Ole Miss Baseball Claims Five SEC Year-End Awards

Parker Caracci
Photo by Petre Thomas/Ole Miss Athletics

The Southeastern Conference offices announced its year-end awards on Monday afternoon, and five Rebels claimed honors for the No. 4 Ole Miss baseball team.

Ryan Olenek led the way with a First-Team All-SEC nod, followed by Nick Fortes and Parker Caracci on Second-Team All-SEC, Anthony Servideo on the Freshman All-SEC Team and Cole Zabowski on the SEC All-Defensive Team.
Olenek, a finalist for the C Spire Ferriss Trophy, is amid a fantastic junior campaign for the Rebels. The junior outfielder out of Winter Park, Florida, led the SEC this season in batting average overall (.373) and in conference play (.404). Olenek has struck out just 13 times, making him the toughest player to strike out in the league. His season included a 23-game hitting streak that spanned nearly the entirety of SEC play, beginning March 22 at Texas A&M and running all the way until May 10.
Fortes, a semifinalist for the Johnny Bench Award, hit .299 with 11 home runs during the regular season, including six in SEC play, tying for the team lead. The junior catcher from Deland, Florida, pegged eight would-be base-stealers in SEC play on the defensive side and drove in 24 runs to go with his six homers in league games.
Caracci, a midseason All-American, led the SEC in ERA at 1.47 with just five earned runs allowed in conference play. His nine saves in SEC games were a league-high as well. The sophomore closer out of Jackson, Mississippi, carried a .227 opponent batting average through conference play, the league’s seventh-best mark. Caracci struck out 42 in 30.1 innings in SEC play and fanned 61 in 40.1 innings on the season.
Servideo was one of the Rebels’ top reserves in 2018, playing 15 league games and hitting .308 with three runs scored. The freshman out of Jupiter, Florida, made just two errors in the field, playing both second base and shortstop, all season long and became more and more comfortable at the plate. His offensive season was highlighted by his first career home run on May 2 against Arkansas Pine Bluff, as well as a 2-for-3 game with an RBI and a run scored on May 12 against Auburn.
Zabowski had a tremendous season in the field as well as at the plate. The Rebel first baseman was charged with just four errors on the year, two of which came in SEC play. The sophomore out of Lawrenceville, Georgia, amassed 189 putouts and 21 assists in conference play, 282 putouts on the season as an integral part of a Rebel defense that is on pace to break the school record for fielding percentage, currently at .978 on the year. Offensively, Zabowski tied for the team lead with six home runs in SEC play, and his .333 batting average was the team’s second-best in league games.
The SEC West Champion Rebels are en route to Hoover, Alabama, for the SEC Championship. As the No. 2 seed, Ole Miss earned a first-round bye and will play the winner of Auburn and Kentucky on Wednesday.
For the latest news and updates involving Ole Miss Baseball, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissBSB, on Facebook at Ole Miss Baseball and on Instagram at olemissbsb.
2018 SEC Baseball Awards
Player of the Year: Jonathan India, Florida
Pitcher of the Year: Brady Singer, Florida
Freshman of the Year: Heston Kjerstad, Arkansas
Coach of the Year: Kevin O’Sullivan, Florida
Co-Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Keegan McGovern, Georgia
Co-Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Nico Mascia, Tennessee
First-Team All-SEC
C: JJ Schwarz, Florida
1B: Kole Cottam, Kentucky
2B: Carson Shaddy, Arkansas
3B: Jonathan India, Florida
SS: Braden Shewmake, Texas A&M
OF: Jake Mangum, Mississippi State
OF: Ryan Olenek, Ole Miss
OF: Keegan McGovern, Georgia
DH/UT: Luke Heyer, Kentucky
SP: Brady Singer, Florida
SP: Casey Mize, Auburn
RP: Michael Byrne, Florida
Second-Team All-SEC Team
C: Nick Fortes, Ole Miss
1B: Adam Sasser, Georgia
2B: Michael Helman, Texas A&M
3B: Casey Martin, Arkansas
SS: Will Holland, Auburn
OF: Eric Cole, Arkansas
OF: Wil Dalton, Florida
OF: Heston Kjerstad, Arkansas
DH/UT: Michael Curry, Georgia
SP: Blaine Knight, Arkansas
SP: Jackson Kowar, Florida
RP: Parker Caracci, Ole Miss
Freshman All-SEC Team
C: Mason Meadows, Georgia
1B: Tanner Allen, Mississippi State
2B: Anthony Servideo, Ole Miss
3B: Casey Martin, Arkansas
OF: Heston Kjerstad, Arkansas
OF: Daniel Cabrera, LSU
OF: Steven Williams, Auburn
DH/UT: Edouard Julien, Auburn
SP: Ma’Khail Hilliard, LSU
SP: Tanner Burns, Auburn
RP: Cody Greenhill, Auburn
SEC All-Defensive Team
C: Grant Koch, Arkansas
1B: Cole Zabowski, Ole Miss
2B: Luke Jarvis, Auburn
3B: Jonathan India, Florida
SS: Connor Kaiser, Vanderbilt
OF: Zach Watson, LSU
OF: Jake Mangum, Mississippi State
OF: Dominic Fletcher, Arkansas
P: Will Neely, Tennessee

Courtesy of Ole Miss Sports
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