YOUNGSTOWN STATE ROUNDUP News and notes
Baseball: Junior left-hander Justin Thomas was named Horizon League pitcher of the year and four other players earned all-league honors. Thomas became the first Penguin to be named player of the year in the Horizon and joined Brad Hennessey as the only two players in school history to earn conference pitcher of the year honors. Juniors Justin Banks and Brandon Caipen joined Thomas on the first team, while senior Jim Phillips was named to the second team and redshirt freshman Erich Diedrich was named to the All-Newcomer Team. Thomas (Oregon, Ohio) was 3-1 in Horizon League games. In 27 innings, Thomas posted an ERA of 2.00 and threw three complete games. He had 33 strikeouts. Thomas was 7-5 overall, becoming the first pitcher in school history with back-to-back seasons with at least seven wins. He posted a career-high 83 strikeouts in 76 1/3 innings and ranks second in school history with 245 career strikeouts, just behind Dave Dravecky (251). He also ranks in the top five all-time in innings pitched and career starts. Thomas was second-team All-Horizon as a sophomore. Banks (Steubenville), a third baseman, led the Penguins (.354), with runs scored (35) and on-base percentage (.429). Caipen (Tallmadge) was named to the first-team as a utility player. He started 28 games at catcher and 19 in right field, finishing with a .315 average and 27 runs scored. Phillips, an outfielder, finished with a .351 average. He ranked second on the team in home runs (4), RBIs (34) and total bases (85). Diedrich hit .333 while splitting time between catcher and designated hitter. He led the team in home runs (5) and in slugging percentage (.514).
Also, Thomas was named to the Collegiate Baseball Foundation's National Honor Roll for the third time this season for his performance against UW-Milwaukee. Thomas struck out 10 and did not allow a run through 8 1/3 innings.
Track and field: Three individuals and a relay team will represent the women's track and field team at the NCAA Mideast Outdoor Track and Field Regional Friday and Saturday at the Robert C. Haugh Track and Field Complex in Bloomington, Ind. Freshman Bethany Anderson and juniors Aaliyah Gillespie and Emily Schnitkey will compete in individual events as well asthe 4x400-meter relay. Anderson (Jamestown, N.Y.) will compete in the shot put Saturday. She advanced by winning the event at the Horizon League Championships with a school record distance of 46 feet, 3 1/2 inches. Schnitkey (Napoleon) qualified in both the 5,000-meter run and the 3,000 steeplechase after winning both events at the league meet. She will only participate in the steeplechase Saturday. Her career-best time of 10 minutes, 44.75 seconds, which was also when she broke her own school record, was at the Penn Relays. Gillespie (Cleveland) will compete in the 100 hurdles Friday. She won the event at the conference meet in a school- and meet-record time (13.88). The 4x400 relay is scheduled for Saturday. The top five individuals and top three relay teams automatically qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Sacramento, Calif.
YSU sports information