Junior catcher Bennett Markinson and graduate student outfielder Tyler Ganus emerged as offensive powerhouses this season — but before their time at Northwestern, they donned the red, black and white of Harvard-Westlake.
Markinson and Ganus attended the Southern California prep school before teaming up with the Wildcats. Ganus came to Evanston as a graduate transfer from Oregon this year, joining Markinson and sophomore outfielder Marty Kaplan, who also spent four years on Harvard-Westlake’s roster.
Markinson had NU’s fourth-highest batting average in 2023, and with the team’s top three batters departing the program before the year, his performance this season was highly anticipated.
Markinson not only continued his form, but he came out swinging for the fences. He tallied four hits and two RBIs in the ’Cats’ opening series against Tulane and didn’t ease up when the team took a trip to Durham, North Carolina.
Markinson recorded five hits and batted in a run against Duke this past weekend, amid his seven-game hit streak to start the season. Markinson also went yard in Tuesday’s game against Illinois State to jumpstart a four-run sixth inning for NU.
Ganus made a splash in his debut in purple and white with a double that brought in three runs in the ’Cats’ 9-0 season-opening victory against Tulane, batting .455 throughout the weekend. In the Duke series, Ganus’ two doubles and four hits cemented his presence at the top of the lineup.
Markinson said his respect for Ganus, one year his senior, continued from their days as high school teammates to leaders of their college team.
“Developing a relationship in high school and getting to experience it at the college level is really cool,” Markinson said. “And (Ganus) is a beast. Everything he does offensively and the preparation he does speaks to how well he’s done. No one works harder than that guy.”
In their time at Harvard-Westlake, Ganus and Markinson played with a bevy of Division I recruits, including Vanderbilt pitcher Sam Hliboki, Texas outfielder Will Gasparino and 2023 high school All-American Bryce Rainer — a Texas commit.
Ganus played with Harvard-Westlake alumni Pete Crow-Armstrong, who was drafted 19th overall by the Chicago Cubs in 2020, and Drew Bowser, who was drafted by the Cubs in 2023 after playing at Stanford for three years.
At NU, Markinson, Ganus and Kaplan are three of over 15 Harvard-Westlake baseball alumni and athletes who are either currently on DI rosters or are committed to join one within a year. Markinson said his connection to both Ganus and Kaplan has been an exciting part of the season.
“(Ganus) was a year ahead of me, and Marty is a year below me, so I got to play with both of them for three years in high school,” Markinson said. “Getting to build on that at a college level and continue that I think is unreal. They’re both great guys, hard workers and awesome on and off the field.”
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Twitter: @claireconner_
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