WC baseball exudes confidence entering 2025 season

After a 6-28 inaugural campaign for Wilmington College Head Baseball Coach Barry Craddock, the enthusiastic confidence cannot be hidden going into this year.

"We'll be much more competitive day in, day out," says Craddock. "We simply have more talent than we did last year."

The Quakers return 21 players and add 16 against losing nine from last season. 

Dominic Depa, one of five returning seniors, will anchor the lineup, batting third and playing second base, holding down that key position. Depa had a .292 average with an .882 OPS in 12 starts.

Luke Chappie and Trent Mendenhall will be the top pitchers. Chappie was 2-4 in six starts and 13 appearances last season. Chappie has 116 career strikeouts and led the team with 28 last season. 

Mendenhall was 1-4 in 18 appearances with 3 starts. Mendenhall was fourth on the team, registering 24 strikeouts, second among returning pitchers.

JC Calhoun will be the opening day starting centerfielder. Calhoun started 27 games for the Quakers with a .222 average last season and drew 13 walks, third on the team and highest among returning players.

Kyle Jennings will man the hot corner. Jennings hit .267 across 34 starts and led the team in doubles with eight.

Dylan Montgomery will see time catching the Quakers pitching staff. Montgomery led the Quakers in throwing out stolen base attempts.

According to Craddock, Avery Battle had a “terrific fall and early spring season” and will start at shortstop for the Quakers. Similarly, Braden Chambers earned the starting spot in left field and will likely hit near the top of the order.

Ethan Bunce and Hayden Koonce will see significant time behind the plate.

The pitching staff will headline all upperclassmen at the top of the rotation. The staff's ace will be Chappie, with Mendenhall as the number 2 pitcher. 

Brad Miller (a Hillsboro graduate), Hayden Wibbeler, Josh Harbaum, Nate Powers, JP Donelan and Max Gildea will see significant innings. Other key returning pitchers include Dawson Blunt, Corey Moore and Brayden Kisling  (a Hillsboro graduate).

Wibbeler and Gildea had the lowest ERAs on the team and led the team in WHIP, both under 1.50.
The Quakers have 17 pitchers on the staff, and Craddock "would not be surprised to see most, if not all of them, get significant playing time.”

The infield rotation will usually see Jennings at third, Battle at short, Depa at second and Gildea at first. Jay Utterdyke will play first when Gildea is on the mound and battle for time in the DH position.

The outfield will see Chambers in left, Calhoun in centerfield and Donelan in right.

Calhoun will lead off for the Quakers. Depa and Gildea will hit at the heart of the lineup. Gildea led the Quakers last season in home runs. 

According to Craddock, the 2, 5, 6 and 7 hitters are flexible, and the eighth or ninth slot will see the catcher that day, “most of the time.”

Gabe McDowell leads the DH competition right now. “There will be a lot of players fighting for at-bats,” according to Craddock.

Craddock sees enthusiasm and anticipation within the team in and out of conference play. 

"[The Ohio Athletic Conference] is a strong conference one through 10,” says Craddock. "We feel much more confident entering this season than last season."

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