Duo Highlights List of 11 All-Region Honorees
SALEM, Va. --- Virginia Wesleyan College
designated hitter Mike Marion and Hampden-Sydney College third
baseman Matt Brown collected a pair of All-America awards over the
past week. Marion was selected as a First Team All-American
by both the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) and
D3baseball.com. Brown was tabbed for the second team by
D3baseball.com and third team by the ABCA.
Marion and Brown are also amongst a list of 11 ODAC
student-athletes to earn All-Region accolades from the ABCA.
Both All-Americans were named to the first team, but Brown also was
one of two players to take home a Rawlings Gold Glove Award.
Washington and Lee University first baseman Hunter Serenbetz also
earned one of eight south region gold glove honors.
Randolph-Macon pitcher Kyle Hicks backed up his ODAC Pitcher of
the Year award with a first team All-Region appointment.
Three players earned a spot on the second team, including
Bridgewater College pitcher Alex Foltz, and a pair of Tigers in
hurler John West and outfielder Herbie Williams. The ODAC was
represented by five student-athletes on the third team. Those
players include VWC pitcher Alex DeJesus and outfielder Myles
Shipp, Lynchburg College designated hitter Brock Shiflett and
outfielder Jeff Taylor, Jr., and R-MC catcher Jay Lichter.
Marion nearly won the ODAC’s version of the Triple
Crown. The senior Springfield-native was second in the
conference with a .452 batting average, but led the league with 18
homeruns and 65 runs batted in. He also topped the charts
with 61 hits, 130 total bases, and a .963 slugging
percentage. His homer total and slugging percentage rank
second in the country, as does his 1.76 RBI per contest.
Marion also posted a 0.49 homeruns per game mark, which leads the
nation. His 65 RBI are 12th and 130 total bases
are 15th in NCAA D-III. Marion hit multiple
homeruns in a game five times this season, including three
round-trippers to go with seven RBI in a 4-for-6 showing against
Roanoke. He hit safely in 29-of-37 games played, registering
23 multi-hit outings.
Brown, from Chester, Va., was also top-five in just about every
offensive category in the ODAC. The Tigers’ senior
finished fourth in batting (.439), second in slugging (.894),
homeruns (15), RBI (53), and total bases (118), and tied for fourth
in hits (58). His numbers are also impressive on the national
scene. He ranks fourth in homers per game (0.44), seventh in
slugging, 10th in overall homeruns, and 10th
in RBI.
For Rawlings Gold Glove consideration, Brown fielded at a .943
clip and made just five errors in 88 chances from the “hot
corner.” He recorded 22 putouts and 61 assists.
Serenbetz fielded his position flawlessly as the Generals first
baseman. He committed zero errors in 295 chances for a 1.000
fielding percentage. A senior from Stamford, Conn., Serenbetz
started all 33 games for W&L, and recorded 279 putouts, 16
assists, and was a part of 35 double plays. Both Brown and
Serenbetz are now eligible for the National Gold Glove Team.
Hicks, a senior from Goochland, Va., buoyed the Yellow Jackets
pitching staff with a conference-best 2.15 earned run
average. In nine appearances (all starts), he went 6-2 in
54.1 innings of work. He allowed 51 hits and fanned 48
batters while only surrendering 11 free passes. He went six
or more innings in six of his starts on his way to a league-leading
6.04 innings pitched per nine innings. He threw a pair of
complete games and registered one shutout in a nine-inning gem
against Washington and Lee in which he struck out eight
Generals.
Among the second and third team honorees, BC’s Foltz went
6-2 with a 3.48 ERA. He finished second in the conference
with 72.1 innings pitched and in strikeouts with 58.
Hampden-Sydney’s John West led the ODAC with eight victories
on the way to an 8-2 record. He also topped the conference at
75.0 innings pitched and fanned 50 batters, good for fourth
place. West’s 3.12 ERA ranked third in the ODAC.
H-SC’s Williams was seventh in the ODAC with a .423
batting average, but ranked second in runs scored (44) and hits
(60). Speed is the key to Williams’ game, as evidenced
by his league-best six triples. His 34 stolen bases ranked
second in the ODAC and seventh nationally, but his 1.0 steals per
game mark sits #1 in the country.
Lynchburg’s Taylor owned the top rank in the ODAC in stolen
bases with 39 in 41 chances. That mark also placed second in
the nation, as does his 0.98 swipes per game. Taylor finished
second in the league in walks (27), third in hits (59) and fourth
in RBI (39). He registered a .371 batting average.
Fellow Hornet Shiflett put together a solid first season in the
Hill City, posting a .397 batting average for 13th in the
ODAC. He collected 56 hits, good for fifth in the ODAC.
He was also fifth in doubles with 14.
The Marlins’ Shipp produced the eighth highest batting
average in the ODAC at .415. He ranked 10th in hits (54),
ninth in runs scored, sixth in on-base percentage (.497) and tied
for third in triples (3). DeJesus put together a solid season
for VWC out of the bullpen. In 19 appearances, the junior
righty went 1-1 with a 2.04 ERA. He struck out 21 batters in
35.1 innings, and recorded an ODAC-best five saves.
Lichter, a junior from Richmond, Va., is coming off his best
season in an R-MC uniform. Lichter led the Yellow Jackets with a
.433 batting average, which ranked fifth in the ODAC and is the
sixth best single season mark in school history. He collected
52 hits, and was hit by a league-high 15 pitches.
For a look at the complete ABCA All-America Teams, click HERE, and for the ABCA All-South Region Team,
click HERE. The list of Rawlings Gold Glove
winners can be viewed by clicking HERE. To learn more about the
D3baseball.com All-America Teams, click HERE. For more information on ODAC
baseball, visit any of the participating schools’ websites,
or go to the ODAC on the Internet at www.odaconline.com.