2015 WAC Baseball Awards Reception Photos
MESA, Ariz. - The Western Athletic Conference has announced its All-WAC baseball teams and major awards as selected by the league's 10 head coaches. Northern Colorado's Jensen Park was named WAC Player of the Year while Bakersfield's Hayden Carter took home WAC Pitcher of the Year. Grand Canyon's Garrison Schwartz was named WAC Freshman of the Year and Bakersfield skipper Bill Kernen was named WAC Coach of the Year.
Park, a senior outfielder from Kaneohe, Hawai'I (‘Iolani HS), posted a .515 batting average in WAC play, the highest since Air Force's Glenn Harris hit .526 in 1994, as he earned WAC Player of the Year honors. He also led the league in slugging percentage (.778), on base percentage (.560), hits (51) and total bases (77). Park earned WAC Player of the Week honors for the week of March 30 to April 5.
Carter, a senior right-hander from San Diego, Calif. (Vista HS), went 5-1 in nine appearances for the Roadrunners, posting a 1.83 ERA en route to WAC Pitcher of the Year honors. He threw a league-high 69 innings, averaging seven and two-third innings per game. Not only did he go the distance but he was also among the most effective pitchers in the league, allowing just 1.30 walks per game and a league-low 1.96 runs per game.
Schwartz, a freshman outfielder from Chandler, Ariz. (Desert Vista HS), was seventh in the league in batting as he was named WAC Freshman of the Year. Hitting .396 in WAC play, he recorded 22 RBIs and four sacrifice flies at the plate. He was also impressive on defense, posting a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage in the outfield.
In his seventh season leading the Roadrunners, Kernen earned WAC Coach of the Year honors for the second time in three seasons, also having earned the award in 2013. This season, he led Bakersfield to its third straight WAC Tournament, going 17-9-1 in conference play to earn the second seed. He recently had his number 17 retired by the Roadrunners, the first number in any sport at Bakersfield to be retired.
2015 First Team All-WAC
Catcher: Brian Olson, Sr., Seattle U
First Base: Matt Schmidt, Sr., Chicago State
Second Base: Chad De La Guerra, Sr., Grand Canyon
Third Base: Ben Mauseth, So., Grand Canyon
Shortstop: Paul Panaccione, Jr., Grand Canyon
Outfield: Jensen Park, Sr., Northern Colorado
Outfield: Jeff Campbell, Sr., North Dakota
Outfield: Nathan Lukes, Jr., Sacramento State
Starting Pitcher: Hayden Carter, Sr., Bakersfield
Starting Pitcher: James Barragan, Sr., Bakersfield
Relief Pitcher: Ty Nichols, Sr., Sacramento State
At-Large: Joey Sanchez, So., Bakersfield
At-Large: David Metzgar, So., Bakersfield
At-Large: Brennan Leitao, Sr., Sacramento State
2015 Second Team All-WAC
Catcher: Humberto Aranda, Sr., Grand Canyon
First Base: Ryan Reese, Sr., North Dakota
Second Base: Mattingly Romanin, Sr., Chicago State
Third Base: Brandon Vaughn, Sr., Northern Colorado
Shortstop: Tyler Follis, Sr., North Dakota
Outfield: Garrison Schwartz, Fr., Grand Canyon
Outfield: Kade Andrus, Sr., Utah Valley
Outfield: Logan Landon, Sr., Texas-Pan American
Starting Pitcher: Skyler Genger, Jr., Seattle U
Starting Pitcher: Tarik Skubal, Fr., Seattle U
Relief Pitcher: Mick Vorhof, Fr., Grand Canyon
At-Large: Scotty Burcham, Sr., SS, Sacramento State
At-Large: Cameron Haskins, Sr., New Mexico State
At-Large: Max Carter, So., Bakersfield
WAC Player of the Year: Jensen Park, Sr., OF, Northern Colorado
WAC Pitcher of the Year: Hayden Carter, Sr., Bakersfield
WAC Freshman of the Year: Garrison Schwartz, OF, Grand Canyon
WAC Coach of the Year: Bill Kernen, Bakersfield