2026 Roster   |   2026 Schedule  |  2025 Final Stats
 
LOCK HAVEN, Pa. - The Slippery Rock University baseball team received two first-place votes and was picked to finish second in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division this season, the league office announced Thursday with unveiling of its annual preseason coaches' poll.
 
Reigning division champion Seton Hill received six first-place votes and was tabbed to repeat in PSAC West followed in the top half of the prognostication by The Rock, Indiana (Pa.) and California (Pa.). The back half of the poll saw Gannon in fifth followed by Clarion, Pitt-Johnstown and Lock Haven.
 
East Stroudsburg, which won the Atlantic Region last season, is atop the PSAC East preseason rankings with six first-place votes. 2025 PSAC Tournament champion Millersville took two first-place votes and landed second followed by West Chester, Shippensburg, Shepherd, Bloomsburg, Kutztown and Mansfield. 
 
The top four teams in the PSAC West and PSAC East standings at the conclusion of the season qualify for the conference tournament, which will be held at Jack Critchfield Park May 6-10. SRU has qualified for the PSAC Tournament in 15 of the last 19 seasons the event has been held.
 
Slippery Rock completed its 2025 season with a 31-19 overall record. The Rock qualified for the PSAC Tournament for a third consecutive year after going 16-12 in the PSAC West. The 31 wins secured the 20th 30-win campaign under head coach Jeff Messer and represented the second highest victory total by the program over the last 16 years.
 
2026 has the chance to be another great campaign for SRU which returns two members of its weekend starting pitching rotation, four key relievers and six position players that were everyday starters s a season ago in addition to a promising incoming recruiting class.
 
Slippery Rock has already received votes in both the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) and D2Baseball.com preseason national polls while also being positioned seventh in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Atlantic Region preseason rankings.
 
THE ROCK COACHING STAFF
Slippery Rock is under the direction of Jeff Messer, one of the top coaches in Division II history. Messer, already a member of the ABCA Hall of Fame, begins the 2026 season with a career record of 1,154-760-5 (.603). He ranks ninth in DII history for career victories and is the third winningest active coach in the country.
 
Messer has guided SRU to 15 PSAC West titles, two PSAC Tournament championships, 13 NCAA Tournament berths and four appearances in the College World Series. He'll begin 2026 just five wins away from passing Mike Sansing (Shorter/Kennesaw, 1988-21) for eighth place on the Division II career coaching wins ledger.
 
Now in his 14th season on The Rock's coaching staff, Billy Messer will once again serve as SRU's lead assistant and recruiting coordinator. Former SRU standout, and 15-year coaching veteran, Billy Herman also returns for his third year as an assistant at his alma mater. 
 
The newest addition to The Rock's coaching staff is former SRU ace Ricky Mineo, who takes over for Mike Nuzzo as the program's pitching coach. Mineo was a two-time All-PSAC West honoree at Slippery Rock prior to signing a professional contract with the Minnesota Twins in 2022.
 
PITCHING STAFF
Headlining The Rock's pitching staff are a pair of front end starters in seniors Nate Malak and Gage Gillott.
 
One of the top two-way players in not only the PSAC but all of Division II, Gillott opted to return to SRU for a third season after what's already been a star-studded career at The Rock. A two-time All-American, two-time consensus all-region choice, three-time All-PSAC West honoree and 2024 PSAC West Pitcher of the Year, Gillott has gone 11-6 with a 2.68 ERA, 98 strikeouts, .207 opponent batting average and 1.05 WHIP over 110.2 career innings pitched at SRU.
 
A year ago, Gillott made eight starts on the way to going 4-3 with a 3.16 ERA, .201 opponent batting average and 28 strikeouts through 37 innings.
 
A preseason All-Atlantic Region choice, Malak anchored The Rock's starting rotation during a breakout junior year in 2025. Over 12 starts (65 innings), Malak went 6-3 with a 3.32 ERA, 59 strikeouts, a .218 opponent batting average and 1.12 WHIP. He threw four complete games, including shutouts over Seton Hill, Gannon and Pitt-Johnstown.
 
On his way to earning second team All-PSAC West accolades, Malak ranked 20th in the nation in complete games, 35th in hits allowed per nine innings (7.20) and 37th in WHIP. He also closed 2025 slotted second in the PSAC among qualified pitchers in opponent batting average, third in hits allowed, sixth in ERA and 10th in strikeouts.
 
The trio of senior Mark Wilbur, junior Joey Vanzin and senior Parker Hogge all logged double-digit appearances out of The Rock's bullpen in 2025.
 
A D2Baseball.com All-American, Wilbur made 18 appearances as a junior. He went 2-2 with six saves and a 1.93 ERA in addition to posting a .192 opponent batting average and a 0.93 WHIP. He struck out 52 batters while surrendering just 10 walks over 42 innings pitched.
 
