The Hillsdale College baseball program enters the 2024 season with a new home field and big goals to match the brand new stadium.
After construction throughout the offseason, the Chargers will play their first game in the newly built Lenda and Glenda Hill Stadium on March 16, taking on G-MAC rival Findlay in a doubleheader to open a weekend series with the Oilers.
While the new state-of-the-art ballpark will be an exciting draw, Hillsdale aims to field a baseball team that will provide that same level of excitement on the field as well.
The Chargers are coming off a solid 2023 season that saw the team put up its best conference showing in over three decades with a 20-12 record, reaching the G-MAC Tournament and winning their opening-round contest.
Hillsdale has some big shoes to fill from that team, including MLB Draft Pick Zane Barnhart at closer, as well as ace pitcher Will Gifford and four everyday players in the lineup. But the Chargers are bringing back as much or more than they lost, led by junior first baseman Will Shannon, who posted one of the best offensive seasons in program history in a breakout campaign in 2023 to earn All-G-MAC and All-Region honors.
Shannon is one of four of Hillsdale's top five hitters in 2023 who return for 2024, as fourth-year starters and big-time sluggers Jeff Landis and Joe Hardenbergh, both of whom hit north of .325 and finished with double digit home runs, return for one final season with the Chargers. Fellow senior Danny Passinault, one of the G-MAC's top defensive outfielders and a strong bat in the lineup the last three seasons, also returns for Hillsdale, as does catcher Jaekob Sallee and designated hitter Nate Waligora, both of whom put up career numbers in 2023.
On the mound, Hillsdale loses Gifford but returns two quality starters in veteran Tommy MacLean, a reliable right-handed arm, and Daly Skees, who emerged as one of the team's top pitchers in the back half of 2023, as well as two more pitchers with significant starting experience in Drew Olssen and Paul Brophy. Filling in for Barnhart out of the bullpen will be tougher but Hillsdale also has veteran arms to turn to in the clubhouse, including Chad Stevens, Waligora, and Brandon Scott, among others.
A potential game-changer for the Chargers is a 10-player freshman class that's heavy on power arms and full of players who will battle for immediate playing time. It's likely multiple spots on the field, in the rotation, and in the bullpen could be filled by newcomers, and the battles for starting spots in the lineup should make the whole team better.
The Chargers open the season on Feb. 16 in Holly Springs, North Carolina, with a four game series against regional power Wayne State, four of 15 non-conference games leading into the G-MAC and home opener against Findlay on March 16. The Chargers will face a tough conference schedule that includes road series at defending G-MAC North and South Division champions Trevecca Nazarene, as well as another G-MAC tourney team in Walsh. Hillsdale gets the G-MAC South Division runner-up Oilers at their place, and also hosts 2023 G-MAC Tourney qualifier Kentucky Wesleyan, as well as Tiffin.
You can find the full schedule for the 2024 season here.
Photo by Isabella Sheehan