Baldwin Wallace University’s fall sports kicked off recently, with plenty of teams to look out for this season. Ranging from football to golf, here is a preview of each of BW’s fall sports teams, how they performed last year, and some key players to watch as the 2025 season progresses.
Football
Head coach James Hilvert enters his 8th year at BW coming off a 7-3 record last season. This year, junior quarterback Charlie Bubonics returns, who set a school record for pass completions last season. Bubonics, along with senior running back George Linberger, figure to lead the Jackets on offense, while linebacker Devontae Jackson will anchor BW’s defense.
Tim Conwell and Connor Awad will headline the receiver room, while linebacker Don Tromba and defensive lineman Hasim Rashid will be on the defensive end. Despite their star talent, Hilvert says that his squad adopts a “it’s about team, not about me” mentality, where it’s always about the guy next to you.
BW has already won a couple games handily this year, including one against Wilmington where the offense put up 650 yards, but Hilvert knows that you “can’t get too high, and can’t get too low” during a season. It’s imperative to stay level-headed.
The Jackets haven’t been able to push past an 8-2 record and break into the playoffs in recent years, but if that is to change, Hilvert says it starts with working hard Monday through Friday, not just Saturdays, and “paying the price to be a champion.”
This year they’ll have big matchups against John Carroll as well as their next game against Mount Union, but Hilvert says his squad is simply taking it “one game at a time.”
Women’s Volleyball
Women’s volleyball enters the 2025 season coming off a 15-14 record in 2024. Their 3-6 conference record did not qualify them for the OAC tournament last season, but they look to change that this year.
So far, they have started this season hovering around the .500 mark, similar to last season, but have yet to play a conference match. Their first OAC matchup comes at Capital University on Oct. 4.
One standout player to watch for the Jackets is senior Kat Blazetic, who recently moved into 10th in program history with 1,598 assists. She is chasing down 9th place, which she will achieve with 1,774 assists.
Head coach Kate Latkovic said that BW fans should also look out for sophomore Lyla Nash and senior Paige Contris, who have both been playing at a high level in recent weeks. Nash set a new career high with 18 kills against Case Western Reserve University, followed by an 11-kill performance in a victory over Ohio Wesleyan. Nash seems to be poised for a breakout season.
Meanwhile, Contris has led the Yellow Jackets in digs in multiple matches in the past couple weeks, including 29 in their win over Case Western. She is hoping to finish her strong BW career with a great senior season as the Jackets look to make a run on conference this year.
Men’s Golf
BW’s men’s golfers are coming off of a tough 2024 season. They finished last or second to last in all but two tournaments last season. Logan Cook was a bright spot for the team, however, qualifying for the all-OAC team. This year, the team is looking to a group of freshmen to usher in a new era for BW Men’s golf.
This year, men’s golf has gotten off to a solid start. Some of their top performances so far are placing first in the BW Fall Tri-Match, as well as second in both the Ohio Northern Kickoff Classic and the Joe Campoli Memorial, also at ONU.
Freshman Anthony Asta from Ontario, Canada has led the way this year for the Jackets. He is looking to achieve BW’s best season-long scoring average record this year. Coach Scott Siler also noted that freshmen Kevin Ardner and Coen Miller have each had good starts to the season and could be potential breakout candidates for BW.
Men’s golf next plays in the Waynesburg Fall Invitational in Bellsville, Pennsylvania on Oct. 6. Their next home tournament is Oct. 19-20 in LaGrange and Hinckley.
Women’s Golf
After a less-than-optimal 2024 season, the women’s golf team is looking to turn things around in 2025. Last season, they finished in the top half of teams in only two tournaments, but Alana Smith was an all-OAC selection in her junior season, accompanied by honorable mention Brooke Newsome.
So far this season, women’s golf has played in four tournaments, placing as high as fifth place (out of 12) in the Mount Union Fall Invitational.
Alana Smith, now a senior, is the golfer to watch this season. Last year, she led the team with a career-low 85.52 average, which was the ninth best in school history. At the Heidelberg fall classic last year, she also shot a career-low and school record-low round of 75.
Additionally, promising freshmen to keep an eye on include Ashley Bistodeau and Kylie Porter, who both look to establish their presence in BW’s women’s golf program.
Women’s golf next plays in Willoughby Hills on Saturday, Oct. 4 at the John Carroll Fall Invitational.
Men’s Soccer
This year, the men’s soccer team is looking to do something they haven’t done in over a decade…make the OAC tournament. Head coach Reid Ayers and his squad went 7-8-5 last season, only beating Mount Union and Muskingum in conference play.
However, the team outscored their opponents 35-25 last year, and has a good chunk of players returning, including nine All-OAC honorees. Max Yakym and Owen Reyes are in their senior year at BW, and each led the team with five goals in 2024. Jakob Young also added four goals and two assists last season.
