DUNLAP − When Concord and NorthWood met for the first of two Northern Lakes Conference (NLC) baseball games this season, the Minutemen committed five errors in a 9-3 loss April 20 in Nappanee.
The second time around, Concord committed 0 errors and senior starting pitcher Myles Jones threw a complete game with no errors behind him in a 4-2 win on Tuesday, May 6, to defend its home field. Head coach Greg Hughes emphasized the old adage that defense wins championships, which is certainly the case when it comes to his Minutemen.
“If you don’t play defense in this conference, you’re going to have trouble winning games,” he said. “[NorthWood] is fundamentally sound, they do the small things right, and that’s what makes them tough.”
After giving up a run and three hits in the top of the first inning, Jones only allowed one more run and three more hits in the following six frames. He finished having thrown just 84 pitches, striking out five and walking none.
His catcher, fellow senior Alex Kridler, said playing backstop for the Spring Arbor University commit is easy. The two have been close friends since birth, Kridler said, and that means Kridler is able to call games with Jones on the mound differently than he does with any of the Minutemen’s other pitchers.
While Kridler and Jones have a special bond, the same can be said between all 15 of Concord’s seniors. Despite winning a regional championship in 2024, the Minutemen went just 10-15 last season.
With just one more year to capitalize on the talent and chemistry this large 12th-grade class shares, Concord is out to a 10-3 (6-2 NLC) start with wins over two 2025 regional champions in Goshen and NorthWood.
“These are games that we feel that we always have a shot in, no matter who we’re playing,” Kridler said. “Those wins reaffirm our previous thoughts coming into the game. Everybody on this field has trust in everybody.
“We know every single game we play, we’re going to make bad plays, we’re going to strike out, we’re going to pop a ball up. We’re always going to have somebody behind us to pick us up after.”
That much was true for Kridler against the Panthers, going 0-for-3 at the plate despite batting third in the lineup. It was fellow senior two-hole hitter Mark Herman and senior Mason Bailey batting in the seven spot who delivered for Concord, each hitting two-RBI singles in the bottom of the second inning to give the Minutemen a 4-1 lead, of which they never let go.
With 11 games left in the regular season before facing NLC rival Northridge in a sectional semifinal, Concord is confident in an identity it believes can lead to state tournament success.
“They know their roles, they do them, they don’t complain [and] they pick each other up,” Hughes said. “It’s a total team effort, and those little things make a big difference.”
NorthWood assured of itself despite youth
Coming off a 2025 season that ended just one win shy of an IHSAA Class 3A state finals appearance, it didn’t bother NorthWood head coach Zach Benko that just three starters from that squad were returning. In fact, Ryder Ransberger is the lone senior for the Panthers in 2026 with an eight-deep junior class behind him.
Benko said when he called the first team meeting of the 2025-26 academic year before winter workouts even began, he told those surrounding him that all NorthWood needed to be successful in the upcoming season was already in the room with him. That has proved true so far, as the Panthers boast a 10-6 (4-4 NLC) record with 11 regular-season games left, after going 16-12 (7-7 NLC) before the state tournament last year.
“We have the talent we need,” Benko said. “We don’t have a lot of experience, but there are guys who can do it. They have the skills.”
Five of NorthWood’s six losses so far this season have come against winning programs, including Indiana High School Baseball Coaches Association (IHSBCA) Class 1A No. 2 Triton (13-2), Bremen (10-2), and NLC rivals Goshen (11-4), Mishawaka (11-3), and Concord. Even an April 22 loss to conference foe Northridge (6-10) didn’t bother Benko much, as he praised his home league’s competitiveness year in and year out.
He cited that as a key reason the Panthers were so well prepared for the state tournament last season and why he believes they will be again in less than three weeks.
“You can’t sleep on even the teams you might think are at the bottom – they will get you,” Benko said.
Kyle Smedley is a sports reporter at the South Bend Tribune. Contact him via email at ksmedley@usatodayco.com or follow him on X @KyleMSmedley.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Concord Minutemen baseball beats NorthWood, powered by 15-deep senior class
Reporting by Kyle Smedley, South Bend Tribune / South Bend Tribune
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