College Sports
Oredigger Baseball Unveils Incoming Class
GOLDEN, Colo. – Colorado School of Mines Baseball Head Coach Robby Bales and his staff have locked in their incoming class for the 2025-26 school year with 14 new Orediggers coming to Golden.
Five of the 14 signed during the early period with nine more putting pen to paper for Mines after the calendar turned. Overall, the class includes three junior college transfers and 11 true freshmen. Seven states are represented including California, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Nevada, Texas, and of course, Colorado. The most represented state is California with four signees hailing from the Pacific Coast. Three new Orediggers tout Colorado roots with three more from Texas and one each from Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, and Nevada. Positionally, Coach Bales and Assistant Coach/Recruiting Coordinator Bryan King addressed every position on the diamond, the bullpen, and the starting rotation on the mound. The breakdown includes one true infielder, three outfielders, five right-handed pitchers, one left-handed pitcher, and four utility players.
Below is a snapshot of the incoming class:
Logan Burchfiel – 6-0 – 195 – INF – Omaha, Neb. – Creighton Prep
Dylan Burke – 6-7 – 220 – RHP – El Dorado Hills, Calif. – Sacramento City College
Owen Elser – 6-0 – 165 – OF – Greenwood Village, Colo. – Cherry Creek HS
Drew Fairman – 6-1 – 190 – UTL – Reno, Nev. – Galena HS
Alex Freund – 6-2 – 185 – OF – Canyon Country, Calif. – College of the Canyons
Owen Hicks – 6-3 – 180 – UTL – Iowa City, Iowa – Iowa City HS
Justin Holcomb – 5-11 – 175 – OF – Friendswood, Texas – Friendswood HS
Keyan Lundvall – 6-1 – 195 – UTL – Castle Rock, Colo. – Castle View HS
Tai Nguyen – 5-9 – 180 – RHP – The Woodlands, Texas – The Woodlands HS
Alex Piscotty – 6-5 – 210 – RHP – Livermore, Calif. – Granada HS
Brandon Schaff – 6-1 – 185 – LHP – Aliso Viejo, Calif. – Aliso Niguel HS
William Schulte – 6-5 – 225 – RHP – Olathe, Kan. – Johnson County CC
Brady Syers – 6-2 – 190 – UTL – Centennial, Colo. – Arapahoe HS
Matthew Turner – 6-6 – 200 – RHP – Austin, Texas – Hyde Park HS
Logan Burchfiel – INF – 6-0 – 195
Omaha, Neb. – Creighton Prep
HIGH SCHOOL: Earned two varsity letters playing baseball at Creighton Preparatory School in Nebraska and also competed in club hockey … Three seasons on the diamond included a .337 batting average, .500 on-base percentage, a .988 OPS, and .488 slugging percentage … Appeared in the local newspaper after stealing 24 bases in a single season … Selected to compete for team Nebraska at the National High School Baseball Championships … Named Most Valuable Player after a successful Perfect Game tournament … Club hockey experience came with Omaha Mastery AAA … Hockey team ranked 15th in the nation and competed in the region final … Classroom work led to academic honors each semester along with a National Latin Exam honorable merit … Plans to major in civil engineering at Mines.
Dylan Burke – RHP – 6-7 – 220
El Dorado Hills, Calif. – Sacramento City College (Jesuit Carmichael HS)
SACRAMENTO CITY COLLEGE (2024-25): Started his collegiate career at Sacramento City College in California … Freshman season included five appearances on the mound … Finished the 2024 campaign with a 9.00 ERA after striking out three and walking five across 4.0 innings … Sophomore season featured 15 trips from the bullpen leading to a 3-1 record and one save … Posted a 5.73 ERA and 1.45 WHIP thanks to 25 strikeouts compared to 11 walks in 22.0 innings of relief … Only surrendered one home run as well.
HIGH SCHOOL: Pitched for the baseball team at Jesuit High School in Carmichael, Calif. … Accumulated three varsity letters during his prep career. Junior season included 18 innings pitched and a 4.28 ERA with 20 strikeouts, 11 walks, and 15 hits surrendered … Senior campaign featured 8.1 innings of work with a 5.88 ERA thanks to 10 strikeouts and 11 walks with six hits against … Graduated cum laude in 2023.
Owen Elser – OF – 6-0 – 165
Greenwood Village, Colo. – Cherry Creek HS
HIGH SCHOOL: Outfielder for Cherry Creek High School in Colorado … Helped his team win the 2025 state title as the starter in center field … Also served as junior varsity captain earlier in his prep career … posted a .250 batting average with a .366 on-base percentage and a .772 OPS … Notched a pair of doubles and a home run as well … Played club ball for Slammers Givens where he batted .429 with three doubles, 11 walks, and 11 stolen bases … Earned the Varsity Academic Award and appeared on the honor roll … Plans to major in mechanical engineering at Mines.
