Horizon League Announces Baseball All-League Teams and Specialty Award Winners

May 23, 2006

Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader

INDIANAPOLIS -- Senior outfielder Mike Goetz of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee received Player of the Year honors and junior right-hander Joe Smith of Wright State University was named Pitcher of the Year as the Horizon League announced its baseball All-League Teams and specialty award winners Tuesday night (May 23). The University of Illinois at Chicago's Mike Dee took home Coach of the Year accolades for the League-record sixth time, while Flames junior shortstop Chad Schroeder earned Newcomer of the Year recognition.

All four honors are the result of voting by League head coaches, and were announced at the banquet prior to the League Championship tournament which begins in Dayton, Ohio, on Wednesday morning (May 24).

Goetz leads the nation with a .498 batting average and has hit safely in 52 of the Panthers' 54 games this season. The senior also tops the loop charts with 106 hits, 63 runs scored, 23 doubles and a .583 on-base percentage, while his 33 multi-hit games are nine more than any other player in the League. The Franklin, Wis., native helped lead UWM to a second-place finish in the League standings (18-12 in loop play, 31-23 overall) and becomes the third Panther to win Player-of-the-Year honors. Darin Haugom claimed the honor in 2001, with Ben Stanczyk named in 2004.

Smith is a candidate for the NCBWA's Stopper of the Year award, finishing the regular season with a 3-0 record and a 0.75 earned-run average plus 12 saves. The right-hander has struck out 60 batters in 48 innings, including at least one in each of his 29 outings this season. He has allowed only four earned runs in 2006, and was nearly unhittable in League play as he did not yield a single run in 28.1 innings against League foes, striking out 37 and giving up only 12 hits while holding loop opponents to a .128 average.

Schroeder batted .318 with three home runs and 28 RBI in his debut campaign. The transfer from Mount Hood (Ore.) Community College helped anchor the UIC infield that has turned 49 double plays this season, starting 50 of the team's 52 games at shortstop. UIC also boasted the League's top fielding percentage (.968) on the way to a fifth consecutive regular-season championship. That success (22-7 in the League, 34-18 overall) was recognized as Dee received Coach-of-the-Year honors for the sixth time in his eight seasons in the program. His career record of 268-178-1 includes seven consecutive seasons of 30 or more wins.

UIC had five representatives on the First-Team All-League unit, including junior pitcher Zach Peterson, along with senior catcher Justin Johnson and senior outfielder Bart Babineaux, who was a Second-Team choice in 2005. Sophomore second baseman Mark Hallberg and senior outfielder Larry Gempp Jr., both repeat selections from last spring, completed UIC's quintet of honorees, while three schools each had two players named to the First-Team roll.

Goetz and senior first baseman Joe Nowicki---a First-Team pick for the second year in a row---represented UW-Milwaukee, with Smith and junior third baseman Dan Biedenharn wearing Wright State colors plus sophomore DH Erich Diedrich and senior utility player Brandon Caipen named from Youngstown State University. Butler University sophomore shortstop Joe Pauley completed the 12-member First-Team group.

The 2006 Horizon League Baseball Championship is scheduled for Wednesday through Sunday, May 24-28, at Nischwitz Stadium on the Wright State campus. First pitch each day is 11 a.m. (Eastern time), with single-day tickets available for $6 (adults) and $5 (senior citzen and youth), while all-tournament passes are $20 and $12, respectively. For additional ticket information, please contact the WSU athletic department at (937) 775-2771.

