2008 NCAA Division I All-Independent Baseball Team

2008 NCAA Division I All-Independent Baseball Team
For Immediate Release - June 2, 2008
Contact: Greg Prouty - 434.395.2097
FARMVILLE, Va. -- Le Moyne College outfielder Chris Edmondson has been selected as the Division I Independent Baseball Player of the
Year, teammate and right-hander Eric Beaulac was chosen as Pitcher of the Year, Dallas Baptist University head coach Dan Heefner is the Coach
of the Year, and NYIT third baseman Effrey Valdez was picked as the Newcomer of the Year. Voting was conducted among both the head coaches
and sports information directors at the Independent schools for selecting the 2008 Division I All-Independent Baseball Team.
Edmondson, a sophomore from Johnson City, New York, hit .367 with 14 home runs, 22 doubles, 64 RBI, and a .745 slugging percentage
while leading Le Moyne to a record of 33-21. He led all Independent players in slugging percentage, RBI, doubles, triples (5), and total bases (146).
A le-handed slugger, Edmondson tied a school-record with 14 home runs as well while ranking second among the Independent players.
Beaulac, a junior from Troy, New York, was 9-2 on the mound with a 2.83 ERA through 92.1 innings with a school-record 113 strikeouts
(11.01) for the Dolphins. He led all Independent pitchers in ERA, strikeouts, and opposing batting average (.170), while second in innings and
wins. Beaulac tossed a no-hitter against Rider during a 1-0 shutout on May 10.
Heefner led Dallas Baptist to a record of 37-19 in his first year as head coach, including an at-large invitation to the NCAA Tournament for
the first time in school history. The Patriots earned a #2 seed for last weekend’s NCAA Regional in College Station, Texas before falling 9-5 to
Houston and 9-5 to Illinois-Chicago. DBU was the first Independent team since Miami (Fla.) in 1992 to attain an NCAA Regional bid.
Valdez, a redshirt-freshman from Flushing, New York, hit .332 with 10 home runs, eight doubles, and 44 RBI for NYIT.
The complete All-Independent Team is listed below, while the 2008 Independent Baseball All-Academic Team follows on the next page.
FIRST TEAM
Position Name, School Year Hometown Statistics
First Base Chad Murray, Northern Colorado Senior Littleton, Colorado .370, 5 HR, 19 2B, 53 RBI, 0-1 SB
Second Base Ryan Goins, Dallas Baptist Sophomore Round Rock, Texas .357, 10 HR, 14 2B, 44 RBI, 6-8 SB
ird Base Trevor Head, Dallas Baptist Junior Colleyville, Texas .329, 16 HR, 16 2B, 55 RBI, 2-3 SB
Shortstop Matt Nandin, Le Moyne Junior North Syracuse, New York .341, 13 2B, 34 RBI, 11-16 SB
Outfield Scott Croshaw, Utah Valley Senior Redmond, Washington .351, 3 HR, 14 2B, 41 RBI, 6-11 SB
Outfield Chris Edmondson, Le Moyne Sophomore Johnson City, New York .367, 14 HR, 22 2B, 64 RBI, 3-7 SB
Outfield Roly Gonzalez, Texas-Pan American Senior Miami, Florida .332, 9 2B, 29 RBI. 46-55 SB
Catcher Phil St. Amant, Le Moyne Senior Brockport, New York .343, 7 HR, 18 2B, 40 RBI, 2-3 SB
DH/Utility Kevin Sandberg, Northern Colorado Junior Aurora, Colorado .332, 11 HR, 22 2B, 58 RBI
Starting Pitcher Eric Beaulac, Le Moyne Junior Troy, New York 9-2, 2.83 ERA, 92.1 IP, 113K
Starting Pitcher Marcus Moore, Utah Valley Senior Roy, Utah 10-5, 2.86 ERA, 113.1 IP, 97K
Relief Pitcher Tyson Bagley, Dallas Baptist Senior Bakersfield, California 4-2, 11 saves, 2.56 ERA, 38.2 IP, 56K
SECOND TEAM
Position Name, School Year Hometown Statistics
First Base Corey O'Neill, Le Moyne Senior Pittsford, New York .330, 11 HR, 15 2B, 48 RBI, 3-4 SB
Second Base Michael Higa, Hawaii Hilo Senior Waipahu, Hawaii .407, 2 HR, 9 2B, 22 RBI, 8-13 SB
ird Base Effrey Valdez, NYIT R-Freshman Flushing, New York .332, 10 HR, 8 2B, 44 RBI, 5-6 SB
Shortstop Brandon Javis, Savannah State Junior Columbia, South Carolina .326, 5 HR, 14 2B, 31 RBI, 5-9 SB
Outfield Evan Bigley, Dallas Baptist Junior Lancaster, Texas .333. 13 HR, 20 2B, 58 RBI, 13-16 SB
