KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Northeastern State baseball team had six student-athletes land on All-MIAA teams, the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association announced Thursday morning.
 
Headlining the postseason accolades for NSU were senior catcher Eric Kirkpatrick and true freshman pitcher Zach Parish. Both were named to the All-MIAA Second Team, and Parish was honored as the 2016 MIAA Freshman of the Year.
 
Senior outfielder Cody Begovich, senior second baseman Charles Sims, junior first baseman Bryce Davenport and junior relief pitcher Zack Hammock were all selected to the All-MIAA Honorable Mention team.
 
Parish became the fourth NSU baseball player since Northeastern State joined NCAA Division II (1997) to earn a specialty award. Brian Murphy (2002) and Donnie Webb (2005) were both honored as the Lone Star Conference Freshmen of the Year, while Ryan Helsley was selected as the 2014 MIAA Freshman of the Year. Of the 44 student-athletes named to the three all-conference teams this season, Parish was the only freshman.
 
He recently became the first pitcher in NSU's NCAA era to register 100 strikeouts in a single season, and he leads the MIAA in that category. He also owns a 6-2 record and a 4.10 ERA in 83.1 innings pitched. He has made 13 starts and has appeared in 16 games this season, and he has also tallied one complete game and one combined shutout.
 
Kirkpatrick is one of the most lethal hitters in the league this season and is by far the top catcher. He ranks in the top 10 in the league in numerous categories, as he owns a .388 average with 16 doubles, 10 home runs, 57 runs batted in and 40 runs scored. He also has a .992 fielding percentage (308 putouts, 50 assists, 3 errors) and leads the MIAA with a .648 stolen-bases against percentage. This is the first postseason accolade of his career.
 
Begovich is batting .270 this campaign with 48 hits, nine doubles, two triples, 49 RBI and 36 runs. He has posted a .579 slugging percentage and also owns seven stolen bases. This is his first all-conference award.
 
Sims is fresh off his All-MIAA First Team honor from last season, when he was also selected to two all-region teams. He is batting .269 this season with 45 hits, 11 doubles, three triples, four homers, 43 runs and 27 RBI. He also owns a .968 fielding percentage and has been involved in 35 doubles plays.
 
Davenport is hitting a shade under .300 and has registered 52 hits, nine doubles, one triple, six home runs, 38 runs and 32 RBI. He has 304 putouts and 10 assists and has been involved in 32 double plays. He was also selected to the All-MIAA Honorable Mention team last year.
 
Hammock picked up the first accolade of his three-year career after boasting a 5-2 record and a 5.56 ERA in 21 appearances. He has thrown 43.2 innings and has registered 32 strikeouts. He owns wins on the mound over Missouri Southern State, Nebraska-Kearney (twice) and Pittsburg State.
 
NSU (27-21) finished the 2016 campaign with at least 25 wins for the fifth-straight year. The team has also posted winning seasons in four of the last five seasons. The RiverHawks will face Washburn in the first round of the 2016 MIAA Championship at 9 a.m. today in St. Charles, Missouri.
 
2016 ALL-MIAA AWARDS
Player of the Year: David Gauntt, Sr, C, Washburn
Pitcher of the Year: Nick Silva, Jr., Washburn
Freshman of the Year: Zach Parish, P, Northeastern State
Coach of the Year: Kyle Crookes, Central Missouri
 
All-MIAA First Team
Pitcher: Ethan Westphal, Jr., Central Missouri^
Pitcher: Tyler Stubblefield, Jr., Emporia State^
Pitcher: Payton Walker, Sr., Missouri Southern^
Pitcher: Nick Silva, Jr., Washburn^
Relief Pitcher: Grant Gavin, Jr., Central Missouri
Catcher: David Gauntt, Sr., Washburn
First Base: Evan Koehler, Sr., Emporia State
Second Base: David Glaude, Jr., Missouri Western
Shortstop: Landon Mason, Jr., Missouri Western
Third Base: Kyle Carnahan, Sr., Washburn
Outfield: Landon Eason, Jr., Central Oklahoma
Outfield: Dalton Wheat, Sr., Emporia State
Outfield: Wes Degner, So., Lindenwood
Designated Hitter: Jesse Rall, Sr., Missouri Southern
Utility: Jon Kamies, Jr., Central Oklahoma
^=Four pitchers due to tie in the voting
 
