Boston College Athletics
Six Baseball Players Earn BIG EAST Honors
May 26, 2004 | Baseball
May 26, 2004
Led by junior pitcher Chris Lambert, six Boston College baseball players earned BIG EAST postseason honors at the league's annual awards banquet held Wednesday, May 26 in Somerset, N.J.
Lambert (Manchester, N.H./Manchester Memorial) shared Co-Pitcher of the Year honors, while also gaining All-Conference first-team honors for the third straight season. Lambert, who also gained Pitcher of the Year accolades in 2003, joins Connecticut's Charles Nagy and Notre Dame's Aaron Heilman as the only players in BIG EAST history to earn Pitcher of the Year honors twice. The junior posted a 6-4 record, a 3.31 ERA and a .207 opponent batting average this season. He fanned a school single-season record 99 batters and threw two shutouts. He enters the BIG EAST Championship with a BC career-record 274 strikeouts.
Junior outfielder Jason Delaney (Hanson, Mass./BC High) joined Lambert on the All-Conference First Team. Delaney leads all BC regulars with a .381 batting average in all games and a .429 clip in conference action. The junior has hit safely in 42 of 55 games this year, recording 22 multiple-hit games and 14 multiple-RBI contests.
Drew Locke (Weymouth, Mass./BC High) earned BIG EAST Second Team accolades for the second straight year. Locke, a junior outfielder, is batting .279. He has stroked a hit in 38 of his 55 starts, including 18 multiple-hit games.
Senior shortstop Ryan Leahy (Salem, Mass./St. John's Prep) also earned second-team distinction. He bats .324 in all games and .380 in conference action. His 15-game hit streak from March 28 to April 29 is a 2004 Eagle high.
Junior pitcher Kevin Shepard (Andover, Mass./Andover) earned third-team honors for the second straight season. Shepard possesses a 3.51 ERA and 7-4 record. The southpaw has allowed a .252 opponent batting average and has fanned 50 batters in 84.2 innings of work.
Senior catcher Garrett Greer (Peabody, Mass./Peabody) rounded out the list of BC honorees, garnering third-team accolades. The backstop is hitting .303 and has recorded 14 multiple-hit games and 13 multiple-RBI games. He has a team-high 49 RBI.
BC (30-25, 15-9 BIG EAST) has won 16 of its last 22 games, including seven of its last nine conference outings. The Eagles earned the fourth seed in the tournament and will take on top-seeded Notre Dame, the country's seventh-ranked squad, in the first round on Thursday, May 27 at 3:30 p.m. at Commerce Bank Ballpark in Bridgewater, N.J.
2004 BIG EAST Baseball Postseason Award Winners
BIG EAST PLAYER OF THE YEAR
PJ Hiser, Pittsburgh, DH/P, Senior, 6-0, 195, Hagerstown, Md./Hagerstown
BIG EAST CO-PITCHERS OF THE YEAR
Chris Lambert, Boston College, RHP, Junior, 6-1, 205, Manchester, N.H./Manchester Memorial
Nick Evangelista, Pittsburgh, RHP, Senior, 6-4, 215, Shoemakersville, Pa./Louisburg College
BIG EAST ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
Jim Negrych, Pittsburgh, 2B, Freshman, 5-9, 175, Buffalo, N.Y./St. Francis
BIG EAST COACH OF THE YEAR
Joe Jordano, Pittsburgh, Seventh Season (Pittsburgh Record: 198-157-2)
All-BIG EAST First Team
P - Chris Lambert, Boston College, Jr. P - Grant Johnson, Notre Dame, Jr. P - Nick Evangelista, Pittsburgh, Sr. P - Zac Cline, West Virginia, Jr. C - Michael Lombardi, Georgetown, Sr. 1B - Sean O'Brien, Virginia Tech, Fr. 2B - Steve Sollmann, Notre Dame, Sr. SS - Bryan Spamer, Pittsburgh, Sr. 3B - Matt Macri, Notre Dame, Jr. OF - Jason Delaney, Boston College, Jr. OF - Jeff Frazier, Rutgers, Jr. OF - Lee Fritz, West Virginia, Jr. DH - PJ Hiser, Pittsburgh, Sr.
All-BIG EAST Second Team
P - Ryan Doherty, Notre Dame, So. P - Chris Niesel, Notre Dame, Jr. P - Anthony Varvaro, St. John's, So. P - Joey Scott, Seton Hall, Sr. P - Josh Biber, Virginia Tech, Sr. C - Joe Burke, St. John's, Jr. 1B - Tim Pahuta, Seton Hall, Jr. 2B - Jim Negrych, Pittsburgh, Fr. SS - Ryan Leahy, Boston College, Sr. 3B - Chris Stanton, Virginia Tech, Jr. OF - Drew Locke, Boston College, Jr. OF - Craig Cooper, Notre Dame, So. OF - Ben Copeland, Pittsburgh, So. DH - Billy Quinn, Georgetown, Jr.
All-BIG EAST Third Team
Garrett Greer, Boston College, C, Sr. Kevin Shepard, Boston College, P, Jr. Ron Cano, Georgetown, OF, Sr. Greg Lopez, Notre Dame, SS, So. Javi Sanchez, Notre Dame, C, Sr. Tom Cashman, Pittsburgh, 1B, Sr. Graig Badger, Rutgers, 2B, Sr. Jack Egbert, Rutgers, P, Jr. Mike Rozema, St. John's, SS, Sr. Brian Newbold, Villanova, OF, Sr. Warren Schaeffer, Virginia Tech, SS, Fr. Stan Posluszny, West Virginia, OF, So. Grant Psomas, West Virginia, SS, Jr.
The first and second teams are chosen by position, with the third team the remaining top 13 vote recipients, regardless of position. A tie in the voting created an additional pitcher on the second team.
