Temple University Athletics
Temple's Wilson Named Atlantic 10 Coach Of The Year
5.17.01 | Baseball
May 17, 2001
PHILADELPHIA - Robert Kingsbury of Fordham and Kyle Johnson of St. Bonaventure have been named Atlantic 10 baseball Player and Pitcher of the Year, respectively, in voting conducted among the Conference's head coaches.
In that same vote, Rhode Island's Dan Batz was named Rookie of the Year and Skip Wilson of Temple was chosen Coach of the Year. Two Owls, third baseman Kyle Sweppenheiser and pitcher Greg Powell earned first team All-Conference honors. Sweppenheiser batted .358 with seven home runs, 45 RBI, 13 doubles and 37 runs scored. Powell had a 6-7 record, a 3.86 ERA, posted two saves, 62 strikeouts and 30 walks in 93.1 innings.
Kingsbury enjoyed an outstanding season in centerfield for the Rams. The sophomore from Lyndhurst, OH ranks among the Atlantic 10's leaders in nine offensive categories: batting average (.363), RBI (47), runs (44), hits (69), doubles (15), triples (6), total bases (120), slugging percentage (.632), and on-base percentage (.446). His six triples are tied for the Atlantic 10 lead, and he leads Fordham in each of the aforementioned categories, as well as with eight home runs. His also hit .405 in Atlantic 10 games. For his efforts, Kingsbury was named Fordham's most valuable player.
Johnson captured Pitcher of the Year honors for leading the Atlantic 10 with a school record 1.88 earned run average. The sophomore from Albion, NY posted a 7-2 record, allowing just 15 earned runs in 72 innings of work. He also struck out 57 batters while walking just 18. Opponents batted only .228 against Johnson - the second-best total in the Atlantic 10. In Conference play, Johnson was 5-2 with a 1.71 ERA for the Bonnies.
Joining Kingsbury and Johnson on the Atlantic 10 All-Conference first-team are Mark Andres of Xavier; St. Joseph's Kevin Kirkby; Greg Powell and Kyle Sweppenhiser of Temple; Mike LaBarbera of Rhode Island; George Washington's Mike Bassett and Bryan Beggs; Gavin Clark and Nick Gorneault of Massachusetts; and St. Bonaventure's Jon Myler.
The second-team All-Conference squad is comprised of Jeff Altieri and Mike Kulak of
Massachusetts; Jason Startari of Duquesne; George Washington's Greg Conden, Matt
Krimmell, and Jake Wald; Shawn Bolinger, Mike Rolih, Brooks Vogel, and Mark Wahl of Dayton; and Kirkby and Eric Wyatt of St. Joseph's.
Kirkby is the first Atlantic 10 player since 1999 to be named to two positions on the
All-Conference team. Kirkby, who is a first-team second baseman and second-team relief
pitcher, follows Virginia Tech's Larry Bowles, who was a second-team pitcher and first
baseman.
