Former Bearcats Cameron Dodd & Ben Stedronsky lead West Texas College to baseball success

West Texas College Head Coach (and former Bearcat) Cameron Dodd -

Cameron Dodd entered 2013 in his 3nd season at WTC as head baseball coach. During Coach Dodd’s brief tenure as head coach the Westerners program has been on the rise.  The past season saw the Westerners reach the Region V Tournament for the first time in program history and had one player (Thurman Hall, 37th Round, Chicago White Sox) selected in the 2012 MLB Draft.  In 2011, the Westerners finished with a 37-17 record, & 19-13 in conference play, both school records for total & conference wins.  The 2011 squad saw two players recognized as all-conference and had four sign NCAA D1 letters of intent.  Prior to being named the head coach, Dodd spent the 2010 season as an assistant at WTC, with his responsibilities including assisting with hitting, position coach for infielders and developing and implementing conditioning & weight programs for the position players.  Prior to arriving at WTC, Coach Dodd spent time working at his alma mater Northwest Missouri State University.  As a graduate assistant Dodd worked with the corner infielders and during his first season that group posted a .984 fielding percentage.   Before returning to his alma mater, Dodd spent one season as an assistant at Peru State College in Nebraska.  During his one season as hitting, infielders coach and recruiting coordinator, the Bobcats were able to advance to the conference tournament, had one player earn all-conference honors and improved significantly as an offensive unit.

Coach Dodd started his coaching career as a student assistant with Northwest Missouri State University.  After finishing his degree in Business Management, he moved back home to California and worked at East Union High School in his hometown of Manteca, CA.  Two players from that team went on to sign D1 scholarships and eventually pro contracts.  The past two summers, Coach Dodd has worked with the St. Joe Mustangs of the collegiate wood bat MINK League.  The Mustangs inaugural season saw the team lead the MINK in hitting and in 2010 finished 4th in the NBC World Series in Wichita, KS.  Dodd worked with players from all over the country including players from the SEC, Missouri Valley, WCC and Big XII conferences.  His one other summer coaching stint was with the Nebraska Sluggers of the prestigious Premier Baseball high school summer league.

Dodd’s college playing career began at San Joaquin Delta Community College where he received academic honor roll and honorable mention following his sophomore campaign.  After finishing at Delta, Dodd transferred to NCAA D2 Northwest Missouri State where he helped in setting team records in BB, hits, RBIs and runs scored in a season. 

Dodd received his Bachelor of Science in Business Management and his Masters of Science in Health & Physical Education from Northwest Missouri State University.

West Texas College Assistant Coach (and former Bearcat) Ben Stedronsky -

A native of Lincoln, NE, Ben Stedronsky graduated from Lincoln Southwest High School in 2005 where he went on to play at Northwest Missouri State University from 2007-2010. He pitched out of the bullpen for the Bearcats and tallied 53 career appearances, which was 2nd in school history. He graduated from Northwest in the spring of 2010 with a degree in Corporate Recreation and Wellness.

In the spring of 2011 he was a volunteer assistant back at Lincoln Southwest where his team went 18-2 and won the city title. He was also the bullpen coach for the St. Joseph Mustangs of the M.I.N.K. league that summer. The team finished 42-12, won their league and went 2-2 in the NBC World Series. The 2011-2012 season was Stedronsky’s first year at WTC. He was the first base coach while coaching the outfielders and helping out with the hitters and pitchers. That year the team finished 28-30, which was good for 4th in the WJCAC and qualified the Westerners for their first ever appearance in the Regional Tournament, going 1-2.

During the summer season Ben reported back to St. Joseph, Missouri as the pitching coach for the Mustangs. His pitching staff combined for a 3.31 ERA and a .245 opponent batting average, both 2nd in the M.I.N.K and led the league in WHIP (1.33), Wins (28), and shutouts (8). The Mustangs finished 28-17 in league play and won The M.I.N.K. while finishing up the summer season 5th at the NBC Tournament in Wichita, KS. 

Go Cats!!

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Northwest Missouri State University releases new athletics logos

The Northwest Missouri State University athletics department released new athletics logos on Saturday, April 20, 2013.  As noted on the Northwest Athletics' Department's press release, "For nearly two decades, Northwest Missouri State University athletics has been represented by the Bearcat paw. Today, Northwest is proud to unveil a modern and consistent brand that will carry the future of Bearcat athletics and uphold the history of the iconic logo."

