2019 GMAC Baseball All-Conference Teams
INDIANAPOLIS - The Great Midwest Athletic Conference has announced the 2019 GMAC Baseball All-Conference squads, and five members of Tiffin baseball have been named to the teams.
Two Dragons earned First Team recognition in John Heckman and Cody Orr, while Zach Campbell was named to the Second Team. Aaron George and Jack Dennis also earned Honorable Mention honors.
In their first season in the GMAC, TU battled to a 17-15 conference record to finish seventh in the final regular-season standings, and will open GMAC postseason play tomorrow morning against two-seed Ohio Dominican.
Heckman receives his first All-Conference honor, and has provided the power for the Dragon offense this season, leading the team in hits (60), home runs (8), RBI (48), and slugging percentage (.603). The outfielder is also second with a .345 batting average and 17 doubles. In conference rankings, he is fourth in doubles, tied for fifth in RBI, seventh in hits, and ninth in slugging percentage. The senior has tallied multipl RBI in 11 games this season, including a six-RBI effort in a win over Hillsdale on Apr. 2. He was especially impressive this last weekend, earning GMAC Player of the Week honors after hitting .500 (9-18) with two doubles, two homers, eight RBI, and seven runs scored as Tiffin took three of four from Walsh.
Orr has been quite a dual threat for the Dragons this season, as he earns All-Conference recognition for the first time in his career as a utility/pitcher. Utility is a great word for it, as Orr has proved to be one of TU's best hitters and pitchers this year. Hitting in the leadoff spot and playing center field when not pitching, the sophomore is third on the team with a .310 batting average and is tops with 40 runs scored. On the mound, he leads the team in innings pitched (73.1), strikeouts (56), and is tied for wins (4), along with ranking second with a 4.92 ERA.
Campbell also garners his first career All-Conference nod after being the Dragons most consistent hitter all season. The sophomore leads the team with a .362 batting average and 18 doubles, a mark that is also tied for second in the GMAC. He is a very tough out at the plate, as he has only struck out 11 times on the season in 152 at-bats, lowest on the team of any player with at least 35 at-bats. He has also hit safely in 30 of 42 games, including 19 multi-hit games.
George earns Honorable Mention recognition after putting together a great season as one of the most frequently called relievers out of the bullpen. His 18 appearances rank second on the Dragons, and the lefty leads TU in ERA at 4.16 in 54.1 innings of work. His last month has been especially strong, only allowing two earned runs in 23.1 innings of work since April 7.
Dennis wraps up Tiffin's All-Conference awards with an Honorable Mention pick at first base. Dennis is fifth on the team with a .293 batting average, second with 29 RBI, tied for third with 11 doubles, and third with 22 walks. The senior also holds a seven-game hit streak entering postseason play.