VWC's Bulman, R-MC's Mendenhall Share Pitcher, Rookie Honors

SALEM, Va. --- A strong combination of new and old talent headlines the 2008 All-ODAC Baseball Team awards selected by the league's coaches at their annual meeting earlier this week.  Lynchburg College senior shortstop, Ronnie LaBrie, was named the ODAC's Player of the Year while Randolph-Macon College head coach, Ray Hedrick, earned his first conference Coach of the Year award.  Washington and Lee University senior outfielder, James Madden, was tabbed the ODAC/Farm Bureau Scholar-Athlete of the Year in a vote of the league's sports information directors.

The top pitcher and rookie accolades were split amongst a pair of right-handed newcomers, the first freshmen to win the ODAC's pitcher of the year honor.  Virginia Wesleyan College's Gary Bulman and Randolph-Macon's Byron Mendenhall were deadlocked in voting for both awards, lending to co-pitchers and co-rookies of the year.

LaBrie, from Vinton, Virginia, finished the season second in the conference in batting with a .436 average (post-tournament totals).  He ended the year tops in five other major categories including hits (71), runs (56), on-base percentage (.532), slugging percentage (.718) and stolen bases (28 in 35 attempts).  He also recorded 136 assists, best in the league.  LaBrie collected 29 extra base hits (18 doubles, six homers, five triples), helping him to an ODAC-high 117 total bases.  He hit safely in 37 of 41 games played with 20 multi-hit outings.

Bulman, from Chesapeake, Virginia, compiled an 8-0 overall record to tie for the league-high in victories.  In 11 appearances (10 starts), he fanned 54 batters in 59.1 innings while giving up only 40 hits and 14 earned runs for a conference second-best 2.12 earned run average.  He struck out 10 or more batters twice including a 12-punchout performance against Eastern Mennonite University that broke the Virginia Wesleyan record for strikeouts in a single game.

Mendenhall, from Falls Church, Virginia, finished second in the ODAC with a 1.68 earned run average.  He put together a 7-0 record, good enough for third in the league in wins.  In 12 appearances (10 starts), Mendenhall worked 64.1 innings while giving up only 52 hits and whiffing 68 batters, the fourth-highest strikeout total in the league.  For his play the week prior to April 14, Mendenhall was named the pitcher of the week by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA).

Madden, from Dallas, Texas, is the second General to win baseball's scholar-athlete award in as many years.  He boasted a 3.84 grade point average while majoring in Spanish and American History.  He is a member of Omicron Delta Kappa national honor society and was named to the 2006 ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District team.  On the field, Madden finished in a tie for the league-lead in triples with seven with teammate, Terrence McKelvey.  Madden's 15 career triples mark a Washington and Lee program record.  For the season, he batted .341 with 13 doubles and three homers to go with his seven triples.  He also drove in 36 runs and stole six bases.

Coach Hedrick guided the Yellow Jackets to the program's first ever ODAC baseball title in just his fourth season at the top spot in Ashland.  Randolph-Macon won six more games overall and four more conference contests that it had a season ago, earning the third seed going into the ODAC Baseball Tournament.  The Yellow Jackets will continue their campaign into the NCAA tournament at a site yet to be determined.

Listed below are the entire 2008 All-ODAC Baseball teams.  For more information, visit the ODAC on the Internet at www.odaconline.com.

2008 ALL-ODAC BASEBALL TEAMS

Player of the Year: Ronnie LaBrie, Lynchburg
Coach of the Year: Ray Hedrick, Randolph-Macon
Co-Pitchers of the Year: Gary Bulman, Virginia Wesleyan and Byron Mendenhall, Randolph-
acon
Co-Rookies of the Year: Gary Bulman, Virginia Wesleyan and Byron Mendenhall, Randolph-Macon
ODAC/Farm Bureau Scholar-Athlete of the Year: James Madden, Washington and Lee

ALL-ODAC FIRST TEAM
Pitcher: Gary Bulman, Virginia Wesleyan
Pitcher: Byron Mendenhall, Randolph-Macon
Catcher: Will Lewis, Washington and Lee
First Base: Jon Crews, Lynchburg
Second Base: Greg Meleski, Randolph-Macon
Shortstop: Ronnie LaBrie, Lynchburg
Third Base: Jeff Taylor, Lynchburg
Outfield: Ozz Dhramapitaksook, Virginia Wesleyan
Outfield: Terrence McKelvey, Washington and Lee
Outfield: Mike Wallace, Randolph-Macon
Designated Hitter: Charlie Hartt, Randolph-Macon

ALL-ODAC SECOND TEAM
Pitcher: Joe Devlin, Lynchburg
Pitcher: Jesse Freeman, Virginia Wesleyan
Catcher: Andrew Chrismer, Bridgewater
First Base: Drew Elkins, Bridgewater
Second Base: Phil Cadle, Virginia Wesleyan
Second Base: Aaron Read, Bridgewater
Shortstop: Gavin Haynes, Emory & Henry
Third Base: Daniel Prieto, Hampden-Sydney
Outfield: Cameron Grant, Lynchburg
Outfield: Mike Graves, Bridgewater
Outfield: James Madden, Washington and Lee
Designated Hitter: Mike Lenox, Bridgewater

ALL-ODAC HONORABLE MENTION
Pitcher: Jared Millner, Lynchburg
Pitcher: Daniel Hadra, Hampden-Sydney
Pitcher: Nolan Shaffer, Bridgewater
Catcher: C.J. Rhodes, Virginia Wesleyan
First Base: Phil Drew, Guilford
First Base: Hunter Serenbetz, Washington and Lee
Shortstop: Graham Thacker, Roanoke
Outfield: J.C. Conway, Randolph-Macon
Outfield: Chris Harpine, Eastern Mennonite
Outfield: Seth Hyder, Emory & Henry

ALL-ODAC SPORTSMANSHIP TEAM
Brad Burack, Bridgewater
Jamison Jarvis, Eastern Mennonite
Anthony Lowry, Emory & Henry
Alex Starbuck, Guilford
David Toney, Hampden-Sydney
Jeff Lincoln, Lynchburg
Chris Dykes, Randolph-Macon
Dan Fallen, Roanoke
Adam Marx, Virginia Wesleyan
Dan Harris, Washington and Lee