks the 37th Eagle in history to be selected in the MLB Draft
• This was the second straight year that a Winthrop baseball player was drafted
• Winthrop also earned the Team Academic Excellence Award from the ABCA for the fifth consecutive year
• Winthrop finished last season having recorded the most strikeouts in nine inning games in a single season in program history (9.60 over 413.1 IP)
• Winthrop also finished last season sixth in a single season in program history with 440 strikeouts
• Against Davidson on Apr. 16, 2024, Winthrop set a new team single-game record for most times hit by pitch with seven
• In a minimum of 500 chances, Nate Chronis is currently tied for fourth in school history with a .989 fielding percentage
• He also finished last season tied for fifth in school history in most times hit by pitch in a single season with 12
• Chronis led the team in putouts last season with 275 and total chances with 306
• He was named to the College Sports Communicators Academic All-District Team. Chronis started in 33 of 44 games played, batting in a season-high two runs vs. Radford on May 5
• Joey Hylinski led the team in lowest ERA last season with 2.35

WINTHROP AT A GLANCE IN 2025

• Winthrop enters 2025 predicted to finish sixth in the Big South Conference
• In his first season at the helm of the program is Mike McGuire
• McGuire is the fourth head coach in program history
• His career record is 504-378-1 in 16 years as a head coach
• McGuire returns to the Winthrop baseball program after serving as head coach at USC Upstate the last five seasons. This marks McGuire’s third stint with the Eagle program as he spent 12 seasons as an assistant coach from 1997-2002 and again in 2006-11
• The Eagles also welcome back 13 players, 11 of them starters and 27 newcomers, all either freshman or transfers
• The program has a record of 1,408-1,022-7
• Winthrop is 890-407-4 all-time at home
• Winthrop is 494-373 all-time in conference play, the winningest record in conference history
• Winthrop is 28-17 all-time in season openers
• Winthrop leads the nation in hit by pitches with 129 as of Tuesday, May 6
• Gabe Natividad is 2^nd in the nation in hit by pitch with 27 as of Tuesday, May 6
• Following a 10-3 win over UNC Asheville, Winthrop had been hit by pitch up to that point in the season with 92
• This set a new school single-season team school record
• Last year’s team was hit by pitch 86 times
• Winthrop is 18^th in the nation in doubles with 107 as of Tuesday, May 6
• Winthrop is 14^th in the nation in runs with 420 as of Tuesday, May 6
• Koby Kropf and Owen Sarna were voted to the Big South Conference Preseason All-Conference Team
• Kropf was selected as part of D1Baseball’s Top 100 Outfielders entering the 2025 season, slotting Kropf as the 26-best in the country
• Kropf started all 60 games for conference rival USC Upstate in 2024, and became just the third player in Big South history with 20 doubles (21) and 20 home runs (20) in a season. He hit .352 overall with 20 homers, 67 runs batted in, a .704 slugging clip, 81 hits and 56 runs scored. Kropf also drew 29 walks and five hit-by-pitch and finished with a .431 on-base percentage. Kropf recorded a career-high five hits versus Presbyterian on April 27, collected a career-high five RBI versus Queens on April 16, and recorded 25 multi-hit and 19 multi-RBI games a season ago
• In Big South contests, Kropf batted .363 with eight home runs, 28 RBI, a .714 slugging average and .463 on-base clip
• Last season at USC Upstate, he earned Second-Team All-Big South honors and was a back-to-back Player of the Week honoree (April 22 and April 29)
• Kropf was named the 2025 Big South Preseason Baseball Player of the Year Kropf is the first Winthrop baseball player to earn Preseason Player of the Year honors since 2007 and the third time overall
• Sarna is coming off a freshman campaign in which he was named to the 2024 Big South Conference All-Freshman Team. He finished 9th in the Big South in overall pitching with an ERA of 4.74. His most notable performances last season were pitching a season-high 6.0 innings vs. Longwood on Mar. 17 and a season-high six strikeouts vs. Maine on Mar. 3
• Sarna ended 2024 having pitched 49.1 innings with a record of 4-4 in 13 games played. He was 2nd on the team in ERA and wins with four. He started nine games, striking out 38 batters, which was good for 4th on the team
• Harrison Wilson was named to the initial Watch List for the 20th Annual National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Stopper of the Year Award, given to the top relief pitcher in NCAA Division I Baseball
• Wilson is one of the key relievers to return for the Eagles in 2024. Wilson started in nearly all the 49 games that the Eagles played last season. He started in 45 of 47 games he played in and pitched three games in relief, the only Winthrop offensive player on the season to do so. Wilson pitched a season-high 4.0 innings with 10 strikeouts and one walk at Queens (2/27) and offensively had a season-high five RBI’s vs. USC Upstate (4/6). Wilson will also play infield as well
• Wilson was also recognized by D1 Baseball as the #3 top prospect in the Big South Conference
• He tied for the team lead in walks last season with 44
• Hernandez had a terrific freshman season with the Eagles in 2024. He finished tied for 7th in the Big South in doubles with a team-leading 15 doubles; starting in all 45 games he played in, finishing the season with 157 at-bats. He was also tied for the team lead in games started and home runs with seven and led the team in RBI’s with 30 and walks with 19. He was named the Big South Freshman of the Week on May 6, which was the first weekly award of his career. A versatile player, Hernandez will DH, play first base and play in the outfield in 2025

