Ten From SAC Named to All-Region Baseball Team

TAMPA, FL -- Ten baseball players from the South Atlantic Conference, including six from conference and tournament champion Catawba College, team were named to the 2006 ABCA/Rawlings All-South Region team as selected by the American Baseball Coaches Association.

Earning First Team honors from Catawba are senior third baseman Mark Smith (Brown Summit, NC), senior catcher Matt Smith (Brown Summit, NC), sophomore pitcher Tim Smith (Walnut Cove, NC) sophomore outfielder David Thomas (Winston-Salem, NC) and senior designated hitter Jimbo Davis (Salisbury, NC). Freshman outfielder Jerry Sands (Clayton, NC) was named to the Second Team.

Tusculum had two players made the squad. Greg Stotser was named as the First Team shortstop, while Brent Gabel was selected to the Second Team pitching staff.

Mars Hill College relief pitcher Charlie Harrison was a First Team selection.

Carson-Newman second baseman Langdon Potts was a Second Team selection.

Mark Smith, a former standout at Northeast Guilford High School, started all 61 games and batted .372 in his senior season. He was second on the team with 65 RBI, 74 runs scored and 94 hits. Smith also collected 16 doubles and hit nine home runs. On the mound as a reliever, he posted a 1-1 record with two saves and a 3.62 ERA, recording 32 strikeouts in 32 and a third innings.

Matt Smith, who starred at Northeast Guilford High School, hit a career-best .403 this year. He had 56 RBI and scored 71 runs while collecting 89 hits and a record-tying 30 doubles. For his career, he set school marks by scoring 208 runs and collecting 70 doubles. He finished second all-time with 264 hits. Smith, who was named the SAC Player of the Year, was 4-3 on the mound.

Tim Smith, a former star at South Stokes High School, was 13-1 on the mound, setting a school record for wins in a season. The SAC Pitcher of the Year had a 4.08 ERA with 74 strikeouts in 99 and a third innings. His only setback came in a 3-2 loss to USC-Aiken on Feb, 18 as he won his final 11 decisions.

Thomas, who was a standout at Ledford High School, led Catawba with a .413 batting average. He collected a school-record 100 hits, tying a league mark and set a school and conference mark with 84 runs scored. Thomas had 53 RBI with 23 doubles and 11 home runs and led the team with 27 stolen bases.

Davis, who starred at North Rowan High School, led the team with 17 homers and 70 RBI. He batted .317 with 64 hits and scored 45 runs. Davis set school career marks with 54 home runs and 235 RBI over his four seasons.

Sands, a former standout at Smithfield-Selma High School, batted .399 over his freshman season and ranked second on the team with 16 homers and 65 RBI. He collected 87 hits with 18 doubles and scored 54 runs. The SAC Freshman of the Year hit .591 at the regional tournament with a pair of home runs.

Stotser, a senior from Columbus, Ga., was named to the All-South Atlantic Conference First Team last month. He batted a team-best .369 this season and led the squad in home runs (14), runs batted in (58), total bases (123), slugging percentage (.621) and assists (146). His 14 home runs led the league and were the third most in TC history. He is also eighth all-time at Tusculum in career batting average (.371), seventh in home runs (18), and ninth in slugging percentage (.572). Last week, Stotser was named to the ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District IV College Division Baseball Team.

Gabel, a senior from Conneautville, Pa., returns to the All-South Region team after earning First Team accolades in 2005. The two-time All-SAC First Team selection posted a 9-3 record in 2006, including 6-1 in conference games. He also recorded a 3.64 earned run average while striking out 64.

In just two seasons, Gabel tallied an impressive 19-4 record, including 13-1 in SAC games. His 19 wins are tied for the third most in school history, while his 3.36 career ERA is also third. Gabel also fanned 144 batters in his TC career, which are fifth most in school history.

In 2005, he was named the SAC Pitcher of the Year, while earning All-American honors.

The Pioneers posted a 40-14-1 record and captured its second straight SAC Championship while becoming the first team in school history to post consecutive 40-win campaigns.

Potts, an infielder, led the Eagles at the plate this season with a .390 batting average. He added 16 doubles, a team-high five triples and 27 RBIs. He added a .517 slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .496.

Potts was one of the fastest players on the team, stealing 22 bases in 29 attempts. He started all 55 games for the Eagles last season and was a first-team All-South Atlantic Conference selection at second base.

The Eagles were 35-20 in 2006.

2006 ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Division II All-South Region Baseball Team

First Team
1B Jose Jimenez University of Tampa
2B Sean McFadden Nova Southeastern University
3B Mark Smith Catawba College
SS Greg Stotser Tusculum College
INF Orestes Gonzalez Barry University
OF Jonathon Baksh Florida Institute of Technology
OF Orlando Rosales University of Tampa
OF Lee Cruz University of Tampa
OF David Thomas Catawba College
C Matt Smith Catawba College
DH Jimbo Davis Catawba College
P Sergio Perez University of Tampa
P Antony Bello Nova Southeastern University
P Ross Jackson University of Tampa
P Tim Smith Catawba College
RP Charlie Harrison Mars Hill College

Second Team
1B Mike Grace Florida Southern College
2B Langdon Potts Carson-Newman College
3B Jason Louwsma Florida Gulf Coast University
SS Shawn Langlois Nova Southeastern University
SS Roberto Mena University of Tampa
INF Brian Schultz Florida Southern College
OF Nick Diyorio Florida Southern College
OF Nicolas Boisvert Lynn University
OF Jerry Sands Catawba College
OF Troy Nunnally Tuskegee University
C Nick Corbeil Barry University
DH Craig Corrado University of Tampa
P Jayson Brown Barry University
P Casey Coleman Florida Gulf Coast University
P Brent Gabel Tusculum College
P Ronald Lowe Saint Leo University
RP Aaron Cook University of Tampa

Region Player of the Year: Lee Cruz, University of Tampa
Region Pitcher of the Year: Sergio Perez, University of Tampa
Region Coach of the Year: Joe Urso, University of Tampa