Illinois State sophomores Matt Bolt and Eric Theisen were honored by the Missouri Valley Conference baseball coaches Monday for their 2005 performances as Bolt was named first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference as an outfielder and Theisen received honorable mention accolades as a relief pitcher.
The most exciting thing about Matt and Eric is that we have them around for two more years, said head coach Jim Brownlee. When we recruited them, we thought that each of these guys were the kind of players that you build around and they have certainly proved to be.
Bolt, a sophomore from Willow Springs, Ill., was second on the team with a .323 average in 2005. He led the Birds with five home runs and was second with 62 hits. Additionally, he tied for the team lead with 15 stolen bases and his 29 RBI were third best on the team.
Matt was probably our most consistent guy all year, said Brownlee. He never really went through a slump this season and was always steady for us. He did a great job in the off-season getting ready for this year so this award is very well deserved.
Theisen was used both out of the bullpen and in the starting rotation in 2005. The sophomore from Adrian, Mich., complied a perfect 6-0 mark on the year, leading the team in wins, saves (3) and ERA (3.00). In 69.0 innings pitched, the right-hander struck out 57 hitters and allowed opponents to hit only .251 this season.
We counted on Eric a lot this year to get us out of some jams in the bullpen and he produced time and time again, said Brownlee. Towards the end of the year when we needed help in the starting rotation, he stepped up and took the ball and gave us a chance to win every game he started. I expect him to win a lot of games for us next season.
Southern Illinois P.J. Finigan was named the league Player of the Year while Wichita States Mike Pelfrey was honored as the leagues Pitcher of the Year. Damon Sublett of Wichita State was named the Valley Newcomer of the Year while Indiana States Tim Brewer was honored as the Freshman of the Year.
