Four Eagles on All-SAC squads for first time since 2010

Posted: Apr 22, 2015

ROCK HILL, S.C. – Outfielder Bo Ausmus (Jefferson City, Tenn.) and pitchers Vince Apicella (Dillsburg, Pa.) and Jamie Miller (Wardensville, W.V.) were named second team All-South Atlantic Conference while first basemen Evan Jurjevic (New Carlisle, Ind.) was an honorable mention pick the league announced Wednesday afternoon.

Carson-Newman has had 93 All-SAC selections, only Catawba has more in the league at 140. The four honorees are the most by the Eagles since 2010. Shortstop Mills Rogers and outfielder Jeff Lockwood were first team picks while pitcher Austin Bridgewater and first basemen Derek Long were on the second team.

Ausmus earned a second team selection for the second straight season after hitting .357 with eight home runs, 39 RBI and 15 doubles. His eight home runs are seventh in the league while his 15 doubles are ninth in the conference. The outfielder reached base safely in 21 straight games at the beginning of the season including a leadoff home run in the seventh inning of a 1-0 win against Catawba on February to seal a series victory against fifth-ranked Indians. He had a season-high nine-game hitting streak snapped on March 15 and is currently riding an eight-game streak. The senior leads the team with 19 multi-hit games while positing nine multi-RBI contests.

"It just testifies our hard work in the offseason," Ausmus said. "I think this is three more than we had last year so that's an improvement. We still need to work harder and implement that to the younger guys so we can get to that first team."

Apicella is 6-5 with a 3.86 earned run average this season as opponents are hitting just .220 against the southpaw this year. The junior is second nationally with 98 strikeouts on the year while leading the league and ranking 14^th at the Division II level with five complete games. Only Brett Hontz in 2008 and Ben Deaton in 1998 have more complete games in a season since Carson-Newman joined Division II in 1994 with six complete games apiece. The Dillsburg, Pa. native tallied complete games in each of his first four starts this year including a three-hit shutout with a career-high 13 strikeouts in the 1-0 win against Catawba on February 7. The lefty earned the SAC Pitcher of the Week honor on two occasions this season doing so in consecutive weeks. He was the first Eagle hurler since Austin Bridgewater in 2007 to win the award twice in one year. Apicella has struck out 10 or more batters in a game on six occasions going 5-1 in such contests.

"My biggest adjustment was perfecting my offspeed," Apicella said. "I picked up a slider and pitching to my strengths this year. I just want to give the team a chance to win and keep their runs to a minimum that way our hitters can get in there and do what they need to do."

The senior first basemen was named honorable mention All-South Atlantic Conference after hitting .364 with three home runs, 37 RBI and 20 doubles, second in the league. Since Carson-Newman joined Division II in 1994, only six players have more doubles in a season than Jurjevic with the record being 25 by Derrick Lankford in 1996. Jurjevic committed just four errors in the field for a .991 fielding percentage. He has reached base safely in 41 straight games while tallying a season-long 12-game hitting that was snapped on April 4 where he went 25-for-52 with a home run, 17 RBI and 13 runs scored. During that stretch, Jurjevic was named Tennessee Sportswriter's Association Player of the Week. The New Carlisle, Ind. native has 17 multi-hit games this year including nine, three-hit efforts while leading the team with 11 multi-RBI outings.

"I think just experience," Jurjevic said. "A lot of experience over the years finally got to the results that I wanted. The time in the cage and coach [Griffin] and the whole staff that spent so much time with me and the whole team in general finally pays off and it means a lot."

In his first season in Mossy Creek, Miller went 5-1 with a 2.29 ERA with three complete games. His five wins are ninth in the league this season, his three complete games are fourth and his 2.29 ERA in is third in the conference. The southpaw has been stingy against lefthanded batters this year as it took four games for a lefthanded batter to get a hit against Miller in compiling a .188 batting average against versus lefties. In 10 starts, the Wardensville, W.V. native has not allowed more than three earned runs including one or fewer on seven occasions. Miller tossed a complete game three-hit shutout against Lenoir-Rhyne on March 28 marking the first time since February 23, 2013 that a Carson-Newman pitcher tossed a seven-inning complete shutout when Alex Britt blanked Brevard on five hits. The junior had a personal four-game winning streak from March 15 to April 4 and has not taken the loss since March 7 against Lincoln Memorial.

"It feels good that I can come into this program and make an impact," Miller said. "Getting this award or this title really means a lot. My mindset has been let the hitters make their own mistakes. I just go out there and throw balls and strikes. I don't do anything special. I throw it in the strike zone and hope for the best."

Miller will get the ball for the Eagles to begin SAC Championship play when Carson-Newman travels to Forest City, N.C. Thursday to take on the Wingate Bulldogs with a first pitch slated for 4 p.m. from McNair Stadium in a game fans can listen to on the Eagle Sports Network by visiting cneagles.com/live.

All-SAC First Team

C- Will Albertson, Catawba

1B – Albert Baur, Newberry

2B – Shane Billings, Wingate

SS – Ryan Perkins, Lenoir-Rhyne

3B – Nick Morabito, Lincoln Memorial

OF – Thomas Spitz, Wingate

OF – Blake Houston, Catawba

OF – Brandan Sheridan, Newberry

DH – T.J. Wharton, Catawba

RP – Devan Watts, Tusculum

P – Craig Brooks, Catawba