Marshall University Athletics
Four Marshall Baseball Players Honored by Conference USA
5/25/2010 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 25, 2010
IRVING, Texas - The Marshall University baseball team had three individuals recognized as First Team All-Conference USA players announced by league officials on Tuesday. Victor Gomez was selected as the lone first-team catcher, Kurt Lipton earned the honor as an outfielder and Arik Sikula was picked as a starting pitcher for the Thundering Herd. Kirby Pellant was named to the All-Freshman team, consisting of 11 players.
Marshall had the second most first-team selections (3), only trailing Southern Miss who had four players honored. It also marked the most players ever chosen from a MU baseball club to earn first-team all-conference accolades.
Victor Gomez has been a mainstay in the MU lineup during his three-year career. The junior set the school record for career homers (45), RBI (169) and total bases (407) in 2010. This season alone, the backstop started all 55 games, while tallying a .363 batting average with 16 homers and 60 RBI. Gomez was also a perfect 7-for-7 on stolen base attempts.
Arik Sikula came alive on the mound once being given the nod as a starting pitcher at the beginning of conference play. The junior finished with a 6-4 record and 3.33 ERA, while holding opponents to a .246 batting average. The South Charleston native appeared in 16 games, making eight starts, and picked up wins against conference foes East Carolina, Southern Miss and UAB.
Kurt Lipton also produced an impressive offensive season for the Herd, hitting at a team-best .375 clip with 11 doubles, seven triples, 10 homers and 41 RBI. In league play, the senior tallied a .418 average, while knocking in 30 RBI in 24 games.
Another member of the 2010 Thundering Herd baseball that was honored was Kirby Pellant. The MU leadoff man was one of 11 players selected to the All-Freshman Team. Pellant raised his game in conference action, finishing with a .337 average, seven doubles, four triples, 20 runs and 10 RBI. Overall, Pellant hit .293 on the season, recorded 10 stolen bases and registered a .973 fielding percentage by only committing five miscues on the year.
The No. 4 Thundering Herd will take on the C-USA tournament host and No. 5 Houston Cougars on Wednesday night. The game will be played at Cougar Field with first pitch slated for 8 p.m. EST.
FIRST TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE
IF Anthony Rendon, So., Rice
IF Rob Segedin, So., Tulane
IF Luke Stewart, Sr., UAB
IF B.A. Vollmuth, So., Southern Miss
OF Shane Brown, Sr., UCF
OF Chris Duffy, Sr., UCF
OF Kurt Lipton, Sr., Marshall
C Victor Gomez, Jr., Marshall
DH/UT Kyle Roller, Sr., East Carolina
P Scott Copeland, Sr., Southern Miss
P Seth Maness, Jr., East Carolina
P Todd McInnis, Jr., Southern Miss
P Arik Sikula, Jr., Marshall
RP Collin Cargill, Jr., Southern Miss
SECOND TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE
IF Jimmy Comerota, Sr., Rice
IF Rick Hague, Jr., Rice
IF Jonathan Merritt, Sr., UAB
IF Corey Thompson, So., East Carolina
IF Chad Zurcher, So., Memphis
OF Jamal Austin, So., UAB
OF Tyler Huelsing, Sr., Memphis
OF Drew Martinez, So. Memphis
C Diego Seastrunk, Sr., Rice
DH/UT Jeremy Rathjen, So., Rice
P Ryan Fraser, Sr., Memphis
P Mike Ojala, Sr., Rice
P Taylor Wall, So., Rice
P Zach Woods, Jr., East Carolina
RP Nick Pepitone, Jr., Tulane
ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM
Brandon Boudreaux, OF, Tulane
Garrett Cannizaro, SS, Tulane
M.P. Cokinos, C/DH, Houston
Blake Crohan, UT, Tulane
Dillon Day, OF, Southern Miss
John Frost, UT, UAB
Kirby Pellant, 2B, Marshall
Michael Ratterree, 2B, Rice
Joe Rogers, LHP, UCF
Darnell Sweeney, SS, UCF
Chris Taladay, IF, UCF
John Wooten, SS, East Carolina
