Edgewood Graduate and Indiana State Pitcher Luke Hayden Selected by the Cincinnati Reds in the MLB Draft
Edgewood Grad Luke Hayden will have a chance to live out his pro dream after he was taken in the eighth round by the Cincinnati Reds in the Major League Baseball Draft on Monday. Hayden is only the second Mustang drafted following Greg Granger, who was taken in the 44th round of the 1991 draft by the Atlanta Braves and went to junior college before the Detroit Tigers took him in the seventh round in 1993. He was thrilled when his name finally popped up with the 239th pick. He actually had a bit of a heads up the pick was coming by the Reds, one of the teams, along with the Cubs and Cardinals, that he followed closely as a kid. Hayden was gathered with his family at their home and spent Monday on a Zoom call with his agent, who was fielding offers from teams interested in him.
Hayden started his college career at Indiana University but after struggling for two years there for various reasons, made the decision to move on and start fresh. Transferring to Indiana State, he became a regular part of the starting rotation. He went 7-2 with a 3.81 ERA over 78 innings and a team-high 91 strikeouts. He was named second team All-Missouri Valley Conference, named to the all-tournament team and the MVC All-Scholar Team. He helped lead the Sycamores to a second-place finish in the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament and a berth in the NCAA Tournament. ISU’s run ended in the championship final against eventual national champ Tennessee. After the season, ISU’s head coach left and so did Hayden, putting his name in the transfer portal and announcing a commitment to SEC powerhouse LSU. But down deep, Hayden’s heart was set on turning pro. He was one of two Sycamores invited to the MLB Draft Combine in Phoenix in June. The Reds kept close tabs on him. Hayden is the second county prospect to be drafted following Bloomington North’s Will Klein, who was taken in the fifth and final round of the COVID-shortened draft of 2020 by the Kansas City Royals. Klein recently made his MLB debut.
Two Indiana University Baseball Players taken on the Final Day of the Major League Baseball Draft
Junior Catcher Brock Tibbitts and sophomore right-handed pitcher Brayden Risedorph were the final members of IU’s roster to be selected in the 2024 MLB Draft. The pair of Hoosiers were taken in the 13th round (397th overall) by Toronto and 20th round (602nd overall) by Chicago (NL) respectively on Tuesday (July 16) afternoon.
Tibbitts was the second Hoosier (Nick Mitchell, 4-C) to be picked by Toronto in this year’s draft while Risedorph is the first selection by the Cubs since shutdown reliever Scott Effross (2015). The pair of players join four fellow teammates that were picked in the top-five rounds on day two of the draft. Tibbitts was instrumental in IU’s success over the past three seasons which included back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances and 76 combined wins in 2023 and 2024. After missing a month due to injury, Tibbitts returned to the lineup in May and started the final 16 games at first base. Over 168 career games played, Tibbitts hit .313 with 137 runs scored and 199 hits. He slugged 23 home runs and finished 14th all-time in program history with 154 RBIs. Before his injury, Tibbitts had started 149-consecutive games for the Hoosiers; the longest streak since head coach Jeff Mercer took over in 2019.
Risedorph has been IU’s most used bullpen arm in his first two seasons on campus, appearing 46 times and throwing 100 innings the last two years. He’s racked up 117 strikeouts while walking just 47 batters. He was a Freshman All-American selection in 2023. The East Noble, Ind. native joins classmate Connor Foley RHP, Jasper, Ind.) as the draft-eligible sophomores from IU taken in the 2024 MLB Draft. The Hoosiers’ other four selections were all from the junior class. This weekend’s draft also featured a trio of high school signees picked by the Milwaukee Brewers. Griffin Tobias (RHP, 9th Round), Cooper Malamazian (SS, 17th Round) and Henry Brummel (RHP, 20th Round) were selected by the Brewers in this year’s proceedings. The trio of Midwest talent will have the option to sign professionally or begin their careers in Bloomington this year. IU’s six draft picks were the most in a single season since 2021. The six picks were also the most of any school in the Big Ten Conference. Since head coach Jeff Mercer took over in 2019, no conference team has more selections in the draft than IU (24). It’s the third time in six years that IU has had six-or-more players picked in the same draft.
