Official 2018 Division III Rawlings/ABCA All-Region Release
GREENSBORO, N.C. -- For the second time in as many days, junior catcher Austin Parent of the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford baseball program has picked up First Team All-Mideast Region honors, this time by the American Baseball Coaches Association, officials announced Tuesday.
"Another great accomplishment for Austin," Head Coach Zach Foster said. "I think he has a great shot to be an All-American. He definitely made his case with the season he had. I expect bigger things from A.P. to come as well. Congrats to him. After letting the season sink for a week, it really was special to be a part of such an incredible year, but his main focus was always to help the team win. That shows what kind of kid he is."
Parent is the first member of the Pitt-Bradford baseball program to earn postseason recognition from the ABCA since Derek Smith was named Second Team Mid-Atlantic All-Region in 2012.
The teams are voted on by members of the ABCA and the process is led by the ABCA NCAA Division III All-America Committee.
On Monday, D3Baseball.com announced Parent First Team All-Mideast Region, the first member of the Pitt-Bradford baseball program to receive D3Baseball.com postseason honors since the website's inception in 2007.
The native of Gilbert, Ariz., hit .496, which is the top batting average at any NCAA level. The nation's top hitter also leads the country with a .616 on-base percentage and is second nationally with a .916 slugging percentage.
His nine home runs are the most in Pitt-Bradford program history. His 48 RBIs and 109 total bases ranked second in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference, which helped earn him conference Player of the Year honors.
The catcher posted a .963 fielding percentage and threw out nine would-be base stealers.
His consistency at the plate showed as he finished out the season riding an 18-game hitting streak.
The ABCA was founded in 1945 and is the primary professional organization for baseball coaches at the amateur level. Over 9,000 members represent all 50 states and 25 countries broadened to include eight divisions: NCAA Division I, II and III, NAIA, NJCAA, Pacific Association Division, High School and Youth.
Because Parent earned ABCA/Rawlings First Team All-Region status, he will be automatically nominated to the ABCA All-American ballot, which will be announced Thursday evening.
