NORFOLK, Va., May 17, 2022—
Delaware State infielder Trey Paige was named the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Baseball Player of the Year, presented by TowneBank, the conference announced today.
Coppin State sophomore Jordan Hamberg earned Pitcher of the Year honors, while
Josh Hankins of Coppin State was named Rookie of the Year.
Delaware State’s J.P. Blandin received Coach of the Year accolades.
All awards were voted on by the conference’s head coaches and sports information directors.
Paige leads the MEAC and ranks eighth in the nation with a .412 batting average, and his 1.394 OPS (on-base + slugging) was also tops in the conference. Paige also led the MEAC in runs scored (46), hits (63), doubles (15), home runs (13), slugging percentage (.791, seventh in the nation) and RBIs (43), and his .513 on-base percentage, second in the MEAC, is ninth in all of Div. I. Eleven of those home runs and 31 of those RBIs came in MEAC play, where Paige, a three-time MEAC Player of the Week, hit .409 and had a 1.324 OPS.
Hamberg led the MEAC in strikeouts (77) and tied for the league lead in opponents’ batting average (.248) for the season, going 5-2 on the mound and raking third in the MEAC in ERA (3.67). His five wins were tied for second in the conference, and his 52 hits surrendered were the fourth-fewest in the league. His 28 strikeouts looking were the most in the conference, and Hamberg ranks 36
th in the nation in strikeouts per nine innings (12.3). A three-time MEAC Player of the Week and one-time MEAC Pitcher of the Week, Hamberg is also a semifinalist for the John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award.
Hankins was strong with the bat and the glove in his first season with the Eagles. On the defensive end, Hankins led the MEAC in assists (113) and fielding double plays (23), while on offense, he ranked fourth in runs scored (35), fifth in stolen bases (13) and 10
th in hits with 42. In MEAC play, Hankins ranked sixth in runs scored (25) and eighth in stolen bases (10). The three-time MEAC Rookie of the Week had 41 hits (third-most on the team) and eight doubles for the Eagles, ranking seventh on the team in batting with a .265 average.
Blandin led the Hornets to their first MEAC regular-season title since winning the Northern Division in 2014. Delaware State took the title, and the corresponding No. 1 seed in the MEAC Baseball Championship, with a 5-0 end to the regular season and a 19-14 mark in conference play. Coming into the tournament at 22-21 overall, Delaware State is the only MEAC program sitting above .500, and its non-conference slate included a pair of wins over Lehigh and an 18-15 win over in-state rival Delaware.
Joining Paige and Hamberg as First Team All-MEAC honorees are Coppin State’s Justin Johnson, Mike Dorcean, Sebastien Sarabia, Corey Miley, Brian Nicolas, Marcos Castillo and Wellington Balsley; Delaware State’s Peter Carreca; and Norfolk State’s Dionte Brown.
The 2022 MEAC Baseball Championship begins Thursday at 12 p.m. at Marty L. Miller Field on the campus of Norfolk State. The tournament concludes with the championship game on Saturday at 12 p.m., streamed live on
HBCUGo.TV and the
MEAC Digital Network on YouTube.
For more information on the 2022 MEAC Baseball Championship, visit the
Championship Central page.