ALBANY, Ga. – The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) has announced its 2023 baseball all-conference awards, as voted on by the league's coaches and sports information directors.
Three Benedict College players were named to this year's squad.
Justin Murray was named first-team All-SIAC as a utility player. Catcher
Taj Bates and outfielder
Isaiah Canty were named to the second team.
Murray ranked fourth in the SIAC and 34
th in Division II in batting average, hitting .418. Murray played first base, second base, third base, and in the outfield for the Tigers this season. He ranks fifth in SIAC in doubles per game (.38), fourth in SIAC in hits per game (1.50), eighth in on-base pct. (.500), eighth in RBIs per game (1.15), 17th in runs per game (1.06), sixth in slugging pct. (.718), and ninth in stolen bases per game (0.62).
Bates ranked ninth in the SIAC in batting average (.381), while leading the SIAC in base on balls per game (1.03), which ranks fourth nationally. He was also second in the SIAC in on-base percentage (.567), second in doubles per game (0.41) and fifth in runs scored per game (1.21), and second in slugging percentage (.773). Bates also ranked fifth in the SIAC in home runs per game (0.24).
Canty was among the conference leaders with 69 RBIs, and was seventh in the league with an average of 1.18 RBIs per game. He was tied with Bates for fifth in the league in home runs per game (0.24), and was fourth in the SIAC in stolen bases per game (0.82).
Kentucky State's Joseph Esparza headlines the all-conference team after being selected as the 2023 SIAC Player of the Year alongside Albany State's Luke Addison, who was named Utility Player of the Year. Savannah State's Enrico Peele who was named 2023 Starting Pitcher of the Year.
Miles' Logan Watts earned this year's Relief Pitcher of the Year honor and his teammate, Trey Rutledge was selected as the 2023 SIAC Freshman of the Year.
Spring Hill's head coach, Walker Bullington, has been named 2023 SIAC Baseball Coach of the Year.
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. Collier Higgs of Kentucky State is this year's baseball Elite 14 recipient and Daiton Pass of Edward Waters University is the Co-Elite 14 Award recipient.
The 2023 Cricket SIAC Baseball Championship is set to take place May 4-7, 2023, at Albany State University, West Campus and Sherwood Christian Academy in Albany, GA. For more information, click
here. Events can be watched live on the
SIAC Sports YouTube channel.
BASEBALL ALL-CONFERENCE HONORS
Coach of the Year: Walker Bullington, Spring Hill
Player of the Year: Joseph Esparza, Kentucky State
Utility Player of the Year: Luke Addison, Albany State
Starting Pitcher of the Year: Enrico Peele, Savannah State
Relief Pitcher of the Year: Logan Watts, Miles
Freshman of the Year: Trey Rutledge, Miles
Elite 14: Collier Higgs, Kentucky State, 4.0 GPA
Co-Elite 14: Daiton Pass, Edward Waters, 4.0 GPA
First Team
| Position |
Name |
School |
Class |
Hometown |
| Starting Pitcher |
Enrico Peele |
Savannah State |
R-Senior |
Lehigh Acres, FL |
| Starting Pitcher |
Landon Kiefer |
Albany State |
Freshman |
Parrish, FL |
| Starting Pitcher |
Jeremiah Reddell |
Albany State |
Sophomore |
Albany, GA |
| Starting Pitcher |
Logan Clark |
Spring Hill |
R-Senior |
Cleveland, MS |
| Catcher |
Brandon Leroy |
Miles |
Junior |
Eufaula, AL |
| First Base |
Joseph Esparza |
Kentucky State |
Junior |
San Diego, CA |
| Second Base |
Jonathan Logsdon |
Albany State |
Junior |
Leesburg, GA |
| Short Stop |
Hill Corley |
Albany State |
Sophomore |
Albany, GA |
| Third Base |
Austin Roberts |
Albany State |
Sophomore |
Grantville, GA |
| Outfield |
Jackson Bell |
Spring Hill |
R-Sophomore |
Mobile, AL |
| Outfield |
Lavoisier Fisher |
Albany State |
Junior |
Suwanee, GA |
| Outfield |
Joe Smith |
Savannah State |
R-Senior |
Brunswick, GA |
| Relief Pitcher |
Logan Watts |
Miles |
Freshman |
McCalla, AL |
| Designated Hitter |
Tucker Jordan |
Albany State |
Junior |
Blountstown, FL |
| Utility Player |
Justin Murray |
Benedict |
Sophomore |
Toronto, Canada |
Second Team
| Position |
Name |
School |
Class |
Hometown |
| Starting Pitcher |
Kai St. Germaine |
Spring Hill |
Senior |
Peoria, AZ |
| Starting Pitcher |
Evan Langston |
Spring Hill |
Sophomore |
Mammoth Lakes, CA |
| Starting Pitcher |
Jose Santiago |
Savannah State |
R-Junior |
North Lauderdale, FL |
| Starting Pitcher |
Jared Showalter |
Savannah State |
R-Senior |
Huntingdon, PA |
| Catcher |
Taj Bates |
Benedict |
Sophomore |
St. Croix, Virgin Islands |
| First Base |
Norris McClure |
Spring Hill |
Junior |
Mandeville, LA |
| Second Base |
Kentavious Veal |
Clark Atlanta |
Junior |
Gordon, GA |
| Short Stop |
Elijah Pinckney |
Morehouse |
Freshman |
Morningside, MD |
| Third Base |
Hugo Schoening |
Edward Waters |
R-Freshman |
Orange Park, FL |
| Outfield |
Gage Ragona |
Spring Hill |
R-Senior |
Mobile, AL |
| Outfield |
Isaiah Canty |
Benedict |
Junior |
Columbia, S.C. |
| Outfield |
Trey Rutledge |
Miles |
R-Freshman |
Birmingham, AL |
| Relief Pitcher |
John Luegering |
Albany State |
Junior |
Marietta, GA |
| Designated Hitter |
Nick Hunter |
Spring Hill |
Sophomore |
Herrin, IL |
| Utility Player |
Luke Addison |
Albany State |
Freshman |
Leesburg, GA |