Outfield Nick Santos, Dallas Baptist Senior Grand Prairie, Texas .390, 6 HR, 14 2B, 38 RBI, 1-4 SB
Outfield Kyle Wilkerson, Savannah State Sophomore Martinez, Georgia .341, 7 HR, 16 2B, 31 RBI, 11-15 SB
Catcher Jordan Rutenbar, Texas-Pan American Junior Waxahachie, Texas .335, 5 HR, 11 2B, 42 RBI. 2-4 SB
DH/Utility Justin Morreim, Longwood Freshman Virginia Beach, Virginia .319, 3 HR, 13 2B, 29 RBI, 3-4 SB
Starting Pitcher Michael Allegretti, Savannah State Freshman Savannah, Georgia 7-4, 4.48 ERA, 70.1 IP, 37K
Starting Pitcher Jordan Meaker, Dallas Baptist Junior Mound, Texas 7-1, 4.19 ERA, 88.0 IP, 62K
Relief Pitcher Chris Haney, Dallas Baptist Freshman Garland, Texas 6-5, 3 saves, 2.64 ERA, 47.2 IP, 47K
PLAYER OF THE YEAR: CHRIS EDMONDSON, LE MOYNE
PITCHER OF THE YEAR: ERIC BEAULAC, LE MOYNE
NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR: EFFREY VALDEZ, NYIT
COACH OF THE YEAR: DAN HEEFNER, DALLAS BAPTIST (37-19, NCAA Regional #2 seed)

2008 NCAA Division I Independent Baseball All-Academic Team
Each school submitted up to three student-athletes with at least a 3.20 cumulative grade point average,
at least a sophomore in academic standing, and a starter or key reserve of their respective baseball programs.
Name, School Year Position GPA Major Hometown
Kellon McFarlin, Chicago State Junior Outfield 3.60 Communications Chicago, Ill.
Lacelle McKinley, Chicago State Junior Outfield 3.40 Computer Science Gary, Ind.
Preston Pires, Chicago State Junior Catcher 3.39 Physical Education Waipahu, Hawaii
Tyson Bagley, Dallas Baptist Senior Pitcher 3.35 Communications Bakersfield, Calif.
Ryan Enos, Dallas Baptist Sophomore First Base 3.56 Finance Highland Village, Texas
Austin Knight, Dallas Baptist Sophomore Shortstop 3.61 Kinesiology Denton, Texas
Dustin Gilmore, Hawaii Hilo Senior Pitcher 3.65 Business Edmonds, Wash.
Rich Brown, Le Moyne Sophomore Catcher 3.90 Biology Vestal, N.Y.
Aaron DiFruscio, Le Moyne Senior Outfield 3.89 Accounting Nepean, Ontario
Robby Perez, Le Moyne Senior Outfield 3.35 Criminal Justice Miami, Fla.
David Smiy Jr., Longwood Sophomore Outfield 3.85 Business Finance Chesterfield, Va.
Nick von Gersdorff, Longwood Senior Outfield 3.71 Business Finance Purcellville, Va.
John Walker II, Longwood Junior Pitcher 3.37 Athletic Training Alexandria, Va.
Chris Cardone, NJIT Senior Catcher 3.64 Mechanical Engineering Toms River, N.J.
Miguel Lugo, NJIT Sophomore Shortstop 3.53 Business Jersey City, N.J.
PJ Saporito, NJIT Junior Pitcher 3.53 Chemical Engineering New Milford, N.J.
Michael LaLuna, NYIT Senior Shortstop 3.59 Accounting Commack, N.Y.
Denten Neill, NYIT Junior Outfield 3.74 Engineering Management Wakefield, Canada
Julian Richards, NYIT Senior First Base 3.78 Business Administration Ontario, Canada
Jeff Horn, Northern Colorado Senior Infield 3.59 Accounting Denver, Colo.
Chad Murray, Northern Colorado Senior First Base 3.44 Accounting & Finance Littleton, Colo.
Eric Skufca, Northern Colorado Sophomore Pitcher 3.51 Business Marketing Denver, Colo.
Tim McAllister, North Carolina Central Sophomore Outfield 3.39 Elementary Education Raleigh, N.C.
Kurt Wilson, North Carolina Central Sophomore Second Base 3.41 Mathematics Riverdale, Ga.
Steven Henry, Presbyterian Senior P/1B 3.33 Business Management Hoschton, Ga.
Eric Tatum, Presbyterian Senior Pitcher 3.46 Business Administration Buford, Ga.
Abraham Garcia, Texas-Pan American Junior Second Base 3.42 Kinesiology Mc Allen, Texas
Bonham Hough, Texas-Pan American Sophomore Outfield 3.54 Communication Studies Waxahachie, Texas
Timothy Te, Texas-Pan American Junior OF/P 3.78 Psychology Bellevue, Neb.
Jace Brinkerhoff, Utah Valley Sophomore 3B/P 3.54 Exercise Science Spanish Fork, Utah
Marcus Moore, Utah Valley Senior Pitcher 3.46 Exercise Science Roy, Utah
Adam Openshaw, Utah Valley Senior First Base 3.62 Physical Education Payson, Utah
June 2, 2008