2012 Sun Conference Baseball Honor Roll Announced
FT. MYERS, Fla. - The 2012 Sun Conference Baseball Tournament begins on Tuesday morning, but the 2012 edition of the All-Conference Honor Roll was announced at the tournament banquet on Monday night. A first and second team made up of 17 players each, as well as Coach of the Year, Pitcher of the Year, Player of the Year and Champion of Character award winners were nominated and voted on by the conference coaches.
Nine schools were represented among the 34 student-athletes named to the All-Conference team. Conference regular season champions and No. 1 seed in the conference tournament, Embry-Riddle, totaled 10 honorees, while second-seeded South Carolina Beaufort had eight players selected, and No. 3 St. Thomas grabbed five spots on the roster.
The Sun Conference Pitcher of the Year was Michael Heesch of USCB. The left-handed senior from Chicago, Ill. went 8-1 during the regular season with a 1.86 ERA. The Sand Shark hurler tossed 92.0 innings of work, holding opponents to a .225 average while fanning 89 batters. Heesch has thrown five complete games in 2012 and has given up just 19 extra-base hits this season.
St. Thomas' Joel Capote was named the league's Player of the Year after his outstanding season for the Bobcats. The STU centerfielder hit .406 in 2012, recording 78 hits, 39 RBIs and 58 runs scored. Capote is slugging .547 with an on-base percentage of .482. He also leads the conference with 37 stolen bases and a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage in the outfield.
For the second straight year and fourth time in five seasons, Embry-Riddle Head Coach Randy Stegall was named The Sun Conference Coach of the Year. Stegall led the Eagles to a 38-14 overall record and 21-6 mark in league play, claiming their fifth consecutive Sun Conference regular season title. The Eagles are ranked No. 6 in the latest NAIA Coaches' Top-25 Poll.
The Champion of Character award recipient was ERAU's Adam Cellini, a junior from Orlando, Fla.. Cellini, the Eagles' starting catcher, has accumulated over 60 hours of community service this season and has maintained a cumulative 3.88 GPA in Communications. Cellini becomes the third consecutive Blue and Gold player to earn the honor.
The conference tournament gets under way on Tuesday when No. 1 Embry-Riddle takes on No. 6 SCAD Savannah at 10 a.m. Second-seeded USCB and fifth-seeded Warner will play at 2 p.m., while the nightcap will feature No. 3 St. Thomas and No. 4 Webber International at 6 p.m.
First Team All-Conference
C - Jamison Sweat, SCAD Savannah^
C - Dylan Nasiatka, USCB
DH - Hector Acosta, St. Thomas
1B - Chris Page, Embry-Riddle*
2B - Gabe Torres, USCB
3B - Victor Madrazo, St. Thomas
SS - Ben Kline, Embry-Riddle*
INF - Alejandro Diaz, Florida Memorial
OF - Joel Capote, St. Thomas
OF - Frankie Arias, Embry-Riddle
OF - Ian MacGeorge, Embry-Riddle
OF - Greg Smith, Embry-Riddle
P - Michael Heesch, USCB
P - Daniel Eaton, Embry-Riddle
P - Kevin Maloney, Embry-Riddle^
P - Dylan Weber-Callahan, SCAD Savannah
RP - Dane Stone, St. Thomas
Second Team All-Conference
C - JC Gil, Florida Memorial
C - Ryan Regidor, Webber International
DH - Conald Mansfield, USCB
1B - Erik Armstrong, USCB
2B - Armando Alvarez, Southeastern
3B - David O'Neil, USCB^&
SS - Hunter Pope, SCAD Savannah*
INF - Jeff Lemon, Embry-Riddle
OF - Brandon Kirby, Warner
OF - Ty Main, USCB*
OF - Shane Casey, Southeastern*
OF - Antonio Sepulveda, St. Thomas
P - Adam Paulencu, Embry-Riddle
P - Justin James, Ave Maria
P - Aaron Kehres, Warner
P - Adam Miller, USCB$
RP - Robbie Ratliff, Embry-Riddle
*2011 First Team All-Conference selection
^2011 Second Team All-Conference selection
$2010 First Team All-Conference selection
&2010 Second Team All-Conference selection
Player of the Year: Joel Capote, St. Thomas
Pitcher of the Year: Michael Heesch, USCB
Coach of the Year: Randy Stegall, Embry-Riddle
Champion of Character: Adam Cellini, Embry-Riddle
Academic All-Conference
Adam Cellini, Embry-Riddle
Juan Carols Gil, Florida Memorial
Kevin Sides, Northwood
Justin Helms, Northwood
John Milian, SCAD Savannah
Carson Parker, SCAD Savannah
Micheal Waterhouse, SCAD Savannah
Shane Yoder, SCAD Savannah
Matthew Zajac, SCAD Savannah
Erik Armstrong, South Carolina Beaufort
Daniel Mims, Southeastern
Brandon DeRespiris , Southeastern
Phillip Kish, Southeastern
Bryan Sparrow, Southeastern
Corey Turner, Southeastern
Armando Alvarez , Southeastern
Kevin Kunnen, Southeastern
Elio Rey, St. Thomas
Ethan Lovell, Warner
Cody Barnes, Webber International
Jonathan Williams, Webber International