DALLAS – Conference USA has announced its 2019 preseason baseball awards, as chosen by the league’s 12 head coaches. Southern Miss junior outfielder/pitcher
Matt Wallner has been chosen as the preseason Player of the Year for the second straight season, while Rice junior right-hander
Matt Canterino was named the preseason Pitcher of the Year. Southern Miss was chosen as the favorite to win the league’s championship. The Golden Eagles won the C-USA regular season and tournament titles last season.
2019_Preseason_Poll
Wallner, the 2017 National Freshman of the Year by most national media organizations, finished last spring with a .351 batting average with 13 doubles, to go along with team highs of 16 home runs and 67 RBI. He walked 48 times to have an on-base percentage of .474, while his slugging was at .618. The Golden Eagle centerfielder also blasted a team-best three grand slams during the year. Wallner also made 12 appearances on the mound, picking up six saves.
Wallner earned All-American honors by multiple organizations following the 2018 spring campaign, including a second-team accolade by the NCBWA (National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association) in the outfield and he was a third-team selection at designated hitter by D1Baseball.com as well as a third-team pick by the ABCA (American Baseball Coaches Association).
Canterino tied for 22nd in the nation last spring with 116 strikeouts in 94.0 innings. He struck out 10 or more batters in a game five times and averaged 11.11 strikeouts-per-9.0 innings of work. The right-hander held opposing hitters to a composite .188 batting average, allowing an austere 6.12 hits per 9.0 innings to finish among the NCAA leaders and his low hit total helped him tie for 16th in the nation in WHIP (0.93). Canterino was 7-5 with a 3.06 ERA with 116 strikeouts and 22 walks in 94.0 innings pitched.
The first team All-Conference USA selection last year and preseason all-league pick for 2019 pitched for the United States Collegiate National Team last summer and was also the winning pitcher of the annual Cape Cod League All-Star Game.
Joining Wallner on the preseason All-Conference team are three Southern Miss teammates: senior IF
Hunter Slater (.309, 30 BB, 12 HR, 55 RBI), junior RHP
Walker Powell (7-3, 3.80 ERA, 83.0 IP, 62 K, 14 BB) and senior LHP
Stevie Powers (5-2, 4.07 ERA, 73.0 IP, 73K, 13 BB). The Golden Eagles four preseason All-Conference choices are the most of any school.
Louisiana Tech, the only school with three preseason All-Conference selections, was picked second in the preseason poll. The Bulldogs preseason honorees include senior LHP
Logan Bailey, junior IF
Hunter Wells and junior OF
Parker Bates. Bailey finished last year with a team-low 2.24 ERA (second-best in C-USA), recorded a team-high eight wins (8-1), and was a perfect 6-0 in league action. He allowed two or fewer earned runs in 12 of his 14 starts and struck out 60, while walking just 17. Wells hit a team-high .357 with 12 doubles and 32 RBI, while Bates topped the squad in doubles (18) and RBI (50), batting .310 with 15 stolen bases.
Florida Atlantic was picked to finish in third place finish of last season, while Rice was selected fourth. FAU is represented on the preseason squad by senior RHP
Zach Schneider. He earned All-American honors in his debut season with the Owls a year ago, recording 15 saves and posting a 6-1 record out of the bullpen (7-1 overall) with a 2.08 ERA. His 15 saves is the second-highest mark in FAU program history.
FIU was selected fifth, just ahead of Charlotte and UTSA. The Panthers placed a pair of players on the 2019 preseason team in junior IF
Austin Shenton (.344, 11 2B, 9 HR, 29 RBI) and returning 2018 freshman All-American utility player
Logan Allen (.309, 43 hits, 16 RBI at the plate and a 5-5 record with a 3.89 ERA and 85 strikeouts with 16 walks on the mound). The Roadrunners are represented on the squad by senior IF
Bryan Arias, who led the team with a .335 average to go with 49 runs scored, 16 doubles, eight homers and 35 RBI last season.
Rounding out the preseason poll are UAB, Old Dominion, WKU, Marshall and Middle Tennessee, respectively. Round out the preseason All-Conference team are Marshall senior C
Rey Pastrana and Middle Tennessee senior OF
Blake Benefield. Pastrana was the All C-USA first team catcher and a finalist for the Johnny Bench Award last season after he led the Thundering Herd in batting average (.355), home runs (13), hits (71), and RBI (50), while picking off 20 of 37 runners attempting to steal against him. Benefield started all 55 games in right field for the Blue Raiders, establishing career highs for hits (62), doubles (17), home runs (10), RBI (44) and total bases (111).
The 2019 Conference USA baseball season begins Friday, February 15.
2019 PRESEASON BASEBALL AWARDS
(as selected by C-USA’s head coaches)
PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH
1. Southern Miss (8)
2. Louisiana Tech (2)
3. Florida Atlantic (1)
4. Rice (1)
5. FIU
6. Charlotte
7. UTSA
8. UAB
9. Old Dominion
10. WKU
11. Marshall
12. Middle Tennessee
(first place votes in parentheses)
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Matt Wallner, Southern Miss (Junior, OF/P)
PITCHER OF THE YEAR
Matt Canterino, Rice (Junior, RHP)
ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM
SP Logan Bailey Sr. Louisiana Tech
SP Matt Canterino Jr. Rice
SP Walker Powell Jr. Southern Miss
SP Stevie Powers Sr. Southern Miss
RP Zach Schneider Sr. Florida Atlantic
C Rey Pastrana Sr. Marshall
IF Bryan Arias Sr. UTSA
IF Hunter Slater Sr. Southern Miss
IF Austin Shenton Jr. FIU
IF Hunter Wells Jr. Louisiana Tech
OF Parker Bates Jr. Louisiana Tech
OF Blake Benefield Sr. Middle Tennessee
OF Matt Wallner Jr. Southern Miss
DH/UT Logan Allen So. FIU