By Joshua Parrott, Sports Writer
Twenty-two multi-hit games. Eleven multi-RBI games. A .402 batting average.
Those three statistics merely scratch the surface of why senior outfielder Creighton Bryan has been named a preseason all-American, and why his team is ranked in the top five of two national preseason polls and picked to win the Lone Star Conference championship for the fourth straight season after a solid 45-14 campaign last season.
The Wildcats, who reached the NCAA Division II South Central region championship for the first time in school history last season, open the 2003 season with a doubleheader Saturday in San Antonio against Incarnate Word and will close the first weekend of play with a doubleheader Sunday.
Coach Britt Bonneau, who has 245 wins in his six seasons at the helm for the Wildcats, said he is confident in his team.
“We have a pretty good core of guys on the offensive side,” said Bonneau, whose team hit a collective .351 last season, eighth in Division II. “But we’re throwing guys out there who haven’t been pitched in our conference, but we feel the talent level is better than it has been in the past.”
Bryan, who also hit two home runs, collected 39 RBI and stole 20 bases last season as a junior, is one of four returning first team all-LSC South Division players for the Wildcats, including senior third baseman Brad Massey, senior second baseman Luis Munoz and senior catcher Chris Churchill.
Bryan also earned first team all-South Central region and honorable mention all-America honors by ABCA/Rawlings as well as all-tournament honors at both the LSC postseason and NCAA Division II South Central region tournaments.
Massey, a second team all-region pick in 2001, returns for his fourth year as a starter after hit .322 with four home runs and 44 RBI last season. He will also compete for a spot in the starting rotation for the Wildcats, who must replace last season’s LSC South Division pitcher of the year, Corey Tidwell, who exhausted the rest of his eligibility last spring.
Munoz had top-notch fielding numbers, committing only 11 errors out of 237 chances (.954 fielding percentage) and hit .341 with 33 RBI. Churchill hit .372 with four home runs and 54 RBI in his first season as a junior college transfer from McLennan Community College.
Munoz said this year’s team will exceed those of Wildcat past because of the abundance of veteran leaders.
“I think the fact that we have so many returning players is going to be why we’re going to be successful,” Munoz said. “The whole team can show leadership.”
ACU also returns one of the biggest surprises in the LSC in sophomore utility player Ryan Barker, a second team all-LSC pick along with senior outfielder Marcelino Escalante. Barker hit .359 as a true freshman last season with three home runs and 29 RBI, filling in at numerous positions including designated hitter, third base, first base and even in the outfield. Escalante hit .379 with a team-high 10 home runs and 53 RBI.
The return of senior outfielder Clay Chesser gives the Wildcats one of the better throwing arms in the region. Chesser also added to the offensive attack last season, hitting .292 with seven home runs and 45 RBI.
Munoz said the emergence of both Barker and Bryan was just a testament to both individuals making the most out of the opportunities given them.
“The coaches put us out there, but if we don’t get the job done, we won’t play,” Munoz said. “The difference was that both of them made the most of their chances.”
The Wildcats will play some of the top Division II teams in the nation this season, including a March 11 game against top-ranked Kennesaw State (Ga.). ACU opens play at Crutcher Scott Field with a Feb. 7 doubleheader against Northeastern State. Game time is set for 2 p.m.
