Western Kentucky placed a league-high nine players on the 2025 All-Conference USA Baseball Teams, the league announced Tuesday afternoon.

Junior outfielder Ryan Wideman was named the CUSA Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year. WKU sophomore pitcher Drew Whalen was named Pitcher of the Year. WKU head coach Marc Rardin was named the CUSA Keith LeClair Coach of the Year, and Tops pitching coach Dillon Napoleon was named the CUSA Assistant Coach of the Year.

Votes were compiled from the head coaches of the 10 CUSA teams, respectively.

Three Hilltoppers were named to the All-CUSA First Team, including outfielder Wideman, Whalen and relief pitcher Lucas Hartman.

Four Hilltoppers were featured on the All-CUSA Second Team, including infielder Kyle Hayes, infielder Carlos Vasquez, starting pitcher Jack Bennett and relief pitcher Cal Higgins.

Two Hilltoppers were recognized on the CUSA All-Freshman Team, including infielder Reid Howard and right-handed pitcher Taylor Penn.

Wideman was selected as the CUSA Player and Newcomer of the Year after slashing .408/.476/.665 for the season with 89 hits, eight home runs, six triples, 20 doubles, 64 RBIs, 66 runs scored and 42 stolen bases. With three stolen bags in the second game against Jax State, he broke the program’s single-season record for stolen bases in a single-season, passing Carlos Akins, who had 41 in the 1995 campaign. The junior finished the regular season leading CUSA in batting average (.408), hits (89), triples (6), total bases (145) and stolen bases (42). He ranks top five in the league in 12 offensive categories.

Whalen was tabbed as the CUSA Pitcher of the Year after turning in an outstanding regular season on the mound, posting a 9-2 overall record with a 2.84 ERA in 14 consecutive weekend starts. In 69 2/3 innings of work, the right-hander totaled 79 strikeouts and a .223 opposing batting average while allowing just 22 earned runs and 15 extra-base hits. He had six or more strikeouts in nine of his 14 starts and in six of his first seven starts. In CUSA, the sophomore ranks first in wins (nine), second in ERA (2.84), second in opposing batting average (.223), fourth in innings pitched (69. 2/3), third in strikeouts (79) and first in strikeouts looking (24).

Hartman was dominant in relief all season as he posted a 5-1 record with three saves and a 2.70 ERA in 18 appearances. In 46 2/3innings of action, he struck out 54 batters while allowing just 18 walks and 14 earned runs. He was named to the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Midseason Watch List on April 23. He totaled a career-high seven strikeouts in a 3 1/3-inning relief outing where he didn’t surrender a run on one hit against Sam Houston on March 28.

Hayes paced the offense in conference play, slashing .398/.495/.750 against CUSA opponents. His .398 conference batting average led the league while his .495 on-base percentage and .750 slugging percentage ranked second. Overall, the infielder hit .367 with nine homers, three triples, 15 doubles and 50 RBIs. Defensively, Hayes recorded a .985 fielding percentage with 301 putouts, 17 assists and just five errors.

Vasquez has made starts at four different positions, primarily at third base. After medically redshirting in the 2024 season, the Brazil native has bounced back in a big way, slashing .377/.450/.541 with four home runs, one triple, 20 doubles and 35 RBIs. His .377 batting average and 20 doubles rank second in CUSA. He was named the CUSA Hitter of the Week on May 5 after going 9-for-17 (.529) with three three-hit games, three doubles, seven RBI, five runs scored and one walk-off hit in a series-opening win over Louisiana Tech.

Bennett made 12 starts on the mound for WKU in his junior season. The right-hander posted a CUSA-best 2.67 ERA with a 6-1 overall record. In 57 1/3 innings of work, the Paducah native totaled 46 strikeouts while conceding just 17 earned runs and 17 walks. Midway through the season, Bennett was named to the College Baseball Hall of Fame National Pitcher of the Year Watch List. He couldn’t have had a better start to the 2025 campaign as he didn’t give up an earned run through his first 22 frames. Bennett was named the CUSA Pitcher of the Week on March 3 after striking out seven batters in a seven-inning, shutout performance against Central Michigan on February 28.

Higgins has been one of the go-to guys out of the bullpen for WKU. In 19 appearances, the southpaw ranks second in CUSA with six saves to go along with a 1-2 record and a 2.08 ERA. He has 42 strikeouts in 34 2/3 innings with just nine walks and eight earned runs allowed. He was named to the 2025 NCBWA Stopper of the Year Midseason Watch List on April 23. He hurled 2 2/3 perfect frames in relief against No. 23 Vanderbilt with three strikeouts.

Howard burst onto the scene in his rookie year, quickly cementing himself as the everyday shortstop for the Hilltoppers. In 43 starts, the Ferdinand, Indiana, native is slashing .299/.369/.478 with six homers, 10 doubles, 32 RBIs and 26 runs scored. He’s been hot as of late with at least one hit in nine of his last 10 games, including six multi-hit efforts. In Saturday’s regular season finale, Howard notched his second four-hit game of the season, going 4-for-5 with a home run and an RBI. Since April 27, the freshman has raised his batting average from .244 to .299.

Penn has earned himself a role as a rotational starter for WKU in just his first season in college baseball. The right-hander has appeared 12 times with three starts on the mound, posting a 3-1 overall record with a 2.70 ERA. In 26 2/3 innings of work, Penn has struck out 24 batters while allowing just eight earned runs and three walks. Opposing hitters are batting .231 against the freshman.

In just his third season at the helm at WKU, Rardin becomes the fourth conference coach of the year in program history, the first CUSA Coach of the Year in program history and the first in 44 years.

Rardin has raised the bar every season as the head coach of the Hilltoppers. After back-to-back 30-win seasons in 2023-24 for the first time in 12 years, WKU finished the 2025 regular season 30 games over .500 for the first time in 45 years with a 42-12 overall record – the winningest regular season in program history. The Hilltoppers’ regular season performance slotted them as the No. 2 seed heading into the CUSA Championship – the highest seed WKU has had since joining the league in 2015.

Of the 42 wins, 30 came at Nick Denes Field – the most home wins in a season in program history. The Tops were hard to beat at home, only dropping three games at The Nick the entire season. WKU’s 30-3 home record was the best of any Division I college baseball team. The Hilltoppers began the season 23-0 at home – the longest home winning streak in the country.

WKU started the season winning 20 of its first 21 games – the best start in program and CUSA history. The Tops won 15 consecutive games during that stretch, which is good for the second-longest winning streak in program history.

Napoleon becomes the first WKU baseball assistant coach to be named a conference assistant coach of the year in program history.

Napoleon is in his third year as the pitching coach at WKU, following Rardin after three years as the pitching coach at Iowa Western Community College. He’s built one of the best pitching staffs in the country as the Hilltoppers’ 3.28 ERA ranks second-best in the nation. In all, 11 of Napoleon’s pitchers have a sub-3.00 ERA and 15 of them have a sub-5.00 ERA.