SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Three Southern Conference baseball players earned spots on the 2015 Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-District IV Baseball Team, which recognizes the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performances athletically and in the classroom. Mercer’s Howard Joe and Wofford’s James Plaisted and Matt Ramsay were named to the team and will now appear on the ballot for Academic All-America consideration.
To be eligible for Academic All-America consideration, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative grade point average of 3.30 on a scale of 4.00 and have reached sophomore athletic and academic status.
Joe, an economics major, has posted a .279 batting average with six home runs and 32 RBIs this season for an offense that ranks among the SoCon's best in runs per game and home runs. The Dunwoody, Georgia, native has lived up to his billing as a Preseason All-Southern Conference Second Team selection, compiling 11 multiple-hit performances, including a career-high four hits last Sunday to lead the Bears to a sweep of VMI.
The 6-foot-3 first baseman's inclusion on the list marks the eighth time that a member of the Bears' baseball program has earned the honor in the past six years. Billy Burns and Derrick Workman each were two-time recipients, while Evan Boyd (2012) Michael Massi (2014) and Jacob Tanis (2011) also received recognition.
Mercer heads into its bye week in the conference schedule and will be off until next Tuesday, when it takes on Alabama at Joe Davis Stadium in Huntsville, Ala. First pitch is set for 7:30 p.m. EDT.
Plaisted, a senior from Tullahoma, Tennessee, has started all 50 games this season in the outfield. He is seventh in the Southern Conference with a .355 batting average and is third in runs scored with 49. He is second among conference leaders in doubles, fifth in hits, sixth in on-base percentage, ninth in total bases and first in sacrifice flies. For his career, he has played in 190 games to rank 11th in school history. A biology major, he will attend dental school at the University of Tennessee in the fall.
Ramsay, a senior from Hudson, Ohio, has 49 starts this season with 39 as the designated hitter and 10 in the outfield. Among SoCon leaders, he is third in batting average at .370 and is second in on-base percentage. He is also second in the league in hits with 70, eighth in runs scored and fourth in walks received. In his career, he has played in 152 games with 130 starts. He is a double-major in economics and finance.
They are the first Wofford baseball student-athletes to be honored since Kyle Behrendt in 2008.
The Capital One Academic All-District team is selected by members of the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). Mercer and Wofford are in the fourth district, which includes schools in Alabama, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida.