MIAC post-season honors

An all-time record six Scots have been named to the All-MIAC baseball team and Matt Parrington has been selected by his peers as the Jim Dimick MIAC Coach of the Year after guiding Macalester to its first conference championship in 61 years. The Scots finished the season tied for first with a 16-4 conference mark.

Macalester's six representatives on the all-conference squad are pitcher Alex Ingram (Sr., Chicago, Ill. / Morgan Park Academy), pitcher Eric Robinson (Sr., San Francisco, Calif. / The Urban School), center fielder Will Chen (Sr., Edina, Minn.), catcher Garrett Salzman (Jr., Glendale, Calif. / St. Francis), catcher Robert Williams (Jr., West Covina, Calif. / Northview) and second baseman Mitch Glasser (Jr., Chicago, Ill. / The Latin School).

Also, three Scots were named to the nine-member All-Defensive team after helping Mac rank first in the league in fielding percentage and double plays turned. Macalester All-Defensive team members are center fielder Chen, pitcher Robinson, and shortstop Jimmy Belfont (So., Olney, Md. / Our Lady of Good Counsel). Belfont also picks up honorable mention All-MIAC honors.

In his 12th season at Macalester, Coach Parrington led the Scots to their first MIAC playoff appearance since 2000. Despite losing three All-MIAC players to graduation and being picked eighth in the pre-season poll, the Scots led the league in fielding, were second in batting average and runs scored, and third in pitching.

Mac's representative on the MIAC's All-Sportsmanship team is pitcher Elliott Yodh (Sr., Merion, Pa. / Lower Merion).

Player Highlights:

Glasser - Two-time all-conference . . . hit a team-best .408 with four homers and a .617 slugging percentage . . .struck out just once in 129 plate appearances, that coming on the final day of the season at the MIAC tournament . . . squad's No. 3 batter hit .404 with runners in scoring position . . . missed seven league games with injured ankle so didn't qualify for MIAC batting crown . . . batted .462 (24-for-52) in league play with .692 slugging percentage and .500 on-base percentage.

Williams - Led 26-14 Macalester team in RBI with 34 and hits with 50 and led MIAC in total bases . . . ranked second in the MIAC with 21 RBI and led the league in total bases . . . was also second to Salzman in hits (29) . . . batted .348 overall with runners in scoring position . . . ranked fifth in the conference with .397 average (29-for-73) . . . caught 24 games and was DH or 1B in all others . . . had 15 multi-hit games and hit safely in 32 of 40 games . . . overall, started all 40 games and hit .355 with 34 RBI.

Salzman - MIAC batting champ with .441 average in 18 league games . . . ranked first in the conference in hits (30) and third in on-base percentage (.494) . . . five-hit game late in season at Concordia helped Scots clinch tie for MIAC title with 13-inning victory . . . produced 12 multiple-hit games on the season, including eight games with three or more hits . . . He and Williams were two of the three MIAC players to finish the year with 50 or more hits in league play.

Chen – Also made All-Defensive team by showing great range in center field . . . In 20 MIAC games, batted .366 (26-for-71) with eight doubles, two home runs, 17 runs scored, and a .563 slugging percentage . . . did not commit an error in 40 games and was 9-for-9 on stolen base attempts . . . ranked fourth in the MIAC in hits, second in doubles, first in steals and fourth in total bases.

Ingram – Led MIAC in innings pitched and wins, and was second in strikeouts, ERA and opposing batting average . . . posted 6-1 conference record . . . had 4.0 K's for every walked allowed . . . picked up wins in both games in regular-season finale to give Scots sweep over Concordia and a share of first MIAC title in 61 years . . . Overall on the season, posted 8-1 record with 2.49 ERA, striking out 59 and walking just 15 in 68 2/3 innings.

Robinson – Spent most of the season ranked among national ERA leaders . . . ranked second in the MIAC in innings pitched and third in ERA . . . Started eight games and came out of the bullpen in six others, finishing with an 8-2 record and 2.76 ERA . . . fanned 45 batters and walked only 11 in 65 1/3 innings . . . one of three Scots to make the MIAC's All-Defensive team . . . tossed a shutout over St. Olaf.

Belfont – Took over the starting shortstop duties from former four-year starter and all-region performer Nate Wilson-Traisman and had strong sophomore campaign, picking up Honorable Mention All-MIAC status and membership on the All-Defensive team . . . started all 20 conference games, hitting .340 with a team-leading 11 walks. Had .955 fielding percentage in the MIAC.