All-PSAC Teams
LOCK HAVEN, Pa. - The 2008 PSAC Western Division champion Shippensburg University baseball team swept three of the four post-season awards handed out by the conference on Thursday as the Red Raiders took home the division player, pitcher and coach of the year honors. The team also had seven All-PSAC Western Division selections, the second most of any West school.
Senior Justin Garber was named PSAC Western Division Player of the Year, junior Matt Wright was named Pitcher of the Year for the second-straight season and head coach Matt Jones was named Coach of the Year.
In addition, Garber and Wright both earned All-PSAC Western Division First Team selections along with junior Kyle Rhoades and junior Tim Freshour. Members of the second team included sophomore Kevin Scholly, sophomore Rick Shumway and junior Tyler Redick.
A three-time All-PSAC Western Division First Team selection, Garber has had one of the best seasons and careers in school history. In 53 games this season, he has tied the school record for hits in a season with 91, a mark that also is tops in the PSAC, while recording a .440 average, the third-best total in school history.
Garber also ranks third in the PSAC this season with a .496 on-base percentage and fourth with 54 runs and a .643 slugging percentage. He has also addd 12 doubles, four triples and seven home runs, all team-highs, while ranking third in RBIs with 38.
For his career, Garber is currently tied with Chad Stecker '05 for the school record in games played at 196. Earlier this season, Garber broke Stecker's career hits record and now has 274 leaving him 10 shy of the all-time PSAC record.
Garber is the first Red Raider to be named player of the year since Matt DeSanto '03 was named PSAC Eastern Division Player of the Year in 2003.
Wright picks up his third career postseason honor from the conference after earning PSAC Western Division Pitcher of the Year honors the last two seasons and PSAC Western Division Rookie of the Year honors in 2006.
A three-time All-PSAC Western Division First Team selection, Wright set a new school record in strikeouts this season with 120 and set a new career record as well with 302. He is one of only three players in the PSAC to reach 300 career strikeouts.
Shippensburg is the only school that has won the PSAC Western Division Pitcher of the Year award since its inception in 2006 after Nathan Starner '06 earned the honor in its inaugural season.
In addition to leading the team and PSAC in strikeouts this season, Wright is also second with six wins and 77.0 innings pitched. He is also second in the conference in innings pitched and games started at 12 while limiting opponents to a PSAC-best .187 batting average.
Through 40 career games and 33 starts, Wright is currently ranked ninth in school history with 19 wins while ranking fifth with 223.0 innings pitched. His current career ERA of 2.30 is the third-best mark in school history.
For Jones, he receives his fourth coach of the year honor in nine seasons as a college head coach. During seven seasons at Division III Elizabethtown, Jones was named conference coach of the year in 2000 and 2001 and was honored as the MABCA Pennsylvania College Coach of the Year in 2000.
In two seasons at Shippensburg, Jones has led the Red Raiders to 62 wins, the PSAC championship in 2007 and a PSAC Western Division title this year. Earlier this season, he reached his 200th collegiate victory with a doubleheader sweep at Clarion on April 6 and now has 210.
Rhoades receives his first conference honor after batting .333 with 11, doubles, 37 runs and 28 RBIs. His 68 hits were third-most on the team behind Garber's school record 91 and Redick's 82 while ranking him eighth in the PSAC.
In 55 games, all starts, Rhoades led the conference with 10 sacrifice bunts and was second in plate appearances with 242 and fifth in at-bats with 204. He was also fifth in the PSAC in fielding percentage at .981, committing just four errors in 210 chances at second base while ranking sixth in assists with 123.
After appearing in just 14 games a year ago while making four relief appearances, Freshour burst onto the scene as one of the top pitchers in the PSAC this season, earning his first All-PSAC Western Division selection.
In 13 appearances this season, Freshour leads the conference with 13 starts, nine wins, nine complete games, three shutouts and 82.1 innings pitched. In addition, he is also hitting .265 this season which includes a mark of .333 in 13 games in the outfield.
Redick earns his third consecutive All-PSAC Western Division Second Team selection after posting one of the best all-around seasons in school history.
The only Red Raider to appear in and start all 57 games this season, Redick has set a new school record in at-bats with 217 while ranking third in hits with 82. He leads the PSAC in at-bats and ranks third in hits and plate appearances with 241.
Through 158 career games, Redick has totaled 199 hits to rank sixth on the school's career list.
In addition to his offensive numbers, Redick has also been one of the team's top pitchers, totaling a 2-0 record and one save in six relief appearances. He has allowed only one earned run in 6.2 innings pitched for a 1.35 ERA.
After appearing in just nine games last season, Scholly has filled the team's need for a starter at first base to replace Scott Goss '07. Through 56 games, he is hitting .287 with 32 RBIs while leading the PSAC with 34 walks and six sacrifice flies. Scholly is also fifth in the conference in chances with 312 and sixth in putouts with 271.
In his first season with the Red Raiders since transferring back to his hometown from West Chester, Shumway provided an immediate contribution and is currently ranked second on the team with a .396 average and 49 runs. He is also second behind Scholly in walks with 26.
Shumway is also second in the PSAC with 20 stolen bases, fifth with a .492 on-base percentage, seventh in runs scored and eighth in batting average.
Shippensburg was ranked fifth in the NCAA Division II North Atlantic Region rankings released on Wednesday and is hoping to make its seventh regional championship appearance in the last 13 seasons.
Selections for this year's six-team North Atlantic Region Championship will be released by the NCAA on Sunday.
