MSUB SPORTS – From walk-off winners to Great Northwest Athletic Conference champions, the outfielders on the Yellowjacket all-decade team put together some of the most memorable careers from the 2010s.
 
Three outfielders were selected in the starting lineup, three were picked to the bench, and two more earned honorable mention recognition.
 

Day	Release
Monday, November 9, 2020	Pitchers & Catchers
Tuesday, November 10, 2020	Infielders
Wednesday, November 11, 2020	Outfielders
Thursday, November 12, 2020	Lineups & Gold Glove Team
Friday, November 13, 2020	Full All-Decade Roster

 

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  Luke Reinschmidt
Position: Center Fielder
Hometown: Billings, Montana
Playing Years: 2014-2016 (3 seasons)
 
Feature Story: Hometown Hero Reinschmidt Carries Yellowjacket Baseball To Top Of GNAC

Reinschmidt, MSUB's all-time leader in batting average at .352, had one of the greatest careers in program history despite spending his first collegiate season at Wayland Baptist University. Alongside Brody Miller, Reinschmidt was the anchor in MSUB's lineup and was the most versatile all-around player on the back-to-back championship teams in 2015 and 2016.
 
From dazzling defense in center field to production in all facets of the game offensively, Reinschmidt was a true five-tool player who haunted the opposition with his combination of speed and power. Reinschmidt is MSUB's all-time leader in triples with 12, and ranks second in slugging at .598, RBIs with 127, total bases with 326, and runs scored with 129, third in hits with 192, doubles with 44, games started with 142, and at-bats with 545, fourth in stolen bases with 31, fifth in home runs with 22, sixth in on-base percentage at .421, and eighth in walks with 54.
 
Reinschmidt was a two-time first-team all-region selection, and a three-time first-team all-GNAC pick. He was also a National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association National Player of the Week selection in 2015, a year when he set the MSUB single-season record for hits with a GNAC-best 74.
 
Reinschmidt also had one of the most memorable moments in program history, when he became just the third player in GNAC history to hit for the cycle in his sophomore year against Northwest Nazarene University.


 
Reinschmidt on his fondest MSUB memory: "Winning the first regular-season championship in MSUB history."
 
Rob Bishop (Reinschmidt's Head Coach 2014-16): "Luke played the game with electricity. A lot of similarities to Colby (Robison) in that he could change the game on the bases, in the outfield with a great play, or at the plate with his bat. Luke was an intense competitor that absolutely despised losing. A fun guy to be around and watch play baseball. Luke hit for the cycle at NNU and I remember their head coach telling me that he had never seen a player have a better day on the baseball field. I thoroughly enjoyed coaching Luke on a daily basis."
 
Where is he now? Reinschmidt resides in Billings where he is an application engineer for Nalco Water.


 

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Jalen Garcia
Position: Right Fielder
Hometown: Billings, Montana
Playing Years: 2017-2019 (3 seasons)
 
Upon Reinschmidt's departure, the void was immediately filled with another hometown, five-tool outfielder in Garcia. Like Reinschmidt, Garcia had one of the most well-rounded careers in program history despite spending his first collegiate season at Corban University and playing just three years with the 'Jackets.
 
Garcia ranks third in MSUB history behind Miller and Reinschmidt with a .346 batting average, and also ranks third with a .596 slugging percentage. He is MSUB's all-time steals leader with 46, and ranks second in doubles with 45, and triples with 11, third in RBIs with 122, total bases with 324, runs scored with 125, and sacrifice flies with 11, fourth in home runs with 23, hits with 188, and at-bats with 544, and seventh in games started with 132.
 
Garcia was a three-time all-conference and two-time all-region selection, including first-team honors his junior and senior seasons. He also earned three GNAC Player of the Week awards, and helped deliver MSUB's second set of back-to-back conference championships in 2018-19.
 
Garcia on his MSUB career: "My fondest memories at MSUB were our near-40 game road game streaks and just our overall journey to a championship over my three years at MSUB. Going from my first year where we were about a .500 team that would blow big leads constantly to basically winning every series we played my senior year. I was blessed with an extremely enjoyable journey to success at MSUB. The GNAC was that much sweeter after going through so many walk-off losses, brutal road trips, and bad weather series. The road trips were so difficult but it almost just became our home and we were good on the road."
 
Aaron Sutton (Garcia's Head Coach 2017-19): "Five tool player, but an even better person. Jalen did things on the baseball field you don't see very often. He was a fun one to coach and truly one of the greats to come through Billings."


 

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Casey Merritt
Position: Left Fielder
Hometown: Twin Falls, Idaho
Playing Years: 2014-2017 (4 seasons)
 
A four-year starter in the outfield for the 'Jackets, Merritt was one of the most consistent and clutch contact hitters during the decade. By his senior season he was a first-team all-GNAC pick and was named the MSUB Baseball Player of the Year at the Buzzies.
 
