SIAC names baseball All-Conference Honourees

Joe Smith, Savannah State – Player of the Year

n his second season at Savannah State, Joe Smith topped the hitting stats with a .473 average in 39 games this season. He has the best batting average in the SIAC and No. 2 best batting average in NCAA Division II. Smith has 69 hits, nine doubles, nine triples, eight home runs and 39 RBI, slugging .822. He’s ranked No. 2 in the SIAC in hits (69), No. 1 in hits per game (69/39), No. 4 on on-base percentage (.556), No. 3 in runs (62), No. 2 in slugging percentage (.822), No. 2 in toughest to strike out (200), No. 1 in triples (9). He is fielding .965 this year with 50 putouts and only two errors. He was named the SIAC Player of the Week for the week of April 25.

Kody Long, Miles College – Starting Pitcher of the Year

Miles’ Kody Long currently is second in the SIAC in victories (9) and leads the league in winning percentage (9-1, .900). He’s also third in strikeouts (63) in just 66 innings. He was named Pitcher of the Week after pitching a complete-game 1-hitter vs. Tuskegee, striking out 10 and retiring the final 21 hitters he faced.

Michael Romano, Spring Hill- Relief Pitcher of the Yeear

Spring Hill’s Michael Romano finished 3-1 record with 2 saves in 16 appearances in 2022. He is currently SHC’s DII era career saves leader and 2nd all-time with 10 saves.

Bradon O’Connor, Miles College- Utility Player of the Year

Benedict’s O’Connor ranks first in NCAA D2 in total stolen bases (91) and stolen bases per game (2.27). The graduate student ranks 12th in NCAA Division II and 4th in SIAC in batting average (.444). He ranks 9th in Division II and 6th in SIAC in on-base percentage (.546). He ranks 39th in Division II and 5th in SIAC in hits per game (1.57) and 35th in Division II and 6th in SIAC in runs scored (54). The Colorado native ranks 52nd in Division II and third in the league in RBIs (50). In the regular season, O’Connor has played mostly at second base, but also plays in the outfield and finished with a fielding percentage of .926.

Michael Archie of Miles has been one of the top hitters in the SIAC, ranking among the league leaders in home runs (10), RBI (48), runs scored (47), all while slashing .351/.566/.732, leading the Golden Bears in the latter two categories. He has reached base 48 times by walk or hit-by-pitch and was named SIAC Player of the Week once this season.

Carlton Hardy, Savannah State _ Coach of the Year

Carlton Hardy, in his 16th year at Savannah State, has put together one of the best baseball teams in program history this season. The Tigers have cruised through their SIAC schedule, finishing with a 28-2 conference record and a firm grasp on first place in the conference. Overall, Savannah State is 33-10 this year. Their pitching staff and hitters top the SIAC and Division II statistics. The team is nationally ranked No. 11 in batting average, No. 3 in on-base percentage, No. 5 in stolen bases, No. 2 in triples and No. 17 in win/loss percentage. They lead the SIAC in win/loss percentage, WHIP, triples, shutouts and earned run average.

Lachlan Ross, Albany State University, Elite 14 Award Winner

In its inaugural season, the Elite 14 award recognized the student-athlete who has reached the pinnacle of competition at the SIAC championship level in his or her sport while also achieving the highest academic standard among his or her peers. Lachlan Ross of Albany State was the first recipient of this award in baseball.