Senior Aiden O’Neill and sophomore Brady Brown figure to lead the team on the defensive end. The Jackets will look to build off their momentum towards the end of last regular season, where they defeated eventual OAC champs Mount Union.
This season they play a tough schedule, with a big match on Oct. 15 against the University of Dayton, ranked 12th in the nation in the preseason poll. They also play in the OAC, which is one of the toughest conferences in the nation for men’s soccer. OAC play will begin on Oct. 4 against Capital.
Women’s Soccer
The women’s soccer team is looking to build off last year’s 7-10-3 record that failed to advance them to the OAC tournament. Despite losing star player Ella Barth, the team returns key players such as juniors Ella James and Kalyn Rich and seniors Karli Barringer and Sydni Mudge.
Last year, James led the team with 10 assists and Rich had three goals and four assists. Barringer, a center back, led the team in total minutes played and anchors an accomplished back line. Mudge scored four goals last year and now assumes an expanded leadership role in her senior season. Head coach Jim Wojtkun is also watching out for freshmen to step in and show out this season.
One position to watch is goalkeeper. After graduating keepers Katie Scott and Darcy Schoen last season, the Jackets are looking for a player to step in and lock down between the posts.
The team plays an incredibly demanding non-conference schedule, which Wojtkun says should prepare them for conference play, which begins on Oct. 4 vs. Capital. Some big upcoming non-conference games include at home vs. Adrian (Mi.) on Sept. 28 and away against nationally ranked Case Western Reserve on Sept. 30.
While the non-conference games are important, each conference game holds immense weight in the team’s journey to the conference tournament.
Men’s Tennis
Men’s tennis head coach Brian Rector (‘89) enters his 37th season, and is not only the winningest tennis coach in the OAC, but all of Ohio NCAA Division III. Last season, his squad went 15-5 and advanced all the way to the OAC semifinals. This year, with returning star power, they look to recapture the top spot in the OAC.
Returning standout players include Jacob Weingart, Henry Harders, Will Horvath, and sophomore Vinny Cannata.
Harders has a 25-12 career singles record, including a personal best 11 wins last season, while Horvath had a career-high 25 victories last year. Weingart’s career totals include 30 singles victories and 41 doubles wins, and Cannata led the team last season with 15 doubles victories as a freshman.
The men’s tennis team will only play road games this fall, but in the Spring will begin their path to the OAC title.
Women’s Tennis
The women’s tennis team struggled last year, as they wound up going 2-16 in team play, but had a big victory against Wittenberg, who had beaten them 8-1 the previous year. This season, they return a lot of their star players and look to make a greater impact in the OAC. Leading the Jackets this year will be senior Gillian Brown and juniors Colleen Andersen, Olivia Koutouras and Samantha Thielen.
Brown, now in her final season, has 10 career singles wins and seven doubles wins, while Koutouras has seven career singles victories and six doubles victories, and Thielen tied for the team lead with five singles victories last season.
Andersen has compiled 12 singles, and seven doubles wins in only two seasons thus far and is the group’s top singles player according to head coach TJ Michalski. Michalski also called Andersen one of the best athletes he’s ever coached and praised her ability to add power and spin to her game in recent years.
Michalski said he’s also excited about freshmen Julia Fitterer and Maddie Smith, who have already shown progress in the early season so far. As the future of the BW tennis program, they will definitely be players to watch going forward.
The Jackets have already had a big win this year against Thiel College (Pa.), and host their first home matchup against Ursuline College on Oct. 4. Spring play will begin in February, when the Jackets will prepare for OAC play.
Men’s Cross Country
Led by coach Joe Eby, the Yellow Jackets placed 13th in the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional Championships last season. This season, they look to continue their success, returning 18 runners from the previous year.
Top returning members include Sam Sikorski, Dillon Hach, Andrew Piehler, Nate James, Sage Egan and Gabe Gehring. Sikorski set a new PR last year with a 26:01.8 8k time. Piehler had another excellent 8k performance last season as well, finishing as the top Yellow Jacket in the 2024 OAC Championships with a time of 25:56.6.
Their next event is the Live in Lou Classic in Louisville, Kentucky on Oct. 4.
Women’s Cross Country
Last season, Joe Eby’s Lady Jackets finished 16th in the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional Championships, and have nine runners returning for this season.
Top returning runners include Charlotte Jones, Katie Plecko and Madison Prigge. Plecko was the group’s top finisher at the OAC Championships last season with a 6k time of 23:36. They also have one of the most talented recruiting classes they’ve ever had, according to Eby, with Jillian White leading the way.
For both men’s and women’s Cross Country, Eby is focusing on the conference and regional championships, but also hopes to have some runners qualify for nationals.
