Ben Barrone, Winona State University (2006-2007)
One will find Ben Barrone’s name scattered among the Winona State and NSIC record books after a two year stint with the Warriors. Barrone entered the league in 2006 and was named NSIC Newcomer of the Year after he led the league with 15 home runs (nine in league play) and 57 total bases. His overall batting average on the season was .368 and he had 45 RBI along with ten doubles. With 25 extra base hits on the season, Barrone recorded a .851 slugging pct. In NSIC games, he hit .393, posted a .934 on base percentage and drove in 25 runs.
Barrone earned All-NSIC first team honors in both 2006 and 2007 and was the 2007 NSIC Player of the Year and named the most valuable player in the NSIC Tournament, during which he snapped a 6-6 tie in the bottom of the eighth inning with a three-run homer to give the Warriors a 9-7 win, sending the Warriors on to compete in the NCAA Tournament.
In 2007, he was the ABCA Division II Player of the Year and named an ABCA/Rawlings Division II First Team All-American. He also earned ABCA Region Player of the Year honors.
Barrone is the Warriors’ all-time leader in home runs with 43. He launched 16 long balls as a junior and went on to lead the NCAA with 27 homers in his senior campaign while recording a .444 batting average.
In 2017, Barrone was named one of the NSIC top-25 male student-athletes from the past 25 years.
Barrone was drafted by the Oakland A’s in the 44th round of the 2007 draft. Barrone graduated from WSU with a degree in recreation, tourism and therapeutic recreation and currently resides in Rochester, Minnesota with his wife, Abby, and children, Caliegh and Harper.