For the 10th consecutive year, the Raiders have at least one player sign a National Letter of Intent to continue their baseball career at the collegiate level.  Seniors Cal Gick, Brendan Gothrup, Sammy Hallada, Gavin Ingram, Eli Kelly, Wes McNeff, Gavin Owsley, Corbin Payne and Hayden Slate join a group of 34 Raiders to sign since 2013.

 

 

After leading the Raiders to 3 straight trips to the Regional of the Indiana High School Athletic Association’s Baseball State Tournament, Payne signed his National Letter of Intent to continue his baseball career at John A. Logan College.  Corbin capped off his stellar high school career by being selected to the North Central Conference 2nd Team.  During his senior campaign, Payne was dominant on the mound as he posted a 6-2 record while he carried an impressive 2.80 ERA.  In 45 IP, the lefty struck out 61 batters.  As a junior, Payne earned 1^st-Team All-Conference honors after hitting .337 and stealing 18 bases in 27 games. 

 

The Vols of John A. Logan compete in the Great Rivers Athletic Conference of the National Junior College Athletic Association and are coached by Kyle Surprenant.  Payne will be reunited with Raider alums, Karson Kennedy (2021) and Jake Gothrup (2022).

 

       

Hallada signed his National Letter of Intent to continue his baseball career at Olney Central Community College in Illinois.  The 3-year varsity starter is coming off a senior season in which he hit .275 in 122 plate appearances to go along with 11 extra base hits, 26 runs, 23 RBIs & 16 stolen bases.  During his high school career, Sammy garnered several post-season awards including the team’s Most Improved Player in 2021, 2^nd-Team All-North Central Conference in 2022 and was the team’s recipient of the Mental Attitude Award at the end of the 2023 season.

 

The Blue Knights of Olney Central compete in the Great Rivers Athletic Conference of the National Junior College Athletic Association and are coached by Phil Britton. 

 

 

Owsley signed his National Letter of Intent to continue his baseball career at Anderson University.  Gavin capped off his high school career by being selected to the North Central Conference 1^st Team and was also voted as the team’s Co-Pitcher of the Year.  Last June, Owsley played an instrumental role in leading the 2023 Raiders to an appearance in the Class 4A IHSAA’s Sweet 16.  He finished his senior campaign with an incredible 2.16 ERA.  In 48 2/3 IP, he struck out 56 hitters and only allowed 36 hits.     

 

The Ravens of Anderson University compete in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference of the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III and are coached by Mathew Bair.

 

Gick signed his National Letter of Intent to continue his baseball career at Marian University.  The sure-handed third baseman was a defensive catalyst for the Raiders in 2023 as he had an incredible fielding percentage of .978.  In 90 chances at the hot corner, he only made 2 errors all season.  At the plate, the 1^st-Team All-North Central Conference selection, hit .333 and stole 32 bases, which ranks 2^nd all-time in a single season. 

 

The Knights of Marian compete in the Crossroads League of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics and are coached by Todd Bacon.     

 

 

Kelly will be reunited with Gick as Eli signed his National Letter of Intent to continue his baseball career at Marian University as well.  Eli, who battled through injuries for much of his junior and senior seasons, was a 2-year 2^nd-Team All-North Central Conference selection.  Despite the injuries, Eli remained relentless in his pursuit of greatness as a player, leader & teammate.  As a result of this, he was the recipient of a few post-season awards in his career including the Together We Will Sportsmanship Award in 2023 and Mental Attitude Award in 2022.  Eli was also a member of the 2023 Academic All-North Central Conference team.

 

Slate signed his National Letter of Intent to continue his baseball career at Lincoln Trail College.  Hayden, a 2-way player, is coming off a breakout senior season in which he hit .301 and had an on-base percentage of .433.  On the mound, Hayden solidified himself as the team’s #3 pitcher.  He was asked to pitch in several big games including the sectional semi-final against Logansport in which he went 3 1/3 IP and limited the Berries to only 1 earned run.  In 33 IP for the season, Hayden went 4-1, struck out 44 hitters and had an outstanding ERA of 2.97.  At the conclusion of the season, Slate was honored for his individual success as he was the recipient of the team’s Most Improved Player Award and was also recognized by the North Central Conference by being selected to the All-Conference 2^nd team.

 

The Statesmen of Lincoln Trail compete in the Great Rivers Athletic Conference of the National Junior College Athletic Association and are coached by Collin Maynard.

 

 

Gothrup will be reunited with Slate as Brendan signed his National Letter of Intent to continue his baseball career at Lincoln Trail College as well.  Brendan, a 2-way player, is coming off a senior season in which he scored 20 times and had 12 RBIs in 64 plate appearances.  Throughout his career, Brendan was a stolen base threat every time he reached the bases as he stole bases 28 during his career.   

 

McNeff signed to continue his baseball career at Lake Michigan College.  Wes, a 2-year varsity letter winner, came off the bench in several key moments throughout to pinch hit.  In 31 career at-bats, he hit an impressive .323.

 

The Red Hawks of Lake Michigan compete in the Michigan Community College Athletic Association Conference of the National Junior College Athletic Association and are coached by Alex George.

 

 

Ingram signed his National Letter of Intent to continue his baseball career at Palm Beach Atlantic University.  In 15 IP as a senior, Gavin had 19 K’s and 2 saves.  The big righty has ran his fastball up to 87/88 mph and, as he continues to develop, will be a great asset to the Sailfish pitching staff.        

 

The Sailfish of Palm Beach Atlantic compete in the Sunshine State Conference of the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II and are coached by Kent Bottenfield.