ALBANY, Ga. – The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) has announced its 2022 baseball all-conference awards, as voted on by the league's coaches and sports information directors.
 
Savannah State's Joe Smith headlines the all-conference team after being selected as the 2022 SIAC Player of the Year, alongside Miles' Kody Long, who was named 2022 Starting Pitcher of the Year. Spring Hill's Michael Romano earned this year's Relief Pitcher of the Year honor. 
 
Miles' Michael Archie was selected as the 2022 SIAC Freshman of the Year, alongside Benedict's Bradon O'Connor, who was named Utility Player of the Year. Savannah State's head coach, Carlton Hardy, has been named 2022 SIAC Baseball Coach of the Year.
 
Benedict's O'Connor ranks first in NCAA D2 in total stolen bases (97) and stolen bases per game (2.26). The graduate student ranks fourth in NCAA Division II and second in SIAC in batting average (.454). He ranks sixth in Division II and third in SIAC in on-base percentage (.551). He ranks 22^nd in Division II and fourth in SIAC in hits per game (1.60) and 48^th in Division II and 6th in SIAC in runs scored (56). The Colorado native ranks 78^th in Division II and ninth in the league in RBIs (51). In the regular season, O'Connor has played mostly at second base, but also plays in the outfield and finished with a fielding percentage of .919.
 
In his second season at Savannah State, Joe Smith topped the hitting stats with a .473 average in 39 games this season. He has the best batting average in the SIAC and No. 2 best batting average in NCAA Division II. Smith has 69 hits, nine doubles, nine triples, eight home runs and 39 RBIs, slugging .822. He's ranked No. 2 in the SIAC in hits (69), No. 1 in hits per game (69/39), No. 4 on on-base percentage (.556), No. 3 in runs (62), No. 2 in slugging percentage (.822), No. 2 in toughest to strike out (200), No. 1 in triples (9). He is fielding .965 this year with 50 putouts and only two errors. He was named the SIAC Player of the Week for the week of April 25.
 
Miles' Kody Long currently is second in the SIAC in victories (9) and leads the league in winning percentage (9-1, .900). He's also third in strikeouts (63) in just 66 innings. He was named Pitcher of the Week after pitching a complete-game 1-hitter vs. Tuskegee, striking out 10 and retiring the final 21 hitters he faced.
 
Spring Hill's Michael Romano finished 3-1 record with 2 saves in 16 appearances in 2022. He is currently SHC's DII era career saves leader and 2nd all-time with 10 saves.
 
 Michael Archie of Miles has been one of the top hitters in the SIAC, ranking among the league leaders in home runs (10), RBIs (48), runs scored (47), all while slashing .351/.566/.732, leading the Golden Bears in the latter two categories. He has reached base 48 times by walk or hit-by-pitch and was named SIAC Player of the Week once this season.
 
Carlton Hardy, in his 16th year at Savannah State, has put together one of the best baseball teams in program history this season. The Tigers have cruised through their SIAC schedule, finishing with a 28-2 conference record and a firm grasp on first place in the conference. Overall, Savannah State is 33-10 this year. Their pitching staff and hitters top the SIAC and Division II statistics. The team is nationally ranked No. 11 in batting average, No. 3 in on-base percentage, No. 5 in stolen bases, No. 2 in triples and No. 17 in win/loss percentage. They lead the SIAC in win/loss percentage, WHIP, triples, shutouts and earned run average.
 
In its inaugural season, the Elite 14 award recognized the student-athlete who has reached the pinnacle of competition at the SIAC championship level in his or her sport while also achieving the highest academic standard among his or her peers. Lachlan Ross of Albany State was the first recipient of this award in baseball.
 
The 2022 SIAC Baseball Championship is set to return on May 5-8, 2022 at Albany State University, West Campus and Paul Eames Sports Complex in Albany, Ga after the pandemic shutdown the last two seasons. For more information, click here.
 
Coach of the Year: Carlton Hardy, Savannah State
Freshman of the Year: Michael Archie, Miles
Starting Pitcher of the Year: Kody Long, Miles
Relief Pitcher of the Year: Michael Romano, Spring Hill
Utility Player of the Year: Bradon O'Connor, Benedict
Player of the Year: Joe Smith, Savannah State
Elite 14: Lachlan Ross, Albany State

2022 SIAC Baseball All-Conference Team
First Team 
 

Position	Name	School	Class	Hometown
Starting Pitcher	Kody Long	Miles	Senior	Pleasant Grove, AL
Starting Pitcher	Jose Santiago	Savannah State	R-Sophomore	North Lauderdale, FL
Starting Pitcher	Jared Showalter	Savannah State	R-Junior	Huntingdon, PA
Starting Pitcher	Enrico Peele	Savannah State	R-Junior	Lehigh Acres, FL
Catcher	Jacob Bisharat	Miles	Senior	Pleasant Grove, AL
First Base	Micah Morgan	Spring Hill	Sophomore	Fairhope, AL
Second Base	Frankie Timphony	Spring Hill	R-Junior	New Orleans, LA
Short Stop	Norris McClure	Spring Hill	Sophomore	Mandeville, LA
Third Base	Cam Brock	Spring Hill	Freshman	Fairhope, AL
Outfield	Joe Smith	Savannah State	R-Junior	Brunswick, GA
Outfield	Gage Ragona	Spring Hill	R-Junior	Mobile, AL
Outfield	Dwayne Franklin	Savannah State	R-Senior	Douglassville, GA
Relief Pitcher	Michael Romano	Spring Hill	Grad Student	Covington, LA
Designated Hitter	Michael Archie	Miles	Freshman	Birmingham, AL
Utility Player	Bradon O'Connor	Benedict	Grad Student	Denver, CO

 
 Second Team

Position	Name	School	Class	Hometown
Starting Pitcher	Jonathan Henry	Albany State	Junior	Whitby, Ontario, Canada
Starting Pitcher	Jeremiah Reddell	Albany State	Freshman	Albany, GA
Starting Pitcher	Jackson Short	Spring Hill	R-Junior	Trenton, GA
Starting Pitcher	Logan Clark	Spring Hill	R-Senior	Cleveland, MS
Catcher	Jared Pierce	Kentucky State	Senior	Lexington, KY
First Base	Nicholas Hernandez	Albany State	Senior	Las Vegas, NV
Second Base	Malik Bell	Albany State	Junior	Atlanta, GA
Short Stop	Gabriel Patxot	Savannah State	R-Sophomore	Miami, FL
Third Base	Adren Thompson	Kentucky State	Grad Student	Lexington, KY
Outfield	Grayson Williams	Spring Hill	R-Senior	Mobile, AL
Outfield	Collier Higgs	Kentucky State	Sophomore	Owensboro, KY
Outfield	Lavoisier Fisher	Albany State	Junior	Suwanee, GA
Relief Pitcher	Rahmir Vaughn	Savannah State	R-Sophomore	Stockbridge, GA
Designated Hitter	Grant Akridge	Spring Hill	R-Senior	Elba, AL
Utility Player	Lachlan Ross	Albany State	Junior	Sydney, Australia