Monday, July 13, 2009
Wayne State College interim head baseball coach Brian Disch announced today that three players have committed to play for the Wildcats in the 2010 season, bringing the total number of the 2010 recruiting class to eight players. The three players are Jerad Barth of Sioux City, Iowa, Cris Ely of Boone, Iowa and Mike Servais of Omaha, Nebraska. They join Justin Beranek of Fremont, Nebraska, Luke Farrar of Grand Island, Nebraska, Michael Frericks of St. Joseph, Minnesota, Jared Kraus of Cedar Rapids, Iowa and Benjamin Strellner of Marion, Iowa as members of the 2010 Wildcat recruiting class.
Barth is a 6-1, 185 pound shortstop from Sioux City East High School, helping the Black Raiders to a 25-4 record (as of July 6) and the #1 ranking in Class 4A by the Iowa High School Baseball Coaches Association. He was a Third Team All-State selection last season as a junior and has earned First Team All-District and All-Conference honors three seasons. Barth also excelled in football at East High School, earning First Team All-Metro honors as a junior.
“Jerad is a versatile and athletic middle infielder that also has the potential to pitch,” remarked Coach Disch. “He has an excellent bat and can swing with power. Jerad plays for one of the top teams in Iowa, which says he knows what it takes to be on a successful team.
Ely is a 5-7, 150 pound catcher from Boone High School in Iowa and is a four-year starter and letter winner. He has helped his team to a 24-4 record (as of July 6) so far this season and a #2 ranking in Class 3A by the Iowa High School Baseball Coaches Association. Ely is a three-time First Team Little Hawkeye All-Conference selection and has earned Second Team All-District honors for three seasons. He also excels in the classroom, being named to the National Honor Society as a junior to go with Academic All-Conference honors.
“Cris is very intelligent not only in the classroom but also on the baseball field,” commented Disch. He has been the leader behind the plate for a very successful pitching staff at Boone High School and I expect Cris to compete for the catching job in years to come.”
Servais (pronounced service) is a 5-11, 165 pound second baseman from Skutt High School in Omaha. He was a First Team Class B All-State selection this past spring by the Omaha World Herald and Lincoln Journal Star, hitting .456 as a senior while helping Omaha Skutt to a fourth place finish in the Class B State Tournament. Servais was a two-year captain for Skutt HS and helped the team to a Class B runner-up finish as a junior in 2008. Mike is the son of Creighton baseball coach Ed Servais.
“Mike is an athletic middle infielder with very good hands,” said Coach Disch. “He comes from a tremendous baseball family with a wealth of valuable knowledge and experience. Mike is an outstanding leader and hard worker and I expect him to compete for the second base job this fall.”
Wayne State College is an NCAA Division II school located in Wayne, Nebraska and competes in the 14-team Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. The Wildcats finished the 2009 season with a 45-15 record, matching the school record for wins in a season set by the 2005 team that was 45-14. Wayne State won a sixth straight regular season Northern Sun Conference title, going 27-4 in league play, while advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the sixth straight season and the seventh time in the last nine years. WSC reached the NCAA Central Region title game before falling to Mesa State 8-2.
