Wednesday, May 23, 2007

                                

SIX PIONEERS NAMED TO ABCA/RAWLINGS ALL-SOUTH REGION BASEBALL TEAM

 

Maikol Gonzalez Kevin Hammons Carlos Rivera Christian Rosa Mat Galens C.J. Hillyer
Maikol Gonzalez
All-Region 1st Team
Kevin Hammons
All-Region 1st Team
Carlos Rivera
All-Region 1st Team
Christian Rosa
All-Region 1st Team
Mat Galens
All-Region 2nd Team
C.J. Hillyer
All-Region 2nd Team

 

 

                BOCA RATON, Fla. --- Six Tusculum College baseball players have been named to the 2007 American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA)/Rawlings NCAA Division II All-South Region Team announced College officials.  Maikol Gonzalez, Kevin Hammons, Carlos Rivera and Christian Rosa were named to the All-Region First Team, while C.J. Hillyer and Mat Galens were selected to the Second Team.

 

                Tusculum's four first team honorees were the most in the region and the six All-Region selections were tied for the most with South Region champion Tampa.

 

                Gonzalez, a junior second baseman from Maracaibo, Venezuela, hit .444 for the Pioneers in 2007 which is currently the top batting average in the South Region and seventh best in the country.  He was also named the Daktronics South Region Player of the Year and the South Atlantic Conference Player of the Year.  He leads the nation with 14 triples to go along with 65 runs batted in (34th in NCAA II) and 19 stolen bases.  At last week's NCAA South Regional in Tampa, Fla., Gonzalez batted .429 with three RBI.  For his efforts, he was named to the NCAA South Region All-Tournament Team.

 

                Hammons, a senior lefthander from Jonesborough, Tenn., posted a 9-1 record with a 2.77 earned run average.  Hammons was selected the Daktronics South Region Pitcher of the Year as well as being named SAC Pitcher of the Year.  He struck out 80 batters and walked just 23 in 74.2 innings this year.  Hammons was named SAC Pitcher of the Week once and was selected to the ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District IV First Team.

 

                Rivera, a junior outfielder from Leesburg, Va., established a new school and conference record with 101 hits in 2007.  The Daktronics All-South Region First Team pick, finished second on the team hitting .398 including .444 at the NCAA South Regional.  In Tusculum's 7-6 regional win over Florida Gulf Coast, Rivera went 5-for-5 with a pair of doubles, earning him a spot on the South Region All-Tournament squad.  The All-SAC First Team honoree is third on the team with 59 RBI and is second with 23 stolen bases.

 

                Rosa was named the All-Region First Team catcher for the second time in as many weeks.  The Toa Baja, Puerto Rico junior was tabbed to the Daktronics All-Region team last week.  Rosa finished second on the team with 63 RBI and has accounted for 13 doubles, three triples, nine home runs and a school single-season record 29 stolen bases (44th in NCAA II).

 

                Hillyer, a junior lefthander from Abington, Mass, posted an impressive 9-1 worksheet in his first year in a TC uniform.  The Daktronics All-Region Second Team choice finished with a 2.56 ERA in his 12 starts on the mound.  He tossed six shutout innings last Thursday in TC's 4-1 win over No. 17 Florida Southern.

 

                Galens, a junior righthander from Louisville, Ky., rounds out the All-Region selections for Tusculum.  The two-time All-SAC selection finished with a 4-1 record out of the bullpen, including a school record 25 appearances.  He finished second on the team with five saves as he struck out 50 in his 42.1 innings of work.  Galens posted a win in Tusculum's 7-6 victory over Florida Gulf Coast at the NCAA Regional.

 

                Tusculum, ranked No. 10 in NCAA Division II, wrapped up its best season in school history as the Pioneers went 50-14 and finished third at last week's Regional.  TC was making its third NCAA postseason appearance in five years and the 50 wins are the most in both school and conference history.

 

- TC -

 

2007 ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Division II All-South Region Team

 

 

 

 

First Team

 

 

 

 

Pos.

Player

School

 

 

1B

Bryan Cook

Nova Southeastern

 

 

2B

Maikol Gonzalez

Tusculum

 

 

3B

Ozzie Borrell

Florida Gulf Coast

 

 

SS

Steve Condotta

Florida Tech

 

 

INF

Orestes Gonzalez

Barry

 

 

OF

Nicolas Boisvert

Lynn

 

 

OF

Matt Mindick

Nova Southeastern

 

 

OF

Craig Corrado

Tampa

 

 

OF

Carlos Rivera

Tusculum

 

 

C

Christian Rosa

Tusculum

 

 

DH

Josh Benton

Wingate

 

 

P

David Nathanson

Rollins

 

 

P

Ryan Clark

Saint Leo

 

 

P

Kevin Ferguson

Tampa

 

 

P

Kevin Hammons

Tusculum

 

 

RP

John Holt

Tampa

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Second Team

 

 

 

 

Pos.

Player

School

 

 

1B

Zach Evans

Catawba

 

 

2B

Ryan Kennedy

Tampa

 

 

3B

Arden McWilliams

Florida Southern

 

 

SS

Roberto Mena

Tampa

 

 

INF

Shawn Langlois

Nova Southeastern

 

 

OF

David Thomas

Catawba

 

 

OF

Jerry Sands

Catawba

 

 

OF

Brian Schulz

Florida Southern

 

 

OF

Junior Mejia

Tampa

 

 

C

Dallas Tarleton

Lenoir-Rhine

 

 

DH

Tristan Rainone

Florida Southern

 

 

P

Matt Teague

Carson Newman

 

 

P

Dan Albritton

Florida Southern

 

 

P

Richard Bleier

Florida Gulf Coast

 

 

P

C.J. Hillyer

Tusculum

 

 

RP

Mat Galens

Tusculum

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Player of the Year

Nicolas Boisvert

Lynn

 

 

Pitcher of the Year

Kevin Ferguson

Tampa

 

 

Region Coach of the Year

Joe Urso

Tampa