Baseball: 12 Branch County athletes earn All Big 8 honors; Homer's Katz voted Big 8 MVP
The race for the Big 8 conference championship in the sport of baseball started off as a wide open field, with any one of the eight teams being able to lay claim to being near the top. When the crazy 2022 season had come to a close it was the Homer Trojans sitting alone atop the Big 8 standings, winning the conference championship with a Big 8 record of 13-1. The Union City Chargers and Jonesville Comets finished in a tie for second place with identical 9-5 records, followed by Springport in fourth at 7-7. Quincy and Bronson finished tied for fifth at 6-8, followed by Concord in seventh at 5-9 and Reading in eighth place with a record of 1-13.
With the season now complete and in the rearview mirror coaches have met and have voted for those athletes deserving of Big 8 All Conference honors. In total, 12 student-athletes from right here in Branch County have earned Big 8 All Conference Baseball honors, including five being named to the first team.
Here is a look at the local athletes earning Big 8 All Conference Baseball honors
Bronson- Reagan Mayer
Senior Reagan Mayer- was the lone Viking to earn Big 8 All Conference First Team honors for the 2022 season and there was no question he deserved the recognition. Mayer made huge strides at the plate, in the field and on the mound in 2022, putting up near career best numbers in nearly every category.
At the plate Mayer led the Vikings in batting average, finishing the year hitting a robust .386 overall for the season. In 28 games played Mayer recorded 32 hits in 83 at-bats, knocking out 25 singles, six doubles, and one triple with 16 Rbis and 16 runs scored.
Defensively Mayer was one of the more steady defenders for head coach Matt Watkins after playing across the diamond for the Vikings, including spending time at catcher, pitcher and every infield position. Mayer finished the year with 85 put-outs and 25 assists in 117 total chances, finishing with only seven total errors and a fielding percentage of .940.
Perhaps Mayer’s biggest strides this season came on the mound where he finished the season with a record of 5-3 overall, sporting an ERA of 3.088. Mayer only allowed 25 hits in 45.1 innings pitched, giving up 20 earned runs to go along with 36 walks and 60 strikeouts.
“Regan (Mayer) saved his best two performances on the mound for his last two outings and he was honed in and focused to end the season,” said Bronson head coach Matt Watkins. “Reagan will surely be missed, he has been a part of my program for seven years and I will really miss seeing him as a part of my squad.”
Quincy- Karsen Maurer, Brady Mescher
Senior Karsen Maurer- finished off an amazing four year career at Quincy that places him as one of the best to ever wear the orange and black of Oriole baseball.
Maurer finished the 2022 season leading the Orioles at the plate with 28 hits in 86 chances for a .326 batting average. Maurer recorded 17 singles, nine doubles and two home runs throughout the year to go along with 30 Rbis and 22 runs scored, in addition to 18 walks drawn.
Maurer was also a key part of the Quincy defensive effort, holding down the hot corner (third base) while recording 26 put outs and 32 assists in 66 chances, committing only eight errors for a fielding percentage of .879.
Maurer stepped into a key pitching role this season, serving as a spot starter and the go-to closer for the Orioles in 2022. Maurer made four starts and pitched 29.2 innings in 12 total appearances, finishing the year with a record of 4-1 overall with two saves and an ERA of 2.831. Maurer allowed only 31 hits and 12 earned runs throughout the season while striking out 37 batters.
Junior Brady Mescher- was also a huge part of the Quincy success this season with his work at the plate, on the mound and in the field.
At the plate Mescher was one of the top hitters for the Orioles, finishing the year with 27 hits in 86 at-bats for an average of .314 on the year. Mescher recorded 15 singles, 10 doubles, one triple and one home run to go along with 22 RBIs and 29 runs scored. Mescher also added 24 walks drawn compared to only nine strikeouts.
Mescher was a solid defender no matter where he lined up for the Orioles, recording 29 put outs and 53 assists in 96 chances with 14 errors and three double plays for a fielding percentage of .854.
Perhaps Mescher’s biggest impact came as the ace of the Quincy pitching staff as he finished the season with a record of 6-2 overall and an ERA of 3.294. Mescher appeared in 11 total games, making 10 starts and throwing a total of 51 innings pitched. In those 51 innings Mescher gave up 58 hits and only 24 earned runs with 63 strikeouts and only 25 walks.
