Bowling Green, Ky. Western Kentucky University's Matt Payton, Logan Robbins, Kes Carter, Jared Andreoli and Casey Dykes are currently playing in various summer baseball leagues around the nation.
Payton, Robbins and Carter remain teammates for the summer, playing for the Pensinsula Pilots out of the Coastal Plain League in Hampton, Va. The trio have led the Pilots to a 16-15 overall record this summer, including a 3-0 mark so far in the second half of the season.
Payton, playing in his third season with the Pilots, recently joined the team for the summer, going 1-for-5 in his first two games at second base. The Louisville, Ky. native led Peninsula with a .344 average in 2008, with three triples and a .406 on-base percentage. Payton returns to WKU for his senior season after hitting .307 in 2009, while sporting a .978 fielding percentage at second base.
Brentwood, Tenn. native Kes Carter has appeared in 22 games for the Pilots, hitting .278 with two doubles, one triple, 11 RBI and eight stolen bases. Carter made an immediate impact in his freshman season for WKU, playing in 42 games, hitting .383 with one home run, 20 RBI and 11 multi-hit games.
Logan Robbins is currently third on the team with 11 stolen bases, while hitting .260 with two home runs and 12 RBI. The Owensboro, Ky. native has started 23 games this summer for the Peninsula Pilots, with the majority of the starts coming at second base and shortstop. Robbins appeared in 24 games in his freshman season with WKU in 2009, hitting .250 with one home run, 11 RBI and a perfect 4-for-4 in stolen bases.
Jared Andreoli returned to his home state of Wisconsin for the summer, joining the Green Bay Bullfrogs out of the Northwoods League. Andreoli, a native of Sturtevant, Wis., is currently leading the Bullfrogs with a .333 batting average and a .405 on-base percentage. Andreoli appeared in 53 games in 2009 for WKU, leading all freshman in games played and games started, while hitting .298 with two home runs, 32 RBI and a .414 on-base percentage.
Casey Dykes joined the Brazos Valley Bombers out of the Texas Collegiate League for the 2009 summer. Dykes is currently hitting .241 with seven RBI in 16 games with the Bombers, who are 12-10 and in third place in the league. The Franklin, Tenn. native appeared in 19 games in his freshman season in 2009 with WKU, including a start as the designated hitter in the 2009 Oxford Regional against Ole Miss, going 1-for-3 in the game.
WKU will look to build off the success of the 2009 season, which saw the program's first national ranking since 2001, the first at-large NCAA Tournament bid, first 40-win season in 21 years and came within one win of advancing to the program's first-ever NCAA Super Regional.
