Southern Collegiate
Athletic Conference
Sports Release

Centre ● DePauw ● Hendrix ● Millsaps ● Oglethorpe
Rhodes ● Rose-Hulman ● Sewanee ● Southwestern ● Trinity

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 17, 2006 / Contact: Dwayne Hanberry, SCAC Associate Commissioner

WETZEL OF MILLSAPS; FLANAGAN OF RHODES
HEADLINE 2006 ALL-SCAC BASEBALL TEAM

SUWANEE, Ga. – Garner Wetzel of Millsaps College was named the league’s Offensive Player-of-the-Year for the second consecutive year and Robert Flanagan of Rhodes College became the school’s first player to be selected Pitcher-of-the-Year in exclusive 2006 all-Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) voting by the conference’s head coaches. In that same balloting, Trinity University head coach Tim Scannell was named the SCAC Coach-of-the-Year – the third time that the Tigers’ skipper has received the honor.

Wetzel, a senior outfielder from Gulfport, Miss., and a three-time All-SCAC selection, hit .393 this season (fourth in the SCAC) and slugged .663 (third in the SCAC). He led the SCAC in runs scored (63), runs batted in (76) and total bases (108) and finished in the top five in the league in on-base percentage (.514 – second), hits (64 – tied for third), home runs (10 – second), walks (42 – second) and stolen bases (17 – fifth). His 76 RBI currently leads the nation. At the 2006 Baseball Championships, Wetzel hit .556 (10-18) with three home runs, two doubles, 10 RBI (tied a tournament record) and a tournament record 12 runs scored to lead the Majors to a share of the title. Eight times the league’s Offensive Player-of-the-Year has come from Millsaps – the most such awards for any SCAC program. Wetzel, who returned to the Majors after being selected in the 10th round by the Colorado Rockies last season, becomes just the third player in league history to win consecutive POTY awards.

Flanagan, a sophomore left-hander from Shreveport, La., was selected as SCAC Pitcher-of-the-Year – the seventh second-year hurler to receive the honor. Flanagan finished the regular season with a league and nation-high 10 wins against just three losses and posted an ERA of 2.89 (third in the SCAC). Flanagan, who appeared in 17 games, also led the SCAC in innings pitched (81.0), strikeouts (71), shutouts (2) and complete games (6). He allowed opposing hitters a .255 batting average (10th in the SCAC). Not only is Flanagan Rhodes’ first SCAC Pitcher-of-the-Year honoree, he is the program’s first pitcher to earn All-SCAC honors since Steele Ford in 1994.

Trinity head coach Tim Scannell, in his seventh season as the Tigers’ skipper, was named the SCAC Coach-of-the-Year for the third time in his tenure. Scannell's career record stands at 231-83 and he is currently the sixth all-time winningest coach (by percentage) at the NCAA Division III level. Scannell led his squad to a 16-4 Western Division mark, 33-11 overall record, and the SCAC tournament co-championship (shared with Millsaps). Under Scannell, Trinity has won or shared four Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference titles and has played in three NCAA Division III Baseball Regionals – including this year’s NCAA tournament-bound team. The Tigers are currently ranked ninth in the nation.

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