Four Mariners Nab All-Region Baseball Honors
[ABCA/Rawlings All-Region Teams | D3baseball.com All-Region Teams]
NEW LONDON, Conn. – Four members of the Mitchell College baseball team were recognized on Tuesday as both the ABCA/Rawlings and D3baseball.com all-region squads were announced.
Freshmen Bo Yaworski and Daniel Driscoll and junior Matt Falk all earned spots on the ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Division III Region 2 third team. Yaworski also landed on the D3baseball.com All-Region 2 third team along with junior Lelo Martinez. All four earned all-region honors for the first time in their careers.
The group led the Mariners to a 31-13 record this season that included a 7-4 mark in New England Collegiate Conference play. Mitchell won its eighth NECC title and competed in the NCAA DIII regionals for the seventh time, picking up its fifth postseason win since 2014.
Yaworski hit a team-high .393 with 13 doubles, five homers, 44 RBI and 42 runs scored in his debut season. The first baseman, an all-conference selection who was tabbed NECC Rookie of the Year, played in all 44 games and ranked 12th in the country in on-base percentage (.548). He is the second Mitchell position player to earn all-region honors as a freshman, joining teammate Dougie DelaCruz (2019).
Driscoll, a left-handed pitcher, enjoyed a strong first season in which he made 11 appearances and six starts, posting a 6-0 record with a 1.86 ERA while fanning 51 batters over 48.1 innings. He was named MVP of the 2022 NECC Baseball Championship after pitching the Mariners to a victory in the title round. He becomes the third Mitchell pitcher to earn all-region honors as a freshman, joining Tyler Shamas (2013) and teammate Ryan Solimine (2019).
Falk played in 42 games as Mitchell's starting catcher and batted .320 with a career-high 35 RBI. He led the NECC with nine home runs, the second-highest single season total in the program's DIII history. The two-time all-conference selection also led the league with eight baserunners caught stealing.
Martinez batted a career-high .383 with 37 RBI and 45 runs scored while earning all-conference honors for the second straight season. The third baseman led the NECC with 59 hits over 44 games and also ranked fourth in the league with 11 stolen bases.
The ABCA/Rawlings teams are voted on by members of the American Baseball Coaches Association and the process is led by the ABCA NCAA Div. III All-America Committee. The ABCA All-America team was first recognized in 1949 and now includes nine divisions: NCAA Divisions I, II and III, NAIA, NJCAA Divisions I, II and III, Pacific Association Division, and high school.
The 2022 season marks the 10th year that D3baseball.com has named all-region teams, with players nominated by sports information directors from around the country. The ballot was then made available to D3basebll.com staff and contributors from which three teams in each region were determined.
