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Tusculum Listed No. 3 in Baseball America
Top 10 |
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Courtesy Tusculum College Sports Information Office DURHAM, N.C. --- Tusculum College is ranked third in the country according to the 2006 Baseball America Division II Top 10 announced College officials Tuesday. Tusculum returns 24 lettermen, including seven starters and most of the pitching staff from last season’s 44-17 squad including South Atlantic Conference Pitcher of the Year Brent Gabel. Gabel and senior Skip Talarek were named to the 2006 Baseball America Preseason All-America Team. Gabel, a 6-2, 175-pound senior from Conneautville, Pa. posted an impressive 10-1 record last year at Tusculum and is also a Preseason All-America selection by the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper. Gabel was named to the 2005 All-America Third Team by the National Baseball Writers Association of America (NCBWA). Gabel was also tabbed to the 2005 All-South Region First Team for both the NCBWA and the American Baseball Coaches' Association, and was an All-SAC First Team honoree. Talarek, a Great Falls, Va. product, is a two-time All-South Atlantic Conference selection and was also a Preseason All-American pick by the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper. Talarek was named to the NCBWA All-South Region squad and led the Pioneers in hitting .410 last year, while establishing school single-season records with 68 runs scored, 68 runs batted in and drew 47 walks. His .531 on-base percentage was also the best in school history. Talarek hit .308 at the NCAA Division II South Regional where he was named to the All-Tournament squad. The top three teams at last year's NCAA II South Region Tournament hold the top three spots in the national top 10. Defending national champion Florida Southern is listed No. 1, while South Region runner-up Tampa is second. FSC defeated Tusculum 9-8 in the second round of the tournament en route to claiming its fifth national title. TC defeated Tampa 3-0 in the opening round, but fell to the Spartans 7-6 in the region elimination bracket final. Central Missouri State is listed No. 4, while West Virginia State rounds out the top five. Tusculum and WVSC split a doubleheader last May. Delta State is sixth, followed by Franklin Pierce, Grand Valley State, Central Oklahoma and Sonoma State. Baseball America also released its top 10 prospects for the 2006 Major League Baseball Draft. Once again, Tusculum was the only program to have multiple honorees named to this prestigious list. Gabel is ninth on the list, while Tusculum newcomer Kevin Hammons is seventh. Hammons, a 6-5, 185-pound left-handed pitcher, will be in his first season at TC following a successful two years at Cleveland State Community College. He was selected in the 34th round by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 2005 MLB First-Year Player Draft. While at CSCC, he was named the 2005 TJCCAA Pitcher of the Year as he posted a 2.20 ERA and a 7-4 record on the mound. In his 13 appearances, he tossed seven complete games, struck out 87 and limited the opposition to hit only .173 against him. The Pioneers will open the 2006 season on Feb. 3 when they travel to Savannah, Ga. to face No. 14 Armstrong Atlantic State University. 2006 Baseball America NCAA Division II
Top Ten: 2006 Baseball America NCAA Division II
Preseason All-America Team: Baseball America Top Division II Prospects
(2006 Draft) |
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