Eric Gilbert, Sports Editor
With spring just around the corner, the Illinois Wesleyan men’s baseball team is gearing up for the 2015 season. Looking back on the Titans 2014 season, there was a lot to be proud of.
The 2014 Titans had a 24-20 record overall, and were 14-7 in the CCIW. They went on to win the CCIW tournament title, earning an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament for the fifth straight season and seventh time in the past eight years. They faced the LeTourneau Yellowjackets in McMinnville, Oregon and lost 3-2.
Senior pitcher John Munyon was on the mound and put in a stellar performance, allowing only one run in seven and 1/3 innings. Munyon will be the most likely candidate to be number one in the Titans pitching rotation this year.
With the loss of Senior All-Central Region selections Jon Frericks and Bobby Czarnowski, the Titans will need people to step up on the offensive end. Junior Adam Glogovsky and sophomore Pat Mollo appear to be more than equipped to fill in the void.
Glogovsky played in 30 games last year, had a .353 average (tied for the highest on the team with Czarnowski) and had 36 hits. Mollo played in 42 games, starting 41 of them. He had 31 hits, 19 runs batted in (RBI’s) and was consistent behind the plate on the defensive end.
Sophomore pitcher and outfielder Nick Huskisson said, “We have a lot of potential to do something special this year. Certainly Pat and Adam will be instrumental in stepping up and contributing in large part to our success.”
“I think we’ll also rely on our strong pitching rotation, which I believe is the best in the CCIW,” Huskisson said.
Huskisson’s claim has plenty of evidence for validation. Alongside Munyon is Senior Matt Hart who started nine games last season and had a 6-2 record. Senior Dan Truesdale will likely find himself in the starting rotation after his remarkable effort put in as a relief pitcher last year. He appeared in 21 games, had an ERA of 1.95 and struck out 21 batters.
Preseason Poll:
The Titans were picked to finish second in the 2014 College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin according to a preseason coaches’ poll taken on Feb. 11. The Vikings of Augustana were picked to defend their 2014 regular season CCIW title while North Park was picked to finish third. The Titans open their 2015 season with a single game against Blackburn at 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 7 in Jackson, Mississippi.