MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. --- Five Tusculum University student-athletes have been named to the 2021 Division II Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA) All-Southeast Region Baseball Team.
Daulton Martin, Brandon Trammell and Mitch McCain were named to the All-Region first team, while Trey Hinton and Bryson Ford garnered second team recognition. The team is selected the athletic media relations directors in the Southeast Region which is comprised of members from the South Atlantic Conference, Conference Carolinas and the Peach Belt Conference.
Tusculum's five All-Southeast selections were the most in the region. North Greenville was second with four, Catawba and UNC Pembroke had three apiece, while Columbus State, Mount Olive and Wingate had two honorees each.
Martin, a graduate student from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, earns his second All-Region first team accolade this year and returns to the D2CCA All-Southeast Team for a third time in his career as the first team second baseman. The three-time All-South Atlantic Conference selection has a .336 batting average this year with 51 hits including a league-best four triples (29th in NCAA II). His 12 home runs this year are third in the conference, while his 48 RBI and 53 runs scored are both third-best in the SAC. He has been hit by a pitch 20 times (1st in SAC / 3rd in NCAA II) in 2021 which are a new TU single-season record. He is 12-of-13 in stolen bases and leads the team with 93 fielding assists.
In 2021, he has accounted for 16 multi-hit games including a 4-for-4 performance where he tied a TU single-game record with nine RBI including two home runs with one of them being a grand slam in game one of a doubleheader versus Limestone. He followed in the second game with three hits, including two more homers and five RBI. He was tabbed the NCBWA Region Player of the Week as well as SAC Player of the Week and TSWA College Player of the Week.
The two-time All-America standout is TU's all-time leader in hits (293), runs scored (236), at-bats (793), doubles (66), runs batted in (193), total bases (480), walks (150) and hit-by-pitch. He is also second in school history in triples (17), on-base percentage (.496), assists (489) and tied for third in stolen bases (49). Last year, Martin was also named to the CoSIDA Academic All-America® first team.
Trammell, a senior from Knoxville, Tennessee, led the Pioneers with his .387 batting average and a conference-best 61 RBI (6th in NCAA II). The University of Tennessee transfer pounded out 58 hits (3rd in SAC) including a team-best 13 home runs (2nd in SAC / 40th in NCAA II). The 2021 All-SAC first team choice recorded 21 multi-hit games with nine doubles, two triples while going 11-of-15 in stolen bases. His .733 slugging percentage is best on the team (5th in SAC), while his .473 on-base percentage is seventh in the conference. He has recorded five outfield assists this year and was named to the NCBWA All-Region first team earlier this month.
McCain, a graduate student from Lawrenceville, Georgia, posted a team-best 1.38 earned run average in his 18 mound appearances. He went 3-2 and posted eight saves which are the second-most in the region this year. His saves total is also second-best in a TU single-season. He limited the opposition to a .148 batting average while tallying 53 strikeouts in his 39 innings on the mound.
McCain recorded 15 saves in his career, which are the fourth-most in Tusculum history, while his 75 career mound appearances are second in the TU record book. He amassed 166 strikeouts in his 122.2 career innings pitched while posting an 11-9 record and a 3.66 ERA.
Hinton, graduate student from Knoxville, earns his inaugural All-Region honor after garnering All-SAC first team accolades as a designated hitter. He finished third on the team with his .350 batting average while totaling 21 hits, including eight doubles, one triple, and one home run and finished with 15 RBI. His .551 on-base percentage is second on the roster where he drew 24 walks against just 12 strikeouts.
Hinton went 4-for-4 with two RBI in a home win over Limestone and later followed with two hits and two RBI including his first collegiate home run in an 11-6 win over the Saints in his Pioneer Park finale. He also recorded four hits and four RBI in a doubleheader sweep at Carson-Newman.
In his 116-game career, he accounted for 115 walks, which are the second most in TU history. He totaled 94 career hits including 18 doubles, one triple and one home run, while also finishing with 73 RBI and 77 runs scored. He batted .288 while also amassing a .478 career on-base percentage, which is eighth in program history. In 2019, he was the NCAA Division II National Statistical Champion averaging 1.26 walks per game.
Hinton was named the SAC Baseball Scholar Athlete of the Year for a second straight season and is a 2020 pick to the CoSIDA Academic All-District first team.
Ford, a graduate student from Knoxville, was named as the Region's second team utility player. He is a two-time All-Conference selection including 2021 where he was named as the All-SAC second team shortstop. He split time at third base as well as the outfield. Ford is batting .338 and closed out the year strong reaching base safely in his last 25 outings. He has scored 60 runs which are the second-most in country (NCAA II) this year. Of his 50 hits in 2021, he has 14 doubles, two triples and six home runs while tallying 45 RBI. He leads the SAC with 23 stolen bases in 27 attempts.
In his 157-game career, Ford has totaled 168 hits with 34 doubles, six triples, 12 home runs and 129 RBI. He is TU's all-time leader with 60 career stolen bases and is listed in the school record book where he is third all-time in runs scored (166), eighth in RBI (129), seventh in walks (97), sixth in sacrifice bunts (19), ninth in sacrifice flies (10) and seventh in hit by pitch (25). In 2020, Ford was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District first team.
Martin, Trammell and McCain all advance to the D2CCA All-America ballot, which will be released during the NCAA II College World Series.
2021 D2CCA All-Southeast Region Baseball Team
First Team
C – John Michael Faile, North Greenville
1B – Hunter Shepherd, Catawba
2B – Daulton Martin, Tusculum
3B – Livian Reinoso, Erskine
SS – Isaac Bouton, Columbus St.
OF – Tucker Greer, Young Harris
OF – Brandon Trammell, Tusculum
OF – Drue Galassi, Lenoir-Rhyne
DH – Nik Levensteins, North Georgia
UT – River Ryan, UNC Pembroke
UT (non-pitcher) – Gehrig Octavio, North Greenville
SP – Bryan Ketchie, Catawba
SP – Hunter Stevens, Mount Olive
SP – Tucker Smith, Georgia Southwestern
RP – Mitch McCain, Tusculum
Second Team
C – Robert Brooks, Columbus St.
1B – Benjamin Huber, Limestone
2B – Mason Dodd, Belmont Abbey
3B – Chase Allen, Limestone
SS – Jeremy Simpson, Catawba
OF – Marek Chlup, North Greenville
OF – Ethan Stringer, North Greenville
OF – Trevor Clemons, UNC Pembroke
DH – Trey Hinton, Tusculum
UT – Hunter Dula, Wingate
UT (non-pitcher) – Bryson Ford, Tusculum
SP – Brayden Coe, Carson-Newman
SP – Drew Moore, King
SP – Reed Parris, Mount Olive
SP – Bucky Bonynge, UNC Pembroke
RP – Brody McCullough, Wingate
