The North Carolina Collegiate Sports Information Association (NCCSIA) announced its selections for the 2013 College Division All-State Baseball Teams on Wednesday. Twenty-five players representing nine different North Carolina Universities and Colleges were named to the 2013 NCCSIA College Division All-State Teams.
Leading the way was Mount Olive, who tallied five first-team selections. The Trojans finished with a 48-8 record in 2013 en route to both the Conference Carolinas Regular Season and Tournament Championships. UNC Pembroke has three first-team selections while Saint Augustine’s, Catawba College, Winston-Salem State, Wingate and Guilford College all have one selection.
Spearheading the Trojans’ selections were senior catcher Geno Escalante and senior infielder Mike Mercurio. Escalante was named the 2013 Rawlings/ABCA National Gold Glove Defensive Player of the Year. He is an NCBWA All-American and finished with a .353 batting average in addition to 10 home runs and 47 RBI on the season. Mercurio, a D-II All-American, batted .358 on the year with seven home runs and 57 runs batted in while being named the 2013 Conference Carolinas Player of the Year.
Rounding out the all-state first-teamers for the Trojans include sophomore starting pitcher Alex Regan, junior relief pitcher Chris Orphanos and junior designated hitter Bradon Reitano.
Regan, a consensus All-American, went 14-1 on the year with a 1.81 earned run average and 68 strikeouts. Regan also tied for first nationally in victories while Orphanos earned an 8-2 mark on the year with five victories coming in relief. Reitano hit .361 on the season with 10 home runs and 62 RBI en route to All-American accolades by both the ABCA and the NCBWA. Reitano’s 65 runs scored ranked fifth in the nation as well.
UNC Pembroke’s three first-team selections are senior starting pitcher Ethan Carter, junior relief pitcher Patrick Mahon and sophomore infielder Jordan Edgerton.
Carter finished with a 9-1 record to go along with a 1.36 earned run average and 69 strikeouts. For his efforts, Carter was named the Peach Belt and Southeast Region Pitcher Of The Year and earned NCAA Division II All-American honors by both the NCBWA and Daktronics.
Mahon was 5-0 with five saves and threw two shutouts before moving into a reliever’s role while Edgerton led the nation in hits (94) and finished with nine home runs and 56 runs batted in. Edgerton was also named to three different All-American Teams (NCBWA, Daktronics and ABCA).
The remaining first-team all-state infielders include St. Augustine’s senior Ariel Polanco and Catawba junior Chris Dula. Polanco was the CIAA Player of the Year, finishing with a .414 batting average four home runs, 46 RBI and 20 stolen bases. Dula was the South Atlantic Conference and the Daktronics Southeast Region Player of the Year in 2013 after claiming the league’s Triple Crown (.402, 14, 54). Dula was also a First-Team All-American and ranked in the top ten nationally in home runs and slugging percentage (.728) while leading the Indians to the conference regular season title.
Rounding out the first-team are the outfielders John Macon Smith of Guilford College, Thomas Spitz of Wingate and Travis Moore of Winston-Salem State.
Smith was a 2013 All-ODAC first-team pick after leading the squad in batting (.392), runs (36), hits (58), RBI (33) and stolen bases (13). Spitz placed first on the team in batting average (.351), hits (72), runs (46) and triples (seven). Spitz, a 2013 All-SAC First-Team honoree, led the Bulldogs to a school-record 20 conference victories.
Moore was a third-team All-American and Tino Martinez Award finalist who led the Rams to their third straight CIAA Championship and NCAA Division II Playoff appearance. Moore, a first-team All-Atlantic Regional pick, batted .399 on the year with 65 runs scored, 79 hits and 45 stolen bases.
The NCCSIA All-State second-team is comprised of Catawba College’s Nick Lomascolo, Ryan McClintock and Blake Houston, Guilford College’s Kent Peterson and Corey Wallace, UNC Pembroke’s Zade Denton and Ben Schmucker, Wingate’s Olen Little, Saint Augustine’s Clarence Peace, Mount Olive’s Jermaine Berry, Lenoir-Rhyne’s Ivan Vieitez and Winston-Salem State’s Tyler Hickernell.
Nominees were submitted by North Carolina sports information professionals and voted on by the NCCSIA members.
Founded in 2002, The North Carolina Collegiate Sports Information Association (NCCSIA) is comprised of sports information professionals from NCAA Division I, II, III, NAIA and independent institutions from the state of North Carolina. The purpose of the organization is to promote collegiate athletics at all schools. Membership is open to anyone affiliated with a college, university or conference located in North Carolina, and whose area of responsibility lies within sports information.
NCCSSIA selects all-state teams in the University (Division I) and College (Division II, III, NAIA) divisions for men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s soccer, volleyball, softball and baseball.
North Carolina Collegiate Sports Information Association – 2013 College Division All-State Baseball Teams
First Team Pos. Name Class School Hometown SP Ethan Carter Sr. UNC Pembroke Newport News, Va. SP Alex Regan So. Mount Olive College Calgary, Alberta, Canada RP Patrick McMahon Jr. UNC Pembroke Charlotte, N.C. RP Chris Orphanos Jr. Mount Olive College Murfreesboro, N.C. C Geno Escalante & Sr. Mount Olive College Fairfield, Calif. IF Ariel Polanco Sr. Saint Augustine's University Harlem, N.Y. IF Jordan Edgerton So. UNC Pembroke Mount Holly, N.C. IF Chris Dula % Jr. Catawba College Troutman, N.C. IF Mike Mercurio & Sr. Mount Olive College Brewster, N.Y. OF Travis Moore So. Winston-Salem State University Greensboro, N.C. OF Thomas Spitz So. Wingate University West Chester, Pa. OF John Macon Smith Jr. Guilford College Greensboro, N.C. DH Bradon Reitano Jr. Mount Olive College Hillsborough, N.C. Second Team Pos. Name Class School Hometown SP Olen Little Jr. Wingate University Charlotte, N.C. SP Nick Lomascolo % Sr. Catawba College Mooresville, N.C. RP Ryan McClintock Jr. Catawba College Matthews, N.C. C Clarence Peace Jr. Saint Augustine's University Creedmoor, N.C. IF Kent Peterson Sr. Guilford College Albemarle, N.C. IF Jermaine Berry & Sr. Mount Olive College Suffolk, Va. IF Corey Wallace Jr. Guilford College Rockingham, N.C. IF Zade Denton So. UNC Pembroke Gastonia, N.C. OF Blake Houston So. Catawba College Mount Ulla, N.C. OF Ben Schmucker So. UNC Pembroke Greensboro, N.C. OF Ivan Vieitez So. Lenoir-Rhyne University Miami, Fla. DH Tyler Hickernell Sr. Winston-Salem State University Thomasville, N.C. & - Named to 2012 All-State Team % - Named to 2011 All-State Team
I am baffled as to why Matt Dillon (Mt Olive)is not on either one of these teams…2-time Pitcher of the Year in Conference Carolinas with an 11-1 record and sub 2 ERA and 108K on a team that was #1 in the nation most of the year must not be good enough.
Dillon probably was hurt by his college getting 5 players on both teams. I suspect that if he is as good as you say he is, he will be recognized elsewhere. Sometimes, these lists can be the last time some players are recognized.