SAC Places 12 On Daktronics All-Region Baseball Team

BANNER ELK/>, N.C. - Twelve baseball players from the South Atlantic Conference have been named to the 2010 Daktronics NCAA Division II All-Southeast Region Baseball Team announced officials Monday.

The Daktronics NCAA Division II All-Southeast Region Teams are voted on by the sports information directors of the Southeast Region. The region is comprised of the Conference Carolinas, the Peach Belt Conference, the South Atlantic Conference, Chowan/> University/>/> and North/> Greenville/> University/>/>.

Tusculum/> College/>/> led the way with six selections. Conference tournament champion Catawba/> College/>/> had four selections. Mars/> Hill/> College/>/> and Carson-Newman/> College/>/> had one selection each.

Members of the first team are now eligible for Daktronics NCAA Division II All-America honors.

The team is sponsored by Daktronics, Inc., an acknowledged world leader in scoring, timing and programmable display systems for virtually every sport at every level of competition.

Catawba

Several Catawba players have earned All-Southeast Region Baseball honors as announced by the Daktronics, which is voted on by the region's Sports Information Directors. Craige Lyerly (Salibsury/>, NC/>/>/E. Rowan HS) was named first team. Wade Moore (Salisbury/>, NC/>/>/W. Rowan HS/NC State), Nick Lomascolo (Mooresville/>, NC/>/>/Lake Norman HS) and Wil Huneycutt (Locust, NC/W. Stanly HS) earned second team Daktronics honors.

Lyerly completed a stellar career by reaching base safely in his final 88 games. He finished sixth on the NCAA all-time career hit list with 336 and finished fifth all-time with 537 total bases. This season, the senior hit .399 with a team-leading 83 hits. He scored 59 runs, added eight home runs, drove in 54 runs and stole 27 bases. Moore/>/> led the team with a .410 batting average and also posted team highs in runs (77), home runs (16), RBI (59) and steals (29).

Lomascolo went 7-3 in his rookie campaign and his 3.45 ERA was lowest among the Indian starters. He surrendered just 71 hits in 78 and a third innings with 70 strikeouts. Huneycutt led the team with four saves and compiled a 5-1 record with a 2.31 ERA. He walked just four batters in 39 innings while fanning 40.

Tusculum/>/>

Sean Cotten was named to the All-Region First Team, while Jared Richmond, Payden Houser, Nate Grabowski, Sean Finucane and Tyler Collins garnered Second Team recognition.

Tusculum/>/>'s six honorees were the most by any team in the Southeast Region with Catawba/> College/>/>, Erskine/> College/>/> and Mount/> Olive/> College/>/> coming in second with four representatives each.

Cotten, a junior catcher from Mooresville/>, N.C./>/>, batted .375 this season with 13 doubles, 15 home runs and 69 RBI, while earning All-South Atlantic Conference First Team honors. Cotten is fifth in the league and 28th in the nation in homers, while his .690 slugging percentage is eighth in the conference. He is also seventh in the league in total bases (127) sixth in putouts (274).

Cotten is closing in on the school's career RBI record. He is third in school history with 143 RBI, needing three more to match the school record set by former TC slugger George Hanger (146, 2002-05). Cotten is also 11th all-time in career doubles (33), 10th in career total bases (283), sixth career walks (72), third in career sacrifice flies (14) and sixth in career putouts (629)

Richmond/>/> put together one of the best seasons in school history. The senior first baseman from Fort Smith/>, Ark./>/>, led the league with 23 home runs (3rd in NCAA II) and 71 RBI (17th in NCAA II), while becoming the fourth player in Tusculum/>/> history to earn SAC Player of the Year honors. He also led the league with a .855 slugging percentage (12th in NCAA II) and total bases (148). The two-time All-SAC First Team selection finished third in the league in runs scored (60), fifth in on-base percentage (.505), fourth in walks (35) and fifth in putouts (276). Richmond/>/> accounted for a pair of impressive hitting streaks. He started the season with a 16-game hitting streak and followed later in the year with a hit in 18 straight contests.

Richmond/>/>'s 23 home runs are a new school single-season record, finishing just one shy of the league mark held by three players (Darren Hayes, Wingate-1995; David Trexler, Catawba-1999; Jerry Sands, Catawba-2008). He is also Tusculum/>/>'s all-time leader in home runs and has been credited with 34 in his 94-game career, surpassing the previous record of 30 set by 2001 SAC Player of the Year Shane Banks (1997-2001). Richmond/>/> is also ninth all-time at Tusculum/>/> in career batting average (.375), first in slugging percentage (.744) and seventh in career RBI (120).

Houser, a junior from Lincolnton/>, N.C./>/>, garnered All-SAC Second Team honors for a second consecutive year. He finished ninth in the conference, hitting .404 in his 44 contests in 2010. He finished the season sixth in on-base percentage (.494) and sixth in fielding assists. In 2010, he posted 14 doubles, five home runs, 29 RBI and scored 38 runs. He also drew 23 walks and posted five stolen bases. He also hit safely in 24 of his last 27 games, including a team-best 22-game hitting streak from Mar. 20-Apr. 22.

