JACKRABBIT BASEBALL ADDS 11

South Dakota State coach Rob Bishop announced Thursday the signings of nine high school standouts who plan to enroll next fall and compete for the Jackrabbit baseball program.

"Overall, our goal was to add guys who we think have a chance to make an impact immediately during their freshman year and I believe we accomplished that," Bishop said. "This group includes multiple two-way players, which will give us a lot of flexibility with our roster. We also stayed with the trend of recruiting multi-sport athletes who are leaders in everything they do at their respective high schools. We can't wait to get these guys to campus next fall."

The signees include:

Avon Barney, pitcher, Sheridan, Wyoming;
Logan Campbell, pitcher/infielder, Lakeville, Minnesota;
Luke Evenson, catcher, Auburn, Washington;
Nikola French, catcher, Omaha, Nebraska;
Carter Harmes, infielder, Lincoln, Nebraska;
Kaden Rylance, pitcher/catcher, Watertown, South Dakota;
Grant Sorensen, infielder, West Des Moines, Iowa;
Carter Taylor, outfielder, Missoula, Montana; and
Brandon Week, pitcher, Pine Island, Minnesota

AVON BARNEY
Barney has been a first-team all-state selection in both baseball and football while attending Big Horn High School in Sheridan, Wyoming. A left-hander, Barney is a three-time all-state honoree in baseball and was named the 2024 Wyoming Legion Baseball AA Pitcher of the Year after leading the circuit with 10 wins.

In football, Barney was honored as the Powder River Conference Player of the Year and an all-state honoree in helping lead Big Horn to the Class 2A state title game in 2023. He also was a key player on the Rams' state championship team as a sophomore.

Barney plans to major in business.

LOGAN CAMPBELL
Campbell received all-conference accolades during his junior season at Lakeville North High School after posting a .357 batting average and compiling an on-base plus slugging percentage of .895. Campbell also has seen action on the mound for the Panthers.

He intends to major in business economics.

LUKE EVENSON
Evenson has earned first-team all-Nisqually League honors three times for Bellevue Christian School and has been the starting catcher on three district championship teams, in addition to a Class 1A state championship squad as a freshman. He batted .395 as a sophomore and .417 as a junior while totaling 76 stolen bases over three seasons. Defensively, he has thrown out 46 percent of would-be base stealers.

In addition to baseball, Evenson has lettered three times in basketball. He intends to pursue a degree in construction management.

NIKOLA FRENCH
French has played a variety of positions for Omaha Westside High School, but is projected as a catcher at the collegiate level. At the plate, he batted .304 as a sophomore and posted a .316 batting average during his junior season.

He is expected to major in mechanical engineering.

CARTER HARMES
Harmes has excelled both offensively and in the field for the Lincoln East High School baseball team. In his first varsity season as a sophomore, he batted .311 with 18 runs batted in, followed by a junior campaign in which he hit .360, drove in 14 runs and scored 16 times.

Harmes plans to major in aviation.

KADEN RYLANCE
Rylance was honored as the 2024 South Dakota Legion Coaches' Player of the Year after seeing action both on the mound and behind the plate. This past season, Rylance batted .360 with five home runs and 50 runs batted in, while adding 115 strikeouts in 67 1/3 innings pitched and holding the opposition to a .152 batting average

For his career, Rylance holds the Watertown Post 17 record with an average of 11.9 strikeouts per seven innings pitched.

In addition, Rylance was a member of back-to-back state champion golf teams for Watertown High School in 2023 and 2024. He intends to major in business economics.

GRANT SORENSEN
Sorensen is a two-time all-state selection, earning third-team honors as an infielder as a sophomore in 2023 and receiving second-team recognition as a utility player in 2024. During his junior season at Waukee High School this past summer, he batted .333, drove in 35 runs and set a single-season school record with 43 stolen bases.

In addition to his work on the diamond, Sorensen has been honored as an academic all-state selection. He intends to pursue a degree in exercise science.

CARTER TAYLOR
Taylor was named to the first-team all-state squad after batting .400 during his junior season at Sentinel High School in Missoula, Montana.

Also a football player for the Spartans, Taylor plans to major in natural resource law enforcement.

BRANDON WEEK
Week is a left-hander who posted a combined 9-4 record the past two seasons at Pine Island High School. A first-team all-section performer in both 2023 and 2024, he tallied 125 strikeouts in 91 2/3 innings while notching a 1.30 earned run average as a junior.

A four-sport athlete, Week also has excelled in the classroom and is a member of the Minnesota Honor Society. He intends to major in business.

In addition, Bishop announced that prep standouts Trey Husar and Jaren Vogt have been accepted for admission and plan to further their educations and baseball careers at SDSU in the fall of 2025.

TREY HUSAR
Husar, a left-handed pitcher from Harwood, North Dakota, has earned all-region honors each of the past two seasons at Northern Cass High School. As a junior, he compiled a 6-1 record with 73 strikeouts and a 0.89 earned run average over 39 1/3 innings.

Husar plans to major in civil engineering.

JAREN VOGT
Vogt has received all-conference and all-section accolades while helping lead his Watertown-Mayer High School team as both a pitcher and shortstop. During his junior season, he batted .338 and also fanned 35 batters in only 21 1/3 innings pitched.

He intends to study industrial design at SDSU.

South Dakota State, located in Brookings, competes at the NCAA Division I level and is a member of The Summit League. The Jackrabbits are scheduled to open the 2025 season Feb. 14-16 with a four-game series at Murray State.

-GoJacks.com-

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JACKRABBIT BASEBALL ADDS 11

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