TOPEKA, Kan. -- Washburn baseball finally hosts an MIAA weekend series as they take on Northwest Missouri State for three games beginning Friday, March 20 at 4 p.m. before heading on the road to face No. 6 Central Missouri on March 24 in Warrensburg, Mo. 

LEADING OFF

>> Washburn stays at home for its first MIAA series in Topeka taking on Northwest Missouri State for three games before heading back on the road for a mid week meeting with No. 6 Central Missouri.

>> The Ichabods series against the Bearcats begins at 4 p.m. on Friday, March 20 at Steve Anson Stadium. Game two is at 2 p.m. on Saturday with the series finale at 1 p.m. on Sunday. They face the Mules on Tuesday, March 24 beginning at 3 p.m. in Warrensburg, Mo.

>> Washburn improved to 9-15 overall and 6-6 inside the MIAA with a 6-5 extra-inning win over Fort Hays State on Wednesdya, March 18 that snapped a five-game losing streak. 

>> The Ichabods are coming off a fourth straight winning season in 2025 going 28-25 overall and 18-18 inside the MIAA. They finished 7th in the regular season and won two games in the MIAA Tournament before falling in the semifinal round.

>> They were picked to finish fifth in the MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll for a second straight year.

BODS AND BITS

>> Washburn is scoring 7.58 runs per game on the year while opponents are scoring 7.88 runs per game. 

>> They are 2-3 playing at home at Steve Anson Stadium, 6-10 in road games and 1-2 in neutral field meetings.

>> At the plate the Ichabods are hitting .273 with a .399 OB% and a .425 SLG%. They have tallied 19 home runs with 135 total walks.

>> The pitching staff has a 6.50 ERA with 192 strikeouts across 209.0 innings. They have allowed 240 hits and issued 129 walks. 

>> Washburn has a .965 fielding percentage as a team with 32 errors and seven turned double plays.

>> On the basepaths the Ichabods have gone 44-56 in stolen base attempts while opponents have gone 40-57. 

>> Washburn has returned 19 players from the 2025 roster with eight of them as  seniors, four juniors and seven sophomore. 

STREAKS AND STATS

>> Levi Risenhoover brings a six-game hitting streak into the weekend, the current longest on the squad. Four players have had eight-game hitting streaks this season.

>> Ian Luce has reached base in all 24 games, the only player to do so. Trenton Barry has reached base in 21 consecutive games.

>> Luce has a team-high 13 games with multiple hits. 

>> Washburn is reaching base at a .285 clip to lead off the inning. 

>> The Ichabods are hitting 5-18 (.278) when pinch hitting this season.

>> Washburn is outscoring opponents 20-7 in the ninth inning of games and 31-29 in the eighth inning. 

AROUND THE ORDER

>> Ian Luce has started in all 24 games hitting .392 with a 1.111 OPS, both team-highs. He has 15 extra-base hits including four home runs with 21 RBI and is 5-7 in stolen base attempts. He is 3rd in the MIAA and 33rd nationally in hits, 3rd in total bases and is the 4th toughest to strike out in the conference. 

>> Levi Risenhoover is hitting .330 while starting in all 22 games he has appeared in. He leads the team with six home runs and 27 RBI while carrying a 1.095 OPS. He is 5-7 in stolen base attempts. He is 7th in the MIAA in home runs, 9th in SLG% and 11th in RBI.

>> Jackson Mervosh has played and started in all 24 games and is hitting .273 with a .749 OPS. He has eight doubles while driving in 12 runs on the year. He has a .395 OB% and is 2-2 in stealing bases. He is 8th in the conference in doubles. 

>> Brandt Beeby has played in 18 games making 13 starts and is hitting .310, third best on the team with a .952 OPS. He has driven in 16 runs with a pair of triples and a home run. He is also 3-4 in stolen base attempts. He is 3rd in the MIAA in triples.

>> Chase Littrell is hitting .241 with a .766 OPS while playing in 22 games and making 18 starts. He has hit one home run with 14 RBI and is 7-8 stealing bases. He is tied for a team-high with 18 walks for a .438 OB%. He ranks 15th in the MIAA in walks.

