Ball State University Athletics
Three Cardinals Named To All-MAC Baseball Teams
May 21, 2008 | Baseball
CHILLICOTHE, Ohio -- The Mid-American Conference baseball coaches have selected three Ball State players for 2008 All-MAC honors as announced by the league office Wednesday, the opening day of the MAC Tournament.
Ball State senior center fielder Wayne Bond Jr. and fifth-year senior closer Kyle Heyne were named to the All-MAC First Team, while sophomore catcher Zach Dygert was selected to the All-MAC Second Team.
Bond hit .337 for the Cardinals during the regular season while posting team-highs with 13 home runs and 53 RBI. Those totals both rank fourth among all MAC players, while Bond also ranks in the top five in the league in runs scored (53) and total bases (124). The senior enters this week's MAC Tournament riding a school record 27-game hitting streak, including 13 games during that stretch with multiple hits. As the Cardinals' center fielder, Bond has posted a .985 fielding percentage with just two errors on the season.
Heyne -- Ball State's all-time saves leader with 32 in his career -- has served as the Cardinals' closer for the third straight season in 2008. He anchors the Ball State bullpen with a 1.26 ERA and eight saves entering this week's MAC Tournament. In addition to the saves record, Heyne also owns the Ball State record for career appearances with 98. Earlier this season, the fifth-year senior was named to the midseason watch list for the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Stopper of the Year Award, given annually to the top relief pitcher in Division I baseball.
Dygert hit .285 for the regular season and finished second on the Ball State team with 11 home runs and fourth with 35 RBI. His 11 homers in just 42 games give him the sixth-best home runs per game total in the MAC. Dygert also drew 29 walks in the regular season to rank seventh in the league in walks per game. The sophomore, in his second season behind the plate for the Cardinals, has also posted a .974 fielding percentage entering this week's MAC Tournament.
The three All-MAC selections are the most for Ball State since the 2005 season when the Cardinals placed five players on All-MAC teams. Each Cardinal on the 2008 team has earned the honor for the first time. League regular season champion Kent State led all teams with seven selections (four first team), including MAC Player of the Year Greg Rohan and Pitcher of the Year Chris Carpenter.
The eight-team MAC Tournament gets underway Wednesday in Chillicothe, Ohio. Fifth-seeded Ball State plays its first round game Wednesday at 4 p.m. against No. 4 seed Northern Illinois. The other first round match-up on the Cardinals' side of the bracket features top-seeded Kent State versus No. 8 seed Central Michigan.
All-MAC First Team
1B- Greg Rohan, Kent State (*unanimous selection*)
2B- Josh Ivan, Kent State
SS- Ryan Shay, Bowling Green
3B- Derek Spencer, Bowling Green
C- Justin Behm, Northern Illinois
OF- Wayne Bond, Ball State
OF- Matt Stiffler, Ohio
OF- Chris Lewis, Western Michigan
SP- Chris Carpenter, Kent State
SP- Kyle Smith, Kent State
SP- Ethan Hollingsworth, Western Michigan
SP- Brian Stroud, Western Michigan
RP- Kyle Heyne, Ball State
DH- Kurt Davidson, Akron (*unanimous selection*)
Utility/At-Large- Marc Krauss, Ohio
All-MAC Second Team
1B- Tom Nurre, Miami
2B- Doug Sanders, Kent State
SS- Chris Tremblay, Kent State
3B- Brandon Besl, Ohio
C- Zach Dygert, Ball State
OF- Tyler Stovall, Central Michigan
OF- Anthony Gallas, Kent State
OF- Jeff Thomas, Northern Illinois
SP- Mike Stangroom, Buffalo
SP- Matt Shoemaker, Eastern Michigan
SP- Billy Morrison, Western Michigan
SP- Trevor Feeney, Northern Illinois
RP- Andy Deain, Northern Illinois
DH- Pedro Dager, Western Michigan
Utility/At-Large- Jordan Petraitis, Miami
Player of the Year: Greg Rohan, Kent State
Pitcher of the Year: Chris Carpenter, Kent State
Freshman of the Year: Brian Stroud, Western Michigan
Coach of the Year: Jake Boss, Eastern Michigan
