WKU Baseball’s breakout 2025 season earned several Conference USA recognitions on Tuesday, as 11 Hilltoppers took home end-of-year honors from the conference.
Ryan Wideman – Conference USA Player of the Year, CUSA Newcomer of the Year, All-CUSA First Team
Junior center fielder Ryan Wideman was named Conference USA Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year, earning him a spot on the All-CUSA First Team. Wideman hit .408 over 54 games, racking up 89 hits, 20 doubles, six triples, eight home runs, 64 RBIs and 42 stolen bases, breaking the program record.
The Georgia Highlands College transfer led the conference in batting average, hits, triples, total bases and steals. In addition, Wideman also hit for the program’s first-ever cycle on March 11 against Southern Illinois.
Drew Whalen – Pitcher of the Year, All-CUSA First Team
Sophomore Drew Whalen was named CUSA Pitcher of the Year and earned a spot on the All-CUSA First Team after posting a 9-2 record with a 2.84 ERA, tallying up 79 strikeouts and holding opponents to a .223 average over 69.2 innings of work. In nine of his 14 starts, Whalen racked up five or more strikeouts.
The Franklin, Tenn. native led the conference with nine wins, ranking second in ERA and opposing average and third in strikeouts. His standout performance came on April 19 against Middle Tennessee, where he tossed a career-high seven innings, holding MTSU to five hits, one run, one walk and striking out nine.
Lucas Hartman – All-CUSA First Team
Senior reliever Lucas Hartman earned a spot on the All-CUSA First Team after his dominant season out of the bullpen, posting a 5-1 record with a 2.70 ERA in 18 appearances. The right-hander totaled 54 strikeouts and 18 walks in 46.2 innings. Hartman had a career-high seven strikeouts on March 28 against Sam Houston in 3.1 innings, only allowing one hit.
Kyle Hayes – All-CUSA Second Team
Senior first baseman Kyle Hayes earned a spot on the All-CUSA Second Team as he hit .398 with a .495 on-base percentage and a .750 slugging percentage through conference play. In conference games, his batting average led the league, and his on-base percentage and slugging percentage were ranked second. The first baseman had a great series against MTSU, going 7-for-10 with five RBIs and a home run in each game.
Carlos Vasquez – All-CUSA Second Team
Redshirt Junior infielder Carlos Vasquez was selected to the All-CUSA Second Team after a bounce-back season after medically redshirting in 2024. Vasquez hit .377 with 20 doubles, four home runs and 35 RBIs. His batting average and doubles ranked second in the conference. The Brazilian shined in the clutch for the Hilltoppers, with two walk-off hits, the first coming on Feb. 14 against Illinois State and the second coming on May 2 against Louisiana Tech. That same week, Vasquez earned CUSA Hitter of the Week for his 3-for-4 game against UK and his performance in the LA Tech series.
Jack Bennett – All-CUSA Second Team
Junior starting pitcher Jack Bennett was named to the All-CUSA Second team after starting eight of WKU’s nine series openers in conference play, posting a 6-1 record and a CUSA-topping 2.67 ERA. The right-hander collected 46 strikeouts and conceded just 17 walks. In his first 22 innings of the season, Bennett did not allow a single earned run. His seven frames against Central Michigan on Feb 28, where he allowed only three hits, zero runs and seven strikeouts, earned him CUSA Pitcher of the Week on March 2.
Cal Higgins – All-CUSA Second Team
Senior reliever Cal Higgins was picked to the All-CUSA Second Team after the lefty ranked second in the conference with six saves, also posting a 2.08 ERA with 42 strikeouts in 34.2 innings. His standout performance was against No. 23 (now No. 9) Vanderbilt on April 1, tossing 2.2 innings, not allowing Vanderbilt a run or a hit, striking out three.
Reid Howard – CUSA All-Freshman Team
Freshman shortstop Reid Howard landed on the All-Freshman Team after batting .299 with 10 doubles, six homers and 32 RBIs. The freshman became the everyday shortstop for the Hilltoppers after the series against Central Michigan. The shortstop had two impressive four-hit games this season at Eastern Kentucky, where he went 4-for-5 with three RBIs and a home run, and Jax State, where he went 4-for-5 with a home run. In addition, Howard has been a key for the Hilltoppers defensively, posting a .952 fielding percentage, with 20 double plays and only eight errors.
Taylor Penn – CUSA All-Freshman Team
Freshman pitcher Taylor Penn was named to the All-Freshman Team after being a rotational starter in his first year, starting three games and making nine appearances out of the bullpen. The freshman posted a 3-1 record and a 2.70 ERA, tallying 24 strikeouts and only three walks in 26.2 innings while holding opponents to just a .231 batting average. Against Vanderbilt, Penn was on the mound for 3.1 innings, holding the Commodores to zero hits, zero runs and allowing just one walk.
Marc Rardin – CUSA Head Coach of the Year
In just his third season on the Hill, Head Coach Marc Rardin became the seventh Coach of the Year in Hilltopper history and the first in 16 years. Rardin arrived at WKU in June 2023 following the Hilltoppers’ 18-36 2022 campaign. In his first season, he led the Hilltoppers to a 33-26 record, their first winning record since 2011, excluding the 2020 season, which was shortened due to COVID-19. In his second season, the Hilltoppers went 33-22, marking their first consecutive 30-win seasons since 2010-2011.
Rardin’s third year on the Hill has been his most successful by record, guiding the team to a 42-12 overall record, the best in program history. WKU’s 30-3 home record set a program record for home wins, also standing as the best home record in Division I college baseball this season.
Under Rardin, the team earned the No. 2 seed in the CUSA tournament, the highest CUSA seed in program history. The Hilltoppers earned national recognition this season as they climbed as high as No. 17 in the Baseball America poll. Rardin became the second-fastest coach to reach 100 wins at WKU after a series sweep at Liberty, behind Joel Murrie (1980-2005).
Dillon Napoleon – CUSA Assistant Coach of the Year
Pitching Coach Dillon Napoleon played a key role in WKU’s resurgence right beside Rardin, becoming the first coach to be named CUSA Assistant Coach of the Year in program history. Napoleon arrived at the Hill after three years beside Rardin at Iowa Western Community College. The Hilltoppers’ team ERA improved from 5.99 before Napoleon arrived to 5.02 and 5.05 in his first two seasons.
Napoleon’s third-year staff has been his best, posting a 3.28 team ERA, the second-best in the nation. The staff includes 11 pitchers with a sub-3.00 ERA, with their best performance coming in the series against No. 17 (now No.18) Dallas Baptist, holding DBU to just eight runs, earning the Hilltoppers an 11-0 shutout win in the process.
WKU’s award-winning players and coaching staff will now turn their attention to the Conference USA Tournament, where the No. 2 seed Hilltoppers open play Wednesday against No. 7 seed New Mexico State in Lynchburg, Virginia. First pitch set for 11:30 a.m. CT. Fans can watch the game on ESPN+
Sports Reporter David Quintanilla can be reached at [email protected].
