BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Regular-season champion Army West Point collected two of the five Patriot League baseball major awards and nine All-League honors when postseason awards were announced on Wednesday. Holy Cross, Lehigh and Navy each picked up one of the League’s major awards.
Army West Point sophomore Connelly Early claimed 2022 Patriot League Baseball Pitcher of the Year honors after going 5-1 with a 2.40 ERA in seven League starts. Black Knights’ head coach Jim Foster picked up his second Gene Depew Coach of the Year award after guiding his squad to the program’s first regular-season title since 2012.
Lehigh senior outfielder/right-handed pitcher Casey Rother captured Patriot League Baseball Player of the Year honors for the second-consecutive season. Rother won the League batting title, hitting .371 with a League-leading 48 RBIs.
Holy Cross freshman third baseman Nick Wang won the 2022 Patriot League Baseball Rookie of the Year. He reached base safely in 37-consecutive games, the longest streak in the League. Navy sophomore shortstop Eduardo Diaz was named 2022 Patriot League Baseball Defensive Player of the Year. His .967 fielding percentage in League play was the best among starting League shortstops.
Overall, 28 student-athletes were selected to the two All-Patriot League teams with 13 on the first team and 15 named to the second team due to ties in the voting. Army West Point placed a League-high nine players on the two teams, including seven on the first team. Bucknell finished with seven All-League honorees, with one on the first team and six on the second team.
Lehigh had five All-League selections with three on the first team, and Lafayette had three honorees with one on the first team. Holy Cross and Navy received two All-Patriot League selections apiece.
Patriot League baseball head coaches voted on the All-League teams and major awards and could not vote for their student-athletes or themselves.
2022 Patriot League Baseball Player of the Year
Casey Rother, Lehigh, Sr., OF/RHP, Tamaqua, Pa./Tamaqua
2022 Batting Stats: 48 GP, .371 BA (72-for-194), .613 SLG, .425 OBP, 42 R, 18 2B, 1 3B, 9 HR, 48 RBI, 5 SB
*The two-time Patriot League Player of the Year led the League in six offensive categories, including batting average (.371), slugging percentage (.613), hits (72), doubles (18), total bases (119) and RBIs (48), while finishing second in home runs (9).
*In 25 League games, Rother hit .381 (37-for-97) with seven home runs and 28 RBIs, while slugging .680 and reaching base at a .481 clip.
*In addition to his work at the plate, Rother made nine appearances on the mound spanning 13.2 innings to post a 1.32 ERA with two saves.
2022 Patriot League Baseball Pitcher of the Year
Connelly Early, Army West Point, So., LHP, Midlothian, Va./James River
2022 Pitching Stats: 11 GS, 65.0 IP, 6-3, 3.18 ERA, 67 SO, 26 BB, .207 OPP. BA, 1.15 WHIP
*Early led the League in opponent’s batting average (.207) and WHIP (1.15) and finished second in wins (6), ERA (3.18) and fourth in strikeouts.
*In seven Patriot League starts that spanned 41.1 innings, Early went 5-1 with a 2.40 ERA while holding opponents to a League-best .187 batting average.
*The sophomore left-hander finished among the League leaders with 67 strikeouts, including 48 in League play,
2022 Patriot League Rookie of the Year
Nick Wang, Holy Cross, Fr., 3B, Newton, Mass./Buckingham Browne & Nichols
2022 Batting Stats: 37 GP, .376 BA (50-for-133), .572 SLG, .479 OBP, 26 R, 18 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 20 RBI, 6 SB
*Wang collected Patriot League Rookie of the Week honors four times while reaching base in each of his 37 games played this season.
*The freshman third baseman recorded 16 multi-hit games, including three three-hit games, but fell under the minimum games played threshold to qualify for the League batting title.
*Wang batted .409 (18-for-44) in 13 League games, with six doubles and 10 RBIs. He also recorded a .659 slugging percentage and a .480 on-base percentage.
2022 Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year
Eduardo Diaz, Navy, So., SS, Miami, Fla./Miami Coral Park Senior
2022 Fielding Stats: 45 GP, 173 chances, 57 putouts, 108 assists, 8 errors, .954 fielding percentage
*Diaz finished the regular season with a .954 fielding percentage, 108 assists and 57 putouts at shortstop.
