University of Houston Athletics
Five Cougars Named All-Conference
5/23/2016 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
CLEARWATER, Fla. â€" Houston Baseball freshman Joe Davis was named Rookie of the Year, while four Cougars landed on the American Athletic Conference First Team and one on the Second Team, announced by the league office Monday.
Representing Houston on the All-Conference First Team were Davis (1B), sophomore Connor Wong (UTL), sophomore Corey Julks (OF) and junior Nick Hernandez (RP), while sophomore Seth Romero (SP) was tabbed a Second Team selection.
Houston Baseball has now earned Rookie/Freshman of the Year conference honors for four straight years, dating back to 2013 - Davis (2016), Romero (2015), Andrew Lantrip (2014) and Justin Montemayor (2013) and only five times now in the history of the program with Shane Nance earning honors in 1998.
2016 marks the first year since 2006 that Houston Baseball landed at least four Cougars on the All-Conference First Team and first year since joining the American Athletic Conference back in 2014.
This marks back-to-back seasons for Romero being named to the All-Conference Second Team and first time Wong, Julks, Davis and Hernandez have been honored.
American Athletic Conference First Team
C â€" Jake Rogers, Tulane, Junior
1B â€" Joe Davis, Houston, Freshman
2B â€" Kevin Merrell, USF, Sophomore
3B â€" Willy Yahn, UConn, Sophomore
SS â€" Stephen Alemais, Tulane, Junior
OF â€" Corey Julks, Houston, Sophomore
OF â€" Joe DeRoche-Duffin, UConn, Senior
OF â€" Dwanya Williams-Sutton, ECU, Freshman
DH â€" Jeremy Montalbano, Tulane, Junior
UTL â€" Connor Wong, Houston, Sophomore
SP â€" Andrew Zellner, Cincinnati, Junior
SP â€" Anthony Kay, UConn, Junior
SP â€" Evan Kruczynski, ECU, Junior
SP â€" Emerson Gibbs, Tulane, Senior
RP â€" Nick Hernandez, Houston, Junior
American Athletic Conference Second Team
C â€" Travis Watkins, ECU, Junior
1B â€" Bobby Melley, UConn, Senior
2B â€" Brandon Grudzielanek, Memphis, Junior
2B â€" Jake Willsey, Tulane, Junior
3B â€" Hunter Hope, Tulane, Junior
SS â€" Bryan Daniello, UConn, Senior
OF â€" Jack Sunberg, UConn, Senior
OF â€" Jake Little, Memphis, Senior
OF â€" Darien Tubbs, Memphis, Junior
DH â€"Sam Tolleson, UCF, Senior
SP â€" Seth Romero, Houston, Sophomore
SP â€" Robby Howell, UCF, Junior
SP â€" Tim Cate, UConn, Freshman
SP â€" Brandon Lawson, USF, Junior
SP â€" Ross Massey, Tulane, Freshman
RP â€" Patrick Ruotolo, UConn, Junior
Player of the Year: Joe DeRoche-Duffin, UConn
Pitcher of the Year: Anthony Kay, UConn
Rookie of the Year (Position): Joe Davis, Houston
Rookie of the Year (Pitcher): Tim Cate, UConn
Coach of the Year: Jim Penders, UConn
Joe Davis
Rookie of the Year / First Team All-Conference (1B)
- Hit .336 during regular-season play
- Led Houston in hits (75), doubles (17), home runs (11), RBI (51) and slugging percentage (.561)
- Broke the all-time Houston freshman home run record with 11
- Tied the all-time Houston freshman record in doubles (17) and RBI (51)
- Tallied 25 multi-hit games and 10 multi-RBI games â€" both team-highs
- Started 54 of the 55 games either at first base or designated hitter
- Had a career-high four hits in a game (at Arkansas)
- Drove in a career-high six RBI in a 24-6 win over No. 15 Rice
- Hit first career grand slam in win over Rice
- Named to All-Silver Glove Series vs. Rice
- Was a five-time American Weekly Honor Roll honoree
- Named American Player of the Week (April 10)
- Named to College Classic All-Tournament Team
Connor Wong
First Team All-Conference (UTL) â€" unanimous selection
