Penn State Abington senior Ryan McCarty was named United East Conference Player of the Year, the conference announced earlier this week. He also earned first-team honors for the fourth time in his career.
McCarty leads all of Division III in several offensive categories, including batting average (.552), runs (85), hits (95), RBI (85), doubles (26), home runs (27), total bases (208) and slugging percentage (1.209). He's also hit safely in 36 of 40 games and has at least two hits in 31 of 40 games.
The conference honors for the Nittany Lions went beyond McCarty.
Freshman Chase Swain was named the United East Rookie of the Year and was a first-team all-conference selection, while Head Coach David Miller was named Coach of the Year.
Swain, a Salem, N.J. native, finished the regular season with a .412 batting average with 77 hits, including 17 doubles and eight home runs. His 77 hits are fourth most in Division III this season. Swain is also second in the nation in runs scored with 70 and has totaled 42 RBI on the year.
Outfielder Tim Petrucelli was also a first-team all-conference selection. He ended the regular season hitting .331 with 46 hits, including 11 doubles, two triples and six home runs. He also has scored 59 runs this season and recorded 38 RBIs. He's also walked 49 times this year which is the most in Division III.
Zach Morales, Gregg Sywulak, and Jaden Himmelreich all earned second-team United East accolades.
Miller has transitioned nicely in his first campaign as skipper with the Nittany Lions, guiding the club to a 31-9 overall mark while setting a program record for most wins in a single season in the team's Division III era.
Penn State Abington will face third-seeded Lancaster Bible College on Friday on day one of the United East Tournament. Penn State Harrisburg is serving as host as the number one seed.
The Nittany Lions enter the postseason as the highest scoring team in the nation with 508 runs in 40 games. The team also leads Division III in hits (536), slugging percentage (.623) and on-base percentage (.479).
