St. Paul, Minn. -- The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) announced the 2009 MIAC Baseball Awards today, May 13, 2009. Leading the 27-player All-Conference team is MIAC Player of the Year Kyle Johnson of Concordia and MIAC Pitcher of the Year Travis Adams of Bethel.
Johnson, a senior catcher for the Cobbers, tied a conference record with 10 home runs in 2009 and tied for the league-lead in runs batted in with 22. In 20 conference games, he was 24-for-56 (.429 avg.) with 22 runs and 16 walks.
Adams, senior left-hander for Bethel, pitched 45 2/3 innings against conference opponents this season and 40 of those innings were scoreless. He finished the conference season with a 1.38 ERA over those 45 2/3 innings, striking out 38 and only walking 11.
St. Olaf first-year infielder Erik Nelson was chosen as the 2009 MIAC Rookie of the Year. Nelson led the league with a .553 batting average in 2009. He collected 22 runs, 19 RBI, 10 walks, seven doubles, three home runs, and two triples during the conference campaign.
Carleton head coach Aaron Rushing was named the 2009 MIAC Coach of the Year. In his fourth season with the Knights, Rushing led Carleton to the program's first-ever berth in the MIAC Baseball Playoffs. One season after finishing last in the MIAC, the Knights had a 10-game improvement in league play and tied for third in the conference standings at 12-8.
As part of a conference-wide sportsmanship initiative, the MIAC announced the third annual All-MIAC Sportsmanship team for baseball. Members of the All-MIAC Sportsmanship team are selected by their coaches and teammates as individuals who demonstrate ideals of positive sportsmanship both on and off the field of competition.
Player of the Year - Kyle Johnson, Concordia (Sr., Cambridge, Minn.)
Pitcher of the Year - Travis Adams, Bethel (Sr., Chanhassen, Minn.)
Rookie of the Year - Erik Nelson, St. Olaf (Fy., Edina, Minn.)
Coach of the Year - Aaron Rushing, Carleton (4th season)
2009 MIAC All-Conference
|
Name
|
School
|
Year
|
Position
|
Hometown/High School
|
|
Travis Adams
|
Bethel
|
Sr.
|
P
|
Chanhassen, Minn./Minnetonka
|
|
Mike DesLauriers
|
Gustavus
|
Sr.
|
INF
|
Minnetonka, Minn./Benilde-St. Margaret's
|
|
Devin English
|
Macalester
|
Jr.
|
3B
|
Annapolis, Md./DeMatha
|
| Nick Fuerst |
St. Olaf |
Sr. |
INF |
Oakdale, Minn./Tartan |
|
Russ Fujisawa
|
Carleton
|
Jr.
|
OF
|
Riverwoods, Ill./Deerfield
|
|
Ethan Guevin
|
Carleton
|
Sr.
|
INF/P
|
Davis, Calif.
|
|
Craig Henry
|
Augsburg
|
Jr.
|
C
|
Lino Lakes, Minn./Centennial
|
|
Kyle Johnson
|
Concordia
|
Sr.
|
C
|
Cambridge, Minn./Cambridge-Isanti
|
| Tyler Johnson |
St. Olaf |
Sr. |
INF |
Chanhassen, Minn./Holy Family |
| Carson Jones |
St. Olaf |
Jr. |
OF |
Farmington, Minn. |
|
Dan Kaczrowski
|
Hamline
|
Sr.
|
SS
|
St. Anthony, Minn.
|
|
Roy Larson
|
St. Thomas
|
Jr.
|
Util.
|
Eagan, Minn.
|
|
Todd Mathison
|
St. Olaf
|
Sr.
|
INF/P
|
Northfield, Minn.
|
|
Jay Melson
|
Carleton
|
Sr.
|
INF
|
Cottage Grove, Minn./Park
|
| Matt Mullendore |
Hamline |
So. |
P |
Amery, Wis. |
|
James Murrey
|
Macalester
|
Jr.
|
P
|
Western Springs, Ill./Lyons Township
|
| Erik Nelson |
St. Olaf |
Fy. |
INF |
Edina, Minn. |
|
Tim Oesterlin
|
Bethel
|
Jr.
|
OF
|
Rochester, Minn./John Marshall
|
| Zach Olberding |
Saint Mary's |
Jr. |
C |
Maplewood, Minn./Roseville |
|
Joe Pierce
|
Augsburg
|
Jr.
|
INF
|
Eden Prairie, Minn.
|
| Louie Salmen |
St. Thomas |
Sr. |
2B |
St. Paul, Minn./Cretin-Derham Hall |
| Brian Schmitz |
St. Thomas |
Sr. |
OF |
Lakeville, Minn./North |
| Matt Schuld |
St. Thomas |
Jr. |
P |
Plymouth, Minn./Robbinsdale Armstrong |
| Scott Schumacher |
Concordia |
Sr. |
INF/P |
Thompson, N.D. |
| Jay Slick |
Bethel |
Fy. |
C |
River Falls, Wis. |
| Nate Wilson-Traisman |
Macalester |
Jr. |
SS |
Eugene, Ore./South Eugene |
| Alex Wirta |
Carleton |
Fy. |
P/INF |
Corte Madera, Calif./Redwood |
2009 All-MIAC Sportsmanship Team
Augsburg - Jon Rudolph (Sr., Elk River, Minn.)
Bethel - Bjorn Anderson (Jr., Arden Hills, Minn./Mounds View)
Carleton - Cam McDonald-Hyman (Sr., Muir Beach, Calif./Tamalpais)
Concordia - Erik Sykora (Sr., Rapid City, S.D./Stevens)
Gustavus - Nate Ruff (Sr., Bloomington, Minn.)
Hamline - Bill Sand (Sr., White Bear Township, Minn./St. Thomas Academy)
Macalester - Alex Ingram (So., Chicago, Ill./Morgan Park Academy)
Saint John's - Mike Krempa (Sr., Burnsville, Minn./Holy Angels)
Saint Mary's - Robbie Johnson (Sr., Lake Elmo, Minn./Stillwater)
St. Olaf - Pat Wadzinski (Sr., Hastings, Minn.)
St. Thomas - Matt McQuillan (So., St. Paul, Minn./Cretin-Derham Hall)