The Heart of Bethany Baseball: The Jake McGlumphy Story 

By: Zach Pressnell

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Name: Jake McGlumphy 

Birthday: December 15, 2000 

Year: Senior 

Height: 5’11 

Sport: Baseball 

Position: First Base 

Fun Fact: He is a Type-1 Diabetic. 

 

Introducing Jake McGlumphy 

The Jake McGlumphy story was almost always an underdog story. But that never bothered Jake. He was never seen as the most athletic kid in the room, noting he was “never viewed as a very athletic person in any sport I played.” That never stopped him from being a two-sport athlete in high school (Baseball and Diving) or earning a spot on the Bethany College Baseball team.  

Jake grew up in Twinsburg, Ohio, a city located just 30 minutes outside of Cleveland. This helped fuel his love for sports, more specifically Cleveland sports. While Twinsburg is 30 minutes away from Cleveland, Ohio, Twinsburg is 2 hours away from Bethany College. Jake McGlumphy’s life is one of triumph and perseverance, never being seen as the most athletic or the most skilled player there was. This did nothing but motivate him. This is the Jake McGlumphy Story. 

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The Heart of the Bison 

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There aren’t many better leaders, teammates, or people in the entire PAC, let alone on Bethany’s campus, than Jake McGlumphy is. Last spring, he was Bethany College’s selection for the Sportsmanship team in the PAC. Sophomore P/SS Tyler Mckee was asked about what McGlumphy meant to the team. He stated, “Jake [McGlumphy] is definitely one of the best teammates I’ve had in my life. He really is the heart of the team.” 

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It is quite rare to see a college athlete that is able to exhibit the amount of leadership, energy, and passion that Jake shows every single day with his teammates. His impact goes far beyond just his play in practice or on the field. It seems like whenever the Bison dugout goes quiet, Jake can be heard erupting with an emphatic “Come on fellas! Let’s get the energy up in here!” 

Ask any baseball player how important energy and noise from the dugout is to a baseball game. Almost every player will answer with how crucial this is to the outcome of the game. Without Jake McGlumphy, there's less energy, less fun, and less smiles for the Bethany Bison. 

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The family and leadership aspect of baseball has always been his favorite part of the game. 

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“Since my freshman year, I’ve strived to be nothing less than the best leader, role-model, and teammate for my entire team. The reason I fell in love with baseball was because I fell in love with the brotherhood aspect of the sport. I have always loved being there for my best friends and my brothers day in and day out, both on and off the field,” said Jake. 

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An Exciting Senior Year 

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Heading in to his senior season, Jake has some big goals, both for himself and for the team.  

On the personal side, Jake stated, “The biggest goal I have this year is to make some starts at first base this season and truly getting the feeling of playing college baseball. I am still searching for a lot of firsts in my collegiate career including my first hit, RBI, home-run, and much more.” 

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But, as you all can tell by now, Jake puts the team first. He made a lot of comments about his teammates, team goals, and wishes that he has for the other players. He’s truly a selfless person and athlete. 

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On the team side of goals, Jake turned the attention to his younger teammates. 

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“In the team aspect, I want to see many of our younger guys develop into the players they have the potential to be. There are a lot of guys on our team who have very good skill and talent and just need a bit of motivation from their teammates,” Jake said. 

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It’s not hard to see the kind of person and teammate that Jake McGlumphy is. It’s hard to truly put his value into words. He truly is the heart of the Bison.