Union City Chargers- Wade Hoffman, Kyle Johnson
Senior Wade Hoffman- finished off his stellar baseball career as a key member of the Union City District Championship team in 2022, serving as the teams leadoff hitter and the go-to relief pitcher for head coach John Bain.
At the plate Hoffman led off the Charger offense with efficiency, ending the year with a batting average of .371 overall. Hoffman recorded 39 hits in 105 total chances on the year, knocking out 29 singles, seven doubles, two triples,. one home run and 13 walks drawn to go along with 22 Rbis and 34 runs scored. Hoffman was also a menace on the base paths for the Chargers, stealing a total of 16 bases while only being caught twice.
In the field Hoffman was a key member of a stingy Charger defense playing from his infield spot, usually at shortstop, second base or third base. In all, Hoffman recorded 42 put outs and 47 assists in 93 chances, committing only four errors to go along with three double plays for a fielding percentage of .957.
On the pitching mound Hoffman was lights out, appearing in a total of 15 games and pitching 26 total innings. In those 15 appearances Hoffman put together a record of 4-1 overall to go along with one save and an minuscule ERA of 1.885 in addition to a WHIP of 1.577. Hoffman allowed only 34 hits on the season with seven earned runs allowed to go along with seven walks and 31 strikeouts.
Senior Kyle Johnson- finished off a tremendous four year career for the Chargers by also earning his fourth straight Big 8 conference honor. Johnson led the Chargers statistically at both the plate and on the mound as he put together a glittering senior campaign.
At the plate Johnson finished the season recording 38 hits in 95 at-bats for an average of .400. Johnson finished the season with a total of 27 singles, eight doubles, one triple, 18 walks and two home runs to go along with 21 Rbis and 35 runs scored in 28 games played.
Defensively Johnson roamed the outfield for the Chargers, playing mostly in the centerfield position. Out in the deep confines of Alumni Field Johnson recorded a total of 27 put outs and 11 assists in 39 chances with only one error, a fielding percentage of .974.
On the mound is where Johnson perhaps made his biggest impact, serving as the ace of a very strong Union City pitching staff. Johnson made 13 appearances on the season, 10 in a starting role, pitching a total of 52.2 innings while amassing a record of 6-2 overall. Over those 52.2 innings pitched Johnson only allowed a total of 31 hits and 19 earned runs for an ERA of 2.525 and a WHIP of 1.196. Johnson led the Charger pitching staff with a total of 73 strikeouts to go with only 37 walks issued in a tremendous season.
Joining the five local student-athletes with Big 8 Conference First Team honors was league MVP Brady Katz of Homer.
Katz led the Big 8 conference champion Trojans with a batting average of .576 in the conference, the highest batting average in the conference by 86 points. Katz also finished fifth in the Big 8 in conference hits with 19 while sitting in first place in the conference with a Big 8 on-base percentage of .754, over .200 points higher than second place. Katz also finished the Big 8 season with most runs scored at 22, second in stolen bases with 17, first in WHBP (walks plus hit by pitcher) with 25, and fourth in the conference in strikeouts per plate appearance with 4 Ks in 57 plate appearances.
Also earning Big 8 All Conference First Team honors was Tyler Carpenter of Concord; Chase Bryant, Luke Butler, and Carter Harris of Homer; Tyler Schofield and Wade Sommers of Jonesville; Logan Stukey of Reading; and Caleb Kregel and Dylan Sanford of Springport.
Seven total Branch County Athletes earn Big 8 All Conference Honorable Mention honors
Bronson placed three players on the All Conference Honorable Mention team in Owen Kimmons (FR), Nolan Ray (SR) and Ashton Wells (JR).
Union City also saw three players earn All Conference Honorable Mention honors in Phoenix Elkins (JR), Ryan Zweng (Soph) and Tyler Wagley (JR).
The Quincy Orioles placed one member on the Big 8 All Conference Honorable Mention team as sophomore catcher Grant Holroyd was honored.
Also earning Big 8 All Conference Honorable Mention honors was Levi Raymond and Logan Lamb of Concord; Kane Blatter and Alex Miller of Homer; Ayden Males, Drew Bradley and Ashton Thacker of Jonesville; Cole Webster of Reading; and Matt Riehle of Springport.
Congratulations to all the athletes who earned Big 8 All Conference Baseball honors for the 2022 season.
This article originally appeared on The Daily Reporter: Baseball: 12 Branch County athletes earn All Big 8 honors; Homer's Katz voted Big 8 MVP
