Hampton product Bischke roams to Oklahoma juco

Former Hampton infielder Tyler Bischke took the long way to end up “in the middle of nowhere.”

After playing an abbreviated season at Division I Kent State, the 2019 Hampton graduate has found a new home following a transfer to Murray State, a tiny junior college in Southeastern Oklahoma.

Bischke is hitting over .300 as the leadoff batter and starting shortstop for the 2,200-student NJCAA Division II school in Tishomingo, Okla.

“I’ve been doing well,” he said. “I think this year has been a big growing point in my career. I’ve grown a lot stronger. I’ve become a little more aggressive, a little more confident. I’m playing some of the best baseball I’ve ever played.”

Bischke, a two-time first-team all-section pick with the Talbots, signed with Kent State out of high school. He played in eight games for the Golden Flashes (7-7) during the covid-shortened 2020 season, batting .091 (1 for 11). He expected to improve on his freshman year, but during the offseason, he said the Kent State coaches contacted him on a group Facetime call and suggested he transfer to a junior college.

“I was blown away,” Bischke said. “I couldn’t even understand why they would want me to do that. Why me? It was really shocking.”

Bischke accepted his new path, entered the transfer portal and put Kent State behind him. With the pandemic shutdown in full force, he lifted weights “pretty much every single day” and visited the batting cages and took ground balls.

Then in April 2020, the 5-foot-10, 178-pounder received a message from Murray State assistant coach Jake Mitzner.

“I had gotten a name on him, and looked him up,” Mitzner said. “I saw some videos, and we made contact. Being able to come here and punch the reset button is something he was wanting to do.”

Bischke committed to Murray State — not to be confused with the same-named four-year university in Kentucky — after speaking to the coaches and seeing photos of the school.

In mid-August, he and his father, Scott, made the 19-hour drive to Tishomingo, located 30 miles north of the Texas border.

As Bischke looked out the car window, he developed some doubts — and severe culture shock.

“To be honest with you, the first thought I had was, ‘Wow, I (messed) up,’ ” he said. “Being from Pittsburgh and growing up in Hampton, driving through and seeing a bunch of cow farms and pulling up to a town with two red lights, the first thing that went through my head was, ‘Geez, you are really in the middle of nowhere.’ ”

But with isolation came focus. Bischke, who said he had a 3.8 GPA at Kent State, was able to concentrate on baseball and studies.

“It took a little bit to get used to,” he said. “But it’s been nothing but a blessing.”

The feeling is mutual. Bischke is batting .320 for the Aggies (20-21) with 41 runs scored, six home runs, 29 RBIs and 13 stolen bases in 15 attempts. He has drawn 36 walks, which ranks fifth in NJCAA Division II, and went 3 for 4 with two runs in 6-4 win over top-ranked LSU Eunice on March 6.

“I think he kind of plays with a chip on his shoulder,” Mitzner said. “He’s got a little bit of a swagger, and I kind of like guys like that.”

Bischke became a leader for a team that sees a near complete-roster turnover each year. One of his teammates is former Quaker Valley standout Ethan Moore, who also transferred from Kent State and is the starting third baseman for the Aggies.

“He’s been great,” coach Sam Bjorling said of Bischke. “Every year in junior college, you have some sort of a new team. The leaders kind of pick themselves out. Tyler from the jump has done that. The team gravitates toward him.”

This will be Bischke’s lone season playing for the Oklahoma juco. He plans to return to Division I baseball next season and said he has offers from Gardner-Webb, George Mason, New Orleans and Division II Salem. Wherever he ends up, Bischke never will forget his year in Tishomingo.

“It is kind of out here in the middle of absolutely nowhere,” he said. “But that actually causes you to be around your team more and create friends you might have forever. It’s kind of an escape from the real world in a sense, and that creates bonds.”