ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) announced the award winners for the 2024 UMAC baseball awards on Wednesday. The awards are nominated and voted on by the conference head coaches.
The Bethany Lutheran College Vikings’ Aiden Russell was named the UMAC Player of the Year. The junior infielder led the Vikings in their 17-4 conference campaign to earn the UMAC Regular Season Championship, hitting for a .371/.454/.653 slash line with nine home runs, 42 RBI, 40 runs scored, and 11 stolen bases in 33 games.
The Vikings’ Drew Hedtke was named the UMAC Pitcher of the Year. The sophomore right-hander led the UMAC with a 2.18 ERA in 57.2 innings pitched while striking out 63 and holding opponents to a .261 batting average.
Bethany Lutheran’s Trent Ash was named the UMAC Rookie of the Year. The freshman right-hander had a 3.00 ERA in 55.1 innings pitched while striking out 56 and holding opponents to a UMAC-best .185 batting average.
BLC Head Coach Ryan Kragh was named the UMAC Coach of the Year. In his 20
th year as the Vikings’ head coach, Kragh led Bethany Lutheran to a 20-14 overall record while going 17-4 in the UMAC to clinch their second consecutive regular season title.
The University of Northwestern Eagles won the team sportsmanship award, an accolade that is selected by the UMAC coaches and awarded to the team that best represents sportsmanship throughout the entire season, including the championship event. Each team also had one representative named to the all-sportsmanship team.
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Aidan Russell | Bethany Lutheran
PITCHER OF THE YEAR
Drew Hedtke | Bethany Lutheran
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
Trent Ash | Bethany Lutheran
COACH OF THE YEAR
Ryan Kragh | Bethany Lutheran
TEAM SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD
Northwestern Eagles
ALL-CONFERENCE FIRST TEAM
| Name |
Institution |
Pos. |
Yr. |
Hometown / High School |
| Tyler Bloom |
Crown |
DH |
Sr. |
Montello, WI / Montello |
| Mason Brock |
Crown |
INF |
Sr. |
Richmond, Texas / William B. Travis |
| Tristan Camp |
Crown |
SP |
Gr. |
Montgomery, MO / Mars Hill University |
| Ethan Coady |
Wisconsin-Superior |
RP |
Jr. |
Toronto, Ontario / Etobicoke School of the Arts |
| Mason Cox |
Martin Luther |
OF |
Sr. |
New Ulm, MN / Minnesota Valley Lutheran |
| Bryce Crabb |
Northwestern |
UTL |
Gr. |
Des Moines, Iowa / Grand View Christian |
| Nick Drinken |
Northwestern |
SP |
SP |
Randolph, Minn. / Randolph |
| Isaac Fugere |
Wisconsin-Superior |
C |
Sr. |
Duluth, Minn. / Duluth East |
| Howie Hatton |
Crown |
INF |
Gr. |
North Riverside, IL / Concordia University Chicago |
| Drew Hedtke |
Bethany Lutheran |
SP |
So. |
Norwood Young America / Glencoe-Silver Lake |
| Jackson Huiras |
Bethany Lutheran |
RP |
So. |
Sleepy Eye, MN / Sleepy Eye |
| Gavin Jacobsen |
Bethany Lutheran |
SP |
Jr. |
Jackson, MN / Jackson County Central |
| Grady Karges |
Northwestern |
OF |
Sr. |
Oriska, N.D. / Maple Valley |
| Ryan McGie |
Minnesota Morris |
UTL |
Jr. |
Minnetonka, Minn. / Hopkins |
| Ben Meuser |
Minnesota Morris |
INF |
