Tolfree named Pitcher of the Year, leads list of seven ONU athletes named All-OAC in Baseball

By Marissa Myers

| All-Ohio Athletic Conference Team (.pdf) |

ADA — Ohio Northern freshman Drew Tolfree (East Lansing, Mich./Lansing Catholic) was named the Ohio Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Year, leading a list of seven ONU student-athletes named All-OAC in Baseball for the 2026 season.

Tolfree and fifth-year senior Andrew Stechschulte (Findlay) were First Team selections. Junior Kyler Lapp (Hall, Ill.), sophomore Aslyn Farinelli (Crown Point, Ind.) and freshman Tyler Rinehart (Boonville, Ind.) were named Second Team. Sophomore Jarrett Haan (Findlay/Liberty-Benton) and freshman Carson Stevens (Wyoming) earned Honorable Mention accolades.

Tolfree is undefeated on the mound this season at 7-0 and leads the OAC with a 1.64 ERA in 65.2 innings. He also leads the team and is third in the OAC with 75 strikeouts.

Stechschulte is now a three-time First Team All-Conference honoree at catcher. Stechschulte led the team this season in batting at .345 with 39 RBIs, 23 extra-base hits and was tied for first with 10 home runs. He was also second with 61 hits and 12 doubles. Behind the plate, he threw out 10 runners stealing.

In his career, he has a .280 average, 182 hits, 119 RBIs, 43 doubles, 20 home runs, 126 runs scored and 24 stolen bases. He is fourth all-time in ONU history in doubles and tied for fourth in RBIs.

Lapp is now a two-time All-OAC award-winner at third base. This season, Lapp batted .335 and had 52 hits, 35 RBIs, four home runs and a team-high 13 doubles.

In three years at ONU, Lapp is batting .336, has 154 hits, 90 RBIs, 35 doubles and eight home runs.

Farinelli is now a first-time All-OAC honoree at pitcher. He was 6-4 on the mound this season and had 52 strikeouts in 77.2 innings.

In his career, Farinelli is 6-4 with 61 strikeouts in 90.1 innings.

Rinehart is also a first-time All-Conference selection at outfield. In his first season at Northern, he batted .297 and had 46 hits, 33 RBIs, five doubles and was tied for first on the team with 10 home runs. He also led the team with 18 stolen bases.

Haan is a first-time All-OAC honoree at pitcher. He went 3-3 on the mound this season with a team-high three saves, along with 44 strikeouts in 47.0 innings.

Stevens is earning All-OAC accolades for the first time at second base. Stevens batted .342 on the season with a team-high 63 hits and 25 RBIs, 10 doubles, three triples and 11 stolen bases.

The Polar Bears finished 29-15 overall and 10-6 in the OAC this season. They were OAC Tournament Runners Up under 15th-year head coach Gene Stechschulte.