The second week of the 2025 college baseball season starts up on February 20, followed by a heavy slate of weekend games. So, who stood out during the first week of the year? The weekend was highlighted by standout sophomores, as well as arguably the premier ace in Division I.

Best Hitters

• Alex Lodise (Florida State – 6-14, 1 HR & 2 XBH)
• Brody Donay (Florida – 7-10, 3 HR & 5 XBH)
• Marek Houston (Wake Forest – 10-14, 3 HR & 4 XBH)
• Justin Lebron (Alabama – 5-8, 1 HR & 4 XBH)
• Max Belyeu (Texas – 4-9, 1 HR & 2 XBH)
• RJ Austin (Vanderbilt – 6-14, 1 HR & 2 XBH)
• Will Gasparino (Texas – 3-9, 1 HR & 3 XBH)
• Maddox Molony (Oregon – 7-11, 3 HR & 5 XBH)

As of February 19, the total base leader in Division I isn’t Jace LaViolette nor Drew Burress, the latter of whom had a sluggish opening weekend. It’s junior Florida C/1B Brody Donay, who racked up 24 total bases over his first four games.

Donay belted three home runs and added two doubles against Air Force this past weekend, leading the charge for a deep Gators offense. It’s not surprising to see Donay hit for pop; he belted 14 home runs last season for the Gators.

Speaking of major performances, how about Marek Houston? Houston drove in 13 runs over the Demon Deacons’ first four games, part of a three-home run weekend.

Houston is a name who likely will go in the top half of the 2025 MLB Draft, thanks to his total package. He’s got power, is athletic, and can play shortstop. But as hinted upon this past weekend in our top-25 recap, Houston has a longer swing, which does make it tough to project what his hit tool will grade out to be.

Moving on to other players, the Texas Longhorns went 2-1 in the Shriners’ Classic, thanks to their big bats. Max Belyeu racked up four hits, while Will Gasparino notched three hits, including a home run. Gasparino, who hit 12 home runs as a freshman, is expected to be one of the better sophomore hitters in 2025.

Speaking of sophomores, Justin Lebron and Maddox Molony — two other 2026 MLB Draft picks — had big weekends, as well.

Best Pitchers

• Jamie Arnold (Florida State – 0.00 ERA, 8 K in 6 IP)
• Liam Peterson (Florida – 0.00 ERA, 11 K in 6 IP)
• Pierce Coppola (Florida – 0.00 ERA, 12 K in 5 IP)
• Patrick Forbes (Louisville – 3.60 ERA, 11 K in 5 IP)
• Trey Beard (FAU – 4.50 ERA, 10 K in 4 IP)
• Liam Doyle (Tennessee – 0.00 ERA, 11 K in 5 IP)
• Tomas Valincius (Virginia – 0.00 ERA, 10 K in 6 IP)
• Cade Obermueller (Iowa – 1.80 ERA, 10 K in 5 IP)

The opening weekend of the college season gave us a first look at FSU ace Jamie Arnold, arguably the best pitcher available in this July’s upcoming draft. Arnold didn’t disappoint, as he struck out eight James Madison batters over six shutout frames. He gave up just one hit in his 2025 debut.

Arnold excels at making hitters uncomfortable. The left-hander can pump it up to 97-98 MPH with his four-seamer that plays in today’s game for obvious reasons; it comes from a low arm, he hides the ball well, and it’s very difficult to pick up his release point.

Speaking of helium, Liam Peterson came into 2025 with a ton of expectations. The Florida hurler was a top high school recruit heading into 2024 and struggled with command during his freshman season. Heading into 2025, Peterson worked a curveball into his arsenal, although that pitch didn’t steal the show.

Peterson overwhelmed Air Force this past weekend, striking out 11 over six shutout innings. The right-hander was sitting in the high-90s, along with a hard slider that hovered around 90 MPH.

He wasn’t the only Florida Gator who dominated against Air Force. Pierce Coppola, a left-hander who put up strikeouts but struggled with command in the past, posted 12 strikeouts in his season opener. Coppola went undrafted last year.

Liam Doyle struck out eight consecutive batters in Tennessee’s season opener against Hofstra. It was part of five scoreless frames for Doyle, the new Tennessee ace who’s previously pitched at Coastal Carolina and Ole Miss.

Trey Beard, who had a good freshman season and features a slow, screwball-like changeup, struck out 10 in his season opener against Delaware. The left-hander is a rising name for the 2026 MLB Draft.

Lastly, Tomas Valincius — the touted freshman from Virginia — was the highlight of the Cavaliers’ weekend in Puerto Rico. Valincius had no trouble against Rice, as he struck out 10 over six frames in his NCAA college debut.

Very few of the power schools had a freshman in their weekend this weekend. Take, for example, LSU. The Tigers snatched arguably the best high school pitcher who went to college last season in William Schmidt. Schmidt, though, worked on cleanup duty this past weekend.

Make sure to check out more of our college baseball coverage.