>> Trenton Barry has played in 23 games making 21 starts hitting .299 with a .936 OPS. He has hit two home runs with two triples for 14 RBI. He has a .455 OB% while going 9-10 in stolen base attempts, a team-high. He ranks 17th in the MIAA in stolen bases and leads the conference being hit by pitch 10 times this season.

>> Easton Wasinger has played in 16 games making 15 starts. He is hitting .241 with a .698 OPS. He has driven in 13 runs with one home run and has a .353 OB%.

>> Jack Borgmann has played in 23 games making 20 starts. He is hitting .243 with two home runs and 14 RBI while going 5-6 in stolen base attempts.

>> Brooks Richardson has played in 21 games making 20 starts. He is hitting .242 with seven RBI and has a .390 OB%.

>> Owen Laessig has started in 19 games and played in 21. He is hitting .233 and has driven in nine runs.

>> Easton Wasinger has played in 16 games making 15 starts. He is hitting .241 with a .698 OPS. He has driven in 13 runs with one home run and has a .353 OB%.

>> Jarrett Herrmann has played in 13 games making seven starts. He is hitting .267 with a .436 OB%. He is 3-4 in stolen base attempts.

ON THE MOUND

>> Maclane Finley leads team throwing 31.2 innings across his six starts this season. He has struck out 24 batters and has a 5.68 ERA and 2-3 record, tied for a team-high in victories. He has thrown at least five innings in every start. 

>> Kai Bennett has thrown 27.0 innings over his six starts. He is leading the team with 28 strikeouts while holding opponents to a .238 batting average. He has a 4.67 ERA and is 1-3 on the year. He is 7th in the MIAA in strikeouts allowed per nine innings and 9th in hits allowed per nine. 

>> Caleb Lunnon has made six starts for the Ichabods throwing 25.2 innings on the year. He has struck out 24 batters with a 1-1 record and 8.77 ERA. 

>> Max Strash has appeared in ten games out of the bullpen for the Ichabods throwing 9.2 innings. He has ten strikeouts and has a team-best 1.86 ERA.

>> Mark Hoffmann has pitched in nine games making three starts. He has thrown 23.0 innings with 17 strikeouts and a 4.30 ERA. He is tied for a team-high two wins with a 2-0 record.

>> Fidel Hatch has played in nine games out of the bullpen throwing 18.1 innings. He has struck out 12 batters and has a 5.40 ERA with a team-high one save. 

>> Braden Cork has made four appearances with two starts throwing 11.0 innings. He has eight strikeouts with a 9.00 ERA. 

>> Gavin Wilhelm has pitched in six games out of the bullpen. He has a 1-0 record across 9.2 innings with 11 strikeouts and an ERA of 7.45.

>> Carter Poole has made five appearances out of the bullpen throwing 3.1 innings. He has three strikeouts and a 5.40 ERA.

>> Keegan McDonald has appeared in seven games out of the bullpen throwing 8.0 innings with seven strikeouts and a 5.63 ERA.

>> Max Clark has made seven appearances out of the bullpen throwing 9.0 innings. He is 0-1 on the year with 11 strikeouts.

>> Blake Priest has pitched in seven games out of the bullpen throwing 7.0 innings. He has struck out seven with a 5.14 ERA.

IN THE FIELD

>>  Excluding first basemen and catchers, Chase Littrell leads the team with 47 putouts, Levi Risenhoover is second on the team with 45.

>> Trenton Barry has the most assists on the team with 61, while Jackson Mervosh is second with 56. 

>> Brooks Richardson has a team-high 148 putouts from behind the plate while Jack Borgmann has 137 playing mostly at first base.

NUMBERS AROUND THE NATION

>> As a team in 2026 Washburn stacks up to the rest of the nation and conference well in several areas...

Walks  - 135 (4th MIAA / 31st nationally)

Doubes per game - 2.29 (2nd MIAA / 31st nationally) 

Sacrifice bunts - 14 (4th MIAA / 43rd nationally)

Triples per game  - 0.33 (4th MIAA / 51st nationally)

Sacrifice flies - 11 (9th MIAA / 81st nationally)

Stolen bases per game - 1.83 (6th MIAA / 89th nationally) 

Strikeouts per nine innings - 8.3 (5th MIAA / 91st nationally)

Scoring - 7.6 runs per game (5th MIAA / 83rd nationally) 

Hits - 229 (6th MIAA / 81st nationally)

HEAD COACH HARLEY DOUGLAS

>> Former Washburn All-MIAA outfielder Harley Douglas enters his 12th season at the helm of the Washburn baseball program in 2025.