- Has started and played in all 55 regular-season games
- Hit .296 during regular-season play
- Led Houston with 46 runs scored â€" which tied for second in the conference
- Led the conference with 41 walks
- Was 9-for-11 in stolen bases
- Played both the outfield, catcher and third base this season
- Was second on the team with 63 hits, 11 doubles and five home runs
- Had 16 multi-hit games and seven multi-RBI games
- Named to All-Silver Glove Series vs. Rice
- Named American Player of the Week (March 7)
Corey Julks
First Team All-Conference (OF)
- Led team and was second in the conference in batting average at .341 during regular-season play
- Hit .369 in conference games
- Appeared in 51 games, making 50 starts in the outfield
- Was second on the team with 63 hits and third on the team with 10 doubles
- Was 9-for-11 in stolen bases
- Had 16 multi-hit games and seven multi-RBI games
- Is riding a 19-game on base streak into postseason play
- Went a perfect 4-for-4 vs. No. 10 Tulane on May 20
- Named to All-Silver Glove Series vs. Rice
- Named to American Weekly Honor Roll twice
Nick Hernandez
First Team All-Conference (RP)
- Had a team-high 25 appearances as the Cougars' closer
- Finished the regular season with eight saves (fourth in conference) and a 3-0 record
- Tallied a 1.21 ERA
- Struck out 54 batters in 44.2 innings in relief
- Went a career-long 3.1 innings out of the bullpen twice (at UConn, vs. Memphis)
- Earned wins over UCF, Memphis and Tulane
- Had saves over Baylor, twice at Alabama, at Lamar, George Washington, Texas, Sam Houston State and Louisiana
- Didn't allow more than two earned runs in a single relief appearance
- Is a part of a pitching staff that ranks second in the nation in ERA (2.48) and WHIP (1.03)
- Named to National Pitcher of the Year Watch List
Seth Romero
Second Team All-Conference (SP)
- Owns a team-best 2.27 ERA and is fifth in the conference
- Leads the team with 102 strikeouts and ranks second in the conference
- Is the conference leader in opposing batting average at .185
- Has logged 87.1 innings for 10th best in the conference
- Is 5-4 in 13 appearances and 12 starts during regular-season play
- Has two complete games
- Struck out 11 hitters in 6.0 innings in a win at Alabama (March 12)
- Had a career-high 13 strikeouts in a win over Grand Canyon (March 19)
- Earned wins over Baylor, at Alabama, Grand Canyon, George Washington, and at Cincinnati
- Threw complete games vs. Grand Canyon and Cincinnati
- Threw back-to-back one-hitters in wins over Grand Canyon and George Washington
- Is a part of a pitching staff that ranks second in the nation in ERA (2.48) and WHIP (1.03)
- Named to National Pitcher of the Year Watch List
- Named National Pitcher of the Month (March) by NCBWA
- Named National Pitcher of the Week (March 22) by NCBWA
- Named American Pitcher of the Week (March 21)
- Named to American Weekly Honor Roll (March 7)
- Named to American Preseason Team
ON DECK
Houston Baseball will open American Athletic Conference Championship play this Tuesday when it takes on (4) Cincinnati in Game 1 of the tournament. First pitch is slated for 2 p.m. CT on CBS Sports Network.
The Cougars will enter the American Championship with an overall record of 33-22 and finished conference play as the No. 5 seed with an 11-12 mark. Cincinnati is 26-28-1 overall and will play as the No. 4 seed following a 13-10-1 American record.
FOLLOW ALONG â€" GAMEDAY CENTRAL
Watch Live: CBS Sports Network
Listen Live: UHCougars.com/baseradio
Full Championship information can be found at Championship Central.
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