Drew Fairman – UTL – 6-1 – 190
Reno, Nev. – Galena HS
HIGH SCHOOL: Two-sport athlete at Galena High School in Nevada, playing both baseball and soccer … Utility man on the diamond, mostly appearing at catcher and in the outfield … Lined up on defense and in the midfield on the pitch … Accumulated seven varsity letters between the two sports … Senior season saw him lead the league with a .490 batting average and 24 hits in Nevada 5A-North league games … Also ranked fourth in the league in slugging percentage … Senior accolades included Northern Nevada First-Team All-League at catcher, Northern Nevada Academic All-State, 5A North First-Team All-Region with two nominations for Northern Nevada Player of the Week … Junior season resulted in a .432 batting average with 19 hits, seven stolen bases, and a .591 slugging percentage on the way to Northern Nevada First-Team All-League accolades at catcher … Also named first-team all-region and was selected for the 5A-North Underclassmen All-Star game … Led the league in stolen bases as a sophomore … Off the diamond and pitch, earned certifications in basic life support, took OSHA’s 10 hour general industry course, completed STEM Academy’s Aerospace Engineering Core Specialization, collected an Honor’s Diploma, raked in four Academic Letter Recipient Awards, and notched a CTECS Workplace Readiness certification.
Alex Freund – OF – 6-2 – 185
Canyon Country, Calif. – College of the Canyons (Village Christian HS)
COLLEGE OF THE CANYONS (2024-25): Transferred from CPP and played his first two college seasons at College of the Canyons in California … Junior college accolades included Honorable Mention WASC South and the COC Student-Athlete Excellence Award … As a freshman, played in 27 games and collected 11 hits including three doubles and one home run with nine runs, eight RBI, and two walks while stealing four bases … Sophomore campaign saw him hit .322 thanks to 49 hits including nine doubles and one triple with 42 runs scored and 18 RBI while walking 38 times and stealing 14 bases … Also provided three outfield assists and a 1.000 fielding percentage.
CAL POLY POMONA (2023): Served as a student manager for the Broncos during the 2022-23 school year.
HIGH SCHOOL: Baseball star at Village Christian High School in California, collecting three varsity letters during his prep career … Posted a .316 batting average with four doubles, three triples, and 18 stolen bases … Named First-Team All-Olympic League in 2022 and Second-Team All-Olympic League in 2021 … Was an AP Scholar with Distinction as a junior and senior.
Owen Hicks – UTL – 6-3 – 180
Iowa City, Iowa – Iowa City HS
HIGH SCHOOL: Played baseball and football at Iowa City High School in Iowa … Was a utility player on the diamond with roles around the infield and on the mound … Two-way player on the gridiron, appearing at safety and wide receiver … Batted .327 and had a .44 on-base percentage while fielding .942 on 89 attempts … On the mound, held opposing hitters to a .153 batting average while producing a 1.58 ERA and .96 WHIP … According to Perfect Game, ranked 10th at shortstop in the state of Iwoa and the 38th overall player … Named Academic All-Conference and collected three varsity letters as part of the baseball team … Member of the National Honor Society and appeared on the Honor Roll every trimester … Plans to major in mechanical engineering at Mines.
Justin Holcomb – OF – 5-11 – 175
Friendswood, Texas – Friendswood HS
HIGH SCHOOL: Collected four varsity letters as a baseball player at Friendswood High School in Texas … Batted .312 with a .433 on-base percentage, a .965 OPS and a .531 slugging percentage … Played club baseball for Texas Twelve and C2 Baseball … Member of the National Honor Society … plans to major in computer science at Mines.
Keyan Lundvall – UTL – 6-1 – 195
Castle Rock, Colo. – Castle View HS
HIGH SCHOOL: Star baseball player at Castle View High School in Colorado … Collected three varsity letters and led his team, nearly single-handedly, to the semifinals of the state championship … Played around the diamond including appearances on the infield, on the mound, and in the outfield … At the plate, batted .463 with a .514 on-base percentage and a 1.219 OPS thanks to five home runs … Tallied 34 RBI and 13 stolen bases on offense as well … on the mound, went 6-2 with three saves while churning out a 4.8 ERA on the merits of 61 strikeouts in 51.2 innings of work … Earned First-Team All-Continental League and Second-Team All-Continental League … Also won player of the week once and was twice named First-Team Academic All-State … Ranked as the #5 middle infielder in the state of Colorado and 44th overall player by Perfect Game … Member of the National Honor Society and Castle View Math Student of the Year touting Highest Honors and AP Scholar with Distinction status … Plans to major in quantitative biosciences and engineering at Mines.