>> In his eleven plus season, Douglas carries an all-time record of 293-257 with seven appearances in the MIAA Tournament and led the program to its first-ever NCAA Tournament in 2022.

>> He has also coached a total of 72 all-MIAA selections, including the MIAA Player and Pitcher of the Year in 2016.

>> Prior to returning to his alma mater in 2012 he was the head coach at St. Marys HS from 2003-06 and at Rossville HS from 2007-10. 

>> Douglas is a two-time Washburn graduate, receiving his Exercise Physiology degree in 2002 before earning an Education degree in 2004. He also earned a Master's Degree in Adaptive Special Education from Emporia State in 2010. 

ASSISTANT COACHES

>> Connor Crimmins is in his eighth season with the Ichabods on the coaching staff.

>> He began his coaching career spending the prior two seasons on Brad Hill's Kansas State staff serving as a graduate assistant

>> While at Washburn, Crimmins played both football and baseball, finishing his career on the diamond top 10 in sacrifice flies (4th/11), doubles (6th/38) and RBI (t-7th/132), while having the 12th-most at-bats (575).

>> He graduated from Washburn in 2016 with his bachelor's and earned his master's in college student development and counseling from K-State.  

>> Rane Pfeifer is in his third season on the coaching staff after finishing his playing career with the Ichabods in 2023. 

>> He finished his career second all-time in opponent batting average (.218), third in games started (36), fourth in strikeouts (210) and 19th in innings pitched (165.2)

>> Pfeifer graduated from Washburn with a bachelor's degree in business management in May 2022

>> Caden Bressler moves from the starting rotation to the coaching staff for the 2026 season in his first as a coach.

>> He finished his three-year career with the Ichabods in 2025where he appeared in 62 games as a hitter and 32 on the mound. He throw 113.2 total innings with a 6-6 record and three saves.

>> Bressler graduated with his bachelor's degree in kinesiology from Washburn in 2025. 

SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION

NORTHWEST MISSOURI BEARCATS

>> Northwest Missouri fell to 17-7 overall and 7-3 inside the MIAA with a 11-7 loss to No. 8 Central Missouri last time out on March 18.

>> Last season the Bearcats went 27-25 overall and 19-17 in the MIAA. They advanced to the MIAA Tournament Championship, losing to Central Oklahoma.

>> Tony Jandron is in his second season as the head coach at Northwest Missouri State where he has a 44-32 record.

>> Northwest Missouri is scoring 7.38 runs per game while opponents are scoring 5.96 runs per outing.

>> The Bearcats offense is hitting .287 as a team with a .416 OB% and a .474 SLG%. They have 26 home runs and have tallied 121 total walks with 179 strikeouts.

>> They rank 5th in the MIAA in all of SLG%, OB% and home runs.

>> Jeremiah Cabuyaban has started and played in 20 games hitting a team-high .389 with a 1.337 OPS. He has a team-high eight home runs with 21 RBI. He is 3rd in the MIAA and 24th in the nation in home runs while ranking 2nd in the conference in SLG%. 

>> Frank Gall is hitting .371 while starting in all 24 games with a 1.137 OPS. He has six home runs while driving in a team-high 27 RBI and is also 15-15 in stolen base attempts. He ranks 2nd in the MIAA in stolen bases and total bases and is 7th in total hits.

>> The pitching staff has a 5.57 ERA as a team across 197.0 innings. They have struck out 176 batters while walking 99 and allowing 214 total hits.

>> The Bearcats rank 4th in the MIAA in walks allowed per nine innings at 4.5, they rank 6th in the conference in WHIP.

>> Logan Brasel has appeared in seven games making five starts and has thrown a team-high 27.2 innings. He has 23 strikeouts with a 4.88 ERA and 2-1 record. He ranks 8th in the MIAA in WHIP and is 9th in the MIAA in strikeout to walk ratio.