Merritt hit .319 in his career at MSUB, while ranking first in fielding percentage at .995 and sacrifice bunts with 25, fourth in games played with 141, and runs scored with 99, sixth in stolen bases with 26, seventh in hits with 145, and walks with 58, eighth in on-base percentage at .406, and triples with six, and ninth in at-bats with 455.
 
Merritt helped the 'Jackets clinch their first two conference titles, starting on both the 2015 and 2016 squads. His top individual moment was the rarest type of walk-off hit, when he roped a line drive into the right-field corner and raced all the way to third base for a game-ending triple on March 24, 2017.
 
Rob Bishop (Merritt's Head Coach 2014-16): "Casey was another four-year starter in the program. His speed and athleticism in the outfield and at the plate made him a weapon on the field. Casey was a great example to his teammates of how to work and get after it every day. A great player and an even better person."

Aaron Sutton (Merritt's Head Coach 2017): "Wish we would have gotten to coach Casey longer. Brought a competitive edge to the club and was a major part of turning the program into a winner during his career in Billings."


 

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  Jeff Ridgeway
Position: Center Fielder
Hometown: Billings, Montana
Playing Years: 2008-2011 (4 seasons)
 
Feature Story: Healthy Ridgeway A Plus For Yellowjackets (Joe Kusek/Billings Gazette - May 5, 2011)

A two-time all-conference selection including first-team all-GNAC as a senior, Ridgeway was a standout in the Yellowjacket lineup at the turn of the decade. He was an honorable mention all-region selection his senior year, after starting 45 games and hitting .329.
 
After nearly a decade, Ridgeway's career numbers still stand up as some of the best in MSUB history. He ranks sixth in triples with seven, eighth in doubles with 30, ninth in slugging at .485, total bases with 199, and hits with 131, and 10th in career batting average at .320, and games started with 123.
 
Ridgeway twice earned GNAC Player of the Week honors, and was a two-time academic all-conference selection.
 
Rob Bishop (Ridgeway's Head Coach 2011): "Jeff had a tremendous bat and speed that made him a really dangerous guy in our lineup. Jeff had a commitment to excellence in everything he did and the perfectionist in him served him well on and off the field at MSUB. His numbers show the productivity of his individual years and career."
 

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Matt Dillon
Position: Right Fielder
Hometown: Billings, Montana
Playing Years: 2015-2019 (5 seasons)
 
Feature Story: New Faces: MSUB Baseball Freshman Matt Dillon

When Ridgeway was a senior playing at Dehler park in 2011, fellow hometown all-decade selection Matt Dillon was a freshman playing in the same park for the Billings Royals.
 
Dillon joins Landon Peterson, Jared Winslow, and Brandon Maassen as one of only four players who were in the program for all four of the GNAC championships won during the decade. After redshirting in 2015 and watching the team win its first title, Dillon helped the 'Jackets make it to the conference tournament each of his four seasons while emerging champions three times.
 
While contributing as a catcher early in his career, Dillon found his home in the outfield and was a first-team all-region selection and first-team all-GNAC pick his senior year in 2019. Dillon ranked second on the team in home runs with 15 and in slugging at .647 his senior season, while starting 49 games and posting an OPS of 1.060.
 
Like Merritt, Dillon had a crowning individual moment coming on April 6, 2019 in a home game against Saint Martin's. Dillon crushed a walk-off two run home run to help the 'Jackets complete a doubleheader sweep of the Saints, in one of his final games at Dehler Park which he called home from 2011-2019.
 
Dillon on his fondest memories: "Creating lifelong memories with my teammates and coaching staff. And we can't forget – singing Dixie Land Delight with my boys."

Rob Bishop (Dillon's Head Coach 2015-16): "Matt was with me for a couple of years and was one of those guys that really hit his stride late in his career. Matt dealt with injury and adversity during his career but never let that be an excuse to overcome. Following his last couple of years I enjoyed watching him have an impact on the field for the Yellowjackets."

Aaron Sutton (Dillon's Head Coach 2017-19): "Matt was another one of those core guys who changed the culture of the program. Team-first player and was rewarded with a stellar senior season. He stuck to his process and made all those around them better."

Where is he now? Dillon resides in Billings where he is a community relations assistant at Highgate Senior Living.


 

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Kade Hall
Position: Left Fielder
Hometown: Pocatello, Idaho
Playing Years: 2017-2018 (2 seasons)

Feature Story: It All Starts With Hall

The 'Jackets got Hall for just two seasons, but he had an immediate impact and became one of the best to ever play at MSUB. In his first year in 2017 – the lone year during the second half of the decade the 'Jackets didn't win a GNAC title, Hall was on his way to being the team's top player before an injury derailed his season after starting 21 games. Hall was hitting .319 with seven doubles and four home runs through the first third of the season.
 
