Jamie Lackner

ABCA All-Mideast Region Team
D3baseball.com All-Mideast Region Team

Three members of The College of Wooster baseball team were recognized as all-Mideast Region, with junior first baseman Jamie Lackner earning first-team honors and junior pitcher Michael Houdek and freshman shortstop Michael Wielansky second-team, it was announced by the American Baseball Coaches Association on Tuesday. Lackner and Wielansky were also selected second-team all-region by D3baseball.com Monday.

Lackner, who was last season's ABCA Mideast Region Player of the Year, put up similar numbers this spring, though, he didn't see as many pitches to offer at. The smooth-swinging Lackner hit .430 with 12 doubles, seven home runs, and 54 RBI, while also drawing 44 walks, which is tied for first in NCAA Div. III and marks the most at Wooster since 1981. Those walks, plus 12 hit by pitches, elevated his on-base percentage to .560, currently ranking third in the nation in that category, and he's also among the top-25 in batting average, hits (74), and RBI. Lackner successfully got on base each of the first 49 games of the season, breaking the Div. III record for consecutive games reached base safely (60) and extending it to 94 before coming to an end in the finale.

Houdek, a second-team all-region pick by the ABCA for the second year in a row, served as the ace of the Fighting Scots' pitching staff again. He produced a 10-2 record, 3.14 ERA, and 64 strikeouts during 86.0 innings pitched, which included 14 starts and four complete games along the way. The southpaw is tied for fourth in Div. III in victories and tied for fifth in games started, and he held opponents to a .234 batting average. Among Houdek's impressive outings, he shutout Wabash College for nine innings during a 3-0 victory May 7 and won both of his starts in the North Coast Athletic Conference Tournament as well as his lone appearance of the NCAA Div. III Championships when he went five innings versus Johns Hopkins University.

Wielansky broke on to the scene, batting in the No. 3 hole and earning the starting shortstop position in his first year with the program. After a slow start – he was hitting .239 through his first 10 games – the multi-talented Wielansky finished with a .374 average, 18 doubles, five triples, seven home runs, 52 RBI, and 22 stolen bases. He ranks among the top-50 nationally in several offensive categories – runs scored (61), hits (73), doubles, RBI, walks (30), and steals. Defensively, he was excellent as well, entering the postseason with just eight errors and winding up with a .953 fielding percentage overall.

As a team, Wooster went 37-13 in 2016, the most wins since its run to the national championship game in 2009. The Scots won their league-leading 16th NCAC championship, then went 3-2 to finish third-place at the Mideast Regional of the NCAA Div. III Championships.