Nevada graduate looks to have good year at new Division I baseball home

The path to success isn't always straight; such was the case for Nevada High School graduate Luke Stahl's journey to Division 1 NCAA baseball.

Stahl was an all-conference pitcher and first baseman as a senior at Nevada High School. Despite his impressive numbers, he didn't receive any attention from area colleges or universities. Stahl graduated without any scholarship offers and no clear future playing baseball anywhere. He then made a decision that's tough for any aspiring athlete to make after high school.

"Well, when I graduated high school I really didn't get any offers," Stahl said. "Missouri State told me that I could come walk on but I didn't want to do that so I talked to them about what I should do and they said to play junior college."

Stahl opted to sign with Allen County Community College in Iola, Kan. This wasn't the ideal next step in his baseball career, but a necessary one. In retrospect, Stahl's game improved in Iola and he believes he made the right choice.

"It helped me a tremendous amount," Stahl said. "Allen County wasn't the best time of my life, but I know for a fact that if I wouldn't have gone there I wouldn't be here right now pitching. It definitely took my game to another level."

There was a time at Allen County when Stahl's future as a pitcher looked cloudy. He wasn't pitching strikes and it looked like his time there could go up in smoke. Stahl then learned he was battling an internal enemy, an infection long overdue for attention.

Stahl had a tooth infection that was physically draining him and affecting his ability to play baseball. He didn't pitch much in his freshman year at Allen County as a result. Coaches and teammates looked on at a loss as to what was wrong with the once-promising pitcher.

"It really zapped him," Allen County head coach Valis McLean said. "It was almost as if he went through mono (nucleosis)."

Stahl addressed the infection and came back for his sophomore campaign a new man. His renewed health gave his fast ball a five-mile-per-hour boost and made him a fixture in the starting rotation. The Allen County Coaches took notice.

"His sophomore year he came back and tore it up," McLean said. "Boy, he just pitched great. He was one of our starters his sophomore year and he did just a great job for us.

"We saw him improve a lot from when we first saw him. When we recruited him he was 83-84 (m.p.h.) pitcher and when he left he was 86, 87, 88 miles an hour. He got sharper on all of his pitches and he obviously got a lot more intelligent about pitching as well."

After the he rose to the starting rotation at Allen County, it was the time for Stahl to try to make the jump to Division 1 baseball.

Enter University of North Carolina at Charlotte head coach Loren Hibbs. Hibbs is a Kansas native familiar with the Kansas/Missouri baseball scene. He grew up in Wellington, Kan. and played at Wichita State, where he also coached for several years. Hibbs needed a lefty, and knew just where to look for one.

"We've got a lot of ties back there with junior college coaches and high school coaches," Hibbs said. "We try to keep track of guys in that area that we think can maybe come out here and help us. A a couple of pro scouts had seen Luke throw and we had a chance to be able to have a spot open up where we needed a left-handed pitcher, so we brought him out here on a visit and he decided he wanted to be here."

Stahl put it a different way, "He knew a bunch of people from back in Kansas and I just kind of got lucky."

Fast forward to the present: Stahl's decision to tough it out in junior college has paid off. Stahl was the No. 4 starter his junior year and is currently the first left-handed pitcher out of the bullpen.

Injuries to other lefties in the 49ers rotation has put Stahl in middle-relief situation. He is either brought in to face lefties or generally for long relief. Hibbs said it's invaluable to have a left-hander like Hibbs to bring in and shake things up late in tight games. He said Stahl was a perfect fit for UNC-Charlotte.

"He's fit in real well," Hibbs said. "He has done well in school out here and he's in line to graduate in the second summer session and it's been a good deal for both parties, to be honest with you. It has been a good deal for everybody."

Stahl is scheduled to graduate in August with a degree in criminal justice. When he looks back at his time in Nevada, he said he remembers two fans he always had who pushed him to get where he is today.

"Honestly, I would say my family, my dad or my grandpa, they kept me working when nobody else was watching," Stahl said. "It's easy to work when your head coach is on you but whenever nobody else is around and it's just those two, that's when you get the most gain."