Calabrese Named Collegiate Baseball All-American

(Courtesy of UIC Media Relations)

TUCSON, Ariz. -- UIC junior Rob Calabrese picked up another accolade on Thursday, June 1, when he was named to the Collegiate Baseball NCAA Division I All-America Team. The Staten Island, N.Y., native was named to the Second Team.

Calabrese, the Horizon League Player of the Year, is batting a team-high .357 and slugging a team-best .582 this season. The durable backstop also leads the club in hits (70), doubles (23), and RBI (48). Calabrese's 23 doubles rank 12th in the NCAA heading into Regionals this weekend. That total also ties him with Curtis Granderson (2002) for third on UIC's single-season leader board.

The junior has been a fixture behind the plate for head coach Mike Dee and the Flames. Calabrese has been in the starting lineup for all 54 games that UIC has played, catching 50 of them. He has worked closely with a pitching staff that boasts the second-best ERA in the country at 2.57 and also ranks second in shutouts, hits allowed per nine innings and WHIP. He has also thrown out 14 would-be base stealers in 33 attempts and 7-of-14 in conference play.

Calabrese is the first member of the UIC program to earn All-America honors since former teammate Jeff Boehm in 2015. Other Flames to earn All-America recognition include David Cales and Zach Peterson (2007), Chuck Peters (2003) and Granderson (2002). UIC's Alex Dee was named a Freshman All-American in 2016.