The Region's Team Of Northwest Indiana

Whiting, Ind. – November 25, 2013 – The Northwest Indiana Oilmen have added another local, Division-I player to their 2014 roster.  Bishop Noll High School senior Larry Crisler, who has committed to play his college ball at Indiana, will play for the Oilmen next summer. 

Crisler posted a robust .467 batting average as a junior to go along with 15 doubles, 50 runs scored, a .568 on-base percentage and 35 stolen bases.  The athletic outfielder was named to The Times of Northwest Indiana and Post-Tribune all-area teams. 

Crisler hopes to garner some fonder memories of Oil City Stadium this summer.  The last time he played at the home of the Oilmen, Bishop Noll lost 12-9 to Adams Central in the Class 2A Whiting Regional final. 

“I really don’t have any high school baseball memories that stand out because we haven’t made it to state yet,” Crisler said.  “That’s always my goal.”

The 6-foot-4 senior is also a forced to be reckoned with on the basketball floor, where he averaged 19.1 points per game as a junior.  Crisler is participating in his final season of organized basketball before focusing solely on the diamond next year in Bloomington.

“I’m kind of looking forward to it, getting bigger and seeing how good I can actually be,” he said.  “I would say I have to improve on everything.  There’s nothing I’m perfect at.”

Bishop Noll coach Andrew Ramker said there is not a whole lot of doubt regarding Crisler’s ability to play at the next level.

“He’s tremendously athletic; he’s got a great bat,” Ramker said.  “He’s got speed. He has a great baseball IQ.  There are not a whole lot of holes in his game.  He’s a tremendous high school baseball player, that’s all I can say.”

Ramker is a graduate of Indiana University and expects Crisler to be a perfect fit for the Hoosiers’ style of play.  Playing college-level summer ball before beginning his collegiate career will give Crisler an advantage over other freshmen.

“I know he really wants to keep playing,” Ramker said.  “He’s such a competitor.  You are going to have a hard time telling him that someone is better than him and he’s going to have to be on the bench.  I think this gives him a chance to see that college-level pitching so that when he does show up at IU, they’re going to have a tough time separating him from those other guys, especially once he’s got that experience.”

Crisler becomes the 11^th player to sign with the Oilmen for the 2014 season.  He joins Portage High School senior Kevin Jones as the team’s youngest players.  The Oilmen now have seven current and former Northwest Indiana high school baseball standouts on their roster, three of which attended high school at Bishop Noll.

Crisler will be reunited with 2013 Noll grad Danny Pobereyko, who will return for his second summer with the Oilmen.  Pobereyko told Crisler he enjoyed his first season with NWI.

“We really didn’t play around each other a lot because he is a pitcher and I am an outfielder, but when I walked into the dugout he was always a fun guy,” Crisler said.  “He is a competitor.”

Crisler will become the first Indiana Hoosier to play for the Oilmen.  Several Indiana University players have participated in the Midwest Collegiate League, including Southland’s Chris Sujka, who was named the 2013 Midwest Collegiate League Postseason MVP.