See Northwest's official video by clicking here:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_Iqt66Qoa8&feature=youtu.be

See Northwest's official announcement by clicking here:  http://www.nwmissouri.edu/sports/football/2012/pressreleases/13fb0420.htm

The N-paw will continue to be Northwest's primary logo for its athletic brand.  In addition to the primary logo, Northwest announced several secondary logos including claw marks, bearcat eyes, a new Bobby Bearcat, a child-friendly Bobby Bearcat, a new "N", and a special font used solely for Northwest's athletics.  You can see the entire family of logos for the Northwest Missouri State University Athletics' Department by clicking on the link below:

http://www.nwmissouri.edu/sports/PDF/NewAthleticsLogos_Summary.pdf

From the B2R's memory, the original N-paw was the first logo Northwest Missouri State University used to brand itself with the school using several different looks, logos, fonts, lettering, on apparel and team uniforms over the years prior to that.  I can remember the football team's helmet having the following logos as I grew-up to include:  Cats, N.W.M.S.U., NW, and Bearcats.  I've seen the baseball team uniforms to include a NW in a similar design as a Yankees logo (intertwined letters in a skinny font), a capital letter N, N.W.M.S.U, Bearcats, Cats, a N with toenails on top of it, and Northwest.  In Basketball, I remember N.W.M.S.U., Bearcats, Cats, Northwest, and (I think) Northwest Missouri.

The University is trying to create a brand where Bearcat fans, student-athletes, supporters, and families can all identify to and with.  Prior to the release of the new family of logos, Northwest had the original N-paw as its sole approved logo (with the cartoon Bobby Bearcat being discontinued a year or two ago).  All items purchased with Northwest's logos go to support the Northwest Athletics' Department and all student-athletes.

You can click on the following links to purchase items with the new logo:

http://www.shopbearcats.com/

http://www.studentbodyonline.com/

http://www.jocksnitch.com/

Go Cats!!
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Former Bearcat Jordan Bischel leads Midland University Warriors to NAIA post-season

Photo courtesy of Midland University

Photo courtesy of Northwestbearcats

Jordan Bischel leads Midland University Warriors to Conference Tournament Championship & NAIA Play-offs in first year as skipper.

The Bearcat Nation knows the B2R is a big fan of Jordan Bischel.  In my opinion, he is one of the premier up and coming collegiate managers in the game.  In his first year as Head Coach of Midland University baseball team in Fremont, Nebraska, Jordan's team went 31-24 in 2013, plus he played for the GPAC Conference Tournament Championship and qualified for the NAIA play-offs.  Jordan's team more then doubled its wins from the previous season's 13 victories.  It was Midland's first winning season in baseball since the 2007-2008 academic year.  Midland's 31 victories are more wins then the school earned in one season since before the 2006-2007 academic year.  The Warriors have a team batting average of .258, with a .337 slugging percentage, and a .339 on-base percentage.  The Warriors stole 97 bases in 124 attempts this year.  As a team, the Warriors' pitched a remarkable 3.92 in 20 complete games with opponents' batting a mere .265 against them.  Defensively, the Warriors had a fielding percentage of .960 with 60 errors (averaged 1.13 errors per game).

In the B2R's humble opinion, Jordan Bischel is your GPAC Baseball Coach of the Year in 2013.

Way to go, Jordan.

Go Cats!!

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Northwestbearcats.com - Abernathy named MIAA Hitter of the week

Ryan Abernathy, #6, courtesy of Northwestbearcats.com

Maryville, Mo. - After a stellar final week of the season, Northwest Missouri State centerfielder Ryan Abernathy was tabbed as MIAA hitter of the week.

Read more by clicking on the link:

http://www.nwmissouri.edu/sports/baseball/2013/pressreleases/13bsb0501.htm

Go Cats!!
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2013 Senior Tribute

2013 Seniors:
Nick Crouse - Student Coach
#2 - Eric Swain, 3B
#11 - Cameron Bedard, 2B
#16 - Tyler Durant, RF
#24 - Nathanial Horton, P
#27 - JJ Baccari, P
#29 - Chase Anderson, P
#31 - Jacob Raffaele, P

Go Cats!!
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2013 Senior Tribute coming soon

The B2R is pleased to announce a tribute to the 2013 Seniors will soon be released comprised of photographs taking during the Seniors' careers at Northwest Missouri State University.

Please check back again soon and often to be the first to watch it and share with your Bearcat friends.

Go Cats!!
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Bearcats conclude 2013 season with double header split at Pitt State

The Northwest Missouri State University Bearcats baseball team lost the 3-game series versus Pitt State in Pittsburgh, Kansas, 2 games to 1 this past weekend.  By losing the series, Northwest concluded its 2013 season in 12th place and therefore did not qualify for the MIAA Post-Season tournament.  Eight seniors concluded their collegiate careers: Nick Crouse (student coach), Jacob Rafaelle, Chase Anderson, Nathanial Horton, Eric Swain, Tyler Durant, Cameron Bedard, and JJ Baccari.

Northwest played a double header versus Pitt State on Sunday, April 28, 2013, after weather changed the schedule.  Northwest split the Sunday double header by losing game 1 by the score 5-3 and winning game 2 by the score 17-6.

