University of Houston Athletics
Houston Baseball Lands Seven on All-Conference Teams
5/18/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Seven Houston Baseball student-athletes were honored for their success on the field this season, being named to respective All-American Athletic Conference Teams, as freshman Seth Romero earned one of the highest honors being tabbed the league's Rookie of the Year.
The seven Cougars named to All-Conference Teams tops the league, while Romero became just the fourth Cougar all time to be named the conference's top freshman.
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR -- Seth Romero
2015 marks the third straight season Houston Baseball has garnered the Conference's `Rookie/Freshman of the Year' award with Seth Romero being named the 2015 Rookie of the Year for the American Athletic Conference after Andrew Lantrip won the award in 2014 and Justin Montemayor was tabbed the C-USA Freshman of the Year in 2013.
Romero has built one of the top freshman resumes in program history to this date as he currently leads the conference with a 1.73 ERA. He is 7-3 on the season in 19 appearances and six starts, while ranking among the league's Top 5 with six saves.
The West Columbia, Texas native has struck out a career-high nine, twice this season, in wins over Rice and USF. He tossed his first career complete game in a 7.0-inning run-rule win over East Carolina and has held his opponents to a .214 average.
His most impressive numbers fall in the strikeout category, as the southpaw has fanned 74 in just 67.2 innings. He once fanned seven in 2.0 innings at UCF. In conference play, he owns a 1.26 ERA and is 4-2 with three saves, while holding the league's teams to a .204 average at the plate.
FIRST TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE -- OF Kyle Survance
Junior Kyle Survance was tabbed a First Team All-American Athletic Conference honoree as an outfielder and was just one of three named to the league's top team.
Survance leads the league with five triples, while leading Houston and is second in the conference with 28 stolen bases. He has hit consistently around the .300 mark and sits at .295 entering postseason play. He has played in 53 of the 56 games and started 52 in right field for the Cougars.
Survance leads the team with 45 runs scored, is second-best with 62 hits and has driven in 31 from the leadoff position, while tallying eight doubles, five triples and one homerun.
The Jersey Village, Texas native is currently riding an 18-game on-base streak and has tallied 16 multi-hit games and seven multi-RBI games. His biggest weekend came in an 8-hit, four RBI, five runs scored effort to help Houston to a series win at USF en route to being named to the Weekly Honor Roll.
SECOND TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE
Houston had six Cougars named to the All-Conference Second Team, led by the entire weekend rotation in Andrew Lantrip, Kyle Dowdy and Seth Romero, while second baseman Josh Vidales, first baseman Chris Iriart and designated hitter Jacob Campbell were all honored.
Kyle Dowdy -- RHP
Junior Kyle Dowdy leads Houston in wins and is 8-2 on the year in his 10 starts, while appearing 17 games. The right-hander owns a 2.77 ERA and in 78.0 innings, he has fanned 60 and walked just 19.
Dowdy has two of Houston's six complete games and has tossed two complete game shutouts this season alone vs. Cincinnati and at Tulane. He has lasted at least 6.0 innings in eight of his 10 starts and has struck out a career-high 13 in the win over Cincinnati on April 18 en route to being named a National Player of the Year and the American Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Week.
Andrew Lantrip -- RHP
Sophomore Andrew Lantrip ranks second in the league and leads the team with 97.1 innings pitched this season and is among the conference's leaders in strikeouts with 97. He has have five games this season with double-digit strikeouts, including four of the last five starts he has made in conference play.
The Livingston, Texas native is 7-3 on the year and owns a 2.40 ERA in 14 starts. He fanned a career-high 13 in a heartbreaking loss at USF. Lantrip is a two-time American Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Week this season, while being named to the Honor Roll twice.
Seth Romero -- LHP
Freshman Seth Romero has built one of the top freshman resumes in program history to this date as he currently leads the conference with a 1.73 ERA. He is 7-3 on the season in 19 appearances and six starts, while ranking among the league's Top 5 with six saves.
The West Columbia, Texas native has struck out a career-high nine, twice this season, in wins over Rice and USF. He tossed his first career complete game in a 7.0-inning run-rule win over East Carolina and has held his opponents to a .214 average.
His most impressive numbers fall in the strikeout category, as the southpaw has fanned 74 in just 67.2 innings. He once fanned seven in 2.0 innings at UCF. In conference play, he owns a 1.26 ERA and is 4-2 with three saves, while holding the league's teams to a .204 average at the plate.
Josh Vidales -- Second Base
Junior Josh Vidales earns his first career postseason All-Conference honor as he currently leads the team with a .315 average. He opened the season, riding a 33-game on-base streak that dated back to the 2014 postseason before it was snapped in a series at Memphis (April 2-4).
The La Porte, Texas native tops the team with 67 hits, is second-best with 44 runs scored and has driven in 36 from the No. 2-hole position. He has drawn 29 walks to just 20 strikeouts for a .406 on-base percentage, while remaining one of the top defensive players in the league -- owning a fielding percentage of .989 with just three errors and 101 putouts and 159 assists.
Vidales paces Houston with 12 multi-RBI games and has 16 multi-hit games to his name. He has been named to the Weekly Honor Roll and to the College Classic All-Tournament Team this season.
Chris Iriart -- First Base
Junior Chris Iriart, in just his first season as a Cougar, has belted 14 homeruns -- second-best in the league and first Cougar to hit that many since 2008.
The Chino Hills, California native will enter the postseason with a .307 average, second-highest on the team. He is slugging an impressive .594 with 14 homeruns, 12 doubles and two triples to rank among the league's best in that category. He also has 24 walks on the year and 17 hit-by-pitches, which leads the league.
