NEW CASTLE, Del. - - After a hot start and a mid-season surge, Wilmington University baseball senior outfielder Joe Harbach has been added to 2012 Tino Martinez Award Watch List for the best player in NCAA Division II college baseball.
Harbach, a two time Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Player of the Week this year, is batting .397 (50-for-126) in 35 games. He leads the Wildcats in hits, doubles, triples, home runs, RBI's, runs, slugging percentage and on-base percentage.
The Abingdon, Md. native also leads the CACC with 50 hits, six triples, 85 total bases, a .513 on-base percentage, and a .675 slugging percentage helping the Wildcats win their past six CACC contests. Wilmington is now 22-13 overall and sit in third place in the conference with a 9-6 CACC record.
Harbach had a career day against Chestnut Hill and continued it into an outstanding week, batting 10-for-18 with 11 RBI and nine runs scored in the five games, leading to his second CACC Player of the Week award on April 9. He smashed three home runs, two doubles and a triple in the week, adding two stolen bases while slugging 1.278.
In the first game against Chestnut Hill, he delivered two home runs, a two-run shot down the right field line and a solo shot to right, knocking in four runs while scoring two runs himself. In the nightcap of the doubleheader, his finale might have been his best shot, as he blasted a two-run home run off the top of the scoreboard in right field to give the Wildcats the lead for good for the sweep. Harbach batted 4-for-8 with seven RBI's and three runs scored in the two games over the Griffins.
Harbach is one of three CACC members on the 2012 Watch list, joining Chestnut Hill's Jesse Daywalt and Bob Hopkins, as well as Concordia's Bryan Lippincott. Hopkins was also a midseason addition.
The Tino Martinez Award is named for the most outstanding player in Division II college baseball. The annual honor is named after former University of Tampa Spartan, Olympian and MLB All-Star, Tino Martinez.
After the finalists are named, fans will be once again be invited to vote online at tinoaward.com to help determine the winner. The winner will be announced after the conclusion of the DII Baseball Championship held in Cary, NC from May 26th to June 2nd.
Visit www.tinomartinezaward.com for the up-to-date version of the 2012 Tino Martinez Award Watch List.