Senior baseball profile

The relationship between a pitcher and his catcher in baseball is an interesting beast. Most of the communication is done by the signaling of fingers, and any real talking to each other is done with a glove over their mouths.
However, the awkward “working relationship” of seniors Clint Gingerich and Drew Nonnemacher hasn’t affected their friendship off the diamond.
Clint and Drew will be completing their fourth season of Raider baseball this spring.  The men had a chance to reflect on their progression through the program and where they are at this year.  Clint is the starting catcher, hitting .301, and Drew is 1-2 in seven appearances on the mound.
Both guys remember becoming fast friends as they moved in together their freshman year, meeting in the Coly parking lot for the first time. “From then on, we were really good friends because we lived really close together in Coly, and we spent a lot of time together with baseball.” Clint said.
They were among nine other freshman baseball players who participated that year, one of whom was current junior Mike Zoellner, who took a year off from baseball and still has another year of eligibility. Nonnemacher and Gingerich both made the traveling team and had the chance to trek with the team to North Dakota for regional play. As usual, some of the best memories weren’t on the field. “It was fun riding home on the charter bus from the middle of nowhere [Mayville, North Dakota] at the conclusion of our freshman season,” said Drew.
While the two have only been battery mates a few times over their careers, they both made their conference debuts at Concordia together. Clint caught Drew as he came out of the bullpen for an inning in relief.
The two men have matured into leaders on the baseball squad, exemplifying the tenacity it took them to win the conference tournament on two walk-off hits last season.
“Winning the conference tournament with two walk-off wins against Dakota Wesleyan was priceless,” Drew said, and Clint added, “My favorite experience in Raider baseball were those wins last year.”
Through it all, both guys have shown intangible characteristics that define them as players. Drew said of Clint, “He works his tail off every day, and he is aggressive and a leader behind the plate.” High words were also exchanged as Clint brought up Drew’s attitude on the mound, saying, “Drew will always do what is best for the team. He loves to compete on the mound, and I admire his confidence.”
Both guys will take those traits with them as they leave, but the bonds they built with each other and the other players are the strongest aspect of Raider baseball. Drew concluded his thoughts on his time spent with the program by saying,
“Sometimes the trips can be long and sometimes the hotels we stay in or the pizza that we eat sucks, but as I look back on my four years here, it is completely worth it, because I’m with a group of guys that I love to be around.”
The Raiders only have a few more games before postseason play begins, and it still is to be seen if the Raiders can pull off another run like last year and earn a national tournament berth. Drew, Clint and junior Jesus Santoyo will play in their final home game against Dordt next Saturday, April 30.