RIVERSIDE, Calif. --- Biola Baseball adds a 6-foot-3-inch hurler from Riverside in Jake Battaglia. Battaglia comes joins the Eagles three years after his high school graduation and after some time at San Bernardino Valley College and Chaffey College.
 
"Jake is a man of strong character with a proven track record of being a successful starting pitcher," said Recruiting Coordinator Justin Hixson. "He brings an electric fastball that he complements well with a 12-6 curveball."
 
In his year of competition at Chaffey Battaglia posted a 4-1 record for the Panthers. He pitched 53.2 innings over six starts and a few relief appearances as he led the team to a 31-10 overall record and helped it win another Foothill Conference championship.
 
Battaglia attended John W. North High School at home in Riverside and graduated in 2013. MaxPreps tracked his stats for two of his varsity seasons at North. It has him with a 9-4 record and 2.82 ERA in 84.1 innings pitched. After high school Battaglia spent some time at SBVC but did not record any time on the diamond.
 
"I chose to come to Biola because it was the best fit for me in my baseball career and I am looking forward to helping out the team," said Battaglia.
 
Jake plans to major in business and hopes for a career in law enforcement when he's done with college and baseball.
 
"Jake rounds out our starting rotation which should be the best in the GSAC," said Hixson.