Wilbur heads into the 2026 season ranked fourth in Slippery Rock program history for career saves (9) and 20th in appearances (38).
 
Vanzin proved himself a more than capable collegiate pitcher as a sophomore. In 14 appearances, he went 1-2 with four saves in 26.2 innings. He closed the year with a 3.04 ERA, 22 strikeouts, eight walks and a .274 opponent batting average. Vanzin yielded runs in only four of 14 games pitched.
 
After starting 10 games in his first 24 collegiate appearances, Hogge was used exclusively as a reliever in 2025. He threw 22.2 innings in 12 appearances, going 1-0 with one save while tallying 17 strikeouts and six walks. He surrendered two runs or less in 10 of his 12 outings.
 
In addition to his exploits at the plate, Michael Kitko has also routinely been a shutdown option when called on out of the bullpen.  A season ago, he went 2-0 with three saves over 16.2 innings across eight appearances. He logged a 1.08 ERA and .158 opponent batting average.
 
A product of Dublin, Ohio, Kyle Warnsman returns for his sophomore season after appearing in three games as a rookie for six innings, including two scoreless frames as part of The Rock's 10-0 shutout of West Liberty.
 
Also back in The Rock's stable of arms after not pitching in 2025 are Gary Gubbings III, Owen Malak, Michael Cahill       and Dawson Wallace.
 
Among The Rock's 14-man 2026 recruiting class were eight pitchers: junior Cole Grady as well as the freshmen contingent of Nolan Comerford (East Patchogue, N.Y.), Joe Conrad (Fairview Park, Ohio), Vince Gaskey (Latrobe), Zachary Hare (Fombell), Tyler Slone (Akron, Ohio), Dylan Smith (Beaver Falls) and Carter Wilson (Hookstown).
 
Grady comes to SRU after beginning his career at Glenville State University. He started 21 of 24 games pitched over a two-year career with Pioneers, going 7-7 with a 5.12 ERA, 90 strikeouts and a .246 opponent batting average over 95 innings. He earned second team All-Mountain East Conference accolades last year and ranked 21st in Division II in hits allowed per nine innings (6.90).
 
Hare enjoyed a distinguished prep career as a two-sport (baseball / football) athlete at Riverside High School. He led Riverside to WPIAL and state baseball titles in both 2023 and 2025 while concluding his prep career with a 21-1 record and 237 strikeouts over 123.2 innings while batting .438. Hare dominated as a senior, going 10-0 with a 0.68 ERA and 138 strikeouts in 72.1 innings in addition to hitting .405 with 18 runs, four home runs and 26 RBIs on the way to being named the MaxPreps National Small Town Player of the Year. He Also collected Player of the Year recognition from the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, Beaver County Times, Pittsburgh Union Progress and TribLIVE.com.
 
INFIELDERS
The majority of Slippery Rock's starting infield is back from a year ago in the form of junior catcher Treston Nemeth, sophomore first baseman Stone Powell, senior second baseman Clay Wiesen and junior third baseman Brandon Butler.
 
A second team All-PSAC West honoree, Butler started 46 games between third base (26), designated hitter (13), left field (5) and right field (2). Slashing .329/.419/.425 with 29 runs scored, one home run and 18 RBIs, Butler also compiled a .844 OPS while stealing one base and hitting .357 with runners in scoring position. He led The Rock in triples (3) and ranked second in batting average, second in runs, second in walks (21), third in OPS, third in on-base percentage, third in hits (48) and fifth in slugging percentage.
 
One of the top true freshmen in the PSAC West a year ago, Powell quickly staked claim to first base for The Rock all the while hitting .328 with a .426 on-base percentage, .526 slugging percentage, 21 runs, three home runs and 24 RBIs. He posted a .952 OPS and stole one base before closing his rookie year leading SRU in slugging percentage, OPS and doubles (10) while ranking second in on-base percentage, third in home runs, third in batting average, fourth in RBI and fourth in walks (19).
 
A transfer from Youngstown State, Wiesen was the only SRU athlete to start all 50 games in 2025, earning a spot on the ABCA Atlantic Region All-Defensive Team at second base. At the plate, Wiesen hit .289 with a .346 on-base percentage. He scored 19 runs while tallying 23 RBIs, nine stolen bases and a near flawless a .995 fielding percentage.  Wiesen was the 20th toughest athlete to strikeout in Division II with just one strikeout every 15.7 at-bats. He tied for the team lead in doubles (10) while ranking second for The Rock in hits (50) and third in stolen bases.
 
Nemeth joined Slippery Rock prior to the start of last season after beginning his collegiate career at Dayton. He started 49 games, 44 of which came as The Rock's everyday catcher. At the plate, he hit .288 with a .390 on-base percentage, scoring 25 runs with two home runs, 21 RBIs, two stolen bases and a .746 OPS.
 
