SSU BB moves on to RSC Championship Series; earns first nat'l berth since '11

The members of the Shawnee State baseball team had to miss Saturday morning's Spring Commencement back on the Shawnee State University grounds.

They had business to attend to.

And if you asked each and every member of that team if they'd regret their season, the answer would be a no every time, regardless of the result.

The due diligence of the Shawnee State baseball program's efforts paid off in the most impressive of ways as the Bears, going up against a difficult conference tournament field that included 28-win Midway, 38-win Indiana-Southeast and 40-win Oakland City, found a way to reach the River States Conference Championship Series.

SSU will not only play for a River States Conference Tournament Championship in its final season as a member of the RSC and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), but will do so with an NAIA Opening Round berth already locked in hand as a result of its work.

The Bears clinched that berth, their first since 2011, by not only defeating Midway by a 3-0 count on the first day of the River States Conference Tournament but also beating Oakland City, who not only went 40-13 during the 2026 season but were the defending RSC Champions from the 2025 campaign, twice in reaching the RSC Championship Series.

In its three triumphs between its 3-0 win over Midway on Thursday evening to begin matters at the RSC Tournament and then its 9-1 and 7-2 victories over Oakland City on Friday evening and Saturday evening, Shawnee State starting pitchers Ricardo Medrano, Owen Elsey and Trevor Ollier combined to walk just eight batters in a combined 30 innings of work.

Medrano threw seven innings of shutout baseball in his winning decision over Midway, while Elsey threw a complete game without allowing an earned run against Oakland City. Ollier added in seven innings of two-run baseball in the second triumph against the Mighty Oaks on Saturday.

Evan Hood and two-way standout Jace Parnin, who threw two innings each of relief from the bullpen on Thursday and Saturday respectively, combined for four innings of shutout baseball to preserve winning decisions for both Medrano and Ollier.

"We knew that it was going to take three really strong starts from our pitching staff to get to this point," Ehlers said. "I always preach, 'Throw strikes, throw strikes, throw strikes.' We've walked eight guys total in our three wins, and that's elite, elite level. From the fall, we knew that we weren't going to be a high-strikeout pitching staff, but if we could compete and throw strikes, we knew that we were going to be offensive enough to win some big games this year."

Shawnee State achieved the conference's second and final auto bid to the NAIA Opening Round as Indiana-Southeast, the River States Conference's Regular Season Champion, reached the RSC Championship Series by winning each of its first three games in the winner's bracket.

With the pressure completely off the table now in terms of playing baseball for additional meaning beyond the conference tournament, the Bears now only need two more wins to win the program's first conference tournament title in 15 seasons.

Shawnee State last won a conference tournament title in 2011 under former alum and head baseball coach Ted Tom, when the Bears were a first-year member of the Mid-South Conference.

A win in Sunday's 11 a.m. contest would force an if-necessary game at 3 p.m., and if the Bears win that, they would also win the conference title in its final season as a member of the River States Conference — which it joined beginning with the 2023-24 season — as well as the NAIA.

Behind the starting pitching of Medrano, Elsey, Ollier and Saturday morning starter Carson Wireman, Shawnee State's defense has also been high-caliber.

In its four games at the River States Conference Tournament, the Bears haven't committed any errors in three of the four contests. Shawnee State did commit five errors against Oakland City in Friday evening's 9-1 victory, yet only allowed two runs to cross the plate in that game by scattering the errors.

Four of the five errors also came with two out in a frame, with the Bears responding immediately afterward on each of those four miscues by getting the necessary out the very next time the defense had an opportunity to make a play.

"We're not walking people and we're not committing errors behind our pitching staff," Ehlers said. "That's a recipe for success."

In Shawnee State's victories against Oakland City, the Bears also showcased resilience offensively.

The Bears fell behind by 1-0 deficits after two innings of play against the Mighty Oaks on Friday and three innings of work against Oakland City on Saturday, but rallied back with nine unanswered runs in Friday's 9-1 win, a game where Shawnee State plated six runs on five hits and sent 10 batters to the plate in the top of the fourth inning alone.

