The USA South Athletic Conference has announced its 2021 All-Conference awards for baseball. Individually, William Peace's Tyshawn Barrett was named Player of the Year, Brevard's Logan Clark collected Rookie of the Year while the N.C. Wesleyan trio of Derrick Carter, Daniel Thompson and Greg Clifton were named Pitcher of the Year, Rookie Pitcher of the Year and Coach of the Year, respectively. Also, the USA South recognized an All-Sportsmanship Team, consisting of one member from each competing school.
All nominees were submitted by each institution and the awards are voted on by the baseball coach at each institution. The divisional team voting is completed only by those coaches in the particular division. The first team all-conference and individual award voting is completed by all coaches.
Barrett, a senior first baseman from Fort Greenville, North Carolina becomes the first Pacer in the program's short history to earn a League individual "of the Year" honor in the sport of baseball. He leads the Conference in nearly every offensive category including batting average (.418), slugging percentage (.716), runs scored (51), hits (59), home runs (10), RBI (46) and total bases (101), as well as stolen bases (24). Additionally, he amassed a .506 on-base percentage which ranks second in the Conference. In USA South games-only, Barrett had the League's best on-base percentage to go along with the most runs scored, home runs, RBI, total bases and stolen bases. For his efforts, he earns First Team All-Conference and First Team East Division accolades for the first time in his career. Finally, he was named USA South Player of the Week twice this spring.
Carter, a junior from Rocky Mount, North Carolina becomes the first Battling Bishop since Ben Moore in 2009, and third in program history, to be named Conference Pitcher of the Year. He currently has a perfect 8-0 record in 11 appearances, all of which were starts. In 69.1 innings pitched, Carter has established a 3.12 ERA with 79 strikeouts. In Conference contests-only, Carter posted a League-best 6-0 record with a 2.46 ERA and a USA South-high 48 strikeouts. This season, he collects First Team All-Conference and First Team East Division honors as a pitcher for the first time in his career. Finally, Carter was named USA South Pitcher of the Week twice this spring.
Clark, a freshman outfielder from St. Petersburg, Florida is the first Tornado in the program's brief League history to earn an individual "of the Year" honor in the sport of baseball. Clark has compiled a .360 batting average, a .420 on-base percentage and a .506 slugging percentage while scoring 16 runs with 15 RBI and a rookie-leading five triples. Against USA South opposition, Clark raised all of his averages with a Conference-rookie best .415 batting average to go along with a .457 on-base percentage and a .537 slugging percentage.
A freshman pitcher from Pollocksville, North Carolina, Thompson is the second Battling Bishop in the past three seasons to be earn USA South Rookie Pitcher of the Year accolades. Almost exclusively coming out of the bullpen, Thompson has posted a 4-1 record with two saves in 14 appearances, only one of which was a start. In 35.0 innings pitched, Thompson has compiled a 4.11 ERA with 57 strikeouts and an opponent batting average of .181. Against USA South foes-only, Thompson was 2-0 with one save in seven relief appearances while compiling a 2.35 ERA.
In his third season at the helm of N.C. Wesleyan, Clifton earns his first USA South Coach of the Year honor. Currently ranked 13th in the nation, the Battling Bishops captured the program's 18th USA South Regular Season crown, this year of the divisional nature, and first since the 2010 season by accumulating a 17-1 Conference record. The 17 League wins are the most in program history. Overall, N.C. Wesleyan sits at 31-6 and has been ranked nationally for the last ten weeks. The 31 wins are tied for the most in a season for the Battling Bishop program since the 2006 campaign. Despite being selected to finish second in the East Division as a part of the pre-conference USA South Coaches Poll, N.C. Wesleyan will head to the Conference best-of-three championship series as the East Division's top-seeded team.
https://usasouth.net/sports/bsb/2020-21/releases/20210507nu5o8k
| Player of the Year | Pitcher of the Year | Rookie of the Year | Rookie Pitcher of the Year | Coach of the Year |
Tyshawn Barrett William Peace |
Derrick Carter N.C. Wesleyan |
Logan Clark Brevard |
Daniel Thompson N.C. Wesleyan |
Greg Clifton N.C. Wesleyan |
The 2021 USA South Baseball All-Conference Team:
| First Team All-Conference 1B - Tyshawn Barrett, William Peace 2B - Jack Bartlewski, Piedmont 3B - Joe Ruth, LaGrange SS - Cael Chatham, LaGrange C - Brad Pennington, N.C. Wesleyan DH/Util - Jackson Murray, N.C. Wesleyan OF - Ian Campbell, Maryville OF - McKinley Erves, LaGrange OF - Nathan Holt, William Peace P - Sam Carpenter, Piedmont P - Derrick Carter, N.C. Wesleyan |
| First Team East Division | Second Team East Division | First Team West Division | Second Team West Division |
| 1B - Tyshawn Barrett, William Peace 2B - Davie Morgan, N.C. Wesleyan 3B - Blake Winebarger, Pfeiffer SS - Michael Garvey Jr., Greensboro C - Brad Pennington, N.C. Wesleyan DH/Util - Jackson Murray, N.C. Wesleyan OF - Nathan Holt, William Peace OF - Austin Morton, Pfeiffer OF - Rob Wilkerson, Methodist P - Derrick Carter, N.C. Wesleyan P - Kevin Williams, N.C. Wesleyan |
1B - Bryce Marsh, Pfeiffer 2B - Hunter Ward, William Peace 3B - Tyler Vaughn, William Peace SS - Alec Seaton, William Peace C - Scotty McGuire, Greensboro DH/Util - Jacob Austin, Methodist OF - Jordan Cassell, Methodist OF - Zach Lyon, N.C. Wesleyan OF - Gavin Taylor, William Peace P - Ryan Hill, Methodist P - Austin Skipper, William Peace |
1B - Trey Pearce, LaGrange 2B - Jack Bartlewski, Piedmont 3B - Joe Ruth, LaGrange SS - Cael Chatham, LaGrange C - Andrew Knight, Huntingdon DH/Util - Carter Ballstadt, Piedmont OF - McKinley Erves, LaGrange OF - Ian Campbell, Maryville OF - Alex Gonzalez, Covenant P - Sam Carpenter, Piedmont P - Baley Coleman, LaGrange |
1B - Joseph Ridenour, Covenant 2B - Rhett Hebert, LaGrange 3B - Brooks DuBose, Covenant SS - Hunter Christian, Covenant C - Kyle DeJesus, Piedmont DH/Util - E.J. Churchich, LaGrange OF - Rhett Mixon, LaGrange OF - Jack Layrisson, LaGrange OF - Colton Clark, Huntingdon P - Peyton Irvin, Piedmont P - Spencer Douches, LaGrange |
| All-Sportsmanship Avery Spicer, Averett Ben Melton, Brevard Alex Gonzalez, Covenant Ben Knuff, Greensboro Cullen Stafford, Huntingdon Baley Coleman, LaGrange Mac McClintock, Mary Baldwin Luke McLemore, Maryville Casey Nichols, Methodist Nate Hibbs, N.C. Wesleyan Kyler Fairchild, Pfeiffer Kyle DeJesus, Piedmont Warren Gay, William Peace |
