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Riley Bender

Baseball

Baseball Position Preview: Infield

Baseball season finally gets underway this weekend, and as we countdown to Opening Day, it is time to take an in-depth look at what we will see on the diamond this spring. The Wildcats and fifth-year head coach Rick McCarty return just 19 of their 39 players from last year's roster, and have added 20 new faces round out the 39-man roster. Today we start our three-part position preview series that breaks down the talent from each spot on the diamond. Today we look at the infield.

Position Preview Series

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2023 Schedule: Opening Weekend

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It is a new group, but there is so much depth and versatility for the coaches to utilize. Of the 10 guys who will see time on the infield, eight are juniors and the other two are sophomores. The four returners on the infield are all-conference shortstop Bash Randle along with Riley Bender, Jack Nielsen, and Julio Riggs. The six transfers include Jake Skaggs, Benjamin Greer, Crew Parke, Garrett Williams, and Bobby Serfass. It is an athletic group of Wildcats that have a ton of interchangeable pieces.

#0 - Jake Skaggs

Fort Scott CC (2020-22)

  • Third Team All-Conference (2021)
  • First Team All-Conference (2022)
  • First Team All-Region (2022)

 

High School

  • 2020 graduate of Ozark HS
  • Lettered in Baseball, Football, and Basketball

#1 - Bash Randle

Honors
• 2021 First Team All-Southland Conference
• 2022 Second Team All-WAC

2022 (Sophomore)
· Played in 55 games and made 57 starts
· Second on the team in batting average, hitting .324 on the season
· Third on the team in hits with 69 and runs with 46
· Second on the team in stolen bases, with 13 on the season
· Recorded 3 hits in the 15-8 win over Grand Canyon on May 28

2021 (Freshman)
• Hit .305 as a rookie in 55 games played, making 54 starts
• Tallied 57 hits, including 13 doubles, one triple, and a pair of home runs
• Drove in 39 runs and tallied 78 total bases
• Slugged .417 and had an on-base percentage of .397
• Recorded a fielding percentage of .947 at shortstop

#2 - Crew Parke

Chandler Gilbert CC (2020-22)

  • A member of the Chandler Baseball Team
  • 2x Second Team All-Region
  • 2x playoff appearances
  • Region Championship Runner-up

 

High School

  • 2020 graduate of Westwood HS
  • Lettered in Baseball

#4 - Julio Riggs

2022 (Sophomore)
· Played in 13 games, making 2 starts
· Recorded his first hit as a Wildcat on February 28 in the win over Michigan State
· Had 3 putouts on February 28 against Michigan State

2019-21 (Paris JC)
• HIt .340 with 10 doubles, two triples, and a home run
• Stole 22 bases
• Helped lead his team to the regional finals
• Named to the Dean's List

High School
• Graduated in 2019 from Boerne HS
• Was a two-time all-district second baseman
• Was a first team all-state defensive back,
• Was named to the Whataburger Super Team and was a field event MVP
• Was a three-year football and baseball varsity letter winner, and a two-year track letter-winner
• Named to the academic all-state team

#6 - Benjamin Greer

Baylor University (2020)

  • Was a member of the Baylor Baseball Team

 

High School

  • 2019 graduate of Shadow Creek HS
  • Lettered in Baseball
  • National Honor's Society
  • First Team All-Conference (2017)
  • Offensive Player of the Year (2018-19)
  • Honarable Mention All-State

#7 - Garrett Williams

Midland College (2020-22)

  • Member of the Midland Baseball Team
  • All-Academic (2021)
  • Honorable Mention All-Conference (2021)
  • Honorable Mention All- Conference (2022)

 

High School

  • 2020 graduate of South Grand Prairie HS
  • Lettered in Basebal

#9 - Riley Bender

2022 (Freshman)
· Played in 8 games, making 2 starts
· Finished with a .400 batting average through 10 at bats
· Recorded 3 hits, including 2 doubles, on March 6 in the 10-8 win over Marist

High School
• Lettered in basketball and baseball at Kingswood High School
• State 6A HR leader
• GHBCA All Star

#23 - Bobby Serfass

Cisco College (2022)

  • Member of the Cisco Baseball Team

 

North Central Texas College (2020-21)

  • Member of the NCTC Baseball Team
  • NJCAA First Team All-Academic (2020-21)
  • Chancellor's Honors List

 

High School

  • 2019 graduate of Westlake HS
  • Lettered in Baseball
  • Academic All-District (2016-18)
  • Academic All-State (2019)

#40 - Jack Nielsen

2022 (Freshman)
· Appeared in 5 games
· Recorded his first hit and RBI on March 5 in the 23-1 win over Marist
· Had 6 putouts in the 23-1 win over Marist

2021 (Redshirt)
• Redshirt season

High School
• Named All-Academic Honorable Mention
• Won the 2019 6A state championship

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