FROM CBB NEWS SOURCES
Center Valley, Pa. – Holy Cross claimed two of the four major Patriot League Baseball Major Awards on Thursday, while Bucknell and Army picked up the other honors. Patriot League Player of the Year honors went to Bucknell senior Jason Buursma, while Holy Cross sophomore Matt Shapiro earned Pitcher of the Year recognition, Army freshman Clint Moore garnered Rookie of the Year status and Holy Cross’ Greg DiCenzo was named Patriot League Coach of the Year. The awards were voted on by the League’s six head coaches, who could not vote for their own team.
Buursma caps a storied career at Bucknell with the Player of the Year honor, which is the first for a Bucknell student-athlete since 2000. The senior outfielder led all Patriot League players with a .400 batting average and 11 home runs, and also contributed 34 RBI and 29 runs to help the Bison earn a berth in the Patriot League Tournament this weekend. Buursma became one of only five players in League history to earn All-League status in each of his four seasons with his first-team selection on Wednesday, and his five total All-League spots (three positional, two pitching) are tied for second in League annals. He is a candidate for the Dick Howser Trophy and Brooks Wallace Award given to the collegiate baseball player of the year, as well as one of 10 finalists for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award. A 2007 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft pick by his hometown Seattle Mariners, Buursma also compiled a 5-3 record with a 3.16 ERA and a League-high 65 strikeouts on the mound this season. Buursma is Bucknell’s third all-time Player of the Year selection, following Kevin Silverman (1996) and Frank Fresconi (2000).
Shapiro played a key role in Holy Cross’ first Patriot League Tournament berth since 2001 by posting dominant efforts in five Patriot League starts. He went 3-1 with a 1.78 ERA in those League starts, and completed three of the five contests with a League-leading two shutouts. Shapiro won Patriot League Pitcher of the Week honors after he threw a two-hit shutout in his first career start to lead Holy Cross past Lehigh, 1-0, in the League opener on March 29. He followed that up with a 9-0 shutout of Army in his next start, and allowed no earned runs in a complete-game, 2-1, win over Lafayette on April 19. Shapiro struck out 21 and walked eight over 30.1 innings in Patriot League games, and earned a First-Team All-League selection as a starting pitcher. The Raynham, Mass. native closed the regular season with an overall record of 4-1 and a 3.80 ERA. Shapiro earns the first-ever Pitcher of the Year award for a Holy Cross student-athlete, and the first individual honor for any Crusader since Tyler Stampone won Rookie of the Year recognition in 2006.
Moore wins the Rookie of the Year honor after a season where he ranked in the Patriot League top 10 in nine statistical categories, including batting average, runs and RBI. He helped lead the Black Knights to the top seed in the Patriot League Tournament by hitting .341 with 40 runs scored and 32 RBI. Moore also walked 27 times to finish with a .444 on-base percentage, and was successful in 14-of-16 stolen base attempts. The runs, walks and stolen bases totals were in the top three in the League. The First-Team All-League shortstop earned a pair of Rookie of the Week awards, including one after batting .571 with four runs scored, two RBI, two walks and four steals as Army won three of four games against Lafayette on the final League weekend to clinch the top seed. Moore is Army’s third Rookie of the Year winner in the seven seasons of the award, and first since teammate Cole White took the honor in 2005.
In his first season at the helm, DiCenzo guided Holy Cross to its first Patriot League Tournament appearance since 2001, and third of all time. The Crusaders will enter this weekend’s series at Navy with a mark of 20-26 overall and 11-9 in Patriot League play. DiCenzo directed the program to its first 20-win season since 1980, and the 11-9 League mark was their first winning record in League play since an identical record in 2001. He led Holy Cross to a four-game sweep at Lehigh to open the League schedule, and they extended to a 5-0 start in League action. DiCenzo claims the third Patriot League Coach of the Year award for Holy Cross, following Paul Pearl who won the honor in 1999 and 2001. DiCenzo also joins Pearl as the only coaches to win the award in their first season.
The 2008 season continues with the Patriot League Tournament beginning with the semifinal round on Saturday. No. 4 Bucknell visits No. 1 Army in one matchup, while No. 3 Holy Cross is at No. 2 Navy in the other series. Both semifinal matchups are best-of-three series that include a doubleheader on Saturday and single game, if necessary, on Sunday. The winners of the semifinals will advance to the best-of-three Patriot League Championship series at the site of the higher seed on May 17-18.
2008 Patriot League Baseball Major Awards
Player of the Year: Jason Buursma, Bucknell, Sr.
Pitcher of the Year: Matt Shapiro, Holy Cross, So.
Rookie of the Year: Clint Moore, Army, Fr.
Coach of the Year: Greg DiCenzo, Holy Cross
