Cullowhee, N.C. – Continuing a Catamount baseball tradition, first-year head coach Alan Beck and his coaching staff have named junior infielder Zach Ketterman the next Leggett No. 7 Legacy recipient. Ketterman will wear the coveted No. 7 jersey during the upcoming 2023 season.
 
The official announcement of this year's Leggett No. 7 Legacy recipient came back in late November surrounding the 2022 WCU Athletics Hall of Fame induction ceremony where Leggett returned to introduce Catamount baseball student-athlete alum Skip Nelloms (1985-88) ahead of his enshrinement into WCU's Hall.
 
Ketterman is the 13th different player – and the fifth infielder – to have the Leggett No. 7 Legacy bestowed upon him for a season dating back to 2011. He is also the fourth junior over the past five years to receive the honor.

"When I was named head coach, one of my first priorities was to keep the Leggett No. 7 Legacy tradition," Beck said. "I was on staff when Coach (Bobby) Moranda started the tradition and I saw first-hand how important it made our players feel to be chosen to wear the number seven. Coach (Jack) Leggett was scheduled to speak at the Hall of Fame ceremony for Skip Nelloms, and he was gracious enough to stay after for the announcement of this year's recipient."
 
"Zach Ketterman embodies all the attributes both on and off the field that fit the mold of the Leggett Legacy.  He will make Coach Leggett proud this season wearing the number seven," said Beck.
 
Ketterman has been a staple at the "hot corner" for the Catamounts over the past two seasons, playing in 101 career games with 99 starts at third base. He holds a .250 career batting average after hitting a career-best .275 a season ago, collecting 63 hits including 12 home runs, five triples, and 10 doubles. The left-handed stick has 23 career multi-hit games and has collected multiple RBI in 11 outings. He scored 70 runs while driving in 35 in 2022 giving him 109 scored and 53 driven-in for his career.
 
Defensively, Ketterman has been a part of turning 16 double plays in his career including 11 a season ago from third base.
 
Ketterman closed the 2022 season by earning SoCon All-Tournament team accolades in Greenville, S.C., pacing the Catamounts in three games by hitting .500 (5-for-10) with a double and two home runs – both coming against eventual tournament-champion, UNCG. He added a walk to help bolster his .500 on-base percentage while scoring a team-best five runs for the Catamounts.
 
A product of Biglerville, Pa., Ketterman is a two-time SoCon Academic Honor Roll recipient (2020-21, 2021-22), has twice earned a SoCon Commissioner's Medal for academics, and landed on the Spring 2022 Academic All-Southern Conference team. Additionally, he claimed Academic All-District plaudits last spring – just the seventh Catamount since 2002 to collect the honor.
 
The annual "Leggett No. 7 Legacy" program was introduced by former WCU head coach Bobby Moranda at the second "Celebration of Catamount Baseball" banquet held in conjunction with the 2011 season-opening weekend. Each year, the WCU coaching staff selects one player that is committed to keeping with the principles and integrity established by the former Catamount skipper during his tenure.
 
"Among the many great past individuals that have influenced the success and the prestige of Western Carolina baseball, Jack Leggett stands out above most. His legacy continues to live on here every day," Moranda said of the Leggett Legacy tradition upon its creation back in 2011. "Each season, we will name one player who exemplifies what it is to be a Catamount baseball player and that deserves to wear the No. 7 jersey to honor the foundation laid by No. 7."
 
A 2001 WCU Athletics Hall of Fame inductee and a 2014 selection into the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Hall of Fame, Leggett helped shape the future of WCU baseball by recruiting and coaching his three successors in Keith LeClair (1992-97), Rodney Hennon (1998-99) and Todd Raleigh (2000-07). Leggett's three protégés combined to win 567 games and a combined eight SoCon titles in 15 seasons, while also capturing five SoCon Coach of the Year honors.
 
As a collegiate head coach, Leggett won 1,332 career games – 302 of which came at WCU, second all-time in the school's record book – and made 26 NCAA Tournament appearances. He coached over 140 professional baseball signees, nine first-round draft picks, and 25 players who have played in the Major Leagues.
 
Western Carolina's 2023 season schedule will be unveiled in the coming days with the squad scheduled to open official team practice in January.
 
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WCU's All-Time Leggett No. 7 Legacy Recipients:
2023: Zach Ketterman, INF
2022: Seth Graves, OF
2021: Immanuel Wilder, OF
2020: Justice Bigbie, INF
2019: Luke Robinson, C
2018: Cameron Blaquiere, INF
2017: Nobu Suzuki, INF
2016: Reece Strong, INF
2015: Danny Bermudez, C
2014: Luke Gragg, UT
2013: Morgan McKinney, LHP
2012: Vance Chavis, LHP
2011: Stephen Notaro, C