For Immediate Release

eureka, illinois

May 14, 2008

5 Red Devils named to SLIAC All-Conference teams

EUREKA — Five Eureka College baseball players have garnered All-Conference recognition from the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference following the 2008 season.  Two Red Devils were named to the Second Team, while three others received Honorable Mention.

Eureka's two Second Team members were juniors Benji Cashdollar (Morton, Ill./HS) and Kyle Koerner (LeRoy, Ill./HS).  Wade Furrow (El Paso, Ill./HS), Alex Rosenbeck (Bridgeview, Ill./Argo) and Mike Wagner (Chicago, Ill./St. Rita) were on the Honorable Mention list.

Cashdollar made the Second Team as a pitcher, though he also played 19 games in the outfield.  He tied for the lead in the conference with five wins in SLIAC play, including victories over league champion Webster and second place Westminster.  He also ranked second with 39 strikeouts and seventh with a 3.67 ERA.  With the bat, Cashdollar was just one off the team lead in runs scored with 24.  He posted an impressive .450 on base percentage with 17 walks and seven hit by pitchers compared to only nine strikeouts.  He led the SLIAC and is ranked 25th nationally in sacrifices.

Koerner was selected Second Team All-SLIAC as a shortstop, though he was also an effective relief pitcher for the Red Devils this season.  Koerner started 31 games at shortstop with a .348 batting average, totaling 24 runs, seven doubles and four home runs.  In 23 games in SLIAC play, he posted the seventh highest slugging percentage (.651) and 14th best batting average (.381) in the league.  Koerner made five relief appearances on the mound in conference play as well, picking up two saves with a 3.18 ERA and stingy .175 opposing batting average.

Furrow, one of only three seniors on the EC team, was placed on the Honorable Mention team at designated hitter.  An all-conference honoree in 2006 when Eureka was a member of the now defunct Northern Illinois-Iowa Conference, Furrow made 22 starts this season, ending the season on a five-game hitting streak.  Always a solid contact hitter in his three years as a Red Devil, Furrow struck out just seven times on the year, hitting .333 overall and .314 in SLIAC action.

Rosenbeck, a second-year catcher, made 30 starts on the season, tying for the team lead with 25 runs scored.  He drew 21 walks and struck out only eight times in 81 at bats to lead the squad with an on base percentage of .491.  In conference play, Rosenbeck led all SLIAC catchers with 13 runners caught stealing.  He also hit .323 with 17 runs, two homers, six stolen bases and 17 RBIs with the eighth best on base percentage.

Wagner made 30 starts for the Red Devils in left field, tying for the team lead with 25 RBIs.  He was at his best in league play, hitting .342 in 23 games played with 16 runs, 17 RBIs, six doubles, two home runs and .534 slugging percentage.  He finished the season on fire, hitting .405 with 13 RBIs in the last nine games of the season during the Red Devils' late season playoff push.  Wagner ended the season on a nine-game hitting streak, driving in at least one run in eight of those games.

The Red Devils finished with a 16-18 overall record.  They were 13-10 in the SLIAC, good for fifth place and one game out of the conference tournament.  Their record marked the first season with double digit wins this decade, an eight-game improvement from last year and a 14-game improvement from 2006.  EC baseball team awards will be announced at the E-Tribe Baseball Banquet Sunday, May 18 at 1:00 pm.

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For More Information Contact:

Brian Sullivan
Sports Information Director
Eureka College
300 E. College Avenue
Eureka, Illinois 61530
309-467-6456
bsullivan@eureka.edu