Three SAC Baseball Players Named To ABCA All-America Team
Three South Atlantic Conference baseball players have been named All-Americans by the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA).
Catawba's Craige Lyerly (Salisbury, NC/E. Rowan HS) and Ryan Query (Kannapolis, NC/Brown HS) and Wingate University's Mark Letchworth (Greenville, N.C.) were all named to the third team.
Lylery, a junior third baseman, set school and conference records with 106 hits this season. He finished the season on a school-record 35-game hitting streak and his .444 average was the highest since Charlie Beatty hit .504 in 1984. Lyerly collected 16 doubles, four triples and hit 13 home runs. He picked up 50 RBI and swiped a team-high 27 bases.
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Craige Lyerly |
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Ryan Query |
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Mark Letchworth |
Query, a senior catcher who led the team with 20 home runs and 75 RBI, batted .384 on the year. He also had a team-high 21 doubles. Query finished among the top 10 career leaders in hits (240), RBI (179), runs scored (166), doubles (49) and home runs (34).
Letchworth was the 2009 South Atlantic Conference Player of the Year. A first team All-SAC and All-Region selection, Letchworth posted 18 home runs, 66 RBI, 59 runs scored, 20 doubles, 156 total bases and a .765 slugging percentage this year. He led the league in doubles, while charting in either the second or third position in the other categories.
Wingate's top hitter with a .392 batting average, Letchworth was the only player on the Bulldog roster to start all 52 games this season. A very consistent performer, Letchworth hit .402 in conference games, with eight homers, 35 RBI and an .805 slugging percentage. He also had nine doubles and 25 runs scored in league play.
2009 Rawlings/ABCA NCAA II All-America Teams
First Team
1B - Jon Alia, CSU Dominguez Hills, Senior
2B - Cannon Lester , Southern Arkansas, Junior
3B - Yan Gomes, Barry, Junior
SS - Evan Porter, Nebraska-Omaha, Senior
INF - Matt Bodenchuk, Mesa State, Senior
OF - Matt Cotellese, West Chester, Senior
OF - Brandon Decker , Valdosta State, Junior
OF - Shannon Wilkerson, Augusta, Junior*
OF - Joe Wendte, Wayne State, Junior.
C - Jordan Schmitt, Abilene Christian, Senior
DH - Travis Howard, USC Aiken, Junior
SP - Gabriell Duran, Dowling, Sophomore
SP - Blake Keitzman, Western Oregon, Junior
SP - Hayden Simpson , Southern Arkansas, Sophomore
SP - Dan Wright, Lynn, Junior
RP - Chris Matlock, Central Missouri, Senior*
Player/Pitcher of the Year
Second Team
1B - Daniel Kassouf, Belmont Abbey, Sophomore
2B - Mike Baillargeon, Assumption, Senior
3B - Nate Arevalo, Cameron, Senior
SS - Vance Albitz, UC San Diego, Junior
INF - Eric Bond, Wayne State, Junior
OF - Connor Crumbliss, Emporia State, Senior
OF - Adam Darby , Harding, Senior
OF - Sam DiMatteo, California, Junior
OF - Bryan Fogle, Erskine, Junior.
C - Matt Adams, Slippery Rock, Junior
DH - Matt Costello , Valdosta State, Junior
SP - Darin Gorski, Kutztown, Junior
SP - Michael Thompson, Bellarmine, Senior
SP - Matt McGovern, UNC Pembroke, Junior
SP - Gary Moran, Sonoma St , Senior
RP - Brad Rutherford, Abilene Christian, Junior
Third Team
1B - Rob Dahlberg , U of West Alabama, Senior
1B - Evan McDole, Northern Kentucky, Junior
2B - Kyle Gendron, Grand Valley State, Junior
3B - Craige Lyerly, Catawba, Junior
3B - Jacob Petkac, Ashland, Junior
SS - Rich Racobaldo, MOC, Senior.
INF - Mark Angelo, East Stroudsburg, Senior
INF - Ben Sondgeroth, Indianapolis, Senior
OF - Kevin Dietrich, UNC Pembroke, Senior
OF - Jason Fobes, CSU-Pueblo, Senior.
OF - Mark Letchworth, Wingate, Senior
OF - J.D. Martinez, Nova Southeastern, Junior
OF - Chance Tuttle, Central Missouri, Senior
C - Ryan Query, Catawba, Senior
DH - Keith Towne, Angelo State, Junior
SP - Chris Armijo, Incarnate Word, Senior
SP - Michael Fiers, Nova Southeastern, Senior
SP - Jake Schmidt, Concordia-St. Paul, Senior
SP - Kyle Vazquez, Franklin Pierce, Junior
RP - Shaun Larsen, Southern Indiana, Senior
RP - Justin Moore, Dominican, Freshman