Reading, Pa. (May 12, 2008) – Seven players from the Alvernia College baseball team were named to the All-Conference teams by the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference led by senior catcher
Dale Curry (Philadelphia, Pa./Father Judge) who earned the Crusaders’ seventh Player of the Year award in the last eight years and freshman pitcher
Chuck Nicholas (Boyertown, Pa./Boyertown) who earned PAC Rookie of the Year.
Curry, a preseason All-American, was one of four players to bat .400 or better this season entering this week’s ECAC Tournament with a .424 average. He and Tim Carroll (Bensalem, Pa./Conwell Egan) are tied for second on the team lead in hits (61) and the team lead in runs (46) and walks (23). Curry paces the team with 20 doubles, nine homeruns, and 61 RBIs. This is the second straight first team appearance for Curry who joined the Alvernia team as a junior transfer.
Nicholas owns a conference best 1.07 ERA among starters with 50 and two-thirds innings pitched. He went six or more innings in seven of his nine appearances and only once gave up more than one earned run. He threw eight shutout innings against Lebanon Valley and went six scoreless three times against Misericordia, Centenary, and Penn State-Harrisburg. Nicholas, the team’s Most Valuable Pitcher, struck out 33 batters and didn’t allow a triple or a home run all year as opponents hit just .216 off him. Nicholas was also named All-PAC First Team, one of six Crusaders to earn that honor.
Freshman first baseman Chris Stoudt (West Lawn, Pa./Governor Mifflin) was the only other Alvernia infielder on the team. Stoudt batted .319 on the season with six doubles, a triple, and a homer. He scored 23 runs and knocked in 41.
All three starting outfielders for Alvernia made the first team with Carroll and junior James Geosits (Wyomissing, Pa./Wilson) earning spots in the outfield and senior Steve Burdan (Pottstown, Pa./Pottstown) being named First Team Designated Hitter. Carroll batter .415 with 15 doubles and a team-high six triples. He also paced the team in steals swiping 27 bases in 31 attempts. This is the third straight first team honor for Carroll.
Geosits is the only player on the Alvernia roster to have played in all 43 games so far this season. He is batting .428 with team highs in hits (74) and at-bats (173). He has scored 44 runs and knocked in 51, and has 19 doubles and six home runs. This is the first All-PAC honor for Geosits.
Burdan is making his third straight first team appearance; his first as the designated hitter. Burdan batted .349 this season with 37 hits in 106 at-bats. He scored 28 runs had 10 doubles, six home runs and 22 RBIs.
Senior Corey Berghardt (Boyertown, Pa./Boyertown), the Crusaders starting second baseman, was named to the All-PAC Sportsmanship Team, making his first All-PAC appearance.
Three former Alvernia players, Todd Meyer (’01, ’02), Anthony Recker (’03, ’05), and Zach Lutz (‘06, ‘07) all earned PAC Player of the Year honors twice. All three players were signed to professional contracts. Meyer played in the Expos minor league system and Recker and Lutz are currently playing in the farm systems of the Oakland A’s and New York Mets respectively.