2025 SEASON HONORS

• Koby Kropf – Redshirt senior – Outfielder
  

  • 2025 Big South Preseason Player of the Year/Preseason All-Conference Team

• Owen Sarna – Sophomore – Pitcher

  • 2025 Big South Preseason All-Conference Team

• Koby Kropf – Redshirt senior – Outfielder

  • 2025 D1Baseball’s Top 100 Outfielders

• Koby Kropf – Redshirt senior – Outfielder

  • 2025 DIBaseball’s Big South Preseason Player of the Year

• Harrison Wilson – Junior – Infielder/pitcher

  • 2025 National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Stopper of the Year Award Initial Watch List And The #3 Pro Prospect By The Big South Conference

• Owen Sarna-Big South Co-Starting Pitcher of the Week

  • Sarna allowed one hit and no runs over 5.2 innings to earn the win for Winthrop against Merrimack
  • He walked one and struck out nine, a new career-high
  • The right-handed sophomore struck out the side in the top of the first inning and the first four batters of the game overall
  • He finished with at least one strikeout in every inning, including fanning the final batter he faced in the sixth
  • The only hit Sarna allowed was a single to center in the top of the fifth

• Colin Crowley-Big South Freshman of the Week

  • Crowley batted .429 (6-14) with seven runs, four RBI and four doubles in Winthrop’s three-game sweep of Merrimack
  • He posted at least one double and one RBI in all three games and walked once
  • The freshman infielder went 3-for-5 with three runs, a double and one RBI in his collegiate debut on Friday
  • He added another double and an RBI in the second game of Friday’s doubleheader and then capped off the weekend with two doubles, three runs, and two RBI in the final game of the series on Sunday

• Harrison Wilson-Big South Co-Starting Pitcher of the Week

  • Wilson earned the win for Winthrop with a career-long 7.0 innings against UNC Asheville
  • The junior right-hander allowed just three hits and one run while striking out a season-high nine batters
  • He walked only two, didn’t allow an extra-base hit, and surrendered his lone run on a fielder’s choice groundout in the fourth
  • Wilson recorded strikeouts in six of his seven innings and got stronger as the game went on, fanning two batters in each of his final three frames

• Harrison Wilson – Junior – Infielder/pitcher

  • 2025 John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award Watch List by the College Baseball Foundation

• Liam McCallum – Senior – Pitcher/first baseman

  • 2025 John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award Watch List by the College Baseball Foundation

• Walker Brodt-Big South Relief Pitcher of the Week

  • Brodt came on in relief in consecutive games
  • He pitched one inning vs. Davidson, giving up just one hit and striking out three batters
  • He then outdid himself two days later in the first game of the series with Gardner-Webb, pitching the final four and one thirds inning to cement the 7-5 victory, giving up a pair of hits, one and punching out six Runnin’ Bulldogs

• Nate Chronis-Big South Player of the Week

  • Chronis batted .438 (7-for-16) for the week with 15 RBI in a series sweep at Longwood, highlighted by a historic nine-RBI performance on Saturday
  • Over four games overall, he tallied four doubles, a home run, four runs scored, and two stolen bases
  • The senior delivered a career day in game two against the Lancers, going 3-for-5 with a two-run homer, a pair of bases-clearing doubles, and a sacrifice fly to finish with nine RBI, tying for the most in the NCAA this season
  • Chronis opened the week by going 2-for-4 with a double at Davidson, then added a double and two RBI in Friday’s series opener in Farmville
  • He capped the weekend with another four RBI and two stolen bases to help lead the Eagles to a three-game sweep in conference play
  • He rounded out the week slugging .875 with a .455 on-base percentage

