WILMINGTON, N.C. – The William and Mary baseball team had 12 members claim 13 all-Colonial Athletic Association awards announced at the pre-tournament banquet on Tuesday night in Wilmington, North Carolina. The awards were highlighted by junior
Michael Katz being named CAA Player of the Year, while head coach
Brian Murphy was named CAA Coach of the Year.
Katz was joined on the first team by classmate Nick Thompson and sophomores Ryan Hissey, Charley Gould, and Joseph Gaouette. Seniors Ryan Lindemuth and Kevin Casey, along with junior Jason Inghram were named to the second team, while senior Derek Lowe earned third team honors. Freshman Tim Hoehn took home an all-rookie team selection, and senior Kevin Nutter was an all-academic team honoree. The College's five first-team selections were the most in the league.
After being promoted to head coach in December, Murphy never skipped a beat and helped the Tribe to one of its most successful regular seasons in school history. Under his guidance, the Green and Gold captured its first-ever CAA regular season title, while posting a 32-20 overall mark, and a 15-5 record in league action. The Tribe also ranks in the top 10 nationally in 10 offensive categories, while 12 players earned all-conference awards this season.
Katz has been the Tribe's offensive catalyst all season long and ranks among the league and nation's best hitters. He leads the country in two offensive categories, RBIs (72) and RBIs per game (1.38). He also ranks in the top 10 nationally in eight other categories. He finished the regular season with a .372 batting average, with 62 runs scored, 24 doubles, one triple, 14 homers, and 72 RBIs. His 72 RBIs rank tied for first in school history, while he is three doubles short of the school record. The Falls Church, Virginia native has also been named a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes Award and the Dick Howser Trophy. Earlier in the season, Katz was named national player of the week for the weeks of March 17 and 24.
In his first season with the Tribe, Thompson has made an immediate impact. Thompson leads the Tribe and the CAA with a .381 batting average. He finished the regular season with 66 runs scored (leads the country), 82 hits, 13 doubles, 11 homers, and 35 RBIs. He also has been versatile in the field, playing in the outfield and at third base. He has only made one error and posted a .990 fielding percentage. He also earned league player of the week honors twice during the season. Along with Katz, he started all 52 games this season.
After fighting off an early season injury, Hissey returned to be a first-team all-CAA performer. Hissey has batted .305 for the season with seven doubles, two triples, seven home runs, and 37 RBIs. He has been even more impressive in CAA play, finishing the conference slate with a .378 batting average, five doubles, two triples, six homers, and 30 RBIs. A solid defense catcher, he has thrown out 10 potential base stealers. Earlier in the season, he was named to the Johnny Bench Award Watch List, which is awarded to the nation's best catcher.
Gould earned CAA First-Team honors at the designated hitter position. Gould ranked third on both the team and in the league with a .343 batting average. He added 14 doubles, seven homers, and 41 RBIs. In a game against Iona, the Lake Forest, Illinois native drove a school record 11 RBIs, which is the most in the country in a game this season. For the week of March 17 he was named an NCAA Top Performer. Gould has had eight multi-RBI games, including three games with five, or more, RBIs.
The Tribe's final first-team selection was Gaouette. The sophomore appeared in a team-high 24 games, making one start. He finished the season with a 1.32 ERA, tossing 47.2 innings, with just seven earned runs. He has four saves with 50 strikeouts. He posted a 0.35 ERA in league play, throwing 25.2 innings and fanning 29. On two occasions this season, he had nine strikeouts in relief appearances.
Lindemuth earned All-CAA honors for the third time in his career with his second team selection. The Burke, Va. native, who has been a staple in the Tribe lineup over the past four seasons, finished the regular season batting .297. He totaled 11 doubles, two triples, six homers, 34 RBIs, but missed the last 12 games of the season with an injury. At the time of the injury, Lindemuth was leading the country with 210 consecutive starts. He has also reached base safely in his last 34 games.
Casey was named to the second team as a utility player. A true utility player, the Cherry Hill, New Jersey native has played multiple positions, including pitcher this season for the Tribe. Casey posted a .300 batting average with 15 doubles, two triples, two homers, and 30 RBIs. On the mound, he has had a 4.50 ERA, a 3-3 record, with 25 strikeouts, and a team-high five saves. In the series against Northeastern he drove in all three game-winning runs, while picking up a win on Sunday. For his effort that weekend, he was named CAA Player of the Week on April 21.
Inghram was named to the second team as a starting pitcher. The southpaw finished the regular season as the league leader in wins (9) and innings pitched (102.2). He posted a 2.54 ERA, allowing only 28 earned runs and striking out 88 batters. The Chesapeake, Virginia native posted 11 quality starts (six innings pitched and less then three runs allowed) in his 14 outings this season. To date, his 3.00 career ERA is the best in school history, among pitchers who have thrown, at least, 100 innings.
Lowe wrapped up a strong senior season by earning his first all-conference honor. He finished the season with a .281 batting average, score 38 runs, collected 48 hits, seven doubles, and 27 RBIs. A strong defensive centerfielder, Lowe posted a .978 fielding percentage, including two outfield assists. He finished the season with 11 multi-hit games, while adding six multi-RBI games. He is tied for the longest overall hitting streak on the team with a 13-game streak earlier this season.
Hoehn garnered all-rookie honors after a stellar first season of college baseball. The Morristown, New Jersey native finished the campaign hitting .265 with 53 hits, 19 doubles, three triples, two home runs and 29 RBIs. His 19 doubles rank him second in the conference and 26th in the country, while his three triples rank him tied for fifth-best in the league. Hoehn appeared in all but one game this season, all of which were starts.
The final Tribe award winner was Nutter, who was named to the all-academic team after an outstanding semester on the field and in the classroom. Nutter batted .290 with 12 doubles and 31 RBIs for the regular season. In the 23-inning game against Charleston, he tied an NCAA record with 10 at-bats. In the classroom, he finished his degree in accounting. Throughout his academic career he earned multiple Provost Awards (3.5 GPA, or better). Earlier this year, he was named to CoSIDA's Capital One Academic All-District squad.
W&M, which claimed its first-ever CAA regular season title, begins the CAA Tournament on Thursday, May 22. W&M will play the winner of No. 4 Delaware or No. 5 Northeastern at Brooks Field in Wilmington, N.C. First pitch is set for noon.
