Ten Cloud County Baseball Players Named All-KJCCC West Division
The Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference has announced its annual postseason baseball awards for the KJCCC East and West Divisions with the Cloud County Community College baseball team having 10 players named to the All-KJCCC West Division Team.
Earning first-team All-KJCCC West Division honors would be Demitri Shakotko, Mason McConnaughey, and Cole Askew while Danny Infante, Gavin Roy, and Brady Stuewe would all garner second-team All-KJCCC West recognition. Paul Schuyler, Landon Meyer, Jack Mount, and Phil Brennaman would earn honorable mention All-KJCCC West honors as CCCC would have the most player representation of any KJCCC-West team in postseason accolades.
Having a breakout freshman campaign, Shakotko would lead Cloud County in batting average by hitting .413 with 59 total hits and 22 of his hits going for extra-bases. Driving in 39 runs, Shakotko would finish the year with a .506 on-base percentage while hitting .480 in KJCCC play in addition to earning KJCCC West Division Player of the Week (May 2), and NJCAA Division I Baseball Player of the Week (May 3) honors.
Finishing among the KJCCC leaders in strikeouts, McConnaughey would put together a strong season on the mound for CCCC by making 16 appearances with 13 starts and throwing a team-high 68.1 innings. The Topeka, Kansas native would Cloud County in pitching victories (8) and strikeouts (93) while going 8-4 overall with five of his pitching decisions coming in conference play. McConnaughey would record a season-high 10 strikeouts in three different contests, while also throwing a complete-game shutout against Garden City while limiting the Broncbusters to just two hits.
A shutdown reliever out of the bullpen, Askew would lead Cloud County in appearances (23) and earned run average (2.97) after throwing 33.1 innings and striking out 43 batters. Converting six save opportunities to finish fourth among all KJCCC players in saves, Askew would limit opponents to a .190 batting average against and lower his ERA in conference play to 1.69.
The team leader in hits (72) and RBI (66) this past season, Infante would finish the year as the lone T-Bird player to appear in and start all 60 games for CCCC while recording a .346 batting average and .430 on-base percentage. Having a team-best 20 games with multiple hits, Infante would see 24 of his hits go for extra bases including eight home runs. Among the KJCCC leaders, Infante's 66 RBI would rank seventh while the 72 hits would rank 17th.
One of the best at stealing bases in the KJCCC this past season, Roy would put together a solid first year at Cloud County after making 47 starts and appearing in 52 games while finishing the year with a .337 batting average and 17 extra-base hits. The team leader in triples (five) and stolen bases (25), Roy would finish the year tied for fifth in the KJCCC in triples and seventh in stolen bases while serving time both at third base and shortstop for CCCC.
Another often-used arm out of the bullpen, Stuewe would make the second-most appearances of any Cloud County pitcher this past season by throwing in 19 games and making one start as part of 34.1 innings pitched throughout the year. When on the mound, teams would hit just .229 against the Topeka, Kansas native while striking out 57, including 40 strikeouts in 14 relief appearances against KJCCC foes.
Despite being limited by injuries throughout the year, Schuyler would serve as one CCCC's primary outfielders and appear in 44 games while hitting .345 with a team-high 18 doubles. Totaling 24 extra-base hits to tie for the team lead, Schuyler would record a .464 on-base percentage and see his average raise to .418 in KJCCC games with a .500 on-base percentage.
Cloud County's team leader in home runs, Meyer would finish the year by hitting .288 and recording nine home runs as part of 12 extra-base hits in his freshman year that would see the Lincoln, Nebraska native play in 55 games. Stealing 10 bases in 12 attempts on the base paths, Meyer would see his average jump to .326 in KJCCC play with 30 hits in 92 at-bats.
The new Cloud County career strikeout record holder, Mount would follow up a freshman campaign that led to All-KJCCC West honorable mention honors by earning the accolade for the second-straight year after making 13 total appearances and 12 starts on the mound for the T-Birds. Posting a 6-3 overall record with a 5.27 ERA, Mount would finish second on the team with 72 total strikeouts and finish his time with CCCC with 147 total strikeouts to break the previous career record of 142 held by Blake Renner (2002-03).
Brennaman would make the most of his lone season at Cloud County by making 15 appearances (10 starts) and recording five victories with 69 strikeouts while walking just 25 batters and holding opponents to a .233 batting average. Earning KJCCC West Pitcher of the Week honors after a six-inning outing against Garden City where he allowed one run and struck out nine, Brennaman would see eight of his pitching appearances come where he would one or fewer runs to opponents.