>> Diego de Santiago has pitched in nine games out of the bullpen throwing 11.2 innings. He has struck out eight batters and is 1-2 on the year. He has a 2.31 ERA and a team-high three saves. He is 3rd in the MIAA and 23rd nationally in saves.

>> Washburn leads the all-time series with the Bearcats 77-70. They are 40-31 against them in Topeka. 

>> The first meeting of the series came on April 6, 1971 with a 6-1 win for the Ichabods in Maryville, Mo. Last season Northwest Missouri won all four meetings between the two teams.

CENTRAL MISSOURI MULES

>> Central Missouri improved to 20-5 overall and 11-3 in the MIAA defeating Northwest Missouri 11-7 last time out on March 18 at home. 

>> They are ranked No. 6 in the latest NCBWA national poll.

>> Last season the Mules went 48-14 overall and 29-7 in conference play. They made it to the College Baseball World Series where they lost two games to one to Tampa in the Championship.

>> Kyle Crookes is in his 12 season leading the Central Missouri program where he has a 466-152 career record.

>> Central Missouri is scoring 10.08 runs per game while opponents are scoring 6.53 runs per game against them. 

>> The Mules offense is hitting .344 as a team with a .471 OB% and a .490 SLG%. They have 13 home runs and have tallied 164 total walks with 132 strikeouts.

>> They lead the MIAA and are 2nd in the nation with 109 stolen bases, they rank 2nd in the MIAA and 7th in the nation in walks while ranking 3rd in the nation in OB%. 

>> Chase Wilcox has played in 19 games making 18 starts and is hitting .424 with a 1.138 OPS. He has two home runs with 20 RBI and has 19 walks for a .562 OB%. He is 11-14 in stolen base chances. He ranks 3rd in the MIAA in batting average and OB% while ranking 8th in stolen bases. 

>> Grant Hollister is hitting .396 while playing and starting in 24 games. He has a 1.086 OPS with 15 doubles and a team-high 28 RBI. He is also 10-11 stealing bases. He is 2nd in the nation in doubles, 8th in the conference in RBI and is the toughest in the MIAA to strike out.

>> The pitching staff has a 5.03 ERA as a team across 204.0 innings. They have struck out 231 batters while walking 110 and allowing 163 total hits.

>> The Mules lead the conference with 10.2 strikeouts per nine innings, 7th most in the nation, as well as in hits allowed per nine innings at just 7.19, 4th best nationally.

>> Allen Sawyer has made six starts throwing a team-high 23.2 innings. He has 26 strikeouts with a 2-0 record and 2.66 ERA. 

>> Greyson Chappel has made six starts for the Mules throwing 18.1 innings with an 0-1 record. He has a team-high 28 strikeouts with opponents hitting just .197 against him as he carries a 2.45 ERA. He is 10th in the MIAA in strikeouts. 

>> Central Missouri leads the all-time series between the two teams 96-30. Washburn is 12-47 against them in Warrensburg. 

>> The first meeting of the series came on March 14, 1985 with a 8-7 win for the Ichabods at home. The Mules won the first meeting between the two teams this season 7-6 on March 10 in Topeka. 

MILESTONE MARKERS

>> Griffin Huiatt is 3rd in program history with 60 career appearances. He ranks tied for 5th among all players with seven career saves. 

>> Jackson Mervosh is tied for 15th in Washburn history with 32 doubles. With a .330 batting average his career number ranks 44th best in program history.

>> Fidel Hatch is tied for 16th in program history with four career saves. 

>> Ian Luce's current .392 batting average is the 21st best in a single-season in program history.

WASHBURN BASEBALL HISTORY

>> The 2026 season will be the 74th year of Washburn Baseball.

>> The Ichabods have a 1396-1328-3 record in program history. 

>> There have been 35 seasons with 20+ wins; 25 seasons with 25+ wins; and 13 seasons with 30+ wins.

>> Washburn has earned 34 All-Region selections and 14 All-America awards.

ON DECK

>> Washburn returns home to take on Northeastern State in a three-game series beginning on Friday, March 27.

>> Senior day for the Ichabods will be on the regular season finale May 2 against Pittsburg State at 1 p.m.

>> The single elimination MIAA Tournament will be held in Edmond, Okla. at Wendell Simmons Field between May 6-10.