In game 1, Pitt State beat Northwest by the score 5-3 in a 7-inning contest.  With the loss, Northwest's 2013 record fell to 21-27, 18-24 MIAA.  With the win, Pitt State's 2013 record improved to 26-20, 22-18 MIAA.

Offensively, Tyler Durant, RF, led the way with his 2 for 3 performance at the plate.  Durant also scored a run in the game.  Ryan Abernathy, CF, went 1 for 3 (including a home run) with 2 RBIs and a run scored.  Brandon Huske, Steven Garber, and Charlie Krueger all earned a hit in the game.  In total, Northwest scored 3 runs off of 6 hits, 3 RBIs, 0 walks, 3 strike outs, and 1 runner left on base.

Defensively, Northwest committed 3 errors (2 by Huske and 1 by Durant) and did not execute a double play.

Pitching, Marcus Garrett earned the start and received the Loss in the game to see his 2013 record fall to 3-3.  Pitt State did not score any runs in the 1st inning, scored 1 run in the 2nd inning, scored 2 runs in the 3rd inning, and did not score any runs in the 4th or 5th innings.  Marcus started the 6th inning but did not record an out.  In total, Marcus worked 5.0 innings, allowed 2 hits, 4 runs (3 earned), 3 walks, 4 strike outs, 2 wild pitches, 0 balks, and hit one batter.  Pitt State scored 2 runs in the 6th inning with one run charged to Marcus and the other run charged to the reliever, Tyler Barth.  In total, Barth worked 1.0 inning, allowed 2 hits, 1 run (earned), 0 walks, 0 strike outs, 0 wild pitches, 0 balks, and did not hit a batter.

In game 2, Northwest beat Pitt State by the score 17-6 in a 9-inning game.  With the win, Northwest concluded its 2013 season with the record 22-27, 19-24 MIAA.  With the loss, Pitt State's 2013 record fell to 26-21, 22-19 MIAA.  The Gorillas were not too sad at the end of the day with the fact that they qualified for the 8th and final play-off spot for the MIAA baseball post-season conference tournament.

Offensively, Ryan Abernathy, CF, and Eric Swain, 3B, were the big stars of the game.  Ryan went 4 for 7 (including a double and a home run) with 3 RBIs, a stolen base, and 3 runs scored.  Swain went 4 for 6 (including a home run) with 2 RBIs and 2 runs scored.  Tyler Durant, RF, went 3 for 6 with 2 RBIs in the game.  Eric McGlauflin, DH, went 3 for 6 with 1 RBI and 3 runs scored in the game.  Charlie Krueger, LF, went 3 for 6 (including 2 doubles) with 2 RBIs and 2 runs scored.  Steven Garber, 1B, went 2 for 3 with 3 walks, 1 RBI, and 1 run scored.  Luke Lawyer, C, went 2 for 4 with 2 RBIs and 2 runs scored in the game.  Cameron Bedard, 2B, went 1 for 4 (including a double) with 2 walks, 2 RBIs, a stolen base, and a run scored in the game.  Brandon Huske, SS, went 1 for 5 with a walk and a run scored in the game.  In total, Northwest scored 17 runs off of 23 hits, 15 RBIs, 6 walks, 3 strike outs, and left 12 runners on base.

Defensively, Northwest committed one error (Huske) and did not execute a double play in the game.

Pitching, Jacob Rafaelle earned the start in the game but did not receive the game's decision.  In total, Jacob worked 4.0 innings, allowed 6 hits, 4 runs (3 earned), 0 walks, 3 strike outs, 0 wild pitches, 0 balks, and did not hit a batter.  Blane Reutter came into the game in the 5th inning and worked 2.0 innings, picked-up the win to see his 2013 record improve to 3-3, allowed 1 hit, 0 runs, 0 walks, 2 strike outs, 0 wild pitches, 0 balks, and did not hit a batter.  Tyler Barth came into the game in the 7th inning and worked 1.0 inning, allowed 3 hits, 2 runs (both earned), 0 walks, 1 strike out, 0 wild pitches, 0 balks, and did not hit a batter.  Rob Henrichs came into the game in the 8th inning and worked 1.0 inning, allowed 0 hits, 0 runs, 1 walk, 1 strike out, 0 wild pitches, 0 balks, and hit one batter in the game.  Nathanial Horton came into the game in the 9th inning and worked 1.0 inning, allowed 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 walks, 2 strike-outs, 0 wild pitches, 0 balks, and did not hit a batter in his outing.

Allow me one more favor - many of God's angels were taken during the bombing of the Boston Marathon, one of which was 8 year old Martin Richard of Dorchester, Massachusetts.  The Boston Red Sox produced a pre-game tribute that absolutely wrecks me every time I watch it. 

Go USA!!!
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