The Lone Star Conference announced the recognition of 63 standout baseball student-athletes as the league revealed its annual postseason awards on Wednesday.
LSC Champion West Texas A&M had a league-high 11 selections to the all-conference teams including four first-team award winners. The Buffs, who claimed their third LSC title, were represented on the first team by pitchers Mathieu Gauthier and Todd Danzeisen, second baseman Keone Givens and outfielder Cade Engle.
WT also earned Coaching Staff of the Year honors as head coach Matt Vanderburg, associate head coach Cory Hall, assistant coach Shawn Neale and graduate assistant Dominic Yearego were recognized.
Angelo State earned nine awards after finishing the season second in the conference. The Rams landed an LSC-high five on the first team headlined by outfielder Josh Elvir and starting pitcher Trent Baker.
Elvir, a senior from Kemah, Texas, earned LSC Player of the Year distinction for the second consecutive time. The outfielder is the first player to accomplish the feat since 2015 and 2016. Baker, a junior from Georgetown, Texas, was named the LSC Pitcher of the Year. He is the first ASU player to earn the award since 2016.
Joining Baker and Elvir on the first team for ASU were starting pitcher Benjamin Elder, third baseman Jordan Williams and utility player Aaron Walters.
St. Mary’s placed seven on the all-conference team, headlined by first teamer Jake Mares, followed by Oklahoma Christian and Texas A&M-Kingsville with six.
OC’s Michael DiFiore garnered Freshman of the Year honors and was one of four Eagles to receive a place on the first team. Relief pitcher Noah Bates, outfielder Blake Empkey and designated hitter Chance Westervelt joined DiFiore on the first team.
TAMUK starting pitcher Logan Garza picked up Newcomer of the Year honors. This was the first time a Newcomer of the Year has been recognized in baseball.
Lubbock Christian and UT Tyler each had five honorees with the Chap duo of Luis Navarro, a catcher, and Larry Leitha, an outfielder, earning first-team spots.
Four student-athletes each from St. Edward’s and UT Permian Basin were decorated. Cameron and UAFS each received two selections, and Texas A&M International had one.
The all-conference team and individual awards are selected by the LSC head coaches.
2021 LSC BASEBALL ALL-CONFERENCE AWARDS
| SPECIAL AWARDS |
| Player of the Year: Josh Elvir, Angelo State |
| Pitcher of the Year: Trent Baker, Angelo State |
| Newcomer of the Year: Logan Garza, Texas A&M-Kingsville |
| Freshman of the Year: Michael DiFiore, Oklahoma Christian |
| Coaching Staff of the Year: West Texas A&M (Matt Vanderburg, Cory Hall, Shawn Neale, Dominic Yearego) |
FIRST TEAM
| Player |
Team |
Pos. |
Yr. |
Hometown |
| Trent Baker |
Angelo State |
SP |
Jr. |
Georgetown, Texas |
| Benjamin Elder |
Angelo State |
SP |
Jr. |
Chico, Calif. |
| Mathieu Gauthier |
West Texas A&M |
SP |
Sr. |
Montreal, Quebec |
| Todd Danzeisen |
West Texas A&M |
SP |
Sr. |
Las Vegas, Nev. |
| Noah Bates |
Oklahoma Christian |
RP |
Jr. |
Southlake, Texas |
| Luis Navarro |
Lubbock Christian |
C |
Jr. |
David Chiriqui, Panama |
| Michael DiFiore |
Oklahoma Christian |
1B |
Fr. |
Lucas, Texas |
| Keone Givens |
West Texas A&M |
2B |
Sr. |
Jones, Okla. |
| Jake Mares |
St. Mary's |
SS |
R-Jr. |
Fort Worth, Texas |
| Jordan Williams |
Angelo State |
3B |
R-So. |
Round Rock, Texas |
| Josh Elvir |
