Gaston College baseball players on Tuesday's signing day. Top row from left to right isaac Williams, Ben Karpowicz, Freddie Oliver and Caleb Estes and bottom row from left to right Calvert Clark and Mason Smith.

Posted: Nov 15, 2023

Gaston College baseball has six players sign four-year scholarships

Gaston College's baseball program continues to add to its growing number of alumni in four-year college baseball programs after Tuesday when six Rhinos officially signed scholarships with NCAA Division I programs in this state.

Pitcher Mason Smith and infielder-outfielder Ben Karpowicz signed with Campbell, pitcher Calvert Clark signed with Appalachian State, shortstop Caleb Estes signed with Charlotte, pitcher Isaac Williams signed with Elon and first baseman-outfielder Freddie Oliver signed with North Carolina A&T.

"I'm excited about those six guys because they've put in a lot of work to get here and they're going to some really good programs," said Gaston College head coach Shohn Doty after his players participated in Tuesday's signing ceremony at the school's Morris Library. "And I think we have several more guys that have made visits but haven't made decisions yet. It says something about our program and the level of athletes that we're recruiting - and we've got to continue that."

The signings come after the Rhinos have won 91 games and sent 30 players to four-year colleges in the last two years after Gaston College restarted its athletic program for the first time in 50 years.

Those first two teams also gained national rankings, extended the school's record of consecutive conference titles to six years capped by historic Region 10 and East District titles and a Junior College World Series appearance this past spring.

"It's all about the development piece, which is one of the things we talk about every day when we recruit," Doty said. "Our goal is to develop you and allow you to move up. And there's a lot of people that are involved with this - from the people in the library helping these student-athletes make good grades to a campus-wide effort."

Of the signees, five are newcomers to the program and Oliver is a returning player - and all of them just completed Rhinos' fall practice drills.

Smith, a righthander from Lincoln Charter School, redshirted at East Carolina in the 2023 season.

Karpowicz, from Elgin, Ill., redshirted at Illinois State in the 2023 season.

Clark, a righthander from Charlotte Christian, played in 20 games for Charlotte in the 2023 season.

Estes, from Severn, Md., played in three games for Maryland in the 2023 season.

Williams, a lefthander from Youngsville, pitched in seven games for UNC Asheville in the 2023 season.

And Oliver hit .294 with four home runs and 18 RBIs in 25 games for the Rhinos' 50-13 team in the 2023 season.

"It's just continued growth for the program and for those young men and now it's time to focus on what's important which is making good grades this year and trying to win another championship in the spring," said Doty, whose team will start spring practice drills on Jan. 8 in preparation of the Jan. 27 2024 regular season opener.