BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Bucknell collected two of the five Patriot League Baseball major awards when the League office announced postseason baseball honors on Wednesday. Regular-season champion Army West Point, Holy Cross and Navy received one accolade apiece
Bucknell junior third baseman Sean Keys was voted Patriot League Baseball Player of the Year, with freshman outfielder teammate Chris Morabito claiming Patriot League Baseball Rookie of the Year honors.
Army West Point junior right-handed pitcher Justin Lehman captured Patriot League Baseball Pitcher of the Year honors. Navy senior shortstop Eduardo Diaz received Patriot League Baseball Defensive Player of the Year for the second time during his career, and Holy Cross’s Ed Kahovec earned the Patriot League Gene Depew Coach of the Year award.
Overall, 28 student-athletes made the two All-Patriot League baseball teams, including 13 on the first team, and 15 on the second team due to ties in the voting. The Black Knights placed a League-high seven players on the two All-League squads, including five on the first team. Bucknell and Holy Cross each had six representatives on the two teams, with Lehigh (4), Navy (3) and Lafayette (2) all claiming multiple honorees.
Patriot League baseball head coaches voted on the All-League teams and major awards. They were prohibited from voting for their student-athletes or themselves.
2024 Patriot League Baseball Player of the Year
Sean Keys, Bucknell, Jr., 3B, Centerport, N.Y./Harborfields
2024 Statistics: 43 GP, .416 BA, 154 AB, 39 R, 64 H, 18 2B, 3 3B, 13 HRs, 57 RBIs, .825 SLG, .535 OBP
*Keys led the Patriot League and ranked 10th in NCAA DI with a .416 batting average, and ranked sixth in the nation in on-base percentage (.535) and 13th in slugging percentage (.825) to lead a Bison offense that finished atop the League with 7.2 runs per game.
*The two-time First Team All-Patriot League honoree finished second in the League in home runs (13), while leading the League and ranking 30th in NCAA DI with 1.33 RBIs per game.
*The two-time Patriot League Player of the Week hit .379 with 6 HRs, 29 RBIs and a .724 slugging percentage in 25 League games.
2024 Patriot League Baseball Pitcher of the Year
Justin Lehman, Army West Point, Jr., RHP, Fort Mill, S.C./Nation Ford
2024 Statistics: 10 APP, 9 GS, 56.1 IP, 5-2, 1.44 ERA, 2 CG, 1 SHO, 39 H, 13 R, 9 ER, 18 BB, 41 K, .199 OPP BA
*Lehman led the Patriot League and ranked second in NCAA DI with a 1.44 ERA through 56.1 innings pitched, spanning nine starts.
*The Fort Mill, S.C. native’s five wins tied for third in the League, while his 1.01 WHIP led the League and ranked 23rd in the nation.
*The two-time Patriot League Pitcher of the Week was 4-1 with a League-best 1.60 ERA in 45.0 innings pitched in seven League starts, spanning 45.0 innings.
2024 Patriot League Baseball Rookie of the Year
Chris Morabito, Bucknell, Fr., OF, McLean, Va./McLean
2024 Statistics: 32 GP, .304 BA, 69 AB, 16 R, 21 H, 3 2B, 2 3B, 2 HR, 17 RBIs, .493 SLG, .393 OBP
*Morabito led all Patriot League rookies and finished 12th in the League with a .304 batting average and an .886 on-base plus slugging (OPS)
*The McLean, Va. native hit .353 (18-for-51) in League play with three doubles, two triples, two HRs and 16 RBIs to go with a .608 slugging percentage in 20 games.
*He received Patriot League Rookie of the Week honors on April 30 after batting .545 (6-for-11) with a .909 slugging percentage, helping the Bison sweep a three-game series from Lafayette to clinch a berth in the Patriot League Championship.