Angelo State |
OF |
Sr. |
Kemah, Texas |
| Larry Leitha |
Lubbock Christian |
OF |
Sr. |
Center Point, Texas |
| Blake Empkey |
Oklahoma Christian |
OF |
So. |
Bedford, Texas |
| Cade Engle |
West Texas A&M |
OF |
Sr. |
Pampa, Texas |
| Chance Westervelt |
Oklahoma Christian |
DH |
Fr. |
Moore, Okla. |
| Aaron Walters |
Angelo State |
UTL |
Jr. |
Center Point, Texas |
SECOND TEAM
| Gabe Rodery |
Oklahoma Christian |
SP |
Sr. |
Verdigris, Okla. |
| Blake Holub |
St. Edward's |
SP |
Jr. |
Houston, Texas |
| Logan Garza |
Texas A&M-Kingsville |
SP |
Jr. |
Round Rock, Texas |
| Kolby Lunsford |
Texas A&M-Kingsville |
SP |
Jr. |
Helotes, Texas |
| Carter Brown |
West Texas A&M |
RP |
Sr. |
Bentonville, Ark. |
| Dylan Hurt |
UAFS |
C |
Sr. |
Bryant, Ark. |
| Jayce Clem |
Cameron |
1B |
R-Fr. |
Randlett, Okla. |
| Parker Bramlett |
Angelo State |
2B |
R-Jr. |
Tyler, Texas |
| Morgan Allen |
St. Edward's |
SS |
So. |
Lantana, Texas |
| George Mendazona |
Lubbock Christian |
3B |
Jr. |
Redmond, Ore. |
| Jackson Hardy |
Angelo State |
OF |
So. |
Silsbee, Texas |
| Chase Cos |
St. Edward's |
OF |
R-So. |
Spring, Texas |
| Seth Spinn |
Texas A&M-Kingsville |
OF |
Sr. |
Holland, Texas |
| Riley Jepson |
UT Tyler |
OF |
Sr. |
Kamloops, British Columbia |
| Ryan Johnson |
West Texas A&M |
DH |
So. |
Albuquerque, N.M. |
| Nick Hernandez |
UT Permian Basin |
UTL |
Jr. |
Las Vegas, Nev. |
HONORABLE MENTION
| Nicholas Novak |
Angelo State |
SS |
Sr. |
Stillwater, Minn. |
| Nick Seginowich |
Angelo State |
C |
Sr. |
Victoria, British Columbia |
| Beau Williams |
Cameron |
2B |
So. |
Frisco, Texas |
| Colin Gordon |
Lubbock Christian |
SS |
Sr. |
West Valley City, Utah |
| Eduardo Acosta |
Lubbock Christian |
UTL |
So. |
San German, Puerto Rico |
| Coleton Hinkle |
Oklahoma Christian |
C |
So. |
Grapevine, Texas |
| Blake Holub |
St. Edward's |
DH |
Jr. |
Houston, Texas |
| Jake Hahn |
St. Edward's |
1B |
Jr. |
Lubbock, Texas |
| Derek Mueller |
St. Mary's |
OF |
Gr. |
Carrollton, Texas |
| Fernando Zubia |
St. Mary's |
UTL |
Sr. |
El Paso, Texas |
| Johnny Hernandez |
St. Mary's |
2B |
Gr. |
El Paso, Texas |
| Johnny Panatex |
St. Mary's |
RP |
Gr. |
Pflugerville, Texas |
| Ryan McGowen |
St. Mary's |
OF |
R-Jr. |
San Antonio, Texas |
| Zach De La Garza |
St. Mary's |
SP |
Gr. |
San Antonio, Texas |
| Abanny Garcia |
Texas A&M International |
SP |
Jr. |
McAllen, Texas |
| Aldo Buendia |
Texas A&M-Kingsville |
RP |
Sr. |
Laredo, Texas |
| Damian Rodriguez |
Texas A&M-Kingsville |
3B |
Fr. |
McAllen, Texas |
| Giancarlo Servin |
Texas A&M-Kingsville |
1B |
Jr. |
Edinburg, Texas |
| Nico Sharp |
UAFS |
RP |
Fr. |
Fort Worth, Texas |
| Jay Desoto |
UT Permian Basin |
3B |
Jr. |
Las Vegas, Nev. |
| Joe Allen |
UT Permian Basin |
2B |
Sr. |
Clarksville, Tenn. |
| Tyler Stone |
UT Permian Basin |
RP |
Jr. |
Rockwall, Texas |
| A.J. Irvin |
UT Tyler |
RP |
So. |
Kingwood, Texas |
| Kyle McShaffry |
UT Tyler |
3B |
Jr. |
Cypress, Texas |
| Kyler Bumstead |
UT Tyler |
OF |
Jr. |
Kountze, Texas |
| Matthew McMillan |
UT Tyler |
RP |
So. |
Pflugerville, Texas |
| Chris Rodriguez |
West Texas A&M |
RP |
R-So. |
El Paso, Texas |
| Izaiah Madrid |
West Texas A&M |
SS |
Jr. |
El Paso, Texas |
| Kennedy Badgett |
West Texas A&M |
UTL |
R-Jr. |
Arvada, Colo. |
| Kyle Moos |
West Texas A&M |
C |
Sr. |
Castroville, Texas |
| Will Fuenning |
West Texas A&M |
OF |
So. |
Scottsdale, Ariz. |