Clarksville, Ark.-Five University of the Ozarks baseball players were named to the American Southwest Conference All-East Division Team, the ASC office announced Tuesday.
Senior Cory Briggs highlighted the group with an All-East Division First Team selection as a utility player. Junior first baseman Scott Dietz, freshman shortstop Mitchell Powers, senior pitcher Bill Smith and sophomore center fielder Chris Driedric earned ASC All-East Division Honorable Mention honors.
Briggs, a 6-foot, 200-pound native of Greencastle, Pa., played shortstop, outfield, first base and pitched in ten games. He hit .319 with seven home runs and 30 RBI. He collected 45 hits and nine doubles en route to owning a .546 slugging percentage and tallying a team-best 77 total bases. Against Texas-Dallas, he went 4-for-5 with a homer and produced 3 RBI. On the mound, the right-hander tossed 48.2 innings and struck out 44. He was named ASC Pitcher of the Week in March after allowing just one earned run in seven innings of work against LeTourneau. He finishes his career ranked in the top-10 in nearly every offensive category at Ozarks, including being the program leader in hits (200), at bats (569) and assists (382). He ranks second in RBI (129), runs (133), total bases (308), doubles (39), hit by pitch (29), games started (150) and chances (679). He is third in home runs (21) and games played (156), and fifth in triples (3) and walks (63). Additionally, he is sixth in on-base percentage (.436), eighth in slugging percentage (.541) and ninth in batting (.351).
In 2008, he was named to the ABCA/Rawlings All-American Second Team after setting single season school records in batting (.467), hits (79), doubles (19) and total bases (124). He was also an ABCA/Rawlings All-Region pick that season. He completes his career as a four-time All-Conference player and a three-time member of the ASC All-Academic Team. For the 2009-2010 season, Briggs was voted the Ozarks Male Athlete of the Year.
Dietz, a 6-foot-5, 230-pound product of Rowlett, Texas, led the team with a .393 batting average and 15 multiple-hit games. The right-handed hitter homered seven times, doubled six times, collected 42 hits and drove in 26. In a three-game series against LeTourneau, Dietz went 7-for-10, with a 3-for-4, 2-home run, 5-RBI performance in game three. He earned ASC Hitter of the Week for that outing, and is now a two-time All-Conference player. His .682 slugging percentage placed him tenth in the ASC. He had five games with three hits and ten games with two hits. He currently ranks fifth at Ozarks in career slugging percentage (.575) and doubles (29), and eighth in batting (.353).
Powers, a 6-foot, 195-pound native of Little Rock, was among the league’s top freshman, hitting .359 with 24 RBI. He led the team in doubles (12), and finished second on the team in batting, hits (47) and runs (27). He also collected 70 total bases, homered three times and posted a .534 slugging percentage. His most productive game of the season came against nationally-ranked Mississippi College when he went 4-for-6 with a homer and 5 RBI.
Smith, a 5-foot-8, 155-pound native of Pine Bluff, was among the top relief pitchers in the ASC. The right-hander posted a single season school record six saves and appeared in a school record 22 games, while finishing the year with a 2-1 record. His 22 appearances led the entire league, while his saves total was third-best in the ASC. Smith tossed 30.2 innings, struck out 24 and allowed just 13 earned runs. Smith was dominant in an inning of work against Texas-Dallas, striking out the side, and did not allow a run in 14 of his appearances. He ended the year with a 3.82 ERA. He ranks third at Ozarks in career saves (7) and fourth in career appearances (52).
Driedric, a 5-foot-11, 160-pound product of Little Rock, led the team in hits (49), runs (32), walks
(22) and steals (10). The left-handed hitter finished with a .327 batting average, fourth-best on the team, and recorded nine doubles and 26 RBI from his lead-off spot. He scored runs in 25 games and posted 14 multiple-hit games. He led the team with eight multiple-RBI games. Driedric was a perfect 3-for-3 against Howard Payne March 5.
Topics: Athletics