Centerville, IA – The Indian Hills Baseball team is set to host the 2023 National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) DI Baseball Midwest District Tournament at Pat Daugherty Field with action getting underway Wednesday afternoon. Four teams will compete for a shot at an automatic bid to the 2023 JUCO World Series.

DETAILS: 2023 NJCAA DI Baseball Midwest District Tournament

May 17-19  |  Centerville, IA  |  Pat Daugherty Field

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• Schedule, Video, Live Stats, Results

TOURNAMENT BRACKET  |  TOURNAMENT PROGRAM

ADMISSION: $5.00 General Admission  |  $10.00 Tournament Pass  |  IHCC Faculty/Staff/Students: Free with ID

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FIRST PITCH FORECAST (WEDNESDAY): 73 degrees, sunny, beautiful day for baseball

FIRST PITCH FORECAST (THURSDAY): 75 degrees, mostly sunny

WATCH LIVE: GoHillsTV  |  GoHillsTV Facebook Page  |  GoHillsTV Mobile App

LIVE STATS: Game 1 (Wabash Valley vs. John A. Logan)  |  Game 2 (Indian Hills vs. South Suburban)

The three-day, four-team double-elimination NJCAA DI Baseball Midwest District Tournament opens up play Wednesday afternoon in Centerville with a pair of games at Pat Daugherty Field. NJCAA Region 24A Champion Wabash Valley College (IL) takes on NJCAA Region 24B Champion John A. Logan College (IL) while NJCAA Region 11 Champion Indian Hills takes on NJCAA Region 4 Champion South Suburban College (IL).

BREAKING DOWN THE BRACKET

Indian Hills (33-19) heads into its second district tournament in the last three years after winning the NJCAA Region 11 Championship. No. 3 nationally ranked Wabash Valley (50-11) claimed the NJCAA Region 24A title in dramatic fashion with a walk-off grand slam in extra innings. No. 18 John A. Logan (43-15) enters the District Tournament after winning four straight out of the loser's bracket to win its first region title since 2012. South Suburban (40-19) outscored its opponents 35-13 in the NJCAA Region 4 tournament to earn a berth to the District tournament.

Wabash Valley and John A. Logan will match up in the opening game of the tournament at 12:00 PM on Wednesday followed by Indian Hills and South Suburban at 3:00 PM.

The opening round losers will meet in an elimination game at 12:00 PM Thursday followed by the Game 1 and Game 2 winners at 3:00 PM Thursday. Game 5 between the loser's bracket winner and the Game 4 loser will face off in an elimination game at 6:00 PM Thursday night. The championship game will take place at 1:00 PM Friday with an if necessary game to follow.

WARRIORS TO WATCH

Indian Hills saw a number of impressive performances in the NJCAA Region 11 Tournament as the Warriors swept through the bracket.

• Sophomore Adrian Vargas led the Warrior offense, going 8-13 (.615) at the plate with four RBI and four extra base hits. Vargas delivered the go-ahead RBI in the championship game vs. Iowa Western.
• Sam Hart picked up a save in all three games at the region tournament, allowing just one hit. The sophomore ranks second in the nation with 12 saves on the year.
• A multitude of arms saw action out of the bullpen in the region tournament as Jason Schaaf, Carlos Valenzuela, and Nathan Smithburg combined for 11.1 innings of work and a 1.58 era.
• Miguel Salazar provided insurance at the bottom of the lineup with five hits while sophomore Daniel Figueroa moved into the top-five in program history with 115 career runs scored.

SCOUTING THE FIELD

Wabash Valley – NJCAA Region 24A Champs – 50-11 record - #3 NJCAA Rank

A perennial power, the Warriors bring a loaded roster to the NJCAA District Tournament that has led the program to its third consecutive 50-win season.

• The Warriors, previously ranked No. 1 in the national polls, own one of the top offense in the nation, leading all NJCAA members in on-base percentage (.487), third in runs scored (604), fourth in hits (661), and seventh in batting average (.356).
• Richard Bonomolo Jr. (.462, 7 HR, 54 RBI) and Nicklas Williams (.464, 12 HR, 82 RBI) lead the offensive attack for the Warriors.
• On the mound, Wabash Valley ranks seventh nationally with a 3.66 team ERA.
• Jacob Frost (8-2, 3.72 ERA) and Agnel Miranda (8-1, 4.54) carry the bulk of the innings for the Warriors.
• Wabash Valley has made three JUCO World Series appearances – 1989, 2017, and 2022.

John A. Logan – NJCAA Region 24B Champs – 43-15 record- #18 NJCAA Rank

• The Volunteers are back in the District tournament for the first time since 2012 after winning its 10^th NJCAA Region 24 championship in program history, the most of any team in the region.
• John A. Logan ranks 10^th in the nation in on-base percentage (.457), and 17^th in slugging percentage (.560) while the pitching staff has posted eight shutouts this year, ninth in the NJCAA.
• NJCAA Region 24 Player of the Year Ben Higdon enters the tournament as the Great Rivers Athletic Conference's triple crown winner - .482, 21 HR, 95 RBI.
• Jaxson Davis, Jack Hoeymans, and Drew Pestka have each won seven games this year while Josh Dima has struck out a team-high 88 batters.
• John A. Logan will be looking for its third all-time JUCO World Series appearance (1992, 2002).

South Suburban – NJCAA Region 4 Champs – 40-19 record

• The Bulldogs are making their third consecutive District tournament appearance and seventh over the last 10 seasons after outscoring their three opponents 35-13 to win the region title.
• South Suburban ranks ninth in the nation with 561 runs on the year and own the 11^th most doubles (131) and third most triples (36).
• Scott Hansen leads the team in average (.432) and extra base hits (31) while Nicholas Johnstone (.385) and Bradley White (.381) rank second and third on the team, respectively in batting average.
• Dalton Alford leads the Bulldogs with nine wins on the year in 11 appearances while Mariano Gomez has struck out a team-high 88 batters this season.
• The Bulldogs are led by NJCAA Hall of Fame Head Coach Steve Ruzich who has won 1,310 career games, fourth on the active wins list in the NJCAA.
• South Suburban has claimed two JUCO World Series appearances – 1991 and 2006.

TOURNAMENT HISTORY

One of the strongest Districts in the nation, the Midwest District is one of 10 Districts that earn an automatic berth to the JUCO World Series each year. Three NJCAA Regions – 11 (IA), 4 (northern Illinois) 24 (southern Illinois) make up the District.

• Members from the three regions competing this week have represented the District at the JUCO World Series 51 times.
• The District has claimed three JUCO World Series championships – all by Iowa Western (2010, 2012, 2014).
• Wabash Valley is the most recent District champion, but Region 11 has captured seven of the last 10 titles (Iowa Western with five, Indian Hills with two).
• The four teams competing this week combine for 19 JUCO World Series appearances with Indian Hills leading the way with 12, including its most recent trip in 2021.
• Indian Hills is hosting the District tournament for the first time since 2004.

WHAT'S NEXT

The winner of the NJCAA Midwest District Tournament punches its automatic ticket to the 2023 JUCO World Series in Grand Junction, CO May 27-June 3.