MOBILE, Ala. — South Alabama hammer thrower Renaldo Frechou qualified for the 2015 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships on Thursday, and two Jaguars from the spring sports earned All-America recognition this week as pitcher Kevin Hill and former softball pitcher Farish Beard were honored.
Frechou Punches Ticket to Eugene
Frechou threw 66.54 meters in the men’s hammer throw at the NCAA East Region Preliminaries in Jacksonville, Fla. The mark placed him sixth among the 12 competitors who advanced to the national championships, scheduled for June 10-13 in Eugene, Ore.
Other South Alabama athletes also competed Thursday in Jacksonville. Zach Blahnik finished 39th in the men’s hammer throw, and Mark Watts placed 45th in the men’s 400-meter dash. On the women’s side, LaMia Miller was 33rd in the shot put and Barbara Rivera finished 38th in the javelin.
Six more Jaguars were scheduled to compete Friday for a chance to advance to Eugene:
- Jan-Louw Kotze, men’s discus
- Nick Farrell, men’s pole vault
- Matthew Dillon, men’s 110-meter hurdles
- Patrick Rohr, men’s 3,000-meter steeplechase
- Phoebe Dawson, women’s discus
- Kaitlyn Beans, women’s long jump
Hill Named to Louisville Slugger All-America Team
South Alabama right-hander Kevin Hill was named to the Louisville Slugger Division I All-America second team, Collegiate Baseball announced Thursday. Hill, the Sun Belt Conference Pitcher of the Year, was the only player from the Sun Belt selected.
Hill is the first Jaguar pitcher to earn All-America honors since P.J. Walters in 2006, when Walters was a second-team pick by Collegiate Baseball and a third-team selection by Baseball America.
The redshirt junior led the Sun Belt in four categories:
- Wins: 10
- Earned run average: 1.73
- Opponents’ batting average: .208
- Strikeouts: 107
Hill threw four consecutive complete games against Sun Belt opponents and recorded two shutouts over 80 2/3 innings. He became the first South Alabama pitcher to reach 100 strikeouts in a season since Walters struck out 166 in 2006.
Hill is the 27th All-American in the 51-year history of the South Alabama baseball program.
Billingsley Headed to Cape Cod League
Redshirt sophomore outfielder Cole Billingsley will spend the summer playing in the Cape Cod Baseball League for the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox.
Billingsley is the third South Alabama player in the last four years to play in the league. Jordan Patterson, who was named the 2013 Sun Belt Player of the Year, played for the Bourne Braves in the summer of 2012, and J.T. Files played for the Brewster Whitecaps that same summer.
Billingsley earned first-team All-Sun Belt honors as an outfielder this season. He led the conference with 30 stolen bases, tied for second in hits (80) and triples (4), tied for fourth in runs scored (46), ranked eighth in on-base percentage (.437) and tied for eighth in walks (34).
Beard Earns Senior CLASS All-America Honor
Farish Beard, who completed her South Alabama softball career and earned her degree this spring, was named a second-team All-American for the 2015 Senior CLASS Award, Premier Sports Management announced Wednesday.
Beard earned all-Sun Belt Conference honors for the third straight season and was named to the Sun Belt All-Tournament team after helping the Jaguars win the conference tournament title, their third in the last four years.
Beard finished her senior season with an 11-4 record, a 2.53 ERA and 101 strikeouts in 88 2/3 innings. She allowed 32 runs all season and held opposing hitters to a .168 batting average, the lowest on the team.
CLASS stands for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School. The award recognizes seniors who are using their complete athletic eligibility and honors achievement in four areas: community, classroom, character and competition.