Capable of playing first base or in the outfield, senior Darryn Callahan also returns for SRU after a junior season that saw the Wellsboro, Pennsylvania native appear in nine games with four starts between first base (3) and right field (1). He scored one run, collected one RBI and produced two hits.
 
After not appearing in a game, or seeing limited time in 2025, sophomore Aari Fox, sophomore Max Bernadowski, junior catcher Mason Raup, junior catcher Steve Budash and junior Brett Galcik (1 GP in 2025) all return in 2026.
 
New to The Rock's infield for the 2026 season will be sophomore Jake Robinson, freshman James Miller (Willoughby, Ohio) and rookie catchers Landon Hamer (Warriors Mark) and Zack Kurkey (Atwater, Ohio).
 
A former Division I athlete at Kent State, Robinson appeared in eight games for the Golden Flashes as a freshman before transferring to SRU. Prior to committing to KSU, Robinson was ranked as the 117th overall player in Pennsylvania, and the No. 20 shortstop in the state, while at Montour High School.
 
Kurkey was a high school teammate of Slone at Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary where Kurkey was an All-Ohio selection. Another Rock freshman to earn all-state accolades, Hamer was an All-Pennsylvania choice at Tyrone High School.
 
OUTFIELDERS
While having to replace two-year starting centerfielder Cam Panyko Morris, Slippery Rock does bring back its two everyday corner outfielders from a year ago in Gillott and Kitko
 
Gillott shined at the plate in his 41 starts a season ago, slashing .349/.439/.503 with 29 runs scored, four home runs, 25 RBIs, nine doubles, 12 stolen bases and a .942 OPS. In addition to hitting .354 with runners in scoring position, Gillott led The Rock in hits (52), batting average and on-base percentage while ranking second in slugging percentage, OPS, runs, home runs and stolen bases as well as third in RBI and fifth in walks (17). 
 
A starter in 49 of The Rock's 50 games, Kitko split his starts between right field (37), designated hitter (7) and left field (5) en route to batting .293 with a .398 on-base percentage, 26 runs, two home runs and 29 RBIs and a .333 average with runners in scoring position. Kitko ranked as the third toughest athlete to strikeout in Division II with just one strikeout every 26.2 at-bats.
 
Sophomore Luke Anderton appeared in nine games as a freshman in 2025. Used primarily as defensive replacement, Anderton did go 3-for-7 (.429) at the plate as a rookie with two of the hits being doubles in addition to scoring three runs.
 
Joining The Rock's outfield group in 2026 season are junior Morgen Billotte and freshman Evan Brown (Chambersburg).
 
No stranger to the PSAC, Billotte began his collegiate career at Seton Hill in 2024 before transferring to Lock Haven in 2025. At Lock Haven, he started 44 games, hitting .340 with 24 runs scored, three home runs and 19 RBIs to go with seven doubles, seven stolen bases, a .463 slugging percentage and .410 on-base percentage.
 
THE SCHEDULE
Slippery Rock is currently slated to play a 48-game schedule consisting of 28 PSAC West contests as well as 20 non-league tilts.
 
Of The Rock's 18 unique opponents on the 2026 schedule, nine finished last year with a winning percentage of at least .500 while five qualified for the NCAA Tournament.
 
SRU begins the season with 15 consecutive non-conference games starting Feb. 20-22 at the Carry Challenge against Kutztown (Feb. 20 DH), Frostburg State (Feb. 21) and Goldey-Beacom (Feb. 22).
 
Following its trip south, Slippery Rock returns home where it will play 10 consecutive games at the friendly confines of Jack Crithcfield Park with a pair of three-game sets versus Shippensburg (Feb. 27-28) and West Virginia State (March 7-9) before hosting Mansfield for four games March 13-15. The Rock closes the bulk of their non-conference slate on the road March 17 at West Liberty.
 
The remainder of SRU's non-conference schedule are midweek outings against Walsh (March 24-Home / April 14-Away), Fairmont State (March 31-Away), Ashland (April 21-Away) and Point Park (April 28-Home).
 
The Rock's conference schedule consists of four-game series with Seton Hill (March 20-21), Pitt-Johnstown (March 27-28), Indiana (Aoruk 3-4), Gannon (April 10-11), Lock Haven (April 17-18), Clarion (April 24-25) and California (April 30-May 1).
 
2025 PSAC Baseball Preseason Coaches Poll Results
WEST (# of First-Place Votes)
1. Seton Hill (6)
2. Slippery Rock (2)
3. IUP
4. California
5. Gannon
6. Clarion
7. Pitt-Johnstown
8. Lock Haven
 
EAST (# of first place votes)
1. East Stroudsburg (6)
2. Millersville (2)
3. West Chester
4. Shippensburg
5. Shepherd
6. Bloomsburg
7. Kutztown
8. Mansfield




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