Rolla's Bowe, Newburg's Lott to play baseball at S&T

Chris Bowe, a two-time all-state pitcher from Rolla High School, is staying home to continue his baseball career.

Bowe has recently signed a national letter-of-intent to attend and play baseball at Missouri Science & Technology, the school announced Monday.

Bowe is one of eight recruits who have signed national letters-of-intent the Miner baseball team announced Monday. In addition former Newburg High School standout infielder Andrew Lott will also be on the Miner baseball squad this next season as a walk-on.

The past two seasons Bowe has been recognized as all-state by the Missouri Sportswriters/Sportscasters Association and the Missouri High School Baseball Association. This past season Bowe earned Class 4 All-State Honorable Mention honors from the coaches association.

Bowe was part of a potent 1-2 pitching punch for the RHS Bulldogs this season, along with fellow all-stater Dalton Friend. Rolla has posted back-to-back 20-win seasons for the first time in school history, last year finishing 21-6 while earning a share of the Ozark Conference championship and capturing the district tournament title for the first time in 12 years.

This past spring Bowe finished with an 8-2 record for the Bulldogs, posting a 2.36 ERA over 56 2/3 innings with 79 strikeouts. He may also get a chance to get some at-bats as a utility player next spring. He was an all-state utility player for the Bulldogs as a junior, playing both the infield and outfield in addition to pitching.

“I know they play quite a few games and play really good competition,” Bowe said of S&T. “I think I can transition pretty quick. The coaches told me I could start the season as a starting pitcher. I think I just need to get stronger.”

Bowe joins former Rolla High teammate William Morrison as a member of the Miner baseball squad. Morrison, one of four all-state players for the 2008 Rolla High baseball team, was a freshman infielder/DH for the Miner baseball team as well as a place-kicker for the S&T football squad during the 2008-09 school year.

“Anytime you’re talking about a freshman there is a level of uncertainty how they’ll compete at this level,” said Miner baseball head coach Todd DeGraffenreid. “But Bowe is a guy we’ve watched the last two years and we’re very pleased to get him. We think he can come in and help us right away.

“He has shown the type of arm that can throw a lot of innings. He’s displayed a rubber arm and has not had a lot of arm problems. With some weight training and experience we think the sky can be the limit for him.”

DeGraffenreid is not afraid to throw freshmen into the rotation when they’ve shown the ability. He’s hoping Bowe shows that ability this coming season.

“He has an outside chance of being in the rotation for us during the week or on the weekend (Great Lakes Valley Conference games). His fastball is now at 84 to 86 (mph) and he has the ability to pitch with a lot more velocity than that. His slider is good and is split is coming along. We might work on a changeup as well.”

Bowe, who plans to pursue degrees in civil and architectural engineering, says he’ll work on fine-tuning his pitching.

“Right now I’m throwing pretty hard,” Bowe said. “I need to fine tune some mechanical stuff and work on some breaking-ball control.”

Lott has been a multi-sport star for the Newburg Wolves the past three years. In addition to being the basketball team’s top scorer as a senior, Lott was a three-time All-Frisco League baseball player and has been to the state track meet the past three years.

Lott won a spot on the Miner roster with his performance during a S&T tryout.

“I’m very excited,” said Lott, who plans to major in biological science at S&T. “It’s a new experience; a new level of play.

“I felt awesome (at the tryout). There was nothing to lose at this point. My hitting was good and my fielding was good. It was the best tryout I’ve been to.”

Of the Miners’ newest recruiting class four are pitchers.

“We think this class has a mixture of impact guys,” DeGraffenreid said. “Ben Pieper is a kid we’re excited about. He can play all three outfield positions and has a pretty serious bat. Mat Kempin is a utility guy who can play centerfield, rightfield, second base or third base. He has a very good arm and speed and comes for a solid junior college program.

“Nick Johnson is a right-handed pitcher who we expect to be a rotation guy on the weekends. He has a very good fastball and slider. Tim Garvin is a highly-recruited guy from St. Louis who is similar to Bowe. He has above-average command on all three pitches and is very athletic. He has the opportunity to pitch and hit in the fall for us. Kyle Robertson is a big, strong right-hander who is a little more raw than Garvin or Bowe but has the arm to be an impact pitcher in this conference.”

