WAS THE NATIONAL LEADER WITH 15 SAVES.
WKU CLOSES SEASON WITH 36-22 OVERALL RECORD; INJURY TO STARTING CATCHER CAMDEN ROSS WAS A SUBSTANTIAL BLOW
They’re no longer anybody’s pushover, and they’re pushing themselves with plenty of possibilities for the future.
Western Kentucky University’s baseball program is clearly trending upward, which was evident by their semifinal appearance in this year’s Conference USA Tournament at Louisiana Tech’s Pat Patterson Park.
Two years after a disastrous 18-36 campaign, in which WKU failed to reach the Conference USA Tournament, the Marc Rardin Era has taken definitive shape. The Hilltoppers bounced back in 2023, using a fast finish to win 33 games against 26 defeats. Rardin, who won three JUCO national championships at Iowa Western Community College, was a long way from being satisfied, however, and the WKU coaching staff diligently hit the recruiting trail to put together a more promising team with the Hilltoppers.
There was plenty of turnover, however, in part because of the freedom of the NCAA Transfer Portal, but in larger part because of Rardin’s approach to building a program. Only eight members of the 2023 squad returned for the 2023-24 school year at WKU, but the Hilltoppers made considerable progress in finishing the season at 36-22 overall.
IN PITCHING COACH DILLON NAPOLEON.
LED THE HILLTOPPERS WITH 47 RBI …
ADDITIONAL POWER FOR
THE 2025 SEASON.
Rardin’s second year with the Hilltoppers should help WKU on the recruiting trail. The Tops are well schooled in the fundamentals, and they were adept at bunting, advancing the runners and other offensive subtleties of the game. They’ve now taken 11 of their last 14 C-USA series, a point WKU play-by-play man Randy Lee likes to emphasize as the curtain is drawn on the 2024 season.
WKU went 2-2 in the C-USA Tournament in Ruston, Louisiana, eliminating New Mexico State and Florida International before losing to Dallas Baptist, 7-5, in the tournament semifinals on Saturday. During the season, WKU took two of three games from DBU, a baseball-only member of Conference USA that spent most of the season in the national rankings.
Rardin and WKU pitching coach Dillon Napoleon put together a top-flight pitching staff, particularly in the bullpen. Senior closer Mason Burns, a sturdy right-hander from Metro Chicago, was the national leader with 15 saves. Relievers such as Coby Moe, Cal Higgins and Lane Diuguid kept the Hilltoppers in plenty of games, but the season took a turn for the worse in the first weekend in May, when WKU traveled to Asheville, North Carolina, for a three-game non-conference series.
A STARTING ROLE AT CATCHER IN MAY.
TOOK TWO OF THREE GAMES
FROM DALLAS BAPTIST IN APRIL.
Joey Baran, a JUCO transfer from Texas, filled in admirably, behind the plate, in Ross’ absence. But the team took a definite downward turn, losing six of seven games, including a three-game sweep at Louisiana Tech.
Blake Cavill, a junior first baseman/DH from Sydney, Australia, batted .313 with eight home runs and a team-high 47 RBI. WKU’s Ethan Lizama, who hails from Guam, used a late power surge to finish at .309 with a team-high nine home runs and 42 RBI. Dylan O’Connell returned from an injury to bolster the lineup in center field, but the Tops’ leadoff man finished with a pedestrian .280 batting average.
Rardin will be looking for more power in 2025, to be sure.
Bowling Green High School’s Eli Burwash became an everyday player in the second half of the season, and the former JUCO standout should be poised to contribute next season in his senior year. Burwash delivered the game-winning hit, in walk-off fashion, in a 4-3 victory over tradition-rich Louisville on April 9 at Nick Denes Field.
South Warren teammates Ethan Reynolds and Griffin Rardin, the younger son of the WKU coach, have announced their commitments to play for the Hilltoppers after they complete their high school careers in 2025. Rest assured Marc Rardin and his staff will hit the NCAA Transfer Portal, as well as the traditional recruiting trail, to put another solid team on the field in 2025.
“We’re proud of what we’ve done,” Marc Rardin told WKU radio man Randy Lee after Friday’s 7-5 loss to Dallas Baptist. “And we’ve got more work to do.”
It’s been a long time since the Tops made an NCAA Tournament appearance.
It was 2009, in fact.
But they’re getting closer. A lot closer. Every day.
HAD A SOLID SENIOR YEAR.
UNDER SECOND-YEAR COACH MARC RARDIN.
