Surrell, Thomas named to All-RSC Baseball First Team

Rio Grande Sports Information
     RIO GRANDE, Ohio - University of Rio Grande standouts Clayton Surrell and AJ Thomas both earned First Team recognition to headline six RedStorm baseball players who were among those named to the 2023 All-River States Conference Baseball Teams.
     The teams, as well as individual award winners, were announced as part of last weekend's RSC Baseball Championship at VA Memorial Stadium in Chillicothe. The all-conference awards were voted on by the league's head coaches.
     Along with Surrell and Thomas, graduate senior Andrew Daria (Villa Hills, KY) and junior Daniel Rutherford (Coal Grove, OH) were named to the all-league Second Team, while sophomore Reid Shultz (Minford, OH) and freshman Jacob Napier (Alexandria, KY) received Honorable Mention kudos.
     Surrell, a senior second baseman from Carroll, Ohio, batted a team-best .407 with four home runs and 32 runs batted in. He also led the team with 74 hits, 19 doubles, 57 runs scored and a .536 on-base percentage, while also becoming the program's all-time hits and walks leader over the course of the 2023 campaign.
     Thomas, a junior outfielder from Pickerington, Ohio, hit .330 with a team-high 17 home runs and 61 RBI. His 17 home runs set a new single-season program record.
     Daria, a transfer third baseman from Ohio Christian University, batted .339 with 39 RBI and a club-high 26 stolen bases, while Rutherford - an outfielder/pitcher who transferred from Embry-Riddle (Fla.) University - hit .342 with nine home runs.
     Rutherford also tied Thomas for the team lead in runs batted in with 61 and also had a team-best two triples.
     Shultz led the RedStorm in wins with eight and had the lowest earned run average among all Rio hurlers with 25 or more innings of work at 3.52, while Napier led the team's corps of starting pitchers with a 5-1 record and a team-high 72 strikeouts. Both pitched 61-1/3 innings.
     For 2023, the conference selected First, Second & Honorable Mention Teams along with the individual awards for Player, Pitcher, Freshman and Coach of the Year.
     The list of honors also included a Gold Glove Team, a Champions of Character Team and the RSC Scholar-Athlete Team.
     The All-RSC First Teams included four starting pitchers, one relief pitcher, two catchers, four infielders at first base, second base and third base and shortstop, four outfielders, a designated hitter and a utility player.
     The All-RSC Second Team and Honorable Mention Team were comprised of the same with any ties on the second team at a position being included on the second team. No catchers were nominated for honorable mention.
     The Gold Glove team chose the best defensive player at each position as voted by the coaches.
     Joining Surrell and Thomas on the First Team were starting pitchers Lucas Letsinger from Indiana University Kokomo, Tyler Yotkewich from Indiana University Southeast and the Point Park University duo of Easton Klein and Javier Cardoso; relief pitcher Garrett Hill of IU Southeast; catchers Barrett McGill from Midway University and Ben Berenda of IU Southeast; first baseman Isaac Santana of Point Park University; IU Southeast shortstop Trevor Campbell; Indiana University Kokomo third baseman Tucker Platt; outfielders Jared Campbell of Point Park, Cameron Nichols from Midway and Mason White of IU Southeast; Point Park designated hitter Michali Brito; and utility pick Spencer Crane from Ohio Christian University.
     Along with Daria and Rutherford, the Second Team included starting pitchers Tanner Popp from Ohio Christian University and the Midway trio of Owen Clark, Dylan Burton and Blake Kincaid; relievers Sebastian Rodriguez of Point Park and Jesse Komoroski from Midway; catchers Jordon Campbell of Point Park and Juan Guzman from Brescia University; Midway first baseman Josh Halterman; Point Park second baseman Omar Morillo; shortstop Riley Garczynski from Indiana University Kokomo; outfielders Shane Taylor and Ryan Davis of Midway University, Jack Leverenz of IU Kokomo and Justin Oakley from Point Park; and Midway designated hitter Grant Hotchkiss.
     Point Park's Jared Campbell, who helped lead the Pioneers to the RSC tournament title, was named the league's Player of the Year. He's batting .387 with 16 home runs, 16 doubles, 68 RBI and a .792 slugging percentage.
     Letsinger was named the league's Pitcher of the Year after posting a 7-3 record and a 2.28 ERA over 14 appearances - all starts. He allowed just 62 hits over 86-2/3 innings, while striking out 92.
     McGill was the Freshman of the Year after batting .355 with four home runs and 33 RBI. He also doubled 10 times and tripled twice.
     Midway head coach Luther Bramblett was named the RSC Coach of the Year after guiding the Eagles to the league's regular season championship and the school's second-ever trip to the NAIA National Championship Opening Round.
     The RSC Champions of Character team honored one player from each school who best displayed the NAIA Champions of Character traits of respect, responsibility, integrity, servant leadership and sportsmanship. Rio Grande was represented by junior Seth Mills (South Shore, KY).
     The RSC Scholar-Athlete Team honors those with a 3.25 GPA or higher who have been at their school for at least two semesters. Nine players on the RedStorm roster made the list including Thomas, Daria, Rutherford, Mills, junior Trey Carter (Wheelersburg, OH), junior Lane Mettler (Bainbridge, OH), sophomore Alex Scoular (Whitby, Ontario, Canada), freshman Cade Miner (Frankfort, OH) and freshman Britten Stephenson (Kuna, ID).
     A complete list of award winners and post-season honorees can be found at www.riverstatesconference.com.