EastCountySports.com staff report
EL CAJON - It's becoming a Grossmont College
tradition. For the sixth time in
seven seasons, the Griffins captured the Pacific Coast Conference
Player of
the Year award when sophomore outfielder Travis Udvarhelyi was
selected the
circuit's 2002 MVP.
Grossmont's Ed Olsen celebrated his 20th
season at the Griffins' helm by
earning PCC Coach of the Year honors for the fifth time. His ballclub
won a
second straight conference crown by a four-game margin over second
place
Palomar and compiled the circuit's best overall mark of 29-14-1.
Udvarhelyi, a product of Patrick Henry High,
hit safely in 23 of 24 PCC
contests while capturing both the conference (.463) and overall
(.444)
batting titles.
So dominating was Udvarhelyi that he batted
.588 vs. Southwestern, .481
against San Diego Mesa, .455 against Imperial Valley, .429 against
Palomar,
and .381 against San Diego City. That is the prototype model of
consistency.
Udvarhelyi also led PCC hitters in runs
(56) and hits (83), was second in
triples (7), and tied for third in home runs (7). Remarkably,
he was fifth in
the conference with 39 RBI, despite hitting in the leadoff position.
For good
measure, the Long Beach State-bound Udvarhelyi was tied for fourth
with 10
stolen bases in 13 attempts.
Udvarhelyi joins an elite list of Griffins
who share the honor of earning the
coveted PCC Player of the Year award over the last seven years.
Those
preceding him were Colorado Rockies Triple-A outfielder John Barnes
(1996),
Atlanta Braves second baseman Marcus Giles (1997), Bill Weinbrecht
(Mesa
State, Colo. 1998), Mark Kiger (University of Florida, 1999) and
Tampa Bay
Devil Rays Minor League infielder Fernando Cortez (2001).
Udvarhelyi was one of five Griffins selected to the 23 player All-PCC team.
Texas Tech-bound Grossmont right-hander
Jeff Karstens (9-2, 2.63 ERA) was the
top vote-getter among conference pitchers, while teammate Carlos
Torres (4-1,
2 Saves, 3.74 ERA) was named the top relief pitcher. For the record,
Torres
was 4-0 with a 1.54 ERA against conference competition.
Other Griffins named to the prestigious
squad were outfielder Rocky Gracio
and catcher Nick Guerra. Gracio batted .455 against PCC pitching
and .397
with 3 home runs and 28 RBI to rank third overall in the batting
derby.
Guerra, who has accepted a scholarship to San Jose State, hit
.400 (second
only to Udvarhelyi) with 6 home runs and 40 RBI overall. His .416
conference
mark ranked 4th.
Five other Grossmont Conference graduates
made a major impact on the Pacific
Coast Conference.
Palomar shortstop Kyle Floquet (Granite
Hills) earned All-PCC honors for the
second year in a row. Moving from left field as a freshman to
shortstop as a
sophomore, Floquet batted .404 against conference clubs and .376
overall.
San Diego Mesa's Justin Paige (West Hills)
finished fourth in the PCC batting
race with a .395 mark, just 3 points ahead of Southwestern first
baseman
Scott Deen (El Capitan) at .392.
Other East County athletes named to the
All-PCC team were San Diego Mesa
first baseman Brian Matsumoto (Santana) and San Diego City designated
hitter
Aaron Detty (Monte Vista). Matsumoto batted .347 against conference
pitching
and .315 overall. Detty hit .403 in the PCC and .369 overall.
Grossmont College players receiving Honorable
Mention were third baseman
David Jolliff (El Capitan), shortstop Izzy Barron (Castle Park),
outfielder
Kevin McGhen (Santana), catcher/first baseman/outfielder Ryan
Reed (Grossmont
HS), pitcher Scott Shoemaker (Granite Hills), and pitcher Andy
Martin
(USDHS).
Also gaining Honorable Mention recognition
from East County were San Diego
City College catcher Sean Hull (Monte Vista) and San Diego Mesa
second
baseman Mike Parks (Monte Vista).
(05-07-02)
FIRST TEAM PITCHERS Name College Yr. High School/Previous College Jeff Karstens Grossmont So. Mount Miguel George Rapp Imperial Valley Fr. El Centro Southwest Juan Razo San Diego City So. Montgomery RELIEF PITCHER Carlos Torres Grossmont So. Aptos HS/Hancock JC CATCHERS Nick Guerra Grossmont So. USDHS/University of San Francisco Alfredo Vasquez Imperial Valley So. Cobach HS (Mexicali) FIRST BASEMAN Scott Deen Southwestern Fr. El Capitan Brian Matsumoto San Diego Mesa Fr. Santana INFIELDERS Kyle Floquet Palomar So. Granite Hills Cliff Hinkle Palomar So. Linfield HS (Temecula) Chris Mendonsa San Diego City So. Monterey HS Justin Paige San Diego Mesa Fr. West Hills J.R. Paluck San Diego City So. Salinas HS Jake Richter Imperial Valley So. El Centro Southwest OUTFIELDERS Uriel Alvarez San Diego City So. Springwood HS (Texas) Casey Chavez San Diego Mesa So. Mt. Carmel Rocky Gracio Grossmont So. Marian Catholic/Yavapai CC (Arizona) Armando Lara Southwestern So. Sweetwater T.J. Merritt San Diego Mesa Fr. St. Augustine Sean Richardson Palomar Fr. Vista Travis Udvarhelyi Grossmont So. Patrick Henry DESIGNATED HITTER Aaron Detty San Diego City So. Monte Vista UTILITY Jerrod Allen San Diego Mesa So. Poway HS/CalPoly (SLO) HONORABLE MENTION GROSSMONT: Izzy Barron, So., SS, (Castle Park); David Jolliff, Fr., 3B, (El Capitan/UCRiverside); Andy Martin, So., LHP, (USDHS); Kevin McGhen, Fr., OF, (Santana); Ryan Reed, So., UTL, (Grossmont HS); Scott Shoemaker, So., RHP, (Granite Hills). OTHER EAST COUNTY HONORABLE MENTION PICKS SAN DIEGO CITY: Sean Hull, Fr., C, (Monte Vista). SAN DIEGO MESA: Mike Parks, So., 2B, (Monte Vista).
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