All-MIAA Second Team
Pitcher: Carlos D'Armas, Sr., Central Missouri
Pitcher: Connor Law, Jr., Lindenwood
Pitcher: Zach Parish, Fr., Northeastern State
Relief Pitcher: Garrett Brummett, Sr., Emporia State
Catcher: Eric Kirkpatrick, Sr., Northeastern State
First Base: Bennett Oliver, Sr., Central Missouri
Second Base: Christian Binger, Sr., Southwest Baptist
Shortstop: Nathan Prindle, Sr., Lindenwood
Third Base: Caleb Sneed, So., Southwest Baptist
Outfield: Connor Ross, Sr., Fort Hays State
Outfield: Chris Hoffman, Sr., Missouri Southern
Outfield: Nick Gawley, Jr., Missouri Western
Designated Hitter: Jake Alexander, Sr., Central Missouri*
Designated Hitter: Isaac Hellbusch, Sr., Central Oklahoma*
Utility: Richie Gorski, Jr., Missouri Southern
*=Two designated hitters due to tie in the voting
 
All-MIAA Third Team
Pitcher: Daulton Leiker, Sr., Central Oklahoma
Pitcher: Richard Peoples, Jr., Missouri Western
Pitcher: Anthony Caenepeel, Jr., Northwest Missouri
Relief Pitcher: Nikko Pablo, Jr., Northwest Missouri
Catcher: Matt Smith, Jr., Missouri Southern
First Base: Andrew Vogelbaugh, So., Pittsburg State
Second Base: Jake Dyer, So., Central Oklahoma
Shortstop: Riley Krane, Jr., Washburn
Third Base: Jeremy Alvarado, Jr., Missouri Western
Outfield: Wade Hanna, Jr., Emporia State
Outfield: Tyler Sutherland, Jr., Missouri Southern
Outfield: Parker Gibson, Sr., Washburn
Designated Hitter: Derek Francis, Sr., Emporia State
Utility: Austin Unrein, Sr., Fort Hays State
 
All-MIAA Honorable Mention
Pitcher: Tyler House, Central Missouri; Jordan Plank, Emporia State; Brendan Feldmann, Lindenwood; Brendan Kleekamp, Lindenwood; Cody Hutchinson, Missouri Southern; Evan Jones, Missouri Western; Alex Clavet, Missouri Western; George Brandecker, Pittsburg State.
Relief Pitcher: Lucas Williams, Central Missouri; Gibson Russ, Central Oklahoma; Giles Fox, Fort Hays State; Preston Bailey, Missouri Western; John Watson, Nebraska-Kearney; Zack Hammock, Northeastern State; Carson Smith, Northwest Missouri; Greg Mason, Washburn; Jaren Kutzke, Washburn.
Catcher: Ryan Sosnowski, Lindenwood; Hunter Hisky, Southwest Baptist.
First Base: Mike Ehrhard, Lindenwood; Kyle Honeycutt, Nebraska-Kearney; Bryce Davenport, Northeastern State; Kevin Handzlik, Northwest Misosuri.
Second Base: Jacob Bryant, Missouri Southern; Matt Salamon, Nebraska-Kearney; Charles Sims, Northeastern State; Ozzie Adams, Northwest Missouri
Shortstop: Levi Ashmore, Emporia State; Nick Hammeke, Fort Hays State; Shane Sharkey, Nebraska-Kearney; Sean Murley, Southwest Baptist.
Third Base: Daniel LaMunyon, Emporia State; Alex Weiss, Fort Hays State; Jacob Boylan, Pittsburg State.
Outfield: Dylan Farrell, Central Missouri; Derek Cornell, Central Missouri; Matt Elliott, Central Missouri; Caleb Cherryholmes, Fort Hays State; Mike Million, Lincoln; Mason Price, Lincoln; Drew Quinones, Lindenwood; Kody Matthews, Missouri Western; Pate Katechis, Nebraska-Kearney; Cody Begovich, Northeastern State; Christian Arnold, Pittsburg State; Jeff Bouchard, Southwest Baptist.
Designated Hitter: Joe Mapes, Fort Hays State; Brandon Downs, Missouri Western; Dallas Schramm, Nebraska-Kearney.
Utility: Orencio Fisher, Missouri Western; Lance Barkley, Washburn.
 
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