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Baseball:
Four Anteaters Recognized by American Baseball Coaches Association
June 23, 2009
IRVINE, Calif. --- Senior Ben Orloff (Simi Valley), Daniel Bibona (Lake Forest/Santa Margarita HS), Christian Bergman (Altadena/St. Francis HS) and Eric Pettis (West Hills/El Camino Real HS) all received accolades from the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA). Orloff was named theABCA/Rawlings Division I Gold Glove shortstop and joined Bibona as ABCA All-America second team honorees. The duo also received a nod on the All-West Region first team while Bergman and Pettis were tabbed all-region second-team selections. Orloff, the 2009 Brooks Wallace Award winner, is UCI's first ABCA Gold Glove winner. The senior batted .358 with a team-high 91 hits and 62 runs scored en route to being named the program`s first-ever Big West Player of the Year. Bibona earned his fourth All-America honor of the season with a spot on the All-America second team. The lefty was the 2009 Big West Pitcher of the Year after boasting a 12-1 mark. Bibona struck out 108 batters in 106 innings and was named to the Irvine Regional All-Tournament Team after fanning a career-high 14 batters against Fresno State. Bergman was an all-region second team choice after going 9-3 on the mound and striking out 66 batters in 97.2 innings. Bergman, a two-time All-Big West choice, walked just 16 batters and recorded his first career-complete game against Utah this season. Pettis was recognized by the ABCA after leading the Big West with 17 saves, tying a UCI single-season record. The right-hander, third in the nation in saves, struck out 37 batters in 42 innings while issuing just seven walks in a conference-high 29 appearances.
The ABCA All-American teams are collegiate baseball's oldest selections, dating to 1949. All Division I coaches have the opportunity to nominate and vote on these selections, which are initially compiled into eight All-Region teams. The teams are then finalized as the first, second and third All-American teams by the ABCA's NCAA Division I All-American and Coach of the Year Committee.
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