Five Baseball Players Named All-SoCon

STATESBORO, Ga. – Georgia Southern Baseball claimed the most spots on the All-Southern Conference teams, as voted on by the league’s head coaches. Five Eagles earned league honors, two on the First Team and three on the Second Team. It was the first all-conference award for all five Eagles.

The five All-SoCon selections tie for second-most under the tenure of head coach Rodney Hennon (2002). Six players off the 2001 team earned All-SoCon honors. College of Charleston had four players while Elon had three players named.

Chris Shehan (Strasburg, PA/Lampeter-Strasburg), the only SoCon representative among the 16 semifinalists for the Dick Howser Award honoring the ‘National Player of the Year’, earned First Team honors in the outfield.

Shehan entered last week nationally ranked in eight offensive categories. His .434 batting average and 79 runs scored both lead the SoCon while he ranks fourth in RBI (70), fifth in doubles (20), fourth in home runs (20), second in total bases (173) and fifth in stolen bases (22). The junior outfielder became just the second Eagle ever to record 20 home runs/20 stolen bases in program history. Shehan, an ESPN the Magazine Third Team Academic All-District selection, owns a .816 slugging and .554 on-base percentage.

Ty Wright (Montrose/West Laurens) was tabbed as First Team designated hitter. In his first year with the Eagles, Wright has made an immediate impact batting .396 with a team-leading 21 doubles, 16 home runs, 60 runs scored and 48 RBI.  His six leadoff home runs set a program season record.

Entering the SoCon Tournament, Wright is tied for second in the league in doubles and tied for ninth among the GS season ‘Top 10’. Featured this week in Sports Illustrated, Wright hit for the cycle in consecutive innings last month in a win at Wofford.

Sophomore A.J. Wirnsberger (Tuscaloosa, AL/Paul Bear Bryant) earned Second Team accolades at third base. Wirnsberger leads the team hitting 21 home runs with 71 RBI. Batting at a .328 clip, Wirnsberger stands fourth in RBI, third in home runs and fourth in total bases (159). He tied a SoCon season record hitting three grand slams and is tied for second in that category among the league’s career leaders.

Junior Griffin Benedict (Dunwoody/St. Pius) was named Second Team catcher. Benedict is batting .355 with 16 doubles, 12 home runs, 55 runs scored and 64 RBI. Defensively he leads the team with five pickoffs. He became the fourth player this year and 44th in program history to record 50 runs scored/50 RBI in a season.

Senior David Richardson (Dahlonega/Lumpkin County) stepped into a starting role following the season-ending injury to Matt Miller and made the most of his opportunity, earning Second Team honors in the outfield. In 47 games (37 starts) Richardson put up career-high numbers - a .360 batting average with 40 runs scored, 10 doubles, nine home runs, 43 RBI and 12 stolen bases in 16 attempts. He hit for the cycle in consecutive innings during a series-opening win at College of Charleston.

Richardson was named ESPN The Magazine Second Team Academic All-District and Georgia Southern’s Male Student-Athlete of the Year in addition to his Strength and Conditioning All-America honor by the National Strength and Conditioning Association.

The fourth-seeded Eagles (32-23 overall) opens SoCon Tournament play Wednesday (May 21) against fifth-seed UNC Greensboro. Game time will be either 5 or 8 p.m. at Riley Park in Charleston, South Carolina.

Category: Baseball

Published on Monday, 19 May 2008 00:02