Tampa’s Sean Bierman and Joe Urso Claim Major SSC Awards

ORLANDO, Fla. - The Sunshine State Conference champion University of Tampa baseball team had 10 players on the all-SSC teams, as announced Wednesday by league commissioner Jay Jones. Sean Bierman also earned Pitcher of the Year honors as Joe Urso was Coach of the Year.

A total of 33 student-athletes have been named to the 2012 All-Sunshine State Conference Baseball Team. Nova Southeastern's Carlos Asuaje and Lynn's Anthony Boza shared Player of the Year honors. Tampa's Bierman was named Pitcher of the Year. Saint Leo's Brendan Collins was tabbed Freshman of the Year. Lynn's Rudy Garbalosa and Tampa's Urso shared Coach of the Year accolades.

Named to the all-SSC First Team with 2B Asuaje, SP Bierman, and DH Boza were: 1B Ryan McChesney (Florida Tech), 3B Mike Snyder (Florida Southern), SS K.C. Clabough (Florida Tech), C Austin Chubb (Florida Southern), OF Zach Gawrych (Tampa), OF Andrew Jones (Tampa), OF Areo Regoli (Nova Southeastern), OF Austin Smith (Lynn), UT Cory Jensen (Florida Southern), SP Shawn Kale (Lynn), SP Ben O'Shea (Tampa), SP Zach Westcott (Nova Southeastern), and RP James Mannara (Florida Tech).

Earning all-SSC Second Team recognition with OF Collins were: 1B Kevin Mager (Rollins), 2B Mike Diorio (Lynn), 3B Damon Elder (Tampa), SS Alex Del Monte (Eckerd), C Sean Reilly (Rollins), OF Keith Curcio (Florida Southern), OF Connor Obrochta (Tampa), OF Zach Persky (Rollins), DH Heath Pritchard (Tampa), UT Eric Grabe (Tampa), SP Jason Boyer (Florida Tech), SP Ben Brown (Tampa), SP Joey Cuda (Eckerd), SP Nick Krolczyk (Florida Southern), and RP Preston Packrall (Tampa).
Saint Leo SP Rick Teasley received honorable mention.

Voting for the all-conference team was conducted among the league's baseball coaches and sports information directors.

In his final season at Tampa, Bierman posted an 8-2 record with a 1.93 ERA. His earned run average ranked second among SSC pitchers, and his eight wins tied for most in the conference. Bierman struck out 82 batters while walking only 10, ranking third in the SSC in both of those categories. He limited UT's opponents to a .227 opposing batting average, fifth best among league hurlers.

Urso earns his seventh Coach of the Year distinction after leading Tampa to its 14th SSC title in program history. The Spartans finished the regular season with a 38-8 overall record and an 18-6 conference slate. Urso's squad led the SSC in a slew of statistical categories including batting average (.312), runs (330), RBI (299), ERA (2.45), and opposing batting average (.240). UT ranked second in slugging percentage (.464), on-base percentage (.385), and hits (489). The Spartans have been near the top of the DII polls all season and are currently the consensus pick for No. 1 heading into the NCAA postseason.

2012 ALL-SUNSHINE STATE CONFERENCE BASEBALL TEAM
FIRST TEAM
1B - Ryan McChesney (Florida Tech, Sr)
2B - Carlos Asuaje (Nova Southeastern, So)
3B - Mike Snyder (Florida Southern, Sr)
SS - K.C. Clabough (Florida Tech, Sr)
C - Austin Chubb (Florida Southern, Sr)
OF - Zach Gawrych (Tampa, So)
OF - Andrew Jones (Tampa, Sr)
OF - Areo Regoli (Nova Southeastern, Sr)
OF - Austin Smith (Lynn, Sr)
DH - Anthony Boza (Lynn, Sr)
UT - Cory Jensen (Florida Southern, Sr)
SP - Sean Bierman (Tampa, Sr)
SP - Shawn Kale (Lynn, Sr)
SP - Ben O'Shea (Tampa, Jr)
SP - Zach Westcott (Nova Southeastern, So)
RP - James Mannara (Florida Tech, Jr)

Player of the Year - Carlos Asuaje, Nova Southeastern
Player of the Year - Anthony Boza, Lynn
Pitcher of the Year - Sean Bierman, Tampa
Freshman of the Year - Brendan Collins, Saint Leo
Coach of the Year - Rudy Garbalosa, Lynn
Coach of the Year - Joe Urso, Tampa

SECOND TEAM
1B - Kevin Mager (Rollins, Sr)
2B - Mike Diorio (Lynn, Sr)
3B - Damon Elder (Tampa, Sr)
SS - Alex Del Monte (Eckerd, Sr)
C - Sean Reilly (Rollins, Sr)
OF - Keith Curcio (Florida Southern, Fr)
OF - Brendan Collins (Saint Leo, Fr)
OF - Connor Obrochta (Tampa, So)
OF - Zach Persky (Rollins, So)
DH - Heath Pritchard (Tampa, Sr)
UT - Eric Grabe (Tampa, Sr)
SP - Jason Boyer (Florida Tech, Jr)
SP - Ben Brown (Tampa, Jr)
SP - Joey Cuda (Eckerd, Sr)
SP - Nick Krolczyk (Florida Southern, So)
RP - Preston Packrall (Tampa, So)

HONORABLE MENTION
SP - Rick Teasley (Saint Leo, Jr)