Aldrich Tabbed 2012 Louisville Slugger Preseason First Team All-American
TUCSON, Ariz. - College of Charleston slugger Daniel Aldrich was named a Louisville Slugger preseason first team All-American, as announced on Tuesday by Collegiate Baseball newspaper.
Tuesday's announcement continued a strong week for College of Charleston baseball as the Cougars were picked 32nd in Monday's Collegiate Baseball preseason poll, and Aldrich was tabbed a first team All-American by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) last Wednesday.
Aldrich was one of three players from the Southern Conference to be selected for the first team, joining Georgia Southern's Victor Roache and Western Carolina's Ross Heffley. Georgia Southern's Chris Beck was named to the third team.
A native of Mt. Pleasant, S.C., Aldrich earned 2011 Freshman Player of the Year honors from the NCBWA, Southern Conference and Collegiate Baseball while making the All-American squads from Louisville Slugger, Baseball America, NCBWA, ABCA/Rawlings and the CBI.
A redshirt-sophomore, Aldrich led all Division I freshmen with 22 home runs in 2011 while blasting 73 RBIs and boasting a slugging percentage of .739 and batting average of .347. He finished with 25 multi-hit games and sported a team-best 17-game hitting streak in February and March. Aldrich won the 2011 TD Ameritrade Home Run Derby in Omaha, Neb., last summer.
WCU's Ross Heffley Named Preseason All-American Senior infielder honored by Collegiate Baseball newspaper
Cullowhee, N.C. - Western Carolina senior infielder Ross Heffley was today named to the 2012 Louisville Slugger Pre-Season All-American first team as selected and released by Collegiate Baseball newspaper. It is the second such preseason All-America honor for Heffley who was a third team selection prior to the 2010 season.
Heffley is one of four from the Southern Conference named preseason All-America by Collegiate Baseball. Joining the Catamount infielder on the first team were outfielders Victor Roache from Georgia Southern and Daniel Aldrich from the College of Charleston. GSU had another player selected as RHP Chris Beck was named to the third team.
A native of Snellville, Ga., Heffley is coming off a career season in which he paced both the squad and the SoCon in batting average at .419 - the only player above the minimums in the league to crest the .400 average mark - and in on-base percentage at .483. He picked up first team Louisville Slugger All-American honors from Collegiate Baseball at the end of last season, as well as first team plaudits from the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) and second team accolades from CollegeBaseballInsider.com.
Heffley was also picked up ABCA All-Atlantic Region team honors following the 2011 campaign.
A first team All-SoCon selection a season ago, Heffley became the first Catamount since 2007 - and just the 14th since 1961 - to win the school's Triple Crown for leading the team in batting average, home runs (11) and RBI (65). He additionally reached base safely (H, BB, HBP) in 51 of the 53 games in which he played including a stretch of 38-straight games to conclude the season.
Heffley enters his senior season ranked on numerous WCU offensive career charts including base hits (274, 7th), RBI (179, 9th) and doubles (51, 13th). He is just 62 hits shy of matching Barrett Shaft's school-record 336 set from 2005-08, while his.390 career batting average ranks as the second-best career average in WCU history.
Western Carolina opens preparations for the 2012 season after students return to campus in early January with the 55-game regular season opening with a three-game home series against Fordham on February 17-19 at Childress Field / Hennon Stadium.
Two Eagles Named All-Americans by Collegiate Baseball
Roache selected to the first team while Beck was a third-team member
STATESBORO, Ga. - Two Georgia Southern Eagles were named Louisville Slugger TPX Preseason All-Americans by Collegiate Baseball. Victor Roache, who has been a consensus preseason first team selection, was again selected to the first team. Making his first All-American team of the preseason, Chris Beck was tabbed to the third team.
Joining a first team that includes two other players from the Southern Conference, Roache hit .326/.438/.778 with a NCAA best 30 home runs. The junior outfielder had a breakout season last year, which didn't end with the Columbia Regional. The Ypsilanti, Mich., native was a participant in the Cape Cod League All-Star Game and the College Baseball Home Run Derby.
Beck led the Southern Conference in wins with nine, struck out a league best 109 and pitched a complete game shutout on two days' rest to earn the Eagles the 2011 SoCon Tournament Title and a trip to the NCAA Columbia Regional. The Jefferson, Ga., native went 9-5 with a 3.23 ERA in 19 starts last year.
Tickets for the 2012 baseball season will go on sale in mid-January through the Georgia Southern Athletic Ticket Office. The regular season opens on February 17th with UT Martin and includes dates with
#9 Georgia Tech, College of Charleston, Jacksonville and Western Carolina, who all had at least one representative on the All-American list.