He rallied to earn second-team all-GNAC and MSUB Baseball Player of the Year in 2018, when he helped the 'Jackets claim the regular-season title and reach the GNAC Championships title game while playing primarily in left field. Batting leadoff on opening day, Hall signaled that big things were to come in 2018 when he hit the very first pitch of the season over the fence in center field at Dixie State.
 
Hall ranks fourth in MSUB history in slugging at .557, sixth in batting at .331, seventh in on-base percentage at .408, and 10th in home runs with 13 despite less than two full seasons in the program.
 
Hall on what stood out on his MSUB teams: "The talent. I had never played on a team that had that much talent from player 1-40. It was truly unbelievable. It made it fun because we knew we were good, and the coaches knew we were good and we could play loose. But we always wanted to get better every day, and it showed with what we accomplished even if we came up a little short."
 
Aaron Sutton (Hall's Head Coach 2015-2018): "Kade was the first player I got to coach all four years coming over from Treasure Valley. Saw his development from day one through his career and nobody deserved it more than Kade. Absolute spark plug who made the offense go."
 
Where is he now? Hall resides in Billings where he is a sales professional for BSN Sports.


 

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Zach Robinson
Position: Outfielder
Hometown: Cedar Hills, Utah
Playing Years: 2016-2017 (2 seasons)
 
After earning 32 starts playing in both corner outfield positions on the 2016 championship team, Robinson was a first-team all-GNAC centerfielder his senior year in 2017. Robinson tied the single-season record for steals with 17, while hitting .301 and leading the team in at-bats, runs, doubles, total bases, and walks during the 2017 campaign. He earned a GNAC and NCBWA West Region Player of the Week award, and was an academic all-GNAC pick.
 
Robinson had a pair of memorable moments his senior year, first on April 14 when he stole second, third, and home in succession against Western Oregon. He then delivered a walk-off single on May 6 at home against Central Washington. Robinson's 23 career stolen bases are eighth-most in school history.
 
Robinson on his fondest MSUB memories: "Meeting my wife and our 2017 baseball season. We had a great group of players and some of my closest friends."
 
Rob Bishop (Robinson's Head Coach 2016): "Zach had a great career as a Yellowjacket after having a really good career at Miles Community College. I only had Zach for one year but he was a high energy guy that brought it every day."
 
Aaron Sutton (Robinson's Head Coach 2017): "What a gifted player. Could really change the game on both sides of the ball. That first season in Billings Zach provided the gas to our offense and helped us lay the foundation for the coming years."
 
Where is he now? Robinson lives in Chandler, Arizona where he is a computer science teacher at Campo Verde High School. He is married to former Yellowjacket volleyball player Mataia (Roderick) Robinson.


 

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Austin Rue
Position: Outfielder
Hometown: Clancy, Montana
Playing Years: 2011-2013 (3 seasons)
 
Rue was a second-team all-GNAC selection his senior year, after helping the 'Jackets reach their first GNAC tournament during the 2013 season. Rue hit .272 in his three-year career, with 21 doubles, 48 RBIs, and 89 runs scored. His 28 career stolen bases are the fifth most in school history.
 
Rue's claim to fame in the MSUB record books was a 27-game hitting streak, that lasted from March 10-April 27 during his senior season. Garcia was the closest to approach Rue's record streak, as he ended his career on a 23-game hitting streak from April 7-May 17, 2019.
 
Rue remained part of the program upon completing his career, serving as an assistant coach for the 'Jackets during the back-to-back championship seasons in 2015 and 2016.
 
Rob Bishop (Rue's Head Coach 2011-13, Co-Coach 2015-16): "Austin is an example of what you can accomplish with hard work. Through hard work he transformed himself from a thin, speedy freshman into a guy that was one of the most consistent, dangerous hitters in the GNAC. His near season long hitting streak is something that I doubt I'll see again in college baseball. He put together a remarkable career. Austin genuinely cared for his teammates and embraced being a Yellowjacket."


 

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About the MSUB All-Decade Team Project
The top student-athletes from each of Montana State University Billings' current varsity athletic teams from 2010-2019 have been selected, and 14 all-decade teams will be revealed throughout the course of the fall of 2020. Each sport's all-decade team is comprised of the top-performing student-athletes, with weight given to individual athletic achievement and accolades, team achievement, academic achievement, as well as community service. For more information on MSUB's all-decade project, and to view each sport's all-decade teams, view the all-decade project webpage online here.