BUIES CREEK, N.C. - Thirteen student-athletes representing seven different schools, comprise the 2006 North Carolina Collegiate Sports Information Association (NCCSIA) College Division All-State Baseball Team released Friday.

Division II regional qualifier Mount Olive placed four players on the team, while two members of North Carolina Wesleyan’s NCAA Division III College World Series team are represented on the unit.  Barton and Greensboro also were represented twice on the all-state squad.

The team consists of players from NCAA Division II and Division III colleges and universities throughout the state. North Carolina sports information professionals submitted nominees. NCCSIA members voted for the all-state teams.  The team consists of two starting pitchers, one relief pitcher, one catcher, four infielders, three outfielders and one designated hitter.  All players involved with ties in the voting process are also included on the all-state squad.

Founded in 2002, The North Carolina Collegiate Sports Information Association (NCCSIA) is comprised of sports information professionals from NCAA Division I, II, III, NAIA and independent institutions from the state of North Carolina.  The purpose of the organization is to promote collegiate athletics at all schools.  Membership is open to anyone affiliated with a college, university or conference located in North Carolina, and whose area of responsibility lies within sports information. 

NCSSIA selects all-state teams for men's and women's soccer, men’s and women’s basketball, softball and baseball on both the College (Division II, III, NAIA) and University (Division I) levels.  More than 325 student-athletes have been recognized on all-state teams.

2006 NCCSIA All-State Baseball Team (College Division)

Pos.        Name                                   School                                 Class              Hometown

SP           Blake Rice                          N.C. Wesleyan                   Junior              Rocky Mount, N.C.

SP           Justin Staatz                       Mount Olive                         Senior             Woodstock, Md.

RP           Casey Varnell                    Methodist                            Senior             Macclesfield, N.C.

C              Dustin Richardson           Mount Olive                         Junior              Henderson, N.C.

IF             Rob Bittner                         Guilford                               Senior             Wilmington, Del.

IF             Josh Carter                        Mount Olive                         Junior              Goldsboro, N.C.

IF             Brock Godwin                    Barton                                  Senior             Wilson, N.C.

IF             Jess Maloney                     Greensboro                        Junior              Clemmons, N.C.

IF             Stephen Nordan                Mount Olive                         Junior              Angier, N.C.

OF           Carlos Gutierrez                Elizabeth City State           Senior             Bronx, N.Y.

OF           Chris Pecora                      N.C. Wesleyan                   Sophomore   Henderson, N.C.

OF           Tyler Petty                           Barton                                  Senior             Rocky Mount, N.C.

DH           Chad Clark                         Greensboro                        Senior             Durham, N.C.

Four members of Mount Olive College’s Carolinas-Virginia Athletic Conference tournament championship team were named to the all-state squad.  The Trojans fashioned a 39-16 record, earned a bid to NCAA II South Atlantic Regional and were ranked No. 29 in the Collegiate Baseball Division II Top 30 poll.

Trojan starting pitcher Justin Staatz, catcher Dustin Richardson and infielders Josh Carter and Stephen Nordan were all-state selections.  A product of Woodstock, Md., Staatz posted an 8-5 won-lost record with a 2.71 earned-run average over 86 1/3 innings during the 2006 campaign.  He struck out 88 batters, while walking just 38.  The senior was named first-team All-CVAC and second-team All-South Atlantic Region for the second-straight year after leading the league in ERA.

Richardson was named to the all-tournament team at the CVAC Tournament, where he batted .588 (10-17) with two home runs.  The Henderson, N.C., junior hit safely in 22 of his final 26 games and finished the year with a .360 batting average, 17 doubles, three homers and 28 RBI in 43 games.  In addition, he ranked sixth in CVAC in stolen bases (14).

Carter gained 2006 All-South Atlantic Region first team honors while earning first-team All-CVAC recognition for the second-straight year.  He ranked 28th nationally in RBI per game, and stood 2nd in the CVAC in hitting (.406), 3rd in RBI (67).  The junior from Goldsboro hit .625 at the South Atlantic Regional.  He compiled10 games with 3 or more RBI and hit safely in 41 of 52 games.  An ESPN the Magazine / CoSIDA Academic All-District 3 First Team selection, Carter finished the year with 17 doubles and six home runs.

