Four EKU baseball players among top pro prospects in ASUN

EKU's Ewell is top prospect in the conference, according to D1 Baseball

RICHMOND, Ky. (EKU Athletics) – Eastern Kentucky University outfielder Kendal Ewell is listed as the top prospect in the ASUN Conference for the 2022 Major League Baseball Draft by D1Baseball.com.  Pitcher Will Brian is ranked as the fifth-best prospect, infielder Jalen Jones is ninth and infielder Logan Thomason is rated at No. 22.

The Colonels open the 2022 campaign Feb. 18-20 with a 3-game series at Mercer.  The first of 10 straight home games is scheduled for Feb. 23 against Kentucky State.  EKU baseball season tickets can be purchased at www.EKUSports.com/2022BaseballTix.  For questions regarding season tickets, call 844-3-GOBIGE.

Ewell was selected to the Ohio Valley Conference All-Freshman Team in 2021.  He hit .303 with 11 doubles, seven home runs, 34 RBIs and 31 runs scored.  The Calumet City, Illinois native drew 22 walks, tied for the team lead, and had a .390 on-base percentage.  The 6-foot-3, 210-pound Ewell hit for the cycle against North Dakota State last year, finishing 4-for-5 with four runs and two RBIs.  Ewell played in the Appalachian League during the summer of 2021, part of the Major League Baseball and USA Baseball Prospect Development Pipeline.

Brian, the only relief pitcher chosen to the ASUN Conference Preseason All-Conference Team, was second team Midwest All-Region last season.  The redshirt junior from Brandenburg, Kentucky was also a second team All-OVC pick and on the watch list for the Stopper of the Year Award.  The 5-foot-11 left-hander led the conference with 10 saves and went 2-1 with a 2.48 ERA in 2021.  Brian struck out 48 in 32 and two-thirds innings.

Jones, a 5-foot-11, 175-pound junior, is set to begin his first season as a Colonel.  As a sophomore in 2021 at Southwestern Illinois College the McDonough, Georgia native hit 12 home runs while batting .408 with 57 runs scored and 57 driven in.  Jones also had 19 doubles, finished with 27 stolen bases in 28 attempts, had a .491 on-base percentage and a .728 slugging percentage.

Thomason, a 6-foot-1, 180-pound junior, had nine doubles, three home runs, 17 RBIs and 22 runs scored last season.  In 2020, the Richmond, Kentucky native was third on the team with a .362 batting average, had 13 RBIs and 12 runs scored.  He tied for fourth in the conference with seven doubles.