Valparaiso freshman left-hander Caden Crowell’s transition has gone smoothly.
“It’s awesome,” the left-hander said. “These guys on the team have been taking me in. It’s a family vibe. All of them have been teaching me stuff. The coaches have made a huge impact.
“I’m learning a lot of new stuff and have to adjust to that, like the speed of the game and hitting my spots — that’s huge, because if you make a mistake, these batters are going to make you pay. But the team has really taken me in as one of their own. I have their support, and I’m going to do as much as I can to help the team.”
The Louisville commit has made an impact from the outset, including in the Vikings’ 8-0 Duneland Athletic Conference victory at Chesterton on Tuesday.
More Top Picks Ratings
Crowell allowed just one hit, a leadoff single in the second to senior center fielder Trevor Donley. He struck out six, including the final three batters he faced, and walked three in four innings.
That outing followed his debut in an 11-0 win against Hebron on April 4, when he pitched four innings of one-hit ball with 10 strikeouts and one walk.
“Caden threw really well against Hebron, and it was a chance to let him get his feet wet here in the DAC,” Valparaiso coach Todd Evans said. “I have complete confidence in him, otherwise I wouldn’t put him out there. He has confidence in his abilities, and he’s going to compete every day on the mound.
“He pitched really well. He’s getting used to that stage.”
Crowell committed to Louisville in September. He also had an offer from Indiana.
“It wasn’t always in my mind (to commit as a freshman), but I heard of other people doing it,” Crowell said. “I was, like, ‘Man, I want to be one of those guys when I’m older.’ That’s always been a goal for me — to go Big Ten, Power Five, D-I — and I just had to work my butt off to get there. It’s exciting.”
Valparaiso (3-1, 2-1) also put together an exciting offensive display against Chesterton (3-3, 2-1), a day after Trojans coach Jack Campbell notched the 800th win of his 52-year career with their win against Portage on Monday.
The Vikings posted six runs in the second inning, sending 10 batters to the plate, capped by sophomore third baseman Andres Guzman’s opposite-field grand slam to left-center. Senior designated hitter/pitcher Dillon Rodriguez led off the inning with a homer to left-center. Rodriguez also pitched three perfect innings with one strikeout to close out the game.
“Bats took advantage of this little wind, though the second one was gone no matter what,” Evans said. “The first one might’ve been a little wind-aided. But the bats came alive.
“We’re trying to get back into the rhythm of the conference schedule. Hopefully now our pitchers, we have an idea of how that’s going to be. Everyone’s getting to know their roles. It’s fun.”
Valparaiso senior center fielder Thomas Vo had two hits, a run-scoring double in the second and a run-scoring single in the seventh. Senior second baseman Cameron Milroy also had two hits, including a run-scoring single in the fifth.
“You can’t really pull off on the gas,” Crowell said. “I had a little bit of a cushion, but you have to keep your foot on the gas.
“Our defense was really good, and we put on a show on offense. We just had a really good game all around.”