2024 Patriot League Baseball Defensive Player of the Year
Eduardo Diaz, Navy, Sr., SS, Miami, Fla./Miami Coral Park Senior
2024 Statistics: 46 GP, 158 C, 54 PO, 103 A, 1 E, 26 DP, .994 FLD, .255 BA, 3 HR, 29 RBI, 6-6 SB
*Diaz led all Patriot League shortstops with a .994 percentage, making a League-low one error on 158 chances.
*The two-time Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year finished fourth in the League with 103 assists and third with 26 double plays.
*In four seasons, Diaz posted a .979 field percentage with 398 assists and 202 put-outs.
2024 Patriot League Gene Depew Coach of the Year
Ed Kahovec, Holy Cross
*Kahovec guided the Crusaders to a nine-win improvement overall and an eight-win improvement in League play to earn the No. 3 seed in the Patriot League Championship.
*Holy Cross’s pitching staff improved its team ERA from 6.24 to 5.78 in League play to record the team’s best League record since 2019.
*The Crusaders posted the Patriot League’s third-best on-base percentage (.382) by drawing a League-high 115 walks in League play.
Ruta Earns All-League Honors for the Fourth Time, Berg and Corson Receive Third Selection, Six More Make Second Appearance
Army West Point senior third baseman Sam Ruta became the 11th baseball student-athlete in Patriot League history to earn All-League honors four times after finishing tied for second in the League with 13 home runs and third with 46 RBIs. Black Knights’ senior catcher Derek Berg and Bucknell senior outfielder Jacob Corson each captured All-Patriot League honors for the third time, among the 62 players in League history to earn the distinction.
Army West Point senior outfielder Braden Golinski and RHP Matthew Ronnebaum, Bucknell junior second baseman Billy Kender and junior third baseman Sean Keys and Holy Cross sophomore outfielder Jack Toomey collected All-League honors for the second straight season. Lehigh senior shortstop Tyler Young also made his second All-Patriot League squad, after earning a spot in 2022.
2024 Patriot League Baseball Major Awards
Player of the Year – Sean Keys, Bucknell, Jr., 3B
Pitcher of the Year – Justin Lehman, Army West Point, Jr., RHP
Rookie of the Year – Chris Morabito, Bucknell, Fr., OF
Defensive Player of the Year – Eduardo Diaz, Navy, Sr., SS
Gene Depew Coach of the Year – Ed Kahovec, Holy Cross
2024 First Team All-Patriot League
SP: Justin Lehman, Army West Point, Jr.
SP: Matthew Ronnebaum, Army West Point, Sr.
SP: Tyler Grenn, Navy, So.
RP: Andrew Berg, Army West Point, So.
C: Derek Berg, Army West Point, Sr.
1B: Ethan Swidler, Lafayette, So.
2B: Billy Kender, Bucknell, Jr.
SS: Tyler Young, Lehigh, Sr.
3B: Sean Keys, Bucknell, Jr.
OF: William Parker, Army West Point, So.
OF: Jacob Corson, Bucknell, Sr.
OF: Jake Whitlinger, Lehigh, Jr.
At-Large – Michael Trommer, Bucknell, So.
2024 Second Team All-Patriot League*
SP: Tyler O’Neill, Bucknell, Jr.
SP: Alex Bryant, Holy Cross, Sr.
SP: Danny Macchiarola, Holy Cross, So.
SP: Cole Leaman, Lehigh, So.
RP: Nolan Jorgenson, Navy, Sr.
C: Colin Brown, Holy Cross, Fr.
1B: Chris Baillargeon, Holy Cross, Jr.
2B: Brock Murtha, Navy, So.
SS: Jimmy King, Holy Cross, Jr.
3B: Sam Ruta, Army West Point, Sr.
OF: Braden Golinski, Army West Point, Sr.
OF: Chris Morabito, Bucknell, Fr.
OF: Jack Toomey, Holy Cross, So.
OF: Blaze Fadio, Lafayette, Sr.
At-Large: Rafe Perich, Lehigh, Jr.
*Additional players on the second team due to ties in the voting