Eagles Earn 10 Baseball All HAAC Awards

Head Coach Ryan Howard Named Coach of the Year

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – After an impressive regular season in which the Eagles finish with a 31-12 record and a share of the Heart of American Athletic Conference (HAAC) title, Avila had 10 players awarded All HAAC Honors, while head coach Ryan Howard was named HAAC Coach of the Year for the third time in nine years.

Avila had five players selected as First Team All HAAC, beginning with senior catcher Brandon Pearl (Grandview, MO).  Pearl, also named Gold Glove winner (Best Defensive Player at his position), had a batting average of .359 with four homeruns, 19 runs batted in (RBI), three doubles, and one triple.  Behind the plate, Pearl threw out four runners and had just one error during the season. 

Senior shortstop Eric Prickett (Modesto, Calif.), named First Team All HAAC and Gold Glove winner, hit .360, scored a team leading 37 times, drove in the second most runs on the team (31), had three homeruns, nine doubles, one triple, and stole a team high 11 bases.  Prickett played in every game for the Eagles and had an impressive .982 fielding percentage, committing only three errors in 167 chances.

Oscar Rodarte, junior outfielder from Fullerton, California, earned First Team All HAAC honors for his .361 batting average, eight homeruns, team leading 11 doubles, and his 26 RBIs.  He also led the Eagles with a .685 slugging percentage, 36 walks, an on base percentage of .530, and was perfect swiping three bases for the season.  Rodarte also had an impressive season on the mound collecting four wins, and had a team’s best earned run average (4.46) and batting average against (.216)

Designated hitter, senior Mario Ausiello (Santa Rosa, Calif.), was named First Team All HAAC.  Mario led the Eagles with nine homeruns and 48 runs batted in. He also compiled a .318 batting average on 42 hits, including nine doubles, and three stolen bases.

Rounding out the First Team All HAAC Team is senior relief pitcher, Taylor Monjo from San Diego, California.  The Eagles’ closer had two wins, one loss, and had a team leading 12 saves.  He allowed only 22 earned runs in 37.2 innings pitched for a 5.26 earned run average, while striking out 30 and walking 10. 

The Eagles Nathan Bacon, a junior pitcher from Lee’s Summit, Missouri, was named Second Team All HAAC.  He had six wins versus just one loss on the season with a team high three complete games and one shutout.  Bacon finished the regular season with a 5.01 earned run average, held opponents to a .264 batting average, while striking out 33 batters.

Tim Matson, a senior outfielder from Napa, California, was named Honorable Mention All HAAC and Gold Glove winner.  Tim hit .330 for the season with two homeruns, five doubles, one triple, and drove in 21 runs.   He scored 26 runs and stole eight-of-nine bases.  In the outfield, Matson committed only one error in 67 chances.

Rounding out the rest of the infield, junior first baseman Corey Stuefer (Jefferson City, MO), senior second baseman Andy Valarde (Fullerton, Calif.) and junior third baseman Jorge Gonzalez (Santa Rosa, Calif.) all earned Honorable Mention All HAAC honors.  Stuefer led the Eagles with a .411 batting average, hitting nine doubles, four homeruns, drove in 14 RBIs, and scored 19 runs.  Valarde hit .333 on the season with 24 RBIs, 26 runs scored, eight doubles, and two triples.  Gonzalez finished the regular season with a .346 batting average, drove in 18 runs, scored 16 times, had six doubles, one triple, and one homerun.

Head coach Ryan Howard was also named HAAC Coach of the Year.  The Eagles were ranked as high as 18 in the NAIA Top 25 poll this season marking the seventh time in last nine seasons Avila has cracked the list.  After finishing the regular season tied for first place with Lindenwood and William Jewel for a share of the HAAC title, Howard has compiled an impressive 273-174 record at Avila.  Coach Howard has not just enjoyed successes on the field; his teams have had a 95 percent graduation rate along with an 89 percent retention rate.