*His .967 fielding percentage in Patriot League play was best among League shortstops, while his three errors were the fewest among League starters.
*The Miami, Fla. native had 57 assists and 31 putouts in 25 League games, while turning six double plays.
2022 Patriot League Gene Depew Coach of the Year
Jim Foster, Army West Point
*Foster guided the Black Knights to the program’s first Patriot League regular-season title since 2012 with an 18-7 record in League games, four games in front of second-place Bucknell.
*The Black Knights possessed the Patriot League’s most potent offense, leading the League in team batting average (.296), runs (318), walks (213) and on-base percentage (.386).
*Army West Point also posted the League’s best team ERA (4.67) while holding opponents to a League-low .250 batting average.
Rother and Early Highlight List of 12 Two-Time All-League Honorees
Rother and Early highlight a list of 12 Patriot League baseball players to earn All-League honors for the second time. Rother, Army West Point third baseman Sam Ruta, Bucknell senior outfielder Connor Cannizzaro and Navy senior catcher Christian Policelli are all two-time first-team picks after making the squad last season. Rother and Ruta were selected as player and rookie of the year, respectively, last season.
Early, teammates Kevin Dubrule (SS), Ross Friedrick (1B) and Nick Manesis (OF), Lafayette junior Peter Ciuffreda (OF), Lehigh senior Joe Gorla (1B), senior Luke Rettig (LHP) and junior Adam Retzbach (C) are all two-time All-League honorees after making the second team last year. Dubrule, Early, Friedrick, Manesis, Rettig and Retzbach were all first-teamers this season.
2022 Patriot League Baseball Major Awards
Player of the Year: Casey Rother, Lehigh, Sr., OF/RHP
Pitcher of the Year: Connelly Early, Army West Point, So., LHP
Rookie of the Year: Nick Wang, Holy Cross, Fr., 3B
Defensive Player of the Year: Eduardo Diaz, Navy, So., SS
Gene Depew Coach of the Year: Jim Foster, Army West Point
2022 First Team All-Patriot League
SP: Connelly Early, Army West Point, So.
SP: Jake Bloss, Lafayette, Jr.
SP: Luke Rettig, Lehigh, Sr.
RP: Tanner Gresham, Army West Point, So.
C: Adam Retzbach, Lehigh, Jr.
1B: Ross Friedrick, Army West Point, Jr.
2B: Derek Berg, Army West Point, So.
SS: Kevin Dubrule, Army West Point, Jr.
3B: Sam Ruta, Army West Point, So.
OF: Nick Manesis, Army West Point, Sr.
OF: Chris Cannizzaro, Bucknell, Sr.
OF: Casey Rother, Lehigh, Sr.
At-Large: Christian Policelli, Navy, Sr.
2022 Second Team All-Patriot League
SP: Brian Dawson, Army West Point, Jr.
SP: Austin Odell, Bucknell, Sr.
SP: Will Greer, Bucknell, Jr.
RP: Luke Fox, Holy Cross, Jr.
C: Dylan Minghini, Lafayette, Sr.
1B: Tyler Dunn, Bucknell, Fr.
1B: Joe Gorla, Lehigh, Sr.
2B: Brendan Lowery, Bucknell, Sr.
SS: Tyler Young, Lehigh, So.
3B: Jacob Corson, Bucknell, So.
OF: Hunter Meade, Army West Point, Sr.
OF: Grant Voytovich, Bucknell, So.
OF: Peter Ciuffreda, Lafayette, Jr.
OF: Colin Smith, Navy, Jr.
At-Large: Sean Scanlon, Holy Cross, Fr.
ABOUT THE PATRIOT LEAGUE
The Patriot League is in its fourth decade of academic and athletic achievement, continually demonstrating that student-athlete can excel at both academics and athletics without sacrificing high standards. The Patriot League’s athletic success is achieved while its member institutions remain committed to its founding principle of admitting and graduating student-athletes that are academically representative of their class. Participation in athletics at Patriot League institutions is viewed as an important component of a well-rounded education.