Grabowski returns to the Daktronics All-Region Second Team for a second straight year. The two-time All-SAC standout finished third on the team with his .400 batting average this season. The Pennellville, N.Y. senior finished second in the SAC in hits (78, 12th in NCAA II), third in doubles (18, 26th in NCAA II), seventh in walks (25), ninth in on-base percentage (.483) and sixth in stolen bases (12). He ended his Tusculum/>/> career hitting safely in 22 of his last 24 games, including a 21-game hitting streak from Mar. 17-Apr. 17. Grabowski is also 16th in the nation in toughest to strikeout, fanning only once in every 21.7 plate appearances.

In his two seasons at Tusculum/>/>, Grabowski (Pennellville/>, N.Y./>/>) has posted a .410 batting average, which is currently fourth in school history. Grabowski is also 10th all-time in career doubles (34), seventh in slugging percentage (.631) and second in on-base percentage (.494).

Finucane, a senior from Cortland/>, N.Y./>/>, led the Pioneers with his .414 batting average, and was named the Region's second team designated hitter. The 2010 All-SAC Second Team honoree finished sixth in the conference in batting average and fifth with his 75 hits. He hit safely in 13 of his last 14 games in a Pioneer uniform. He went 5-for-5 with six RBI and two home runs in Tusculum/>/>'s win over Pfeiffer last month. He finished the year with 14 doubles, a triple, five home runs and 48 RBI. He also scored 43 runs and is currently listed 31st in the nation in toughest to strikeout, fanning once in every 18.1 plate appearances.

Collins rounds out the All-Region Second Team starting pitchers. The Snellville, Ga./>/> junior right-hander was the ace of the Tusculum/>/> pitching staff as he posted a 6-1 record with a 3.79 earned run average in his 12 starts. He tossed 78.1 innings, including a nine-inning complete game victory over Mars/> Hill/> College/>/> in the opening round of the Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Tournament. For his efforts, he was named to the SAC All-Tournament Team. His six wins and 12 mound starts are tied for second in the South Atlantic Conference. He was also third in ERA, fourth in innings pitched and sixth with his 69 strikeouts.

Tusculum/>/> posted a 30-18 record, for the program's 10th consecutive winning season and seventh straight 30-win campaign.

Mars Hill

Mike Kitt has been named to the 2010 Daktronics NCAA Division II All-Southeast Region Baseball Team. Kitt was a first team selection.

Kitt is a 5-11, 175-pound senior outfielder from Wes Islip, N.Y. He came to Mars Hill from Suffolk County C.C.

Kitt led the SAC in Batting average (.446) and doubles (25). He was second in the SAC in runs scored (72) and on-base percentage (.547), fourth in walks (35), and fifth in RBI (57). He was second in the NCAA in doubles and doubles per game (0.54). He ranked sicth in the NCAA in runs, ninth in runs per game (1.57), and 11th in hits. Kitt was a first team All-SAC selection and a member of the league's Gold Glove team. He helped lead MHC to a second place finish in the SAC and runner-up in the SAC Tournament.

Carson-Newman

Carson-Newman shortstop Mills Rodgers was named to the Daktronics All-Southeast Region Baseball second team.

Rogers batted .378 this season in leading the Eagles to a 31-18 record. The senior senior from Simpsonville/>, S.C./>/> (Hillcrest HS), led the team with 18 doubles. He was third on the team with 10 home runs, 50 runs scored, and 58 RBIs.

A first team All-South Atlantic Conference selection at shortstop, Rogers turned in a number of memorable games in his final season as an Eagle, including a two-home run performance in an 11-2 win over King College.

2010 Daktronics Division II All-Southeast Region Baseball Team

First Team

C - Sean Cotten, Tusculum
1B - Jason Rogers, Columbus/> State
2B - Chas Anthony, Erskine
3B - Craige Lyerly, Catawba
SS - Barrett Kleinknecht, Francis Marion
OF - Bryan Fogle, Erskine
OF - Sean Harrell, Georgia/> College
OF - Mike Kitt, Mars Hill
UT - Jeremy Nowak, USC Aiken
DH - Nick Aranas, USC Aiken
SP - Martin Dewald, Georgia/> College
SP - William Buzhardt, Erskine
SP - Jackson Massey, Mount/> Olive
SP - Carter Capps, Mount/> Olive
RP - Atlee Pearson, Erskine

Second Team

C - Richard Pirkle/>, Georgia/>/> College
1B - Jared Richmond, Tusculum
2B - Payden Houser, Tusculum
3B - Jordan Erisman, North Georgia
SS - Mills Rodgers, Carson-Newman
OF - Bobby Leeper, Mount/> Olive
OF - Wade Moore, Catawba
OF - Nate Grabowski, Tusculum
UT - JJ Loker, USC />Aiken
UT - Cameron Scott, Armstrong Atlantic
DH - Sean Finucane, Tusculum
SP - Chris Rearick, North Georgia
SP - Don Sandifer, Francis Marion
SP - Nick Lomascolo, Catawba
SP - Tyler Collins, Tusculum
RP - Bradon Forshee, Francis Marion
RP - Luke Wihelm, Pfeiffer
RP - Wade Dudley, Columbus/> State
RP - Jacob Rickett, North Georgia
RP - Wil Huneycutt, Catawba

Southeast Region Player of the Year: Bryan Fogle, Erskine
Southeast Region Pitcher of the Year: Marin Dewald, Georgia/> College