Seven Bears Earn All-SoCon Honors
5/25/2021 3:01:00 PM | Baseball
Mercer represented by seven players on all-conference and all-freshman teams
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Seven Mercer student-athletes earned Southern Conference baseball postseason accolades when the league office announced its all-conference honorees.
Garett Delano led the way for the Bears, earning first team honors as a second baseman from the coaches and media and second team honors as a starting pitcher. RJ Yeager also earned first team honors as a shortstop.
Mercer was also represented by Luke Sutko (second team coaches), Collin Price (second team coaches), Trevor Austin (second team coaches and media), Bill Knight (second team coaches and media) and Colby Thomas (all-freshman team).
Head coaches voted on all-conference first and second teams as well as the all-freshman team. The SoCon Sports Media Association (SCSMA) voted on an all-conference first team and second team. Mercer has had at least four players earn SoCon postseason honors in each of its first seven years as a conference member.
Garett Delano | First Team (Coaches/Media) Second Base | Second Team (Coaches/Media) Starting Pitcher
Delano, a graduate student from Callahan, Fla., is an infielder and right-handed pitcher. He earned first team honors as a second baseman and second team honors as a starting pitcher. He is hitting .341 with nine home runs and 50 RBI. His average is the best on the team, and his RBI total is the third-best mark in the SoCon and tops among all Mercer players. On the mound, he has made 14 appearances - 11 starts and 3 appearances in relief. He has a 6-1 record and an ERA of 4.13. Delano has tallied 59 strikeouts to only 14 walks and is holding opponents to a .231 average through 76.1 innings pitched. Delano is also a semifinalist for the John Olreud Two-Way Player of the Year, given to the best two-way player in the country.
RJ Yeager | First Team (Coaches/Media) Shortstop
Yeager, a junior infielder from Lynn Haven, Fla., earned first team honors as a shortstop. He is currently hitting .313 with 13 home runs and leads the team with 50 RBI, which is also third-best among all players in the SoCon. He has an on-base percentage of .369 and has stolen nine bases. Out of his 70 hits, 31 have been for extra bases. Yeager has hit 28 career home runs and is the program's active home runs leader. In the field, Yeager has a fielding percentage of .972 with 71 putouts and 139 assists. Yeager is a semifinalist for the Brooks Wallace Award, which is presented to the best shortstop in the nation.
Luke Sutko | Second Team (Coaches) Relief Pitcher
Sutko, a junior, earned second team relief pitcher honors from the South Conference's head coaches. The right-hander from Woodstock, Ga., leads the Southern Conference in saves (12) and appearances (30). He was a key reliever for the Bears in 2021, pitching 46.2 innings. Sutko tallied 57 strikeouts and held an ERA of 4.24. On April 24, he pitched a season-high 4.2 innings against Samford and struck out a career-high seven batters, helping the Bears to a series victory over the Bulldogs.
Collin Price | Second Team (Coaches) Catcher
Price earned second team catcher honors. The sophomore from Suwanee, Ga., was named to the 2021 Buster Posey Watch List earlier in the season. He appeared in 51 games for Mercer, making 47 starts. He is batting .293 with 51 hits, with 17 of those hits coming for extra bases. He has a fielding percentage of .992 and has thrown out 38 percent of base stealers during the regular season.
Trevor Austin | Second Team (Coaches/Media) Third base
Austin, a native of Suwanee, Ga., earned a spot on the second team as a third baseman. He has started all 55 games for Mercer this spring and is hitting .293, going 51-for-174. Of his 51 hits, five were doubles, which was a single-season high for the redshirt sophomore From the nine spot, he has batted in 16 runs. He has an on-base percentage of .393 on the season.
Bill Knight | Second Team (Coaches/Media) Outfielder
Knight earned second team outfield honors as an outfielder. The six-foot-one-inch sophomore was the leadoff hitter for the Bears is hitting .318 and leads the team with 70 hits, the third-most in the Southern Conference. Knight has scored a team-high 56 runs, the third-most in the SoCon. Not only did Knight hold a high average throughout the regular season, but he hit for power as well, smashing a career-high nine home runs and 15 doubles to go along with a career-best 46 runs batted in.
Colby Thomas | All-Freshman Team
Thomas, a freshman from Valdosta, Ga., earned all-freshman team honors this season. The power-hitting outfielder hit .243 with 37 RBI in 51 regular season contests. He hit 10 homers and had 12 doubles. and an on-base percentage of .357. Once on base, he stole nine bases. Most of Thomas' damage came in SoCon action where he hit .298 with seven home runs and 23 RBI.