Player of the Year: Mike Goetz, UW-Milwaukee
Sr. * OF * Franklin, Wis.
-- Owns nation's top batting average (.498)
-- Leads League in hits (106), runs (63), doubles (23), stolen bases (17), on-base pct. (.583)
-- 33 multi-hit games in 2006

Pitcher of the Year: Joe Smith, Wright State
Jr. * RHP * Cincinnati, Ohio
-- 0.80 ERA, 12 saves in 2006
-- 60 strikeouts in 48 innings
-- No runs allowed in 28.1 innings in League play
-- First Raider ever to win Pitcher of the Year honor

Newcomer of the Year: Chad Schroeder, UIC
Jr. * SS * Everett, Wash.
-- Batting .318 with 28 RBI as starting shortstop
-- Anchors defense which led League (.968)
-- Bolsters infield which has turned 49 double plays
-- Fifth Flame to win top Newcomer honors

Coach of the Year: Mike Dee, UIC
-- Has led Flames to 34-18 record, fifth consecutive regular-season League title
-- has posted 30+ wins for seventh year in a row
-- League-record sixth Coach of the Year honor

First-Team All-League
P -- Zach Peterson-#, UIC (Jr. * Minnetonka, Minn.)
P -- Joe Smith, Wright State (Jr. * Cincinnati, Ohio)
C -- Justin Johnson, UIC (Sr. * Chaska, Minn.)
1B -- Joe Nowicki-#, UW-Milwaukee (Sr. * Milwaukee, Wis.)
2B -- Mark Hallberg-#, UIC (So.* Barron, Wis.)
3B -- Dan Biedenharn, Wright State (Jr. * Dayton, Ohio)
SS -- Joe Pauley, Butler (So. * Skokie, Ill.)
OF -- Bart Babineaux-&, UIC (Sr. * New Iberia, La.)
OF -- Larry Gempp Jr.-#, UIC (Sr. * Ingleside, Ill.)
OF -- Mike Goetz, UW-Milwaukee (Sr. * Franklin, Wis.)
DH -- Erich Diedrich, Youngstown State (So. * Bay Village, Ohio)
UT -- Brandon Caipen-#, Youngstown State (Sr. * Tallmadge, Ohio)

Second-Team All-League
P -- Robert Barrett, Wright State (Sr. * Sacramento, Calif.)
P -- Rich Cavaiani, UW-Milwaukee (Sr. * Appleton, Wis.)
C -- Joe Dempsey, Butler (Jr.* Stow, Ohio)
1B -- Justin Banks-#, Youngstown State (Sr. * Steubenville, Ohio)
2B -- Steve Chinn, Cleveland State (Sr. * Valley City, Ohio)
3B -- John Koehnlein, Youngstown State (Fr. * Toronto, Ohio)
SS -- Chad Schroeder, UIC (Jr. * Everett, Wash.)
OF -- Tony Barnes, Butler (Jr. * Indianapolis, Ind.)
OF -- Ross McCoy, UW-Milwaukee (Jr. * Menomonee Falls, Wis.)
OF -- Justin Wilson, Wright State (Sr. * Greenville, Ohio)
DH -- Ben Trotter, UIC (Jr. * Coal City, Ill.)
UT -- Stephen Gill, Butler (Sr.* Merrillville, Ind.)

All-Newcomer Team
C -- Dan Buchholz, UW-Milwaukee (Fr. * Racine, Wis.)
C -- Aaron Garcia, Wright State (Sr. * Moorpark, Calif.)
1B -- Jeremy Hamilton, Wright State (Fr. * Cincinnati, Ohio)
3B -- John Koehnlein, Youngstown State (Fr. * Toronto, Ohio)
3B -- Joel Matheny, Butler *Fr. * LaPorte, Ind.)
SS -- Justin Parker, Wright State (Fr. * Fort Wayne, Ind.)
SS -- Chad Schroeder, UIC (Jr. * Everett, Wash.)
OF -- John Westra, Cleveland State (Jr.* Sturgis, Mich.)
P -- Erich Schanz, Wright State (Jr. * Bakersfield, Calif.)
P -- Joe Skinner, UIC (Jr. * Grand Rapids, Mich.)
DH -- Kyle Cox, Butler (Fr. * Indianapolis, Ind.)
UT -- Michael Babin, Cleveland State (Fr. * Medina, Ohio)

Previous All-League Honors:
# - First-Team All-League in 2005 (Nowicki in OF, Hallberg as 1B, Banks as 3B)
& - Second-Team All-League in 2005

Note: The All-Newcomer League consists of eight position players (not position-specific), two pitchers, a designated hitter and a utility player.