May 25, 2010
SPARTANBURG, S.C. -
The Southern Conference Sports Media Association (SCSMA) released its All-Conference baseball teams Tuesday, with two Samford players being named to the teams.
David Schulze, Samford's senior left fielder, was named to the first team, while freshman closer Lex Rutledge was named to the second team.
Schulze tied for the SoCon lead in batting with a .387 average. In conference games only, he led the league with a .473 average. He led Samford in home runs with 12 and RBI with 54. He also led the SoCon in on-base percentage at .488, and he ranked sixth in the league in slugging percentage at .657.
Rutledge has tied a Samford record with 11 saves as a freshman. He also has a 5-0 record and a 1.20 ERA in 45.0 innings of work. He leads the Bulldogs with 61 strikeouts, while walking just 15 batters. Rutledge ranks second in the SoCon in saves, and he leads the league in games finished with 27.
The Citadel's Asher Wojciechowski was named the SoCon's Pitcher of the Year while College of Charleston third baseman Matt Leeds has been honored as the Player of the Year by the SCSMA. The Citadel head coach Fred Jordan, who guided his team to the Southern Conference regular season crown, was tabbed as the SoCon Coach of the Year, and Furman second baseman Will Muzika was honored as the Freshman of the Year.
Samford, the No. 5 seed in the upcoming SoCon Tournament, will open the tournament Wednesday evening at 8 p.m. (CDT) against No. 4-seeded Elon. The tournament is being held at Joseph P. Riley Park in Charleston, S.C.
2010 SoCon Sports Media Association Baseball All-Conference Team
Player of the Year - Matt Leeds, So., 3B, College of Charleston
Pitcher of the Year - Asher Wojciechowski, Jr., RHP, The Citadel
Freshman of the Year - Will Muzika, Fr., 2B, Furman
Coach of the Year - Fred Jordan, The Citadel
First Team
SP: Asher Wojciechowski, The Citadel
SP: Jimmy Reyes, Elon
RP: Chris Patterson, Appalachian State
C: Rob Kral, College of Charleston
1B: Kyle Blackburn, Georgia Southern
2B: Wes Hobson, Appalachian State
SS: Neal Pritchard, Elon
3B: Matt Leeds, College of Charleston
OF: David Schulze, Samford
OF: Cole Rakar, College of Charleston
OF: Jose Rodriguez, College of Charleston
DH: Mac Doyle, Wofford
Second Team
SP: Kevin Decker, College of Charleston
SP: Matt Benedict, Western Carolina
RP: Lex Rutledge, Samford
C: Mike Melillo, Elon
1B: Greg Blake, College of Charleston
2B: Bryan Altman, The Citadel
SS: Eric Phillips, Georgia Southern
3B: Kyle Behrendt, Wofford
OF: Matt Hinson, Elon
OF: Shawn Payne, Georgia Southern
OF: Trevor Collias, Western Carolina
DH: Jerod Faggart, Appalachian State
