« Bonine Set to Debut; Become 65th Wizard Big Leaguer | Home | Fort Fragments (Local Ties): June 13, 2008 »
Ben Norton Joins IPFW Coaching Staff
By Chad Gramling | June 12, 2008
Fort Wayne native, Ben Norton will coach IPFW pitchers in 2009. Norton, who competed intercollegiately at Wabash Valley Junior College and at Evansville University, was drafted by the Kansas City Royals in the 24th round in 2007 and is now recovering from a season ending surgery.
As a sophomore at Wabash Valley, Norton finished the year with a 7-3 record and a 1.95 ERA en route to striking out 66 over 69.1 innings. In his first year at Evansville, he was named to the All-Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Second Team in addition to being named the league’s Newcomer of the Year. He boasted a 9-3 record, with a 3.23 ERA with 73 strikeouts against just 33 walks in 97.2 innings.
The following year, he was named to the Preseason All-America Third Team by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers of America (NCBWA) and he responded quickly, as he was named National Pitcher of the Week in February. He finished that season with a 9-4 record, and was named All-MVC Second Team for the second consecutive year. He lowered his ERA to 2.55, the seventh lowest single season total in Evansville history, with 87 strikeouts and 39 walks in 98.2 innings of work.
The image of Norton was lifted from the IPFW website
Topics: Local Ties |