RIPON, Wis. - Scott Carpenter '94 is one of the best pitchers to ever play for the Ripon College baseball team. A four-time All-Conference and three-time All-Region selection, Carpenter's career culminated as a Senior when he was named Midwest Conference Pitcher of the Year, while leading the Red Hawks to the 1994 MWC Championship. A native of Ripon, Wis., Carpenter graduated with a Ripon College record 215 strikeouts, which still ranks second in program history. He was inducted into the Ripon College Athletics Hall of Fame in 2016.

"I never anticipated that I'd end up in the Hall of Fame when I first stepped foot on campus as a freshman, and it wasn't my main mission or goal," Carpenter said. "The main reason I played was to win a conference championship with my teammates, and whatever happened after that, was icing on the cake."

That goal became reality in 1994 when Carpenter recorded career highs in wins (8), strikeouts (66), complete games (8), and shutouts (2), as he helped the Red Hawks win that conference title, which had escaped him during his previous three seasons.

"The 1994 team wasn't the best team we had during my four years at Ripon, but we had the best season as a true TEAM," Carpenter said. "We struggled throughout the season with lineups, but came together at the right time with such unity, which made it by far the most memorable team I've ever played on."

Currently ranking eighth in MWC history for career strikeouts, Carpenter rarely came out of a game, notching 27 complete games in his 37 career starts. Those 27 complete games rank third in program history, while Carpenter also ranks fourth in Earned Run Average (2.55) and fourth in wins with 24, which is three shy of the school record and currently ranks eighth in the MWC.

"Scott was an outstanding lefty who dominated the MWC for four years. He was the best pitcher in the league from the first day he stepped on campus until the day that he graduated," legendary Ripon baseball coach Bob Gillespie said. "During Scott's career, we were only allowed to play 24 games in a season, which is 16 less than they play today. I often wonder how many games Scott would have won if we could have played 40 games in a season like they do now."

Winning games and championships in Ripon was nothing new for the local product, as Carpenter was a sophomore on Ripon High School's 1988 Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA) State Championship team. He also led Ripon's American Legion Team to two state championships, earning the tournament's Most Valuable Player award during both of those seasons.

"Growing up in Ripon, I'd always see the College's student-athletes around town, which was pretty cool," Carpenter said. "We were gym rats because my teammate Scott Young and his father (Ripon professor) Doc Young would always go to the gym during the week, and we'd usually see Coach Gillespie there. I always wanted to play for him, so to receive that opportunity was fantastic because he was like a celebrity in my eyes."

That opportunity became even more life changing when it became a reality, as Coach Gillespie has played, and continues to play a significant role in Carpenter's life.

"Coach Gillespie and his wife Penny will forever be the most influential people in my life. I never wanted to let them down because I respect them so much,"  Carpenter said. "Coach Gillespie knew how to motivate me and gave me the confidence to succeed both on and off the field, and for that, I'm forever grateful to the Gillespie family."

Being a native of Ripon (and the son of someone who worked at the famous Rippin' Good Cookie Factory) also had its perks for some of his teammates.

"Scott played in the days when we'd have to drive vans for 24 hours straight in order to go to Florida for our annual Spring Trip every March," Gillespie said. "His mom would give him dozens of Rippin' Good Cookies to give everyone on the team to help with the long ride."

Carpenter currently resides in Lake Mills, Wis. and is the Northeast U.S. Sales Director for Americo Manufacturing, which is headquartered in Acworth, Ga. He has stayed involved in baseball, coaching his son's Lake Mills Lakers baseball team from the ages of 10-15, while also being involved with the Lake Mills Youth Basketball Club and other youth programs.

"I'm forever grateful for the opportunity to play baseball at Ripon College. A day doesn't go by that I don't pull from the competitive experiences I had on the playing field and the relationships that were created from the game of baseball," Carpenter said. "To this day, I run into former teammates or opposing players at youth events and games, or in the business world, and we talk about the great times we had playing with or against each other. For me, the Ripon College athletic experience is priceless."


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