Iriart has 12 multi-RBI game, leads the team with 19 multi-hit games and rode an 15-game hitting streak this season. He has hit at least one homerun in nine of Houston's weekend series this season.
For his consistency at the plate, he was named to the USA Baseball Golden Spikes Midseason Award Watch List, was named to the All-Silver Glove and College Classic Teams, while being tabbed the American Athletic Conference Player of the Week once.
Jacob Campbell -- Designated Hitter
Junior Jacob Campbell has filled the designated hitter role nicely for Houston this season as he has come on during conference play, leading the Cougars with an impressive .337 average in those 24 games.
The Alvin, Texas native is hitting .301 on the year, has 53 hits, 27 runs scored, five homeruns and 36 RBI. He is slugging .455 and has on-base percentage of .389.
He has 16 multi-hit games and enters postseason play, riding a 12-game on-base streak.
AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE
Player of the Year: Ian Happ, Cincinnati
Pitcher of the Year: Carson Cross, UConn
Rookie of the Year: Seth Romero, Houston
Coach of the Year: Cliff Godwin, East Carolina
FIRST TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE
P -- Zach Rodgers, UCF
P -- Carson Cross, UConn
P -- Anthony Kay, UConn
P -- Reid Love, East Carolina
P -- Jimmy Herget, USF
RP -- Nolan Blackwood, Memphis
C -- Levi Borders, USF
1B -- Tucker Tubbs, Memphis
2B -- Vinny Siena, UConn
SS -- Dylan Moore, UCF
3B -- Tommy Williams, UCF
DH -- Luke Lowery, East Carolina
OF -- Kyle Survance, Houston
OF -- Ian Happ, Cincinnati
OF -- Erik Barber, UCF
OF -- Blake Davey, UConn
UTL -- Reid Love, East Carolina
SECOND TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE
P -- Andrew Lantrip, Houston
P -- Kyle Dowdy, Houston
P -- Seth Romero, Houston
P -- Corey Merrill, Tulane
RP -- Tommy Peterson, USF
C -- Max McDowell, UConn
1B -- Chris Iriart, Houston
2B -- Josh Vidales, Houston
SS -- Stephen Alemais, Tulane
3B -- Willy Yahn, UConn
DH -- Jacob Campbell, Houston
OF -- JoMarcos Woods, UCF
OF -- Jack Sunberg, UConn
OF -- Kane Marrow, Memphis
OF -- Darien Tubbs, Memphis
ON DECK
Fresh off an American Athletic Conference title and winners of its last five, No. 1-seed Houston Baseball will look to repeat in Clearwater, Fla. at the American Conference Championship as it is set to face No. 8-seed Cincinnati at 6 p.m. Tuesday on CBS Sports Network.
The game will be played at Bright House Field in Clearwater, Fla. -- the Spring Training home for the Phillies and the site of last year's Championship.
This year's format is double-elimination and the Cougars and Bearcats' 6 p.m. CT game will be the second of the day on Tuesday as (4) USF and (5) Memphis will meet at 2 p.m. CT.
The winner of each game will meet on Thursday at 2 p.m. CT and the two losers will meet 7 p.m. CT on Wednesday.
ÂÂ
You can follow all the action by listening in live at UHCougars.com/baseradio with Jeremy Branham on the call or by following via GAMEDAY CENTRAL at UHCougars.com/gameday.
NUMBERS OF NOTE
1 -- First conference regular-season title since 2002
2 -- Houston won back-to-back Silver Glove Series -- the first back-to-back since glove was established in 1998.ÂÂ
3 -- The American Athletic Conference is ranked the third-best baseball conference in the nation (based on RPI) behind SEC and ACC.
5 -- Houston has won five straight games.
6 -- Houston finished the year winning six straight American Athletic Conference weekend series.
7 -- Houston won all but one home weekend series and that one came in a 2-2 split with Ivy League Champion, Columbia.
16 -- Houston has won 16 of the last 19 games.
16 -- Houston finished conference play with a 16-8 record -- the most conference wins since 18 in 2006.
25 -- Houston notched a 25-6 home record -- notching second straight season with 25 home wins.
39 -- The Cougars enter postseason play with a 39-17 record.
ON DECK
Houston will head to the American Athletic Conference Championship in Clearwater, Fla. Official seeds will be released following Saturday's finales, but Houston will play as the No. 1 seed on Tuesday at 6 p.m. on CBS Sports Network against No. 8-seed Cincinnati.
You can follow all the action by listening in live at UHCougars.com/baseradio with Jeremy Branham on the call or by following via GAMEDAY CENTRAL at UHCougars.com/gameday.
JOIN THE DUGOUT CLUB
Nationally-ranked Houston Baseball would like to encourage those wishing to support the efforts and success of the baseball student-athletes to consider joining the Dugout Club for as low as $25 a month or $300 annually.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION
LEVELS
PINCH HITTER
For a minimum monthly installment of $25 or a minimum one-time gift of $300, supporters can take advantage of the Pinch Hitter level, which will guarantee an invitation for two to exclusive Dugout Club events and Houston Baseball team apparel.
DIAMOND
For a minimum monthly installment of $100 or a minimum one-time gift of $1,000, supporters can take advantage of the Diamond level, which will guarantee batting practice passes for two to any home game, invitation for two to exclusive Dugout Club events and Houston Baseball apparel.
**Cougar Pride points will be applied accordingly.
For more information on joining the Dugout Club, please contact the Houston Baseball office at (713) 743-9396.
For more information regarding Cougar Pride, please call (713) 743-GOUH.
STAY CONNECTED
Stay up to date with all Houston Baseball news and highlights by following us on Twitter @UHCougarBB or on Facebook at /HoustonCougarBaseball. Fans can also follow head coach Todd Whitting @toddwhitting on Twitter.
