SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – Carter Gaston was named the WCC Pitcher of the Year as 10 other Pilots also earned All-WCC honors. It's the second time in three years the Pilots have had a player win a major conference award and the fourth time in program history.
Several other Pilots earned All-WCC honors this season. Gaston, Nick Brink, Jake Holcroft and Ben Patacsil all made the All-WCC First Team, Sam Stuhr made the All-WCC Second Team, Tanner Douglas, Tyler Howard, Jack Thomson and Spencer Scott all earned honorable mention and Morgan Codron made the WCC All-Freshman Team.
Gaston was dominant on the mound this year for Portland. Gaston posted an 11-1 record with a 2.38 ERA and 63 strikeouts. His 11 wins leads the conference, ranks third nationally and is the highest total a Pilot pitcher has ever recorded in a single season. Gaston was also one of three WCC pitchers to record a complete game and leads the WCC in ERA, ranking 10
th nationally. He is also second in walks allowed per nine innings (2.14) and strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.50) and fourth in WHIP (1.10).
Brink was also electric on the bump for the Pilots, throwing an incredible 117 strikeouts with a 9-4 record and a 3.35 ERA. His strikeout total leads the WCC and ranks seventh nationally, and it's also the second highest strikeout total in a single season of any Pilot ever. Brink leads the conference in strikeout-to-walk ratio (6.16, 13
th nationally), walks allowed per nine innings (1.82) and complete games (two, 11
th nationally), being the only WCC pitcher to throw multiple complete games in a season sine 2015. He was also second (24
th nationally) in WHIP (1.03), strikeouts per nine innings (11.20) and wins (12
th nationally) and is also fifth in ERA and hits allowed per nine innings (7.47).
Holcroft is one of the best hitters in the WCC this season, leading the conference in total hits (72), runs (56), stolen bases (21) and stolen bases per game (0.40). His 21 stolen bases are the most by a Pilot since 2016. He is also fourth in walks (32) and doubles (15). This season, Holcroft set several career records for the Pilots, becoming the all-time leader in hits (310), runs scored (187), at-bats (922), walks (112) and total bases (448) in his final year of eligibility. He was also the only Pilot play and start every game this year.
Patacsil finishes off the All-WCC First Team selections after what's been a career year for the infielder. He's batted a WCC-leading .380 on the season with 60 hits, six home runs and 43 RBI's. All those totals are career bests for the senior. In conference play alone, Patacsil batted an astounding .524 -- over 100 points better than the next closest WCC batter -- while posting the most hits (44), the best on-base percentage (.587) and the second-most RBI's (35).
Stuhr was the lone selection for Portland to the second team. A transfer from Oregon State, Stuhr was a two-time WCC pitcher of the week, starting every weekend for the Pilots and throwing 94 strikeouts with a 3-1 record and a 4.52 ERA. His 94 strikeouts ranked second in the WCC, and he leads the conference in strikeouts per nine innings at 11.48.
Tanner Douglas leads off the Pilots who earned honorable mention, serving as a reliable closer for Portland. Douglas made a team-high 23 appearances as a reliever, posting a 4-0 record with a 3.25 ERA and 10 saves. His 10 saves is tops in the conference and ninth nationally, and his prowess as a closer got him on the midseason watc hlist for the NCBWA Stopper of the Year, an award that goes to the top reliever in college baseball.
Howard was behind the plate for the Pilots most games, playing in 34 games with 30 starts. He batted .325 on the year with 39 hits, nine doubles, three home runs and 19 RBI's. He's the only Pilot to post at least three games of four hits or more and has nine multi-hit games as well as five multi-RBI games.
Scott has been a staple of the infield all year, batting .296 this season with 42 hits, 10 doubles, three home runs and 25 RBI's in 42 games (40 starts). All those totals are career highs for Scott. He has 12 multi-hit games on the year and is second on the team in runs scored (32) and walks (28).
Thomson, a transfer from Lewis & Clark College, is the final Pilot to earn honorable mention. In 37 games this year (34 starts), he's batted .200 with 21 hits, five home runs and 19 RBI's. Four of those home runs and 15 of those RBI's came against WCC opponents, and his on-base percentage of .482 against conference opponents ranked fifth.
Codron rounds out the Pilot all-conference honorees. Codron, a redshirt freshman, made 16 appearances with three starts for Portland, posting a 1-1 record with a 4.31 ERA and three saves.
It's been an incredible year for the Pilots, who are 35-17 overall and 19-5 in WCC play. Their 35 wins are the most they've posted in a single season since 1980 and their 19 wins are the most they've ever had in WCC play and the most across any conference they've played in since 1980. They head to Las Vegas riding an 11 game win streak and having won 12 of their last 13 games.
The Pilots play on Thursday, May 23 at 7:05 p.m. against the highest advancing seed from the first round. Check PortlandPilots.com for live stats and video options.
See below for the full list of award winners and honorees.
2024 WCC Baseball All-Conference Awards
Coach of the Year – Brock Ungricht, San Diego
Player of the Year – Jakob Christian, San Diego
Pitcher of the Year – Carter Gaston, Portland
Freshman of the Year – Logan Reddemann, San Diego
Defensive Player of the Year – Ariel Armas, San Diego
First Team All-Conference
Christian Almanza, Saint Mary's
Ariel Armas, San Diego
Nick Brink, Portland
Jakob Christian, San Diego
Christian Dicochea, LMU
Derik Eaquinto, Saint Mary's
Carter Gaston, Portland
Blake Hammond, Santa Clara
Jake Holcroft, Portland
Ben Patacsil, Portland
Logan Reddemann, San Diego
Coleman Schmidt, Saint Mary's
Austin Smith, San Diego
Second Team All-Conference
Brendan Bobo, LMU
Jack Gurevitch, San Diego
Owen Hackman, LMU
Dalton Mashore, Saint Mary's
Michael O'Hara, Santa Clara
Ryan Pierce, Saint Mary's
Josh Randall, San Diego
Joe Soberon, San Francisco
Sam Stuhr, Portland
Conner Thurman, San Diego
Connor Walsh, Pepperdine
Ryan Wiltse, Saint Mary's
Will Worthington, San Diego
Honorable Mention
Connor Bradshaw, Pepperdine
Jack Costello, San Diego
Justin DeCriscio, San Diego
Khadim Diaw, LMU
Tanner Douglas, Portland
Brian Duroff, Saint Mary's
Tommy Eisenstat, Gonzaga
Justin Feld, Gonzaga
Erik Hoffberg, Gonzaga
Tyler Howard, Portland
Payton Knowles, Gonzaga
Brady Renck, Pepperdine
Spencer Scott, Portland
Vincent Temesvary, Gonzaga
Jack Thomson, Portland
All-Freshman Team
Max Bayles, Santa Clara
Gabe Camacho, Pacific
Ben Cleary, Santa Clara
Morgan Codron, Portland
Miles Gosztola, Gonzaga
Connor Harrison, Saint Mary's
Erik Hoffberg, Gonzaga
Myles Kallinger, San Francisco
Payton Knowles, Gonzaga
Logan Reddemann, San Diego
Collin Valentine, Pepperdine
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