Gardner-Webb's Simmons, Fraudin, and Barnett Earn Big South Baseball Postseason Honors
May 19, 2014 | Baseball
CHARLOTTE – Gardner-Webb designated hitter Matt Simmons earned second-team All-Big South Conference honors and starting pitcher Matt Fraudin was an honorable mention choice as the league announced postseason honors Sunday.
Senior Andrew Barnett earned a spot on the Big South's All-Academic Team.
Simmons (Charlotte, N.C. / Charlotte Christian) finished third in voting for the league's Freshman of the Year award and capped a standout first season with the Runnin' Bulldogs.
The 6-foot-1, 222-pound rookie led Gardner-Webb with a .314 batting average in 44 games played, collecting 48 hits, nine doubles, two triples and a home run. His 22 RBI ranked fourth on the team and his .418 slugging percentage was second on the stat sheet.
Simmons had a pair of 4-for-4 efforts during the season, doing so with a double and home run at USC Upstate and matching those four hits against league champion Liberty in the first of two games against the Flames.
Fraudin (Upper St. Clair, Pa. / Upper St. Clair) earned honorable mention All-Big South honors after leading the league in strikeouts for the second year in a row – punching out 103 batters in 101.1 innings of work.
The 6-foot-5, 210-pound junior was named National Pitcher of the Week just 12 days ago by the NCBWA following a complete-game, one-hit shutout against CAA leader William & Mary. Fraudin led Gardner-Webb with a 2.40 ERA this season and went the distance a league-best four times.
Fraudin pitched at least 8.0 innings in seven different starts, including a career-high 10.0 innings in a no decision at Kennesaw State in February. Fraudin has pitched back-to-back complete games heading into the tournament, allowing just two runs in his past 17.0 innings of work.
The big righty will get the ball in the tournament opener Tuesday afternoon against nationally-ranked Liberty. First pitch is set for 4:30 pm in Rock Hill, S.C. (Winthrop Ballpark).
Barnett (High Point, N.C. / High Point Christian) earned a spot on the league's All-Academic Team for the second year in a row.
Barnett graduated with a degree in computer science on May 12 and compiled a 3.85 cumulative GPA during his four seasons with the Runnin' Bulldogs.
The 6-0, 185-pounder ranked second in the league this season with 92 strikeouts and among the top-15 in innings pitched.
He finished his career as Gardner-Webb's career leader with 92 strikeouts looking and second in total strikeouts with 268 for his career. Barnett posted a 15-9 career record on the mound.
