The Tiffin University baseball team achieved a new feat on Thursday afternoon, earning their first top-10 Midwest Region ranking as a NCAA Division II program. The Dragons sit 10th in the preseason rankings, earning eight points.
Tiffin joins three other GLIAC institutions in the rankings, and two from the G-MAC. The Dragons posted a 32-22 overall record and a 21-11 GLIAC record. The Dragons set program records for victories (32), winning percentage (.656), GLIAC wins (21), and posted a winning road record, their first in over a decade. Tiffin also had postseason success, reaching the GLIAC Tournament championship game.
Tiffin features a returner heavy roster, with the top three hitters and top two starting pitchers returning. Offensively, the combination of Kyle Lento, Jack Dennis, and Brayden Callihan accounted for 27% of Tiffin's total hits, 27% of Tiffin's runs batted in, 25% of Tiffin's home runs, and 43% of the Dragons' stolen bases. Luke Fraley, and last season's GLIAC Freshman Pitcher of the Year Michael Boswell will lead the charge on the mound for Tiffin. Fraley is a two-time All-GLIAC selection with 155 2/3 innings pitched in his career. Luke set career highs in starts, wins, innings pitched, and strikeouts last year. Boswell finished last year 6-1 in nine starts, and his six wins were 7th most in a single season in Tiffin history.