All across the country, Chucks alumni from the past couple of summers have had very notable spring seasons with their colleges. It was a season of achievement, and it’s worth applauding and acknowledging former Woodchucks for their continued improvement.
With all the noise and chaos that the Evansville Purple Aces have caused on the Division 1 scene, it was very heartwarming to watch as four former Woodchucks helped lead their program to its best finish in history. Simon Scherry, Brent Widder, Chase Hug and Mark Shallenberger all played for the Chucks, and all were starters for Evansville. Widder, Shallenberger and Scherry played 65 games for the Aces this season while Hug, who dealt with injury, played 39. In 2022, Scherry was the only one of the four who did not play for Wausau, while last year, Hug was the only one who didn’t play for Wausau. They helped their team win the MVC (Missouri Valley Conference), the Greenville Regional, and forced a game three against #1 overall Tennessee, coming just one game short of the College World Series.
In 2022, Brent Widder was the lone first-half Woodchuck All-Star, playing 39 games and batting .286. In his career as a Woodchuck, the man from Sheboygan, Wisconsin, played 76 games batting .291 with 85 hits and 38 RBI. This season for the Aces, Widder batted .280 with 73 hits, 20 doubles, 12 home runs and 58 RBI.
Simon Scherry led off for the Aces this season and slashed .289 with 73 hits and 44 RBI. He went 16 for 16 in stolen base attempts which led his team. His defensive-prowess was also on display during the 2023 season, as he led all NCAA D1 infielders in defensive runs saved at 12.7. He was also the runner-up for the MVC Defensive Player of the Year award.
Chase Hug hit 9 HR to lead the Chucks in 2022.
Chase Hug batted for .278 with 35 hits and 31 RBI. His SLUG % was the 5th best on the Aces, coming in at .508. In the 2023 season, Hug was named the MVC Player of the Week twice; he was also chosen for the MVC All-Tournament Team and the MVC All-Defensive Team. Hug was also chosen as the First-Team All-MVC Selection at First Base at the end of the season.
Mark Shallenberger was tied for first in HR for the Chucks in 2023.
Mark Shallenberger is ranked as the MVC’s #7 MLB Draft Prospect in the 2024 Draft Class by D1Baseball.com. He led the Aces in batting average at .374, slugging percentage at .687, and on-base percentage at .514. The two-time Woodchuck had 91 hits
with 64 RBI, the second most on the Aces in both categories. Shallenberger also led the team in doubles and triples, and was second in home-runs, batting in 17. He earned First-Team All-Conference in the MVC and was also named Third Team All-American by the AB
CA.
In the Big 12 Conference, the Woodchucks alum Jake English (2023) earned First Team All-Conference for the University of Kansas. The senior Jayhawk was a D1 Midseason Second Team All-American selection as a catcher. He was the Big 12 Player of the Week in April, and his 14 homeruns led him to became the first Jayhawk to have double-digit home runs in back to back seasons since 2008.
His teammate at Kansas and fellow Jayhawk Michael Brooks, a Woodchuck from the 2022 season, was awarded to the Honorable Mention list in the Big 12. The infielder batted an impressive .331 with 38 RBI and had 13 doubles and eight home runs.
Colin Bruggeman was a first half and second half all-star.
Colin Brueggemann from Oklahoma St. and Christian Mitchelle of Cincinnati received honors of Second Team All-Conference in the Big 12. Both played with Wausau in 2023 and this is Brueggemann’s second time winning the award. Brueggemann was an All-Star for the Woodchucks and continued his run for the Cowboys batting in 50 runs on 56 hits, 14 home runs with a slugging percentage of .507 across 59 games played.
Mitchelle performed on both sides of the ball as a two-way player. He was on a short watchlist of players in contention for the John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year award. In his first season as a Bear Cat, he held a 4.12 ERA in 22 relief appearances which included six saves and 27 strikeouts across 39.1 IP. Mitchelle, who was strictly a hitter for the Woodchucks, batted .319 in 163 at-bats this s
Christian Mitchelle played 23 games for the Chucks in 2023.
pring. He drove in 22 runs with 52 hits, eight of which were extra bases.
Two more Woodchucks were awarded Honorable Mention All-Conference in the Big 12. Collin Reuter and Aidan Major were both Woodchucks in 2022, and saw success at their respective colleges. Reuter, a catcher for BYU, batted a career high .265 with 37 RBI and 10 HR in 48 games played. From the mound, the West Virginia product Aidan Major finished his junior season with a 5.59 ERA in 12 starts and 14 total appearances. In 66 IP, Major struck out 77 batters and opponents batted just .250 against him.
Jacob Schroeder had 3 RBI’s on June 15, 2023. The Chucks won 12-1.
In the Big Ten, Camden Janik and Jake Schroeder were both named to the Big Ten First Team. Teammates at Illinois, the Woodchucks just missed being teammates by one season in Wausau. Janik signed with Wausau in 2022, while Schroeder was on the team in 2023.
Janik batted well above average, maintaining a .356 AVG across 55 games. He had 80 hits and 49 RBI, as well as seven home runs. Janik was also named to the ABCA/Rawlings NCAA D1 All-Region First Team. The catcher’s 80 hits ranked sixth in the Big Ten and is the most on the Fighting Illini. Jake Schroeder’s 1.047 OPS% led the team. He also had a batting AVG of .306, with 49 hits, including 7 doubles. His 14 home runs were the third most on his team.
In the Mountain West, Hunter Dorraugh is the lone Woodchuck named to the First Team. Dorraugh slashed for .377 on the season. He had 75 hits, including 9 doubles, 2 triples, and 18 home runs, also leading his team in OPS%. Dorraugh was named as the Mountain West Player of the Week three times, to the Mountain West Championship All-Tournament Team twice, and to the ABCA/Rawlings West All-Region Second Team once.
In the Southland Conference, Colton Mercer was the lone Chuck alum to be named to the First Team. The left-hander maintained a season ERA of 4.01 across 15 appearances, starting every game he played in. In 74.0 innings of work, Mercer struck out 82, and allowed just 33 earned runs.
Lastly, in the Summit Conference, Garrett Hill received an Honorable Mention award. Hill batted for .281, with five doubles, two triples and three home runs. Garrett is a two-time winner of the Summit League Commissioner’s List of Academic Excellence, and has been named twice to the Summit League Academic Honor Roll. His FPCT of .969 ranks near the top of the team, and is one of the best in the entire conference.
This summer’s 2024 MLB Draft will be hosted on July 14 to July 16. The goal in the Northwoods League and for the Woodchucks is to develop players to help them achieve their dreams and goals. Chucks alum always impress later in their careers, and this year’s class set themselves up nicely for whatever the future holds.
Stay tuned for Woodchuck’s alumni news on the Woodchucks website and follow the Woodchucks on social media.