The Miners are coming off a 19-33 overall record and 11-13 mark in the GLVC this past spring.

Here is a look at the recent S&T baseball letter-of-intent signees (information provided by John Kean, S&T Sports Information):

Chris Bowe, a 6-1, 175-pound pitcher/outfielder from Rolla, Mo.: Bowe was one of the top starters on Rolla High School’s baseball team over the last two seasons, earning honorable mention all-state honors following the 2009 campaign as Rolla reached the No. 2 spot in the Missouri Class 4 state rankings.  Bowe posted an 8-2 record and 2.36 earned run average in 56 2/3 innings, striking out 79 hitters in that span.

Sam Adams, a 6-1, 195-pound catcher from Forsyth, Mo.: Adams earned all-state honors following the 2009 season – the third time he has done so -- after a strong season at the plate where he hit .517. Adams batted .506 with three home runs, 40 runs batted in and 15 stolen bases as a junior after hitting over .500 as a junior, while striking out only one time in 87 at-bats. He drove in 102 runs over the last two seasons.

Tim Garvin, a 6-2, 182-pound pitcher/infielder from Ballwin, Mo.: Garvin recorded a 4-3 record with a 3.66 earned run average in the 2009 season at Parkway South High School, striking out 43 hitters in 36 1/3 innings along the way; he was 2-1 on the hill as a junior. He also posted a .295 average at the plate this spring with eight runs batted in. Garvin will major in engineering at Missouri S&T.

Nick Johnson, a 6-3, 185-pound pitcher from St. Charles, Mo.: Johnson played at Forest Park Community College in St. Louis and posted a 5-2 record and 4.99 earned run average in 2009.  In 57 2/3 innings of work, Johnson struck out 36 and walked only 18 after fanning 36 in 34 innings as a freshman when he was 3-2 with a 2.64 ERA. Johnson played his prep baseball at Duchesne High School, where as a senior he went 6-1 with a 1.08 earned run average and averaged nearly 10 strikeouts per seven innings, while also hitting .333 with 21 runs batted in to earn first-team all-conference honors. He will major in mechanical engineering at Missouri S&T.

Matt Kempin, a 6-0, 185-pound utility player from Wichita, Kan.: Kempin has spent the past two seasons at Des Moines Area Community College, where he batted .293 with five home runs and 39 runs batted in during the 2009 season. Kempin had 13 of his 56 hits go for extra bases this spring and also stole nine bases. In 2008, Kempin hit .298 with seven homers, 30 runs batted in and nine steals. Kempin, an all-state selection during his high school career at Wichita’s Trinity Academy, will major in electrical engineering at Missouri S&T.

Ben Pieper, a 5-10, 185-pound outfielder from O’Fallon, Mo.: Pieper played at Crowder College this spring and drove in 13 runs while playing the entire season without committing an error in the field. Pieper spent the 2008 season at Kansas City Kansas Community College, where he batted .343 with 12 runs batted in and four stolen bases. As a high school senior at St. Dominic High School, Pieper belted seven home runs and drove in 27 while hitting .429 during his senior year. Pieper, who will major in engineering at Missouri S&T, was a first-team all-state and all-metro selection while playing at St. Dominic.

Kyle Robertson, a 6-4, 215-pound pitcher from Granite City, Ill.: Robertson, who pitched at Granite City High School, posted a 9-3 record with a 3.40 earned run average in the 2009 season, while fanning 55 hitters in 57 2/3 innings of work. He had a 4.45 ERA in his junior year and recorded 23 strikeouts in 39 1/3 innings. Roberts earned all-conference and honorable mention all-metro St. Louis honors for his efforts this spring.

Matt Stuckmeyer, a 6-1, 185-pound infielder from Waterloo, Ill.:  Stuckmeyer has spent the last two seasons as an infielder at Jefferson College after earning all-region and all-conference honors at the high school level. At Valmeyer High School, Stuckmeyer batted .477 in his senior year with three home runs and 17 runs batted in.