(May 3, 2025) Mena, Arkansas - The 2025 campaign for Bucks Baseball came to an end on Saturday afternoon against Carl Albert State College. The Bucks finished the regular season with a 24-29 overall record. The 2025 season included a new coaching staff under new Head Coach Peyton Traywick.

In region play, the Bucks had a record of 9-15 that was good enough for 5th in the West Divsion of NJCAA Region 2. The Bucks failed to the make the Region 2 Tournament held in Hot Springs next week. The men started off their region slate by taking 3 of 4 games from Redlands Community College. Then, the Bucks faced three straight ranked opponents and won only a pair of their 12 region games. Needing some wins to stay in playoff contention, the men swept Western Oklahoma State College at home in a four game series to setup a series with Carl Albert. Both teams entered the series tied, but the Bucks needed to win 3 out of 4 games to punch a ticket into the post season. Carl Albert took all four games from the Bucks. 

Statistically, Ian Smith (Bismarck, AR) led the charge for the Bucks at the plate in most categories. The UAPB signee hit .402 on the season with 10 home runs, 57 RBIs, and 40 runs scored. He also broke the school's career stolen base record with 35 in his career. Classmate Cody Hayes (Mildred, TX) also broke the school's career record for stolen bases with 33 in his two seasons. He was second on the team in hits and had 15 hit-by-pitches to lead the team. 

On the mound, freshmen Logan Steele (Magnolia, TX) led the team in wins with 6 and a 4.01 ERA. Bethune-Cookman signee Ethan Diaz (Lake Minneola, FL) led the way with 58 strikeouts. 

Defensively, the Bucks held a .953 fielding percentage and turned 43 double plays this season. Behind the plate, UALR signee Jack Bilski (La Porte, TX) gunned down 18 runners this season. 

The Bucks will say goodbye to 18 sophomores, including 13 that have been at Rich Mountain the past 2 seasons.

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