Mount Union baseball head coach Paul Hesse was named the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Coach of the Year, and a program-record 10 Purple Raiders were recognized on the All-OAC teams, as announced by the league on Monday.
Hesse, in his 28th season, led Mount Union to the OAC Regular Season title and the No. 1 seed in the 2025 OAC Tournament. The OAC Regular Season Title was the first for Mount Union since 2017 and the second since 1970. This is Hesse’s third OAC Coach of the Year honor (2013 and 2017).
Mount Union had four All-OAC First Team selections: graduate first baseman Jaired Lehman (Monroeville, Pa. / Gateway), senior pitcher Brady Hansen (Beaver, Pa. / Beaver Area), senior shortstop Alex Stegman (Berea, Ohio / Berea-Midpark), and junior Chris Tsouras (Las Vegas, NV / Arbor).
Lehman led the OAC with a .386 batting average, to go along with a conference-best 16 doubles and a .669 slugging percentage. Hansen was tied in the conference with a team-high eight wins and had a team-best 58 strikeouts. Stegman was second on the team with a .376 batting average, with a conference-high 62 hits. Tsouras led the OAC with 10 home runs, while his team-high 48 RBIs were second in the conference.
The Purple Raiders had four All-OAC Second Team honorees in graduate second baseman Andrew Witte (Mentor, Ohio / Mentor), senior pitcher Zachary Breeden (Cincinnati, Ohio / Oak Hills), sophomore outfielder Luke Ickes (Green, Ohio / Green), and freshman catcher Daniel Tome III (Lakewood, Ohio / St. Edwards).
Junior pitcher Anthony Warner (Louisville, Ohio / Louisville) and sophomore outfielder Brycen Fox (Hamilton, Ohio / Badin) both were named Honorable Mention.
Based on the NCAA Power Index Rankings, the Purple Raiders are in position to qualify for the 2025 NCAA Tournament, which would be the program’s only second NCAA Tournament appearance. The NCAA Selection Show is set for Monday at 12:30 p.m.