BATTLE CREEK – Last year, with a veteran group, Kellogg Community College had a standout season and earned a spot in the National Junior College Athletic Association Division II World Series.
As always, KCC has a goal of returning to the World Series this year. But, the Bruins will have to do it with a bunch of new players.
So where better to start than in their own backyard as the Bruins grabbed two of the top high school baseball players in the area as key parts of their reloading project.
With a young KCC roster to begin the year, two that stand out are Lakeview graduates and twins Zach Kucharczyk and Jake Kucharczyk, who have already made an impact in the early going for the Bruins 2025 season.
MORE: Lakeview’s Kucharczyk twins are 2024 Battle Creek Enquirer co-Male Athletes of the Year
“We are a team dominated with freshmen. But this freshmen class, including the two Lakeview products, are very talented. So some of these freshmen are really ready to play at this level, so that’s a good problem to have,” KCC head coach Eric Laskovy said.
“I have followed (Kucharczyk twins) since they were on varsity in high school as freshmen. What I love most about them is how competitive they are. They work extremely hard, they are great young men. They are throwback guys. They don’t get caught up in a lot of the outside noise. These guys compete and get after it. We are excited to have them, and they are doing very well.”
KCC is looking to build on that World Series team from a year ago as the Bruins won their seventh NCAA Region XII championship in 2024 and earned a seventh trip to the national tournament.
This year, the Bruins were ranked No. 15 in NJCAA Division II in the preseason. After facing a tough schedule on its spring trip, KCC was 10-6 heading into conference play this week. KCC opened its home schedule with a 4-1 win on Tuesday against Glen Oaks Community College.
“We had the toughest schedule, by RPI, in the country. We were able to beat LSU-Eunice on our spring trip, giving them their only loss so far on the season as the top-ranked JC in the country. And, we left spring with a winning record, so we have shown what we are capable of,” Laskovy said. “We are young, so there is going to be some ups and downs. But we still have 12-13 sophomores that went through this thing last year, so that’s important.
“The run that team made last year, we will forever be proud of that. At one point, we were close to not making a regional. Then we win the conference win the regional, restore the program back nationally and get to the World Series. It was incredible and we hope that culture travels to this year.”
The Bruins have leaned on a young pitching staff early, led by standout freshmen JT Sawdon (Rochester High School) and Caleb Kidd (Trenton High School). Sawdon has had eye-popping numbers so far with 15 strikeouts in eight innings and a 1.13 ERA. Kidd has a 0.75 ERA over 12 innings in three starts.
Freshman infielder Tanner Olepa (Plymouth High School) is leading the team in hitting so far, batting .417 with a team-high 15 RBI. Sophomore utility player Hayden Winger (Jenison High School) is batting .339 with a team-high 19 hits.
Zach Kucharczyk and Jake Kucharczyk have started their college careers quickly after being named all-state at Lakeview. Zach Kucharczyk, at catcher, is among the leading hitters on the young season, batting .327 with 17 runs scored and eight stolen bases. Jake Kucharczyk, an outfielder, is hitting .313 with a team-high 19 runs scored with 10 stolen bases.
“It’s exciting to play at this level. I have become a better baseball player in just a few short months. It’s crazy,” Zach Kucharczyk said.
As usual, KCC has a handful of other local products filling out its roster, including Tyler Wolfersberger (Harper Creek), Jayden Miller (Lakeview) and Jackson Haywood (Lakeview).
“It means a lot to represent our hometown,” Jake Kucharczk said. “We have a culture here at Kellogg and everybody knows that. We want to keep that culture going, we aren’t going to let that die.”
Bill Broderick can be reached at bbroderi@battlecreekenquirer.com. Follow him on X/Twitter: @billbroderick
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