Kanagy named Second Team among 2026 WHAC Baseball All-Conference Awards
DEFIANCE, Ohio - The Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference announced its 2026 Baseball All-Conference Awards on Tuesday with Defiance College freshman Hayden Kanagy (Marion, Ohio/River Valley) earning a spot on the league's Second Team.
Kanagy headlines a group of 18 Yellow Jackets among the league's postseason awards, which included 17 All-Academic Team honors to increase to program's total to 56 in 3 seasons under head coach Shane Gardner. Kanagy also becomes DC's first all-conference selection as a member of the WHAC.
The freshman from Marian, Ohio had a stellar season at the plate with a .440 batting average, which was the highest in the conference among hitters with at least 100 at-bats. His team-high 51 hits came in 116 at-bats to etch his name in the program record books with the 4th-best single-season average at the plate. Kanagy also led the Yellow Jackets with 13 doubles (5th in DC history, 12th in WHAC), 16 stolen bases (13th in WHAC), and a .629 slugging percentage (5th in DC history).
In addition to the All-Conference Teams, the WHAC also announced its baseball Champions of Character Team and All-Academic Team, and junior infielder Connor Gephart (Lima, Ohio/Lima Central Catholic) gained recognition for both awards. Defiance's 17 All-Academic Team members met the requirements of a 3.25 cumulative GPA or higher with at least sophomore academic standing and a DC student for at least one full year. Joseph O'Neil became a 4-time academic all-conference recipient while Justin Hall, Elisa Marquez and Connor Gephart all became 3-time academic award winners.
The full list of Defiance All-Conference Award winners are listed below and the full list to WHAC Baseball Awards can be found by clicking here.
| Name | Award | Yr. | Pos. | Major | Hometown/High School |
| Donovan Armstrong | All-Academic Team (2x) | Jr. | LHP | Molecular biology (pre-vet) | Franklin, Ind./Franklin Community |
| Aiden Behrman | All-Academic Team (2x) | Jr. | RHP | Mathematics | Deshler, Ohio/Patrick Henry |
| Evan Bowers | All-Academic Team | So. | RHP | Finance | St. Henry, Ohio/St. Henry |
| Blake Bowman | All-Academic Team (2x) | Sr. | LHP | Sport Management | Toledo, Ohio/Start |
| Jack Brubaker-Flood | All-Academic Team (2x) | Jr. | OF | Exercise Science | Wolverine Lake, Mich./Walled Lake Central |
| Devon Crouch | All-Academic Team | So. | 2B | Criminal Justice | Mendon, Ohio/Parkway |
| Jacob Davis | All-Academic Team | Jr. | OF | Early Childhood Education | Hillsdale, Mich./Hillsdale |
| Devin Delzeith | All-Academic Team | So. | RHP | Finance | St. Henry, Ohio/St. Henry |
| Brady Fallon | All-Academic Team | R-Fr. | INF | Exercise Science | Sugar Notch, Pa./Hanover Area |
| Connor Gephart | Champion of Character Team & All-Academic Team (3x) | Jr. | INF | Psychology | Lima, Ohio/Lima Central Catholic |
| Justin Hall | All-Academic Team (3x) | Sr. | 2B | Business Management | North Manchester, Ind./Manchester |
| Hayden Kanagy | Second Team All-WHAC | Fr. | OF | Mechanical Engineering | Marion, Ohio/River Valley |
| Greg Kita | All-Academic Team | Sr. | INF | Middle Childhood Education | Wickliffe, Ohio/Wickliffe |
| Mikey Kozina | All-Academic Team | So. | C | History | Oregon, Ohio/St. Francis de Sales/Mount Saint Vincent |
| Elisa Marquez | All-Academic Team (3x) | Sr. | 2B | Graphic Design | Lenoir City, Tenn./Lenoir City/Trinity International |
| Jacob Martinez | All-Academic Team (2x) | Jr. | RHP | AYA Integrated English | Paulding, Ohio/Paulding |
| Joseph O'Neil | All-Academic Team (4x) | R-Sr. | RHP | Mechanical Engineering & Mathematics | Perrysburg, Ohio/Toledo Christian |
| Andy Yoder | All-Academic Team | So. | RHP/3B | Business | Plain City, Ohio/Jonathan Alder |
-JACKETS-