The College of Wooster's Devin Anthony, Alex Gerdenich, Ryan Kramer, Colin Leslie, and Leo Widtmann were named College Sports Communicators Academic All-District® for baseball, as announced by the organization on Tuesday.
Anthony pitched in 10 games for Wooster this spring, covering 36 2/3 innings. He struck out 20. The right-hander turned in a strong outing against Eureka College, allowing a run on two hits over 5 2/3 innings. He was a tough-luck loser against Ripon College after allowing two runs, both of which were unearned, on four hits in six innings.
The All-North Coast Athletic Conference selection as a first-year is now a two-time CSC Academic All-District® honoree. Anthony, who is majoring in business economics, has a sales and marketing internship at Howmet Aerospace in Cleveland this summer. He spent last summer pitching for the Watertown Rapids in the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League. There, he posted a 4-1 record with a 3.66 ERA.
On campus, Anthony is a trustee for the Jenny Investment Club, which manages a small portfolio of the College's endowment. He has data analyst experience as an intern for CofiLife and gained coaching experience with Brownlee Lookouts Baseball in 2023.
Gerdenich was Wooster's utility ace this spring, starting in right field and being a key arm in relief. He batted .238 (30-for-126) with 29 runs scored and 18 RBI. Gerdenich clubbed a grand slam as part of Wooster's nine-run eighth inning in a 9-2 win at Wabash College. As a pitcher, Gerdenich posted a 1-1 record and two saves over 10 outings. Gerdenich opened the year with NCAC Athlete of the Week honors after earning a save in a February 3-1 win over Centre College. He worked Wooster out of a bases-loaded situation in the eighth inning, then set the Colonels down in order in the ninth.
The All-NCAC honoree as a junior is now a two-time CSC Academic All-District® qualifier. The political science alumnus analyzed leadership traits of U.S. Secretaries of State and applied ProfilerPlus software to measure their personality traits. As a political science major, Gerdenich researched the possible connections between leadership traits and the use of economic sanctions, whether or not abortion is tied to gender or party, and he produced a detailed historiographical analysis of the Panama Canal. Gerdenich was a teaching assistant for an international relations course and helped lead the statistics spotting for home basketball and football games. He is set to pursue a master's degree in security at George Washington University.
Kramer earned a second all-region and all-conference honor this spring after leading Wooster in nearly every offensive category. The D3baseball.com Preseason All-American posted team-highs in average (.376, 67-for-178), hits, RBI (52), homers (10), and doubles (16). Through the regional round of the NCAA Div. III Championship Kramer was tops in the NCAC with 119 total bases and ranked 33rd nationally. He hit for the cycle against NCAA Championship qualifier Keystone College on February 28, marking a first for the program since 2015. Later, he had three homers as part of a 5-for-8 doubleheader against Hiram College, where Wooster officially clinched its spot in the four-team NCAC Tournament.
The 2024 CSC Academic All-American® is playing this summer for the Wilmer Stingers, which is part of the Northwoods League. He spent last summer as a member of the Watertown Rapids and was a second-team all-league honoree. Prior to that, Kramer spent several summers coaching with Windy City Baseball in Illinois. Elsewhere, the business economics major is a member of the Jenny Investment Club and volunteers with the Wooster community's annual Night to Shine prom events for those with special needs. Kramer is a leader of the baseball team's annual free youth baseball clinic and has volunteer experience with the Montessori School of Wooster. On campus, Kramer is a leader of the statistics spotting team for home basketball and football games and previously worked in the equipment room.
Leslie batted .255 (26-for-102) over 29 games as a junior. He had 18 RBI and 17 runs. Defensively, Wooster's catcher threw out 9-of-17 would-be base-stealers. Leslie threw out three base stealers during a weekend series at Covenant College. Offensively, Leslie was a key in an 8-3 win over Oberlin College, finishing 2-for-3 with two walks and two runs scored.
The urban studies and elementary education major spent this spring developing a climate-resilient urban strategy for Lomé. As part of the research, Leslie focused on flood prevention and recovery measures implemented in Togo and other countries. Leslie worked on a substance use mapping project for OneEighty and geocoded a directory of substance-use treatment centers in Wayne County. Leslie previously was an intern at Family Focus Preschool in Chicago and was a classroom assistant for several schools in the Wooster area. Leslie's other professional experiences include serving as a baseball instructor and umpire back home in the summers.
Widtmann was an anchor in center field for Wooster, starting in 40 games. He batted .300 (42-for-140) and tied for the team-lead with 33 runs. Widtmann was one of five players with at least 40 hits on the year. He added 39 RBI and 15 of his 42 hits went for extra bases, with six doubles, five homers, and four triples. He had a quartet of three-hit games, led by a 3-for-5 game with three RBI in a 12-6 win over Union College (New York).
The economics alumnus studied the economic value of Boston's beachfront properties for his Independent Study. Widtmann spent last summer as a resource economist intern at the Department of Conservation and Recreation. He assessed the economic value of the organization's managed properties through a literature review and novel data analysis. Widtmann analyzed vector and raster data for property risk assessments. Earlier in his college studies, Widtmann was a financial consultant for the agroecosystem management program at The Ohio State University. He conducted interviews to gather critical data on land use and funding strategies and compiled a technical report with actionable recommendations regarding financial trends and challenges. On campus, Widtmann was an economic research assistant for the economics department. He conducted empirical research on the impact of fossil fuel infrastructure on endangered bird populations and collaborated with state biologists to secure access to key datasets and policy information. Widtmann is in the process of applying for pre-doctorate research opportunities within economics and looking for a financial analyst position in the private sector.
Colleges and universities with CSC memberships may nominate up to five baseball players for CSC Academic All-District® honors. Honorees must be at least a sophomore with a 3.50 cumulative GPA. Nominees must compete in 90 percent of their team's games or start in at least 66 percent of them. For pitchers, nominees must have at least 17 appearances or 35 innings pitched.
