Bailey Schafbuch | Sports Co-Editor
Sophomore Buena Vista University (BVU) catcher Brandon Wessels was previously named IIAC Baseball Position Athlete of the Week and has helped contribute to the team’s overall record of 12-12 on the season.
A native from Palmer, IA, Wessels chose to become part of the Beaver baseball team because of Head Baseball Coach Steve Eddie, as well as the other coaches on the staff. Wessels believes the coaches truly know the game well and appreciates how they act like father figures to make the members of the team feel more united and comfortable.
Wessels first started playing baseball in the first grade, and stuck with it because of his involvement with the Northwest Iowa Roughriders team when he was younger. At this very young age, he realized the fun aspects of baseball and his love for the outdoors.
Wessels stuck with his baseball career well after his days with the Roughriders. During his senior year of high school, Wessels had the opportunity to play on a team that won districts, won state, and in turn made it to Regionals in North Dakota. The team ended up getting beat by the World Champions from Eden Prairie, a much larger school than the small town Iowa school Wessels attended. He said the trip to regionals was his favorite memory from his baseball career thus far.
Concerning his best memory in college, Wessels’s favorite memory was making the conference tournament in his first season as a Beaver.
“It was the first time I got to travel with the team because I was hurt during the whole season. It was a really neat experience to see what college baseball was all about and how to prepare for the next season,” Wessels said.
A torn labrum in January before the season started took him out of the game for his entire freshman season last year. Though Wessels’s injury caused worry that full forearm strength wasn’t going to return, he has overcome that worry; his injury hasn’t affected his play this year.
“We expected him to be a regular in our lineup, but I don’t think we expected him to be putting up these numbers,” Eddie said. “Being injured last year was tough for him to deal with, but he kept working out and had a great summer. He was really ready to play this season both mentally and physically.”
Wessels feels that his greatest strengths currently are batting and work ethic. Coach Eddie and fellow teammate, pitcher Jon Ringblom agree.
“Brandon’s biggest physical asset is his athleticism. At the plate, he has very quick hands, which allows him to wait longer than most hitters,” Eddie said. “He also can hit the ball to all fields which makes it difficult for opposing pitchers to figure out how to get him out. Mentally, he expects to succeed every time he steps to the plate. He has the ability to think one at-bat at a time, and to not allow a previous at-bat to change the way he approaches the next at-bat.”
“It is definitely interesting working with Brandon; he has so much energy and such a passion for the game that it really makes you want to work harder and be as into the work as he is,” Ringblom said.
The BVU catcher has started all 24 games this season and has an impressive .441 batting average. He has tallied 21 runs for the team and brought in 15 other runs.
As the team’s catcher, Wessels loves to be in every play. He likes that he isn’t allowed to take time off, and that as a catcher he plays the role of running the whole field. It’s also important for Wessels to anticipate what will happen next on the field since he is in such a position of leadership.
“I see the game from inside out. I prepare for a situation before it even happens. I try to figure out what’s going to happen on the next play in between pitches, in the batter’s box, and before we even start the game,” Wessels said.
See Wessels take the field along with the rest of the BVU baseball team April 19 here in Storm Lake.
