APPLETON, Wis. --- Moravian College junior right fielder Matt Hanson has been named to the 2014 American Baseball Coaches Association/Rawlings Division III All-America Third Team announced Thursday at the pre-championship banquet before the start of the NCAA Division III World Series Friday.
Hanson had the best season of his career while helping the Greyhounds to a school-record 32 victories this season as the squad posted a 32-12 mark. Moravian also earned an at-large berth into the 2014 NCAA Division III National Championship Tournament as the top seed in the Mid-Atlantic Region. The Hounds were 14-4 in the Landmark Conference regular season and the top seed in the Landmark Tournament where the squad finished as the runner-up. Moravian earned its first national ranking this spring, and is currently No. 21 in both the D3baseball.com/National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Top 25 and the American Baseball Coaches Association/Collegiate Baseball Top 30 while being ranked for the last five weeks.
Hanson is the third Greyhound to earn ABCA/Rawlings All-America honors, joining Brendan Close '12, who was a First Team honoree in 2011, and Dave Zubia '12, who was a Second Team selection in 2012.
Hanson had a .408 batting average (sixth in school history) while starting all 43 games he played in this season. Hanson collected 62 hits, which was tied for the team lead and is tied for second in a single season in the Moravian record books. He scored 53 runs this spring, just one shy of the school record and drove in another 48 RBIs, the third most in s single season.
Hanson also led the Hounds with three homers, and he contributed 10 doubles and four triples for 89 total bases, the fifth most in a season, and a .586 slugging percentage, which is eighth in the record books. Hanson drew 25 walks and 13 hit by pitch, one below the single season mark, for a .518 on-base percentage, second in the record books, and he added 13 stolen bases. From his right field position, Hanson recorded 72 putouts and three assists in 77 chances.
Hanson has earned a number of awards this spring including a spot on the D3baseball.com All-America Second Team as well as the D3baseball.com Mid-Atlantic Region's Player of the Year and All-Mid-Atlantic Region First Team. He has also garnered a spot on the ABCA/Rawlings All-Mid-Atlantic Region First Team. Hanson was the 2014 Landmark Player of the Year and on the Landmark All-Conference First Team for a second straight year.
"It is a tremendous honor for Matt and our program to be named to both All-America team after the season he had," stated Head Coach Paul Engelhardt. "All of these honors put an exclamation point on his outstanding season. Matt is well deserving of these awards, and I am sure he would want to share them with his teammates, friends, family and college community. I couldn't be more proud of one of our 'Hounds."
To view the entire ABCA/Rawlings All-America Teams and Gold Glove selections, visit http://moraviansports.com/sports/bsb/2013-14/files/2014ABCAAll-American.pdf.