2021 SoCon Baseball Coaches All-Southern Conference Teams
Player of the Year – Colin Davis, OF, Wofford
Pitcher of the Year – Elliot Carney, RHP, Wofford
Freshman of the Year – Justin Starke, 1B, VMI
Coach of the Year – Todd Interdonato, Wofford
First team
SP Colby Stuart, ETSU
SP Elliot Carney, Wofford
RP Dalton Rhadans, Wofford
C Luke Robinson, Western Carolina
1B Justin Starke, VMI
2B Garett Delano, Mercer
SS RJ Yeager, Mercer
3B Jack Renwick, Wofford
OF Corey Rosier, UNCG
OF Justice Bigbie, Western Carolina
OF Colin Davis, Wofford
DH Will Prater, Western Carolina
Second team
SP Garett Delano, Mercer
SP Zebby Matthews, Western Carolina
RP Luke Sutko, Mercer
C Collin Price, Mercer
1B Sonny DiChiara, Samford
2B Hogan Windish, UNCG
SS Pascanel Ferreras, Western Carolina
3B Trevor Austin, Mercer
OF Ryan McCarthy, The Citadel
OF Bill Knight, Mercer
OF Nolen Hester, Wofford
DH Tyler McManus, Samford
All-freshman team
Matthew Bollenbacher, ETSU
Ashton King, ETSU
Hunter Loyd, ETSU
Colby Thomas, Mercer
Chase Isbell, Samford
Tyler Bradt, VMI
Trey Morgan, VMI
Zac Morris, VMI
Justin Starke, VMI
Pascanel Ferreras, Western Carolina
Jack Renwick, Wofford
Trey Yunger, Wofford
2021 SoCon Sports Media Association Baseball All-Conference Teams
Player of the Year – Colin Davis, OF, Wofford
Pitcher of the Year – Elliot Carney, RHP, Wofford
Freshman of the Year – Justin Starke, 1B, VMI
Coach of the Year – Todd Interdonato, Wofford
First team
SP Colby Stuart, ETSU
SP Elliot Carney, Wofford
RP Dalton Rhadans, Wofford
C Luke Robinson, Western Carolina
1B Justin Starke, VMI
2B Garett Delano, Mercer
SS RJ Yeager, Mercer
3B Jack Renwick, Wofford
OF Corey Rosier, UNCG
OF Justice Bigbie, Western Carolina
OF Colin Davis, Wofford
DH Will Prater, Western Carolina
Second team
SP Garett Delano, Mercer
SP Zebby Matthews, Western Carolina
RP Austin Parsley, UNCG
C Lawson Hill, Wofford
1B Sonny DiChiara, Samford
2B Hogan Windish, UNCG
SS Pascanel Ferreras, Western Carolina
3B Trevor Austin, Mercer
OF Ryan McCarthy, The Citadel
OF Bill Knight, Mercer
OF Nolen Hester, Wofford
DH Tyler McManus, Samford
Follow the Bears
For complete coverage of Mercer Baseball, please follow the Bears on social media at @MercerBaseball (Twitter), /MercerBaseball (Facebook) and @Mercer.Baseball (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
Garett Delano led the way for the Bears, earning first team honors as a second baseman from the coaches and media and second team honors as a starting pitcher. RJ Yeager also earned first team honors as a shortstop.
Mercer was also represented by Luke Sutko (second team coaches), Collin Price (second team coaches), Trevor Austin (second team coaches and media), Bill Knight (second team coaches and media) and Colby Thomas (all-freshman team).
Head coaches voted on all-conference first and second teams as well as the all-freshman team. The SoCon Sports Media Association (SCSMA) voted on an all-conference first team and second team. Mercer has had at least four players earn SoCon postseason honors in each of its first seven years as a conference member.
Garett Delano | First Team (Coaches/Media) Second Base | Second Team (Coaches/Media) Starting Pitcher
Delano, a graduate student from Callahan, Fla., is an infielder and right-handed pitcher. He earned first team honors as a second baseman and second team honors as a starting pitcher. He is hitting .341 with nine home runs and 50 RBI. His average is the best on the team, and his RBI total is the third-best mark in the SoCon and tops among all Mercer players. On the mound, he has made 14 appearances - 11 starts and 3 appearances in relief. He has a 6-1 record and an ERA of 4.13. Delano has tallied 59 strikeouts to only 14 walks and is holding opponents to a .231 average through 76.1 innings pitched. Delano is also a semifinalist for the John Olreud Two-Way Player of the Year, given to the best two-way player in the country.
RJ Yeager | First Team (Coaches/Media) Shortstop
Yeager, a junior infielder from Lynn Haven, Fla., earned first team honors as a shortstop. He is currently hitting .313 with 13 home runs and leads the team with 50 RBI, which is also third-best among all players in the SoCon. He has an on-base percentage of .369 and has stolen nine bases. Out of his 70 hits, 31 have been for extra bases. Yeager has hit 28 career home runs and is the program's active home runs leader. In the field, Yeager has a fielding percentage of .972 with 71 putouts and 139 assists. Yeager is a semifinalist for the Brooks Wallace Award, which is presented to the best shortstop in the nation.
Luke Sutko | Second Team (Coaches) Relief Pitcher
Sutko, a junior, earned second team relief pitcher honors from the South Conference's head coaches. The right-hander from Woodstock, Ga., leads the Southern Conference in saves (12) and appearances (30). He was a key reliever for the Bears in 2021, pitching 46.2 innings. Sutko tallied 57 strikeouts and held an ERA of 4.24. On April 24, he pitched a season-high 4.2 innings against Samford and struck out a career-high seven batters, helping the Bears to a series victory over the Bulldogs.