A junior from Angier, Nordan was named Most Valuable Player of the 2006 CVAC Tournament, where he batted .727 (13-for-18) with three home runs.  On the year, he hit .398 with 22 doubles, seven home runs and 56 RBI in 55 games to rank among the nation’s leaders in doubles per game.

A junior from Rocky Mount, North Carolina Wesleyan’s Blake Rice was named USA South Conference Pitcher of the Year.  A first-team all-conference, first-team all-region and third-team All-American, he set a school record with 11 complete games.  Rice entered the Division III World Series with a 10-2 record, 2.82 ERA and 73 strikeouts (against just 17 walks) in 102 innings.  The Co-MVP of the Division III South Regional, Rice also was named to the ESPN The Magazine / CoSIDA Academic All-Region Second Team.

N.C. Wesleyan’s Chris Pecora was the lone sophomore on the 13-member all-state squad.  A USA South all-conference choice and MVP of the USA South Conference Tournament, the outfielder from Henderson led his team in hits (76), runs (50), triples (7), slugging percentage (.572) and stolen bases (37) while batting in the lead-off spot.  Pecora batted .406 with 11 doubles and 33 RBI in 48 games while helping lead the Bishops to their 12th World Series appearance.  Wesleyan carried a 31-17 overall record into the D3 World Series.

Methodist College senior Casey Varnell was chosen as the relief pitcher on the all-state unit.  The Monarch hurler compiled a 9-3 won-lost record with three saves over 28 appearances (3 starts).  In 68 1/3 innings, he struck out 58 batters and walked just 25, while posting a 4.21 ERA.  The Macclesfield resident was a first-team All-USA South Conference choice.

CVAC regular season champion Barton College was represented by infielder Brock Godwin and outfielder Tyler Petty on the NCCSIA All-State team.  Godwin was named CVAC Player of the Year and first-team all-conference at two positions (relief pitcher and utility player).  He went 8-0 on the mound in 23 appearances with five saves and was one of the league’s top hitters at .404 with a team-high 88 hits. The senior from Wilson played six different positions for the Bulldogs and saw action in more than 200 games in his career.  He finished the year with 18 doubles and 44 RBI in 55 games, while tossing 70 2/3 innings and posting a 4.46 ERA with 65 strikeouts.

Petty was a first-team All-CVAC choice for the second-straight season.  The senior from Rocky Mount was one of the CVAC’s top three home run hitters (16) and had a team-best slugging percentage of .735.  He set school career records for home runs, triples and slugging percentage.  As a senior, he batted .358 with 19 doubles, 5 triples and 68 RBI in 52 games, while helping Barton to a 32-24 record, including a 17-7 CVAC mark.

Greensboro College had two representatives on the all-state squad after tying a school record with 27 victories and earning its first regional ranking in eight years.  In addition to gaining all-state recognition, junior Jess Maloney was named USA South player of the year and first team all-conference.  An ABCA first-team all-region choice, he led USAS in slugging percentage (.724), while setting a program record and leading the conference in total bases (123).  The infielder from Clemmons batted .406 with 38 runs, 19 doubles, 11 home runs and 50 RBI in 43 games.

Pride senior Chad Clark added all-state honors to his first-team USA South honor at DH.  The Durham resident also appeared in 10 games as a relief pitcher, posting a 1-0 record with a 1.69 ERA and three saves.  At the plate, Clark batted .341 with nine doubles and 31 RBI in 39 games.

First baseman Rob Bittner represented Guilford College on the all-state team.  The Wilmington, Del., senior tied a school record for home runs in a year after leading the Old Dominion Athletic Conference with 13 round-trippers.  He also ranked second among ODAC leaders in RBI (54), fourth in slugging (.718) and seventh in doubles (13).  Bittner batted .372 while starting all 40 games.

Two-Time Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association Player of the Year (2005, 2006) Carlos Gutierrez of Elizabeth City State also gained all-state honors.  He led the NCAA Division II ranks in batting average (.548) and slugging percentage (1.078), while ranking second in home runs (15), third in RBI (63), and sixth in runs per game (1.47) over 34 contests.  The senior outfielder from Bronx, N.Y., became the second player in ECSU history to sign with a Major League Baseball franchise when he inked a minor league free agent deal with the Oakland Athletics.

Contact: Stan Cole / Campbell University / All-State Coordinator / 910.893.1331 / This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Contact: Rikki Rich / NC Wesleyan / College Division Baseball Coordinator / This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it