Trio of Jackets Named to HCAC Baseball Watch List

GREENWOOD, Ind. --  The Heartland Conference recently released its 2007 Baseball Preseason Players-to-Watch list and selected three Yellow Jackets for the honor. Seniors Jeremy Hawkins, Lenny Koesters and Phil Kosier were honored along with 30 other players from around the league as the top threats heading into the 2007 campaign.

Hawkins will return to his starting role at the shortstop position for his senior year. The Lexington, Ohio, native is a two-time All-HCAC selection and was named Second-Team, All-HCAC following his junior season in which he set new career highs in nearly every offensive category. Hawkins led DC with a .384 batting average, 48 hits and a .463 on-base percentage and was among the top Jackets with 23 runs scored, 50 total bases and 11 steals.

Koesters will return to the DC outfield looking to continue his strong production with the bat for the Yellow Jackets. After hitting .280 during his freshman season, Koesters returned from injury to post a .306 average as a junior. The St. Henry, Ohio, native rapped out 37 hits in 33 games en route to scoring 19 runs and piling up 40 total bases. Koesters also showcased an accurate arm in the field, posting four assists.

Kosier is set to anchor the Yellow Jacket infield from his first-base position and will be one of the top power threats in the lineup for Defiance heading into 2007. The Bradford, Ohio, native led the Jackets with three triples and a .500 slugging percentage despite playing in only 22 of DCs 39 games one year ago. During that limited time, Kosier posted a .296 batting average, 27 total bases and six extra-base hits. Kosier was near perfect with the glove, making just one error all season.

The Jackets have started their spring practices and will look to improve on a 15-24 record from the 2006 season in which they went 7-14 in the Heartland Conference. In order for a turnaround to take place, DC will look to rely on a mix of talented returning players along with a deep and promising crop of newcomers. The Jackets will also need to fair better in close contests, as DC posted just two victories in 11 games decided by two runs or less in 2006.

Defiance will get started in a little less than a month when it heads to Florida for its annual spring trip. The Jackets will open their 2007 slate in Danville, Ky., against Centre on March 9, before stopping in Maryville, Tenn., the following day to take on Maryville. DC will then compete at Port Charlotte, Fla., from March 12-16 against the likes of Fontbonne, Ramapo, Penn State-Altoona, St. Mikes and Stevens Tech.

Once back up north, the Purple and Gold will jump into the always competitive HCAC schedule for 22 conference games. The Jackets will also play a tough non-conference schedule highlighted by home games against Ohio Northern, Thomas More and Wittenburg and road games with Grace, Heidelberg and Division I institution IPFW.