Angel, Aronson Earn all-CCIW Baseball Top Honors

May 23, 2007

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - - Illinois Wesleyan University junior Ricky Angel and sophomore Matt Aronson were chosen as the player and pitcher of the year, respectively, in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin in voting by CCIW coaches today.

Angel (Glen Ellyn, Glenbard West HS), a first team all-CCIW selection in 2005 and second team last year, led the league in batting (.480), hits (36) and home runs (8). He is the sixth IWU player to earn the league’s top honor, following pitcher Cory Lapinski (2005), pitcher Steve Schilsky (2001), pitcher Nathan Knuffman (1998), catcher Mike Brown (1991) and outfielder James Shaw (1980).

Aronson (LaGrange, St. Ignatius HS) was 5-0 in conference games and had a league-leading 0.69 earned run average. He was second in the league with 37 strikeouts.

Titan coach Dennis Martel was the co-“Coach of the Year” in the league, sharing the honor with Carthage’s Augie Schmidt IV. The Titans were 20-1 in winning the conference regular season title with a record number of victories in league play. The IWU pitching staff had a 1.38 ERA and the team had a .970 fielding percentage, both tops in the conference.

Joining Angel and Aronson on the first team was sophomore pitcher Jesse Foster, while senior outfielder Mike Berry, and senior pitchers Robert Inzinga and Travis Myers were chosen for the CCIW second team.

Foster (Homewood, Homewood-Flossmoor HS) was also 5-0 in CCIW games and finished second to Aronson with a 1.59 ERA.

Berry (Crystal Lake, Prairie Ridge HS) batted .345 in conference games with two doubles, two triples, two home runs and 12 runs batted in.

Inzinga (Glen Ellyn, Glenbard West HS) went 5-1 against the league and was fourth in the CCIW with a 2.45 earned run average. He was fifth in the league with 32 strikeouts.

Myers (Lake Forest HS) had a league-best seven saves in 13 relief appearances, also a CCIW high. He was 1-0 with a 0.55 ERA.

CONTACT: Stew Salowitz, 309-556-3206