WESTERVILLE, Ohio — Marietta College had six players named to the All-Ohio Athletic Conference team announced Monday (May 13) morning, including three first team honorees.
Alex Richter (Carmel, Ind./Carmel),
Trent Valentine (Byesville, Ohio/Cambridge), and
Nick Bonnizzio (Hudson, Ohio/Twinsburg) were all named to the first team.
Ben Kaplin (Louisville, Ky./Ballard),
Gabe Torres (El Paso, Texas/Bel Air), and
Jeremy Tonelli (Twinsburg, Ohio/Twinsburg) earned second team honors.
Richter was placed on the All-OAC first team for a third straight season. The second baseman was in the top three in home runs (9) and runs scored (47) and he led the OAC in doubles (16) and slugging percentage (.701), while setting the MC single season record for getting hit by pitches 25 times.
Valentine, a pitcher/outfielder, compiled a 4-3 record in 13 starts as he was named to the first team for the third consecutive season. The left-hander pitched a total of 61 innings and tallied 56 strikeouts. His earned run average of 2.39 was fourth in the OAC. Valentine also swatted two home runs and drove in 25 runs.
Bonnizzio earned his second All-OAC honor after being named to the second team last season. The Pioneer third baseman/outfielder was fourth in the OAC in runs scored (44) and compiled 50 hits on the way to a .340 batting average.
Kaplin is a first-time all-conference honoree. The Pioneer catcher was solid at the plate recording a batting average of .338, two home runs, and 12 doubles on the season. He also drove in 40 runs, fourth best in the OAC. Behind the plate, Kaplin caught 13 runners trying to steal a base, good for second in the conference.
Torres earned All-OAC accolades for the first time after posting a 3-1 record with 3 saves and a 2.29 earned run average in 2024. Torres also led the conference with a .94 WHIP (walks plus hits per innings pitched).
Tonelli transferred to the Etta Express after playing for Malone University last year and made an impact earning his first all-conference honors. He was fifth in the OAC with a .389 batting average. Tonelli also collected nine doubles and drove in 25 runs on the season in addition to playing error-free baseball in the outfield.
Marietta saw its season to come to an end Saturday (May 11) afternoon in the Ohio Athletic Conference Baseball Tournament Championship game as No. 3 ranked Baldwin Wallace University came from behind to beat the Pioneers by the score of 6-5. The Pioneers finished the season with a 24-19 overall record.
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