Assistant Coach Jesse Daywalt joined the Chestnut Hill College staff in 2012 after an accolade-laden collegiate career as the Griffins second baseman. He is a two-time selection to the Daktronics Inc. All-East Region Second Team and the All-Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference First Team, while earning recognition on several all-academic teams, including the 2011-2012 CACC Male Scholar Athlete of the Year.
Daywalt earned his first recognition as an honorable mention on the CACC All-Conference Team after his sophomore season (2010). That year, Daywalt posted a .328 (39-for-119) batting average, 12 runs-batted-in (RBI), and 13 stolen bases (13-of-16, 81.3%), while also leading the Griffins in on-base percentage (.407) and ranking as the 22nd Toughest Player to Strikeout in NCAA Division II. Daywalt was recognized with the Coach’s Award at the annual Athletic Awards Reception.
As a junior (2011), Daywalt was the first Griffin to earn a Daktronics Inc. All-Region selection, doing so after garnering All-CACC First Team accolades and the baseball team’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) award. He started all 38 games at second base while providing a .333 (46-for-138) batting average, 17 runs-batted-in (RBI), and stealing ten bases (10-for-15, 66.7%) from the number two spot in the lineup. Daywalt finished the year 21st nationally (NCAA DII) for Toughest Player to Strikeout (16.8 AB/K) and 4th nationally in sacrifice bunts (.35/game).
As a senior (2012), Daywalt led Chestnut Hill College in batting (.310, 44-for-142), hits (44), walks (30), on-base percentage (.451), and stolen bases (29-for-34, .853) while ranking among the CACC top five in on-base percentage (5th) and walks (T3rd). He is a two-time selection to the Daktronics Inc. All-East Region Second Team and the All-CACC First Team. During the preseason, Daywalt was listed as a 2012 Preseason National Collegiate Baseball Writers' Association (NCBWA) All-East Region Second Teamer and a “Player to Watch” for the Tino Martinez Award.
He finished his collegiate career as the Griffins second all-time leading batter with a .314 (171-for-544) batting average and a .403 on-base percentage. He ranks first all-time in at-bats (553), runs (119), hits (172), triples (7), sacrifices (26), and hit batsman (21). As political science and criminal justice dual major, Daywalt was honored at Chestnut Hill College's 2011-2012 Athletic Award Reception for earning the College's Highest Male Student-Athlete GPA. He also earned recognition on the Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-America Team, garnering an All-District First Team selection. Daywalt's academic accolades also include membership to the 2012 Philadelphia Sports Information Directors Association (PhilaSIDA)/Philadelphia Inquirer Academic All-Area Baseball Team, the 2012 CACC Spring All-Academic Team, and the 2011-2012 Chestnut Hill College Athletics Fall and Spring Academic Honor Rolls.