IU Alumni Team Assembly Ball announces Final Roster for The Basketball Tournament
Assembly Ball, the Indiana alumni team playing at The Basketball Tournament’s (TBT) Butler Regional at Hinkle Fieldhouse July 19-23, today announced their final roster for the 2024 event. The top seed in the Butler Region, Assembly Ball is organized by former Hoosier star Christian Watford and includes a total of eight former IU basketball players on the roster.
Assembly Ball’s final roster includes: Miller Kopp (2021-23) Race Thompson (2018-2023) DeVonte Green (2016-20) Juwan Morgan (2015-19) Noah Vonleh (2013-14) Troy Williams (2013-16) Yogi Ferrell (2012-16) Jordan Hulls (2009-13) Julian Gamble (Miami) Rion Brown (Miami) Kristian Doolittle (Oklahoma) Keith Hornsby (UNC-Asheville, LSU) Tyrell Terry (Stanford) Dakota Quinn (Samford)
Miller Kopp, currently playing with the Oklahoma City Thunder at Las Vegas Summer League, will join Assembly Ball following the conclusion of that event. Assembly Ball will play The Cru (Valparaiso Alumni) on Friday, July 19, at 8:00pm on the Big Ten Network. If Assembly Ball advances to the second round, they will face the winner of Men of Mackey (Purdue Alumni) and Fort Wayne Champs on Sunday, July 21 at 8:00pm on FS1. The Butler Regional championship game is Tuesday, July 23 at 7pm on FS1. The winner of the Butler Regional will play the winner of the Pittsburgh Regional in the quarterfinals on July 29 or 30 (official game date, time, and location to be determined). The semifinals and $1 million winner-take-all championship game will be Aug. 2 and Aug. 4 in Philadelphia, Pa. at the Daskalakis Athletic Center. For more information on Assembly Ball and tickets for this year’s Butler Regional, visit TheTournament.com.
Edgewood Graduate Cayden Huttenlocker Transfers from Lincoln Trail Junior to Indiana State University for Men’s Basketball
Former Edgewood Mustang and Lincoln Trail Statesman Caden Huttenlocker is heading to Indiana State. Huttenlocker lead Lincoln Trail in scoring in the 2023-24 season with 12.5 points per game and was second on the team in rebounds and assists per game as well. Huttenlocker announced his commitment to Indiana State Basketball over the weekend and will have two years of eligibility remaining. He started all 30 games as a sophomore after playing in in 25 games and starting 5 as freshman averaging 3.2 points per game.
Indiana University Field Hockey’s Ines Garcia Prado is competing for Spain at the EuroHockey U-21 Championship
Building off a fantastic freshman campaign, Indiana Field Hockey midfielder Inés Garcia Prado is currently playing in the EuroHockey U21 Championship for Spain’s U21 National Team. The European Championship began on Sunday, July 14 with Spain sporting a 1-1 record through their first two games of group play in Group A. The entire tournament is being played in Terrassa, Spain. While this is Garcia Prado’s first time playing for the U21 team, this is not her first-time representing Spain on the national level as she has played with the U18 team prior. After a successful outing with the U18 team a year ago, she was invited back to join the squad for this summer’s Euros. “I think it really helped me a lot because most of the girls that I played with at the U18 level are now on the U21 team, so I already know how they play and have played with most of them,” Garcia Prado said of the value of her U18 team experience.
Garcia Prado joined the U21 team in May after wrapping up her spring semester at Indiana. She participated in weekly practices as well as five training camps held in Terrassa to prepare for the European Championship. With the training camps as well as a strong freshman showing under her belt that saw her notch three goals and five assists while earning All-Big Ten Second Team honors, Garcia Prado was more than ready for the high-level international competition.