• Josh Skowronski-Big South Freshman of the Week

  • Skowronski homered twice, doubled twice, posted a pair of three-hit games, and drove in five runs across four games for Winthrop
  • He batted .421 (8-for-19) for the week, recorded at least one hit in every game, and added six runs and two stolen bases
  • After opening the week with an RBI double at Davidson, Skowronski totaled seven hits during a three-game series sweep at Longwood
  • He went 3-for-6 on Saturday, blasting a solo homer, adding an RBI single and a double, and scoring three times
  • He followed that performance by going 3-for-5 with a two-run homer on Sunday to help cap off the sweep
  • Skowronski finished the week slugging .842 with a .476 on-base percentage

• Mason Tompkins-Big South Freshman of the Week

  • Tompkins earned the midweek win for the Eagles by limiting Queens to just two hits and four total baserunners over 6.0 scoreless innings, striking out four
  • He needed only 75 pitches to complete his outing, inducing 10 popups and four groundouts while striking out the side in the second inning
  • The only hits he allowed were a leadoff single in the first and another to open the fifth, with just one runner advancing into scoring position all game

• Connor Harris – Graduate student – Right handed pitcher

  • 2025 Tony Gwyn Trophy Finalist (Top 9) – NCBWA

WATCH THE EAGLES ON ESPN+
Of the 33 home games this season, 22 of them will air live on ESPN+. You can also catch most of the road games in Big South Conference play on ESPN+. To watch Big South games on ESPN+ you must have a subscription to ESPN+. For more information on how to subscribe, click here.
 
WHERE TO SHOP
Find all your needs for Winthrop gear– ShopWinthropeagles.com | ShopWinthropGear.com | BSNTeamSports.com
 
LOOKING AHEAD
Winthrop heads to South Carolina for the final true road game this season on Tuesday, May 13 at 6:30 p.m. on ESPN+.

FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA

To keep up with the latest news on the Winthrop baseball program follow the Eagles on Twitter (@WinthropBSB), Instagram (@winthropbaseball) and Facebook (winthropbaseball).

With spring practice out of the way and majority of roster reconstructions complete, it’s time to look ahead to rankings for the 2025 football season.

Indiana was nowhere to be found in any preseason models last year — human or computer.

But after an 11-2 season that included an 8-1 Big Ten record and a CFP appearance, the perception of IU football has changed dramatically under the direction of second-year head coach Curt Cignetti.

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach published his “2025 post-spring Way-Too-Early Top 25 rankings” on Thursday and slotted Indiana in as the preseason No. 17 team.  If IU is ranked in the preseason AP top-25 released in August, it will be their first appearance in that preseason poll since 2021, and just the third time since 1969.

Here’s what Schlabach wrote about Indiana:

2025 outlook: The Hoosiers stunned the college football world by reaching the CFP in coach Curt Cignetti’s first season. And they’ve gone back into the transfer portal to fill some holes to try to run it back. Fernando Mendoza was one of the top quarterbacks in the portal after throwing for 3,004 yards with 16 touchdowns in 2024. Three transfers could start on the offensive line, and Makai Jackson and California transfer Jonathan Brady should help a solid receiver corps.

Hosea Wheeler and Dominique Ratcliff will anchor the middle of the defensive line, and Mikail Kamara’s return was a big boost for the defense. It’s going to be difficult for Indiana to match last season’s success, but its nonconference schedule (Old Dominion, Kennesaw State and FCS program Indiana State) gives it a chance to get off to a good start.

The Hoosiers will face three ranked teams in 2025 according to the ESPN projection, and they are all in Schlabach’s top-11:  No. 1 Penn State, No. 8 Oregon and No. 11 Illinois.

Indiana will go on the road to face No. 1 Penn State and No. 8 Oregon, along with an Iowa team likely not far from the top-25.  And they’ll host No. 11 Illinois in the Big Ten opener in mid-September.

Joining those ranked teams from the Big Ten are the defending national champion Ohio State Buckeyes at No. 5.  2025 will mark the first time since 2008 that IU and Ohio State do not meet during the regular season.

Indiana’s full 2025 schedule is as follows:

Aug. 30 – Old Dominion
Sept. 6 – Kennesaw State
Sept. 13 – Indiana State

BIG TEN:

Sept. 20 – vs. Illinois
Sept. 27 – at Iowa
Oct. 11 – at Oregon
Oct. 18 – vs. Michigan State
Oct. 25 – vs. UCLA
Nov. 1 – at Maryland
Nov. 8 – at Penn State
Nov. 15 – vs. Wisconsin
Nov. 29 – at Purdue

IU football: Position-by-position look at 2025 roster changes (UPDATE – WR Brady added via portal)

For complete coverage of IU football, GO HERE.

The Daily Hoosier –“Where Indiana fans assemble when they’re not at Assembly”

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