Collin Price | Second Team (Coaches) Catcher
Price earned second team catcher honors. The sophomore from Suwanee, Ga., was named to the 2021 Buster Posey Watch List earlier in the season. He appeared in 51 games for Mercer, making 47 starts. He is batting .293 with 51 hits, with 17 of those hits coming for extra bases. He has a fielding percentage of .992 and has thrown out 38 percent of base stealers during the regular season.
Trevor Austin | Second Team (Coaches/Media) Third base
Austin, a native of Suwanee, Ga., earned a spot on the second team as a third baseman. He has started all 55 games for Mercer this spring and is hitting .293, going 51-for-174. Of his 51 hits, five were doubles, which was a single-season high for the redshirt sophomore From the nine spot, he has batted in 16 runs. He has an on-base percentage of .393 on the season.
Bill Knight | Second Team (Coaches/Media) Outfielder
Knight earned second team outfield honors as an outfielder. The six-foot-one-inch sophomore was the leadoff hitter for the Bears is hitting .318 and leads the team with 70 hits, the third-most in the Southern Conference. Knight has scored a team-high 56 runs, the third-most in the SoCon. Not only did Knight hold a high average throughout the regular season, but he hit for power as well, smashing a career-high nine home runs and 15 doubles to go along with a career-best 46 runs batted in.
Colby Thomas | All-Freshman Team
Thomas, a freshman from Valdosta, Ga., earned all-freshman team honors this season. The power-hitting outfielder hit .243 with 37 RBI in 51 regular season contests. He hit 10 homers and had 12 doubles. and an on-base percentage of .357. Once on base, he stole nine bases. Most of Thomas' damage came in SoCon action where he hit .298 with seven home runs and 23 RBI.
2021 SoCon Baseball Coaches All-Southern Conference Teams
Player of the Year – Colin Davis, OF, Wofford
Pitcher of the Year – Elliot Carney, RHP, Wofford
Freshman of the Year – Justin Starke, 1B, VMI
Coach of the Year – Todd Interdonato, Wofford
First team
SP Colby Stuart, ETSU
SP Elliot Carney, Wofford
RP Dalton Rhadans, Wofford
C Luke Robinson, Western Carolina
1B Justin Starke, VMI
2B Garett Delano, Mercer
SS RJ Yeager, Mercer
3B Jack Renwick, Wofford
OF Corey Rosier, UNCG
OF Justice Bigbie, Western Carolina
OF Colin Davis, Wofford
DH Will Prater, Western Carolina
Second team
SP Garett Delano, Mercer
SP Zebby Matthews, Western Carolina
RP Luke Sutko, Mercer
C Collin Price, Mercer
1B Sonny DiChiara, Samford
2B Hogan Windish, UNCG
SS Pascanel Ferreras, Western Carolina
3B Trevor Austin, Mercer
OF Ryan McCarthy, The Citadel
OF Bill Knight, Mercer
OF Nolen Hester, Wofford
DH Tyler McManus, Samford
All-freshman team
Matthew Bollenbacher, ETSU
Ashton King, ETSU
Hunter Loyd, ETSU
Colby Thomas, Mercer
Chase Isbell, Samford
Tyler Bradt, VMI
Trey Morgan, VMI
Zac Morris, VMI
Justin Starke, VMI
Pascanel Ferreras, Western Carolina
Jack Renwick, Wofford
Trey Yunger, Wofford
2021 SoCon Sports Media Association Baseball All-Conference Teams
Player of the Year – Colin Davis, OF, Wofford
Pitcher of the Year – Elliot Carney, RHP, Wofford
Freshman of the Year – Justin Starke, 1B, VMI
Coach of the Year – Todd Interdonato, Wofford
First team
SP Colby Stuart, ETSU
SP Elliot Carney, Wofford
RP Dalton Rhadans, Wofford
C Luke Robinson, Western Carolina
1B Justin Starke, VMI
2B Garett Delano, Mercer
SS RJ Yeager, Mercer
3B Jack Renwick, Wofford
OF Corey Rosier, UNCG
OF Justice Bigbie, Western Carolina
OF Colin Davis, Wofford
DH Will Prater, Western Carolina
Second team
SP Garett Delano, Mercer
SP Zebby Matthews, Western Carolina
RP Austin Parsley, UNCG
C Lawson Hill, Wofford
1B Sonny DiChiara, Samford
2B Hogan Windish, UNCG
SS Pascanel Ferreras, Western Carolina
3B Trevor Austin, Mercer
OF Ryan McCarthy, The Citadel
OF Bill Knight, Mercer
OF Nolen Hester, Wofford
DH Tyler McManus, Samford
Follow the Bears
For complete coverage of Mercer Baseball, please follow the Bears on social media at @MercerBaseball (Twitter), /MercerBaseball (Facebook) and @Mercer.Baseball (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.
Players Mentioned
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