Chris Manning racked up 21 saves in his first two seasons with the Bruins. ASunPhotos.com
Date Posted: 1/4/2008
Two of the Atlantic Sun Conference's premier closers claimed preseason All-American honors by various collegiate baseball organizations. Belmont's Chris Manning earned NCBWA accolades while Stetson's Robbie Elsemiller landed on Collegiate Baseball's Louisville Slugger Preseason All-America team.
Last season Elsemiller was named second team all-conference after leading the A-Sun in appearances with 30 and finishing second in saves with 12. Overall on the season, he pitched 45.2 innings, struck out 20, had a 3-1 record, and finished with a 2.36 ERA. The Okeechobee, Fla., native ranks second in A-Sun history with his 31 career saves, trailing only Tom Hickox (Stetson – 1988-91) and his 48 career saves.
Manning made 24 pitching appearance for Belmont last season and finished with a record of 3-0 and a team-low ERA of 2.67. He had a team-high 11 saves, which was third in the Atlantic Sun and his second consecutive season with at least 10 saves. The Nashville, Tenn., native also allowed a team-low opponent batting average of .196 and needs just five more saves to become Belmont's all-time saves leader.
Both players were also recently named to the 2008 pre-season “Wallace Watch” list. The list consists of the collegiate baseball players considered potential winners of the prestigious Brooks Wallace Player of the Year Award.
Belmont opens the 2008 season with a three-game home series versus Saint Louis on Feb. 22-24 while the Hatters debut in the Stetson Invitational featuring Michigan State, Missouri and Connecticut.
