INDIANA, Pa. — On a college campus with an enrollment around 15,000 students, sometimes a person wants nothing more than to fit in with the rest of the school population.
For Ryan Uhl, fitting in has become increasingly difficult in recent weeks. Already towering at a listed 6-foot-6, 220 pounds, Indiana University of Pennsylvania’s Uhl made his final season of collegiate baseball a memorable one.
With the Crimson Hawks fighting all season to stay above .500 and in the hunt for a spot in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference playoffs, Uhl was the driving force for IUP, saving his best for his senior season. Entering the year with 13 career home runs, the first baseman slugged 10 home runs in 16 March games to set up his record-breaking season.
Over the next month, Uhl continued his assault on opposing pitchers, finishing the 2015 season with single-season records of 29 home runs, 74 RBIs and 154 total bases as he put together one of the finest hitting seasons in IUP history. His 1.109 slugging percentage was the best by an IUP player in 25 years, while his .415 average was best on the team among regular players. The senior’s 42 career home runs also smashed the previous record of 24, set in 1990.
Uhl was honored as the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association NCAA Division II Atlantic Region Hitter of the Week April 13. The day before, he was named the PSAC West Co-Hitter of the Week after going 10-for-18 at the plate for a .556 average in six games with seven home runs, 18 RBIs and 11 walks.
And to think, all of these stats were put up a year after he hit just a single home run and drove in 19 runs with a .265 average for the Crimson Hawks. Uhl, who just missed his goal of 30 home runs on the season, made a few changes in the offseason that resulted in his increased production.
“The biggest change from last year for me was working on my swing,” Uhl said, “and changing my approach at the plate.”
Uhl’s progression started last summer as a member of the Butler BlueSox of the Prospect League. In 45 games, he hit .305 with three home runs and 25 RBI on a team that was made up of other college baseball players.
“Playing for the Butler Bluesox was a great experience, one that I will never forget,” Uhl said. “I got reunited with Anthony Rebyanski, a former assistant coach at IUP. We also had a great group of guys who loved playing baseball and brought it every day.”
Uhl played baseball, soccer and basketball for St. Marys Area High School. He had the unique opportunity to not only continue his baseball career at the collegiate level, but to do so with one of his high school teammates, Brett Quiggle.
As a catcher, pitcher and outfielder for the Crimson Hawks before his graduation after the 2013 season, Quiggle hit .366 with a team-leading five home runs as a senior. For his efforts, he was named to the All-PSAC West first team.
“It was like having an older brother on the team,” Uhl said. “He had been through it all, so he was always there when I had questions.
“He was actually my roommate for his last two years here at school, and it was great getting to spend a good portion of my career with him.”
Though IUP missed the playoffs with a 22-21-1 overall record, Uhl’s baseball career may not be over just yet. Before Saturday’s season-ending doubleheader against Gannon University, Uhl took batting practice in front of several Major League Baseball scouts.
“My plans after the season are to just see where baseball takes me,” Uhl, a criminology major, said. “It’s always been a dream of mine to play professional baseball, but if that doesn’t end up working out, my goal is to become a Pennsylvania State Trooper.”
After a historic season, Uhl has stood out from the crowd to put himself among the best to don an IUP uniform.