Tai Nguyen – RHP – 5-9 – 180
The Woodlands, Texas – The Woodlands HS
HIGH SCHOOL: Played baseball and earned three varsity letters at The Woodlands High School in Texas … Also played club baseball at the Hunter Pence Baseball Academy … Earned Perfect Game Tournament Most Valuable Pitcher … Ranked as a top-100 right-handed pitcher in the state of Texas according to Perfect Game … Member of the National Honor Society and a member of the National Science Honor Society … Plans to major in mechanical engineering at Mines.
Alex Piscotty – RHP – 6-5 – 210
Livermore, Calif. – Granada HS
HIGH SCHOOL: Competed for the baseball and water polo teams at Granada High School in California … Earned a total of five varsity letters … Senior season on the mound saw him post a 0.38 ERA with 73 strikeouts in 55.2 innings of work … Named First-Team All-League … Won NCS Scholar Athlete of the Year … Tabbed MaxPreps Player of the Week … Also selected as West Coast Preps Bay Area First-Team and West Coast Preps NorCal Second-Team … Served as hole set on the water polo team … Academically, was an AP Scholar with Distinction and a National Merit Commended Scholar … Plans to major in mechanical engineering at Mines.
Brandon Schaff – LHP – 6-1 – 185
Aliso Viejo, Calif. – Aliso Niguel HS
HIGH SCHOOL: Earned three varsity letters playing baseball at Aliso Niguel High School in California … Played at first base and in the outfield, but mostly worked on the mound … As a freshman, went 1-2 with a 1.8 ERA thanks to 76 strikeouts in 48.2 innings while holding opponents to .156 at the plate … Combined varsity numbers included a 7-5 record and 3.8 ERA working in relief and as a starter … Totaled 83 strikeouts and 69.1 innings pitched … Named Freshman Pitcher of the Year and was a two-time Second-Team All-League player … Helped his team win three league champions and the 2023 CIF title … Ranked as the #16 left-handed pitcher in the state of California by Perfect Game … Played club ball for TB Socal and was the 5 Tool Hot List Week 10 Winner and three-time player of the game … Off the field, scored a five on the AP Calculus AP Test and a four on the AP Physics 1 Test … Won the Espirit De Wolverine award and the Superintendent Award four times … Plans to major in mechanical engineering at Mines.
William Schulte – RHP – 6-5 – 225
Olathe, Kan. – Johnson County CC (Olathe North HS)
JOHNSON COUNTY CC (2024-25): First two collegiate seasons were at Johnson County Community College in Kansas … Twice named NJCAA First-Team All-Academic … Redshirted as a freshman … Did not appear in a game as a sophomore … Part of two teams that advanced to the NJCAA World Series in Grand Junction, Colo. … Graduated with an associate’s degree and President’s Honors.
HIGH SCHOOL: Was a pitcher and third baseman at Olathe North High School in Kansas … On the mound, was 1-1 with nine strikeouts across 7.2 innings of relief as a senior … At the plate, hit .233 with two home runs as a senior … Named First-Team All-Sunflower Conference as a closer … Earned a total of two varsity letters … Off the field, won first place in the chemistry division at the Greater Kansas City Science Fair … Was also an AP Scholar with Distinction … Plans to major in chemistry at Mines.
Brady Syers – UTL – 6-2 – 190
Centennial, Colo. – Arapahoe HS
HIGH SCHOOL: Two-sport athlete at Arapahoe High School in Colorado, competing in golf and baseball … On the diamond, worked at catcher and first base … Batted .385 with a .513 on-base percentage and a .963 OPS … Played on the varsity squad three years … Named Second-Team All-Conference as a senior and Honorable Mention All-Conference as a junior … Selected as First-Team Academic All-State each year of high school … Graduated with high honors and was a member of the National Honor Society … Plans to major in chemical engineering at Mines.
Matthew Turner – RHP – 6-6 – 200
Austin, Texas – Hyde Park HS
HIGH SCHOOL: Played for the baseball team at Hyde Park High School in Texas … Put together a 2.50 ERA thanks to 230 strikeouts across 160 innings pitched in three years as a varsity starter … Earned a total of four varsity letters … Named Second-Team All-District as a sophomore … Went back-to-back First-Team All-District as a junior and senior … Worked to status as a National Merit Scholar off the field … Plans to major in mechanical engineering at Mines.
Fans can keep up with Mines baseball on “X” (formerly Twitter) and Instagram at @OrediggersBSB. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, “X” and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.