Riley Schilling commits to the University of Sioux Falls

The Riders Baseball program is proud to announce that Riders senior standout Riley Schilling has committed to play college baseball at the University of Sioux Falls, in Sioux Falls SD. USF competes in the very strong Northern Sun Conference which is one of the best conferences in NCAA Division II Baseball. Last year USF finished 15-35 overall and 14-22 in conference play. The Cougars are led by head coach Grant Hieb, who has coached at USF since 2016. Schilling becomes the 59th player from the Riders program to sign to play college baseball under Coach Perleberg’s direction.

Coach Hieb on Schilling: “I’m very excited to have Riley coming to the University of Sioux Falls next fall. He comes from a solid Legion program which I think will help him make an impact for us sooner than later. My coaching staff and I are very intrigued with Riley’s arsenal. Being a catcher and pitcher, we’re going to have to figure out where he can help us most and what kind of workload his arm can handle. It’ll be fun to see how things play out for him as he gets bigger and stronger in our program.”

Schilling will be entering his 3rd year as Rider this season and 6th season overall in our program. During the last two summers, Riley has been a standout for the Riders behind the plate, on the mound, and in the batter’s box. In 2022, as a sophomore Riley broke onto the scene, winning the starting catchers job and a spot in our starting rotation. He finished with a 5-1 record on the mound, while also catching 328 innings and helped lead the Riders to a State Runner Up finish. In 2023, he had a phenomenal year for the Riders, helping lead the team to a final 16 finish in the country as NW Regional Runners Up. Schilling hit .325 and led the team in hits (76) and RBIs (65). On the mound, he was dominant with a 8-3 record, 2.06 ERA and 85 K. Riley won two of our bigger games down the stretch on the mound at the State and Regional Tournaments. In 2023 Schilling was named to the Wyoming Legion Baseball All-State First Team.

Coach Perleberg on Schilling: “Riley exemplifies what it means to be a Rider on a daily basis. He strives to be the best that he can be in his life, academics, and athletics. Lots of players dream about playing college baseball, but Riley has put in the time and effort to make it a reality. His day revolves around school, weight room, batting cage, homework, and family. His work ethic and commitment to himself and our program is second to none. His consistency and every day toughness set the tone day in and day out for our ball club. There are certain guys that as a coach come along over the years that are just special, and Riley is one of those guys. It’s a privilege coaching him and watching him compete. I’m so proud of him and his accomplishments and can’t wait to see what his future holds.”

The Riders Baseball family would like to congratulate Riley on this achievement. We are so proud of not only the player he is, but also the type of academic student and person that he is on and off the field. He is a young man of impeccable character. Riley is the son of Trevor and Jodi Schilling. Riley’s brother Cory plays at Augustana University in Sioux Falls and brother Case is a freshman in the Riders program. Riley will graduate in May of 2024 from Thunder Basin High School.

Tryouts for the 2024 season will take place this year in the fall on Sunday, September 10th from 1:00-4:00 at Hladky Stadium. Players born in 2005-2011 are eligible to tryout for one of our 5 teams. (PLEASE BRING ATTACHED CONSENT FORM TO THE TRYOUT, ALONG WITH $50 CHECK. Checks made out to Gillette JR Riders)

By trying out in the fall, we are better able to prepare for the 2024 season. It also allows our players access to our Indoor Facility throughout the offseason. Come be apart of something special. It’s a great day to be a Rider!

The Gillette Riders ended their 2023 season on a remarkable run, falling one game short of the American Legion World Series. The Riders finished the season with an incredible 54-25 overall record and finished in the final 16 teams in the country out of over 4,000 American Legion teams.

The RIders hosted the NW Regional for the 3rd consecutive year and once again the tournament saw sold out crowds throughout the tournament. We would like to thank all of our wonderful Post 42 families, fans, sponsors and Gillette for providing such a wonderful experience hosting this tournament the last 3 years.

New for 2023
Just a reminder to our Visiting Teams this Summer, Hladky Stadium in Gillette will require pitchers to wear molded cleats or turf shoes when pitching on our turf mound. All Position players (other than pitcher) will still be allowed to wear metal spikes. This has been the common theme everywhere we go that has a turf mound and it will greatly extend the life of our mound each year. This change will go into effect for all levels of play in 2023 for all Post 42 players and our visiting opponents. The 2023 season can’t get here fast enough!