To start the tournament, the Spain squad fell to Netherlands in their opener 3-0 on Sunday but bounced back with a 4-0 win over France Monday. After the first two games, she has noticed differences between the college and international levels. “The college game is more physical, more about running with the ball and being fit,” Garcia Prado said. “For the international stage, you obviously have to be fit, too, but it is more about the technical skills and the tactical preparation.”
Spain will play its final game of group play against Belgium this afternoon with a 2:15 p.m. start. Today’s game result will determine where they’ll be slotted for the knockout stage. Currently, Belgium and Spain are tied for second in Group A, each with three points. Regardless of where Spain finishes in the group, they’ll face a Group B team to start the knockout stage which could be any of the following teams: England, Germany, Ireland and Austria. After the European Championship is over, Garcia Prado will return to Bloomington for her sophomore season. Indiana’s first scrimmage is on Sunday, August 18 at home against Miami (OH). Garcia Prado believes that her time playing in the European Championship will benefit her greatly ahead of her sophomore season at IU. “I think it has been really beneficial for me and for the team because field hockey in Europe is more technical,” Garcia Prado said. “I’m improving my individual skills, my tactical knowledge and playing a faster game that is preparing me for the fall season.”
Taylor University Women’s Track and Field Leads NAIA with a Trio of CSC Academic All-Americans
The College Sports Communicators (CSC) announced its 2024 Women’s Cross Country and Track and Field Academic All-American award-winners this week, with Taylor leading the NAIA with a trio of selections. The trio of Trojans each received the honor for the first time in their collegiate careers. Noel VanderWall was named a CSC First Team Academic All-American and was joined by Audrey Brinkruff and Abby Mays, both of whom were on the CSC Academic All-American Second Team. The NAIA had 20 CSC Academic All-Americans, leaving Taylor with an astounding 15 percent of the total award winners. The Crossroads League had a total of seven on the list, with Taylor accounting for almost half.
VanderWall earned a spot on the first team after posting an incredible 3.97 GPA throughout her two years in her elementary education major. The sensational sophomore had an outstanding athletic year for the Trojans, collecting five NAIA All-American Honors. The standout sophomore was an NAIA All-American in every season she competed in, one in cross country and a pair during both indoor and outdoor track and field. To begin her sophomore athletic year, VanderWall helped TU cross country to a fifth-place finish at NAIA Nationals. VanderWall finished third in the mile in the indoor campaign while setting the program record in the event. The sophomore also set a TU record in the 1,500-meters in the outdoor season while being on the amazing distance medley relay team, which set a Taylor record.
Brinkruff has earned a 3.87 GPA throughout her three years studying biology. The junior capped a terrific indoor track season with NAIA All-American honors in the 5,000-meters and was a three-time All-Crossroads League athlete, along with collecting two Crossroads League Runner-of-the-Week awards. Brinkruff was named the USTFCCCA Athlete of the Week in the second week of the cross-country season after winning the Ray Bullock Invite. Mays collected the second team award with a perfect 4.00 GPA throughout her psychology classes. Mays came in and contributed to outstanding indoor and outdoor track and field seasons for the Trojans in her first year at TU. The mid-distance specialist collected a pair of NAIA All-American Honors one during each season including helping set a new program record in the distance medley relay.
Taylor student-athletes have now combined for 139 CSC Academic All-American honors in school history, with 137 of those awards coming since 2010. The trio of selections brings TU’s women’s cross country and track all-time total of CSC Academic All-American awards to 24, with nine of those being First-Team accolades. The honors also push Taylor’s total CSC Academic All-Americas to six in the 2023-24 year. The 2024 Academic All-American women’s track & field and cross-country teams, recognize the nation’s top student-athletes for their performances on the track, in the field, and the classroom. To be considered for the award, student-athletes must hold a minimum 3.50 GPA, achieve at least sophomore academic status, and reach certain performance thresholds in their respective track events or cross-country races.