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SCSMA Names All-Conference Baseball Teams

SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- Five Elon Phoenix baseball players and head coach Mike Kennedy were honored by the Southern Conference Sports Media Association with post-season accolades on Wednesday.  Junior pitcher Steven Hensley was named the leagues' Pitcher of the Year while Kennedy was chosen as the top coach in the SoCon.  Hensley, Cory Harrilchak and Thomas Girdwood all earned First Team All-SoCon honors while Dallas Tarleton and Bennett Davis were named to the second team.

Kennedy led his Phoenix team to its second SoCon title in three seasons, posting a 19-8 record in conference games and a 39-16 record overall.  The 39 victories are the second most for the program in its nine years at the NCAA Division I level.  Kennedy enters the league tournament with 390 career wins on his resume, all at Elon.  The 12th-year head coach saw his team pick up victories over then-#4 North Carolina (2-0), CAA champion UNC Wilmington (7-4) and top-30 program East Carolina (9-6) this season.

Hensley, a junior righty from Asheville, N.C., went 9-1 with a 3.52 ERA in 13 appearances this season.  Overall, he struck out a league-best 89 hitters in 79.1 innings while holding opponents to a .226 batting average.  In SoCon contests, Hensley posted a 6-1 ledger and a 3.49 ERA.  In nine starts he threw one complete game, struck out 66 and walked only 25 in 56.2 innings of work.  This is the first First Team All-SoCon honor and Pitcher of the Year award for Hensley, Elon's all-time strikeouts leader with 292.

Harrilchak, a junior outfielder from Cary, N.C., finished the regular season with a team-best .407 batting average.  He also leads the team with 57 runs scored and 70 hits.  Hi belted eight homers, drove in 34 and went a perfect 20-for-20 in stolen base attempts over 172 at bats in 49 games.  Harrilchak kept his blistering pace going in league contests, batting .432 in 27 SoCon tilts.  He scored 35 runs, had six homers, 23 RBI and 16 steals in conference play.

Girdwood, a freshman relief pitcher from Charlotte, N.C., completed his inaugural campaign with a 5-1 record nine saves in 25 appearances.  His ERA is a team-best 2.78 and he has struck out 26 in 22.2 innings.  In conference games, the righty owns a 4-1 record and 3.77 ERA in 14 games.  Five of his saves came in SoCon action.  In 14.1 innings, he struck out 17.

Tarleton, a junior catcher from Indian Hills, N.C., hit .360 with 31 runs scored, a team-best 15 doubles, five homers and 41 RBI in 49 games this season.  In SoCon action, Tarleton pounded the ball for a .416 average in 26 games.  He scored 18 times, belted four home runs and drove in 30 runs.  In a victory over College of Charleston he hit a homer and drove in a career-best five runs.

Davis, a junior third baseman from Katy, Texas, led the Phoenix with 15 home runs and 66 RBI while scoring 52 times in 54 games.  He added 10 doubles and stole 11 bases while hitting .326.  Over 27 SoCon games, Davis hit .369 with eight homers, 39 RBI, 33 runs scored and six steals.  In a league win at Wofford, Davis went 4-for-5 with three runs scored, a home run and five RBI.

-- ELON --
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