It didn’t take long for Ethan Newton to acclimate to the rolling hills of Southeast Ohio. From the minute the Norfolk, VA, native arrived on campus, he did what he had always done — everything. And he did it at full speed.
Less than two years later, Newton hasn’t taken the time to take a deep breath and survey his accomplishments. But if he did, there’d be a lot more peaks than valleys in his rearview.
Last season, Newton’s first in Athens, he showed sparks of greatness while establishing himself as a model of consistency in the outfield. The junior hit safely in nearly a third of his trips to the plate and racked up 74 hits and 44 runs, both of which were team-highs.
And if that weren’t enough, he stole 20 bases in 27 tries, four off Matt Hudik’s single season Ohio record. Even more impressive, though, is that the center fielder has already surpassed his previous total in as many attempts through 36 games this season.
With a stolen base in each of Ohio’s three games this weekend against Buffalo, Newton could tie Hudik’s single-season mark. It would only take a pair of steals for him to eclipse Marc Sims as the program’s all-time sneakiest base runner, as well.
“It’d be an amazing honor to leave my mark here, no matter what happens,” Newton said. “But no matter what happens, I need to make sure I focus on the team first and make sure that I put those steals ahead of playing quality baseball.”
He also credited Ohio coach Joe Carbone, who recruited him out of Allegany College of Maryland and gave him the immediate green light to further his career.
Carbone reciprocated the feeling.
“For him to break the Ohio University steals record in two years when everybody else has four is quite a feat,” Carbone said. “He is an outstanding base stealer. He has the heart of a lion on the base paths, gets great jumps and reads pitchers well.”
Newton’s success this season cannot be measured in only 90-foot intervals, though. His defensive presence has been of equal importance to the Bobcats. Newton’s .971 fielding percentage is anything but pedestrian and his two errors are bested only by left fielder Tyler Wells, who has made only one fumble on the season.
“He’s a great collegiate center fielder,” Carbone said. “He is an outstanding guy at throwing people out at bases. He has 13 assists — that’s just unbelievable. When there’s a ball hit to center field, we all get up off our seats to see if he’s going to throw a guy out. Sometimes you don’t see a guy thrown out at home plate all season, and he’s had 13.”
As a testament to his performance thus far this season, Newton the fifth Ohio player to be named the Mid-American East division player of the week Tuesday. The award was fitting, as he went 10-for-19 with four runs and three RBIs during the Bobcats’ last four games.
Though his play sets an obvious example for his teammates, Newton has been tasked with leading his team off the field as well through his role as team co-captain.
“Ethan and I are always exchanging text messages, usually on a day-to-day basis,” said Seth Streich, Ohio’s other captain, who also played with Newton over the summer for the Southern Ohio Copperheads. “We really connected last summer and he just brings a really good aspect to the team.”
It can be argued that Newton’s most valuable attribute is not his speed, smarts or strength, but his sustainability. In his two years with the program, the Bobcats have played 90 games. And each game, Newton’s name has been announced alongside his fellow starters.
And as if he thinks the game will start without him, Newton is always quick to bound up the dugout stairs and out onto the field. After all, anything else would be out of character.
jr992810@ohiou.edu