The Bears, who had scored two runs in the third inning on a wild pitch, broke Friday's game against Oakland City open with the crooked fourth frame. Zach Gaspar's walk was followed by back-to-back singles by Jace Parnin and Larry Drake, the latter bringing in Gaspar. Nolan Austin then drew a one-out walk, and Eli Jones followed with a two-RBI single up the middle to scoring Parnin and Drake.

River States Conference Player of the Year Diego Mendoza then cranked a two-RBI double to left field while Gaspar, who came back up for the second time in the inning, followed with a sac fly RBI to set the margin at 8-1.

Byson Arthur's RBI double to left center field in the sixth set the final score in Friday's triumph.

Then after dropping a 11-1 decision to Indiana-Southeast, Shawnee State regrouped against Oakland City on Saturday evening.

Down 1-0 after three innings of play, a one-out walk by Jack Amis was followed by a massive, game-tying RBI triple by Jace Parnin who laced a ball down the right field line to score Amis. Larry Drake then brought in Parnin with an RBI single through the left side of the infield, scoring the senior and giving Shawnee State a 2-1 lead.

When Oakland City rallied to tie the game at two runs apiece after five innings of work, Amis, Parnin and Drake again opened the door for Shawnee State. Byson Arthur's leadoff walk was followed by Amis' RBI double down the left field line, and after an RBI groundout by Parnin, Drake's sacrifice fly scored Amis, giving the Bears a 4-2 lead.

Shawnee State never went without the lead again, and added on again in the top of the ninth as a single by Eli Jones, a walk by Zach Gaspar, and an intentional free pass to Diego Mendoza were followed by a bases-loaded walk to Amis and a full-count, two-RBI single down the right field line by Parnin, which set the final score.

"Jace had an incredible at-bat right there in the ninth inning, just fighting pitches off and fighting pitches off," Ehlers said. "It takes that kind of effort to get you to the national tournament. The players are maturing right in front of our eyes. The things that they didn't enjoy and complained about early — they're seeing that those drills work, and they're able to battle in the batter's box because of all of the hard work that (Shawnee State hitting coach Steven) Krebbs puts in and the high standards that he holds them to from a hitting standpoint. I started to see it about two weeks ago — guys were doing things on their own that we preach and really push, and we started to see it."

Parnin fittingly closed the deal, working two innings in scoreless relief to help the Bears claim the 7-2 win Saturday evening that would seal its NAIA Opening Round berth.

"In our win against Oakland City on Friday evening, there was a twilight time where it was really hard for the outfielders to see the ball," Ehlers said. "Jace probably ran 100 feet into center field to make a catch when (center fielder) Eli Jones was yelling, 'Help, help, help,' because he couldn't see it. It takes those elite defensive moments to get to the national tournament. That's what it takes."

Parnin went 2-for-5 with a double and four RBI in the second win over Oakland City that clinched the national tournament berth for Shawnee State, while Amis went 1-for-3 with a double, two walks, an RBI and two runs scored to lead the Bears (32-17).

"Jack is the energizer bunny," Ehlers said, chuckling. "He hasn't had a great tournament here. We moved him down the order here, and he responds so well. He had a huge two-RBI double down the line for us. It's so enjoyable for us as a coaching staff to see hard-workers like him and those on our team be rewarded with pay off."

Now, Shawnee State sits just two wins away from potentially winning a conference championship — and potentially doing a whole more than that — as it attempts to make its last season in the NAIA a memorable one.

"Believing is dangerous," Ehlers said. "When you face a team that believes in themselves is dangerous. Whether it's one run down or two runs down, the deficit doesn't phase them. This team is starting to get there. This team believes in the message that we're preaching on the practice field, from the weight room to running the levy. They're already joking about getting back to Portsmouth to run the levy again. (Shawnee State designated hitter) Byson Arthur said, 'I've never had this much fun in college. In junior college, we weren't very good.' They believe now. It's really enjoyable to see the hard work pay off for them, and to see the smiles on their faces."