11 Trojans Earn All-CL Honors, Gould Named Co-Coach of the Year

2026 CL Baseball Awards | TU Honors Page

JACKSON, Mich. — Eleven members of the No. 1 Taylor baseball team collected 2026 All-Crossroads League honors on Wednesday, and head coach Kyle Gould was named CL Co-Coach of the Year, the league announced following the Trojans' third consecutive sweep of the regular season and tournament championships.

The top-ranked Trojans (49-5, 33-2 CL) earned eight selections to the All-Crossroads League First Team — more than any other program and tied with last year for the most in team history. Three more Taylor players landed on the Second Team, giving TU a program-tying record 11 combined All-CL honorees. Huntington's Owen Willard was named CL Player of the Year, his Forester teammate Grant Simmons claimed Pitcher of the Year, and Marian's River Pecina was tabbed as Newcomer of the Year.

Gould shared 2026 Coach of the Year honors with Marian's Todd Miller, the ninth such recognition for Taylor's skipper across his 22 seasons leading the program and his third in as many years. Gould has guided the 2026 Trojans to a program-record 49 wins (eclipsing the previous mark of 47) and a CL-record 33 conference victories, while a 24-game winning streak matched the longest in school history. The Trojans also collected the 1,700th win in program history during the season. Gould surpassed 700 career wins last year and has now pushed his all-time mark to 786 victories.

Senior outfielder Brayden Manning made the All-Crossroads League First Team for a third consecutive year after, with the current CL-best .426 average heading into the NAIA national tournament. Manning also stands second in the league in RBIs (72) and runs scored (78), fourth in on-base percentage (.510) and 10th in home runs (12). The two-time Crossroads League Player of the Week (Feb. 9-15, April 27-May 3) has been a season-long anchor in the heart of the Trojan order.

Manning's senior year has also positioned him among Taylor's career leaders, ranking second in program history in hits (296) and third all-time in doubles (62), home runs (39) and RBIs (239).

First baseman Jordan Malott earned his third career first-team all-conference selection, with previous honors at Indiana Tech and Huntington. In his lone season as a Trojan, Malott leads the Crossroads League in RBIs (81) and on-base percentage (.531), while ranking fourth in batting average (.389) and slugging percentage (.754) and tied for fifth in home runs (15). His production gave Taylor a middle-of-the-order force opposite Manning all year.

Several of Malott's marks landed on Taylor's single-season leaderboards as well, with his 81 RBIs ranking second in school history, his .754 slugging percentage third, and his 15 home runs and 47 walks each tied for fifth.

At third base, senior Fletcher Roemmich collected his first career All-Crossroads League honor with 79 runs scored — a figure that ties the Taylor single-season program record — and reached base safely in 61 consecutive games combined during the 2025 and 2026 seasons. A staple as the leadoff hitter of one of the top lineups in the country, Roemmich enters national tournament play hitting .371 with 10 home runs and 57 RBIs.

Brennan Frickel staged an emphatic bounce back to earn the league's first-team utility spot, posting career-best numbers across 50 games one year after appearing in just 11. The senior is slashing .388/.518/.667 with seven home runs, 18 doubles and 54 RBIs while ranking second in the Crossroads League in on-base percentage and fifth in batting average. Frickel was even better against CL opponents, slashing .453/.547/.802 in 33 conference games.

Sam Gladd repeated as a first-team All-Crossroads League selection, this year at designated hitter after a first-team nod at first base in 2025 and a second-team selection in 2024. The NAIA Preseason All-American is hitting .302/.455/.532 with seven home runs, eight doubles, 44 RBIs and 18 hit-by-pitches across 45 games.

The senior arrives at the postseason ranked second in Taylor program history in career home runs (43), having added 195 RBIs and 186 hits across his four-year run.

On the mound, senior Brody Fine earned a second consecutive All-Crossroads League First-Team selection after a perfect 8-0 season punctuated by 83 strikeouts — a 12.7 K/9 rate — across 15 starts. Fine was twice named Crossroads League Pitcher of the Week (Feb. 16-22, March 30-April 5).

Wes Hunt joined Fine atop the first-team rotation after a 6-0, 3.42-ERA campaign in which he did not surrender a home run across 50 innings. Hunt struck out 64 across 14 appearances and 13 starts, posting wins over No. 15 Arizona Christian, No. 24 Huntington, No. 23 Marian (twice).

The first-team relief honor went to Nathan Frady, who finished 4-1 with a 3.27 ERA, 45 strikeouts and just 11 walks across 44 innings out of the bullpen in 16 appearances. The April 20-26 CL Pitcher of the Week delivered a defining outing late in the season, working seven innings of relief and striking out seven in a 6-5 win against No. 24 Marian.

Three more Trojans landed on the Second-Team All-Crossroads League. JT Tabor earned the second team starting pitcher nod after going 8-1 with a 3.68 ERA, 39 strikeouts and 14 walks across 44 innings, making nine starts among his 12 appearances.

Together, Taylor's four All-Crossroads League pitchers combined for a 26-2 record on the year. 

Senior shortstop Ben Kennedy, the April 13-19 CL Player of the Week, slashed a career-best .373/.505/.671 with nine home runs, 15 doubles and 51 RBIs in his fourth and final Trojan campaign. The 2025 CL Gold Glove winner is putting together a solid stretch entering the national tournament and now stands with 198 hits, 26 home runs and 160 RBIs across 209 career games.

Junior outfielder Luke Sutter, the Feb. 16-22 CL Player of the Week, earned his second consecutive All-CL nod after slashing .361/.474/.589 with nine home runs, 15 doubles, 44 RBIs and 41 walks against just 26 strikeouts. Sutter carries a 26-game on-base streak into the postseason.

Top-ranked Taylor (49-5) now turns its attention to the NAIA Baseball National Championship Opening Round, which the Trojans will host at Winterholter Field beginning Monday, May 11. TU opens the bracket at 6 p.m. against the winner of Mount Mercy and Shawnee State.