Jr. |
Burnsville, Minn. / Burnsville |
| Ashton Pauly |
Minnesota Morris |
INF |
So. |
Shakopee, Minn. / Shakopee |
| Liam Peterson |
Bethany Lutheran |
OF |
Sr. |
Port Orchard, WA / Evergreen Lutheran |
| Aiden Pfeifer |
Wisconsin-Superior |
SP |
So. |
Eden Prairie, Minn. / Eden Prairie |
| Christian Rodriguez |
North Central |
SP |
SP |
Tuscon, AZ / Catalina Foothills |
| Zach Romans |
Wisconsin-Superior |
SP |
Fr. |
Saint Michael, Minn. / Saint Michael |
| Aidan Russell |
Bethany Lutheran |
INF |
Jr. |
Gilbert, AZ / Campo Verde |
| Malachi Santiago |
Bethany Lutheran |
INF |
Jr. |
Gilbert, AZ / Campo Verde |
| Ethan Schmitz |
Minnesota Morris |
OF |
Jr. |
St. Louis Park, Minn. / St. Louis Park |
| Matthew Shaugabay |
Crown |
C |
Gr. |
Burbank, CA |
| Nolan Spence |
Bethany Lutheran |
INF |
Jr. |
Zimmerman, Minn. / Ridgewater C.C. |
| Payton Steiner |
Wisconsin-Superior |
OF |
Jr. |
Baraboo, Wis. / Baraboo |
| Braden Storts |
Northwestern |
OF |
Fr. |
Minnetonka, Minn. / Minnetonka |
| Parker Winghart |
Martin Luther |
INF |
Fr. |
Brookings, SD / Luther Prep |
ALL-CONFERENCE HONORABLE MENTIONS
| Name |
Institution |
Pos. |
Yr. |
Hometown / High School |
| Trent Ash |
Bethany Lutheran |
SP |
Fr. |
Springville, Utah / Springville |
| Mark Bligh |
Northwestern |
INF |
Jr. |
Sydney, Australia / Magdalene Catholic College |
| Teagan Burch |
North Central |
INF |
Jr. |
St. Paul, MN / Highland Park |
| Will Carlson |
Bethany Lutheran |
INF |
Jr. |
Lucan, MN / Wabasso |
| Julian Encinas |
North Central |
C |
Sr. |
Tucson, AZ / Amphitheater |
| Parker Gilchrist |
Minnesota Morris |
SP |
So |
Stillwater, Minn. / Stillwater |
| Ethan Habetler |
Crown |
INF |
Sr. |
Depere, WI / West De Pere |
| Spencer Lilienthal |
Martin Luther |
UTL |
Sr. |
Plato, MN / Glencoe-Silver Lake |
| Tyler Murphy |
Northland |
INF |
So. |
Rio Rancho, NM / Rio Rancho |
| James Nelson |
Minnesota Morris |
INF |
Jr. |
Puyallup, Wash. / Rogers |
| Brian O'Dwyer |
Wisconsin-Superior |
INF |
So. |
Maple Grove, Minn. / Maple Grove Senior |
| Isaac Pilon |
Northwestern |
INF |
Jr. |
Robbinsdale, Minn. / Robbinsdale Armstrong |
| Alex Ritter |
Martin Luther |
INF |
Jr. |
Berrien Springs, MI / Michigan Lutheran |
| Matt Simpson |
Northland |
C |
Sr. |
Ladysmith, BC / Chemainus Secondary |
| Jacob Van Dam |
Crown |
P |
Sr. |
Edgerton, Minn. / Southwest MN Christian |
| Tanner Voight |
Wisconsin-Superior |
INF |
So. |
Stillwater, Minn. / Stillwater Area |
ALL-SPORTSMANSHIP TEAM
| Name |
Institution |
Pos. |
Yr. |
Hometown / High School |
| Reed Brown |
Bethany Lutheran |
OF |
Sr. |
St. Michael, MN / St. Michael |
| Drew Girtz |
Crown |
UTL |
So. |
Elk River, MN / Elk River High |
| Riley Harbaugh |
Wisconsin-Superior |
RP |
Jr. |
Banks, Ore. / Banks |
| Caleb Heckendorf |
Martin Luther |
UTL |
Sr. |
Reno, NV / Luther Prep |
| Nick Julian |
North Central |
SP |
Fr. |
Trophy Club, TX / Byron Nelson |
| Ben Leal |
Minnesota Morris |
OF |
Sr. |
Newton, Iowa / Newton |
| Luke Maxwell |
Northland |
INF |
Sr. |
St. Louis, MI / St. Louis |
| Isaac Pilon |
Northwestern |
INF |
Jr. |
Robbinsdale, Minn. / Robbinsdale Armstrong |