Freeport grad Heilman helps Wright State baseball win Horizon League, make NCAA Tournament run

Baseball, like any other sport, has its share of peaks and valleys. Few know that better than Freeport grad Jarrett Heilman.

In 2023, while he was pitching at Mercyhurst, Heilman was named PSAC West Pitcher of the Year after going 6-2 with a 1.38 ERA, the third lowest in Division II. But in his last regular-season start, he felt a twinge in his throwing arm, which turned out to be an ulnar collateral ligament injury that required Tommy John surgery.

That forced him to sit out the 2024 season.

“It’s not smooth,” Heilman said. “I think that I was a little bit blind to the fact that it’s not going to be a smooth climb. It was going to be ups and downs, bumps in the road. I wasn’t fully aware of that.”

Heilman said he used his recovery as a sort of reset button. He decided to enter the transfer portal, hoping to find a new adventure — and success — in his final year of eligibility.

He landed at Wright State, and after being as low as a pitcher can be, Heilman went out at the pinnacle of his sport: the NCAA Tournament. And hanging around a little longer than many figured Wright State would.

After putting a scare into top overall seed Vanderbilt before losing 4-3 in its opener, Wright State bounced back with a 7-5 win over East Tennessee State, with Heilman throwing 2¹⁄₃ scoreless innings to help the Raiders stay alive.

Then, his college finale got a little bit sweeter. Wright State shocked Vanderbilt on Sunday, hanging on for a 5-4 win that eliminated the Commodores.

The Raiders faced Louisville on Sunday night in an elimination game that ended too late for this edition.

Heilman’s performance was a continuation of his Horizon League tournament.

He threw three scoreless, two-hit innings in Wright State’s 8-2 win over Oakland in the opening round of the conference tournament. The Raiders were defeated by Milwaukee in the second game, forcing them to battle out of the losers’ bracket.

After a convincing win over Northern Kentucky, Wright State got another crack at Milwaukee, thumping the Panthers, 13-4, to set up a winner-take-all conference championship game. Raiders coach Alex Sogard called on Heilman to make the start.

“Obviously, he has a lot of experience, and that was one of the reasons we went with him,” Sogard said. “First-year guy for us but an older guy, and he came in and did a good job of leading almost right away from an example standpoint, so we trusted him in a big situation.”

In the middle of the season, Heilman missed several outings because of some nagging injuries. When he returned, Sogard was using him out of the bullpen. The Horizon League final was his first start since his absence.

“We expected him to help us win the tournament,” Sogard said. “We thought he was a front-line type of pitcher who had the capabilities to pitch in the championship game.”

Heilman threw 5¹⁄₃ scoreless innings, and J.J. Thompson maintained the shutout over the final 3²⁄₃, sending Wright State to a 2-0 win.

“I was just lucky for my pitches to go my way that day,” Heilman said, “and our offense put up a couple of runs and we were in a good spot with the pitching we had left in the ’pen.

“Horizon League championship is the reason we play the season, so getting put in a big spot like that, you have the trust of the coaches, the players have a trust in you. At that point, you just have to have their back and give it your all.”

Heilman finished the season 4-3 with a 4.84 ERA. After returning from his injuries, he gave up only two earned runs in 13 innings over four appearances, including 8¹⁄₃ scoreless in the two conference tournament outings.

In the aftermath of the win, Sogard vividly remembers connecting with Heilman during the celebration.

“He said, ‘Coach, this is why I came here,’ ” Sogard said.