Full OAC-Release

AUSTINTOWN, Ohio – Four Otterbein University baseball players were selected to the 2013 All-Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) team over the weekend, headlined by senior Wes Meadows earning Dr. Bob Fisher Player of the Year honors.

Sophomore shortstop Sean Kettering (Malvern/Malvern) joined Meadows on the all-conference first team while pitchers Taylor Ellis (Bucyrus/Bucyrus) and Dominic Porretta (Westerville/Thomas Worthington) earned honorable mention.

Meadows (Marion/Ridgedale) becomes just the second Cardinal to ever earn OAC Player of the Year honors, joining 1978 selection Randy Moomaw. Meadows is Otterbein’s first special award winner since Dan Remenowsky garnered three-straight Pitcher of the Year awards from 2006-08.

“It was disappointing on Saturday not to leave an OAC championship as my legacy, but it’s an amazing honor to be recognized as the top player in the league,” Meadows said. “I’m humbled to now be mentioned with some of the past standouts to come through the conference.”

“He’s obviously one of best to ever play for Otterbein,” head coach George Powell added. “Wes is meant to be a baseball player and I hope he gets a shot beyond college to prove that.  He’s led this team by example and helped guide us with a relentless work ethic.”

Meadows set multiple school records throughout his final campaign, becoming Otterbein's all-time leader for most hits (212), total bases (380), runs scored (147) and doubles (52).

Now a four-time All-OAC pick, he led the conference in batting average (.420), home runs (10) walks (31), slugging percentage (.748) and on-base percentage (.527) this spring while also ranking second in RBI (52), fourth in runs scored (46) and hits (60), and fifth in stolen bases (17). In addition, he set a new school record by compiling a 26-game hitting streak.

“I’ve always kept high expectations for myself because I wanted to produce every day for this team,” Meadows added. “I finished Saturday night knowing that I gave my teammates and this program everything I had.”

In addition to his usual catching and third base duties, Meadows also impressed on the mound with a 6-1 record, 3.09 E.R.A, and 56 strikeouts over 48.1 innings pitched.

Kettering turned heads this season as well, leading the league with 53 RBI while setting a new Otterbein single-season record with 20 doubles. He started all but one game, hitting .321 and scoring 32 runs.

“In my opinion, Sean was the next best player in the league behind Wes,” Powell said. “He really matured on and off the field this season and has continued to learn the game. He meant a huge deal to us defensively, and was always ready to hit behind Wes in the lineup. Sometimes people could tend to overlook him because of what Wes did, but Sean was outstanding.”

Porretta, a senior left-hander, tied for the league-lead with four saves in compiling a 3.21 E.R.A (2.05 in the regular season). Porretta made a team-high 18 appearances, striking out 24 batters in 28 innings.

“Being in that closer role can be tough at times, but he wanted the responsibility and worked hard every day at it,” Powell said. “I think it’s a testament to his work ethic and I couldn’t be happier to see him receive the recognition. I’m so proud of Dom for the way he’s developed as a person and a player over four years.”

Ellis enjoyed a breakout sophomore season, finishing second on the team and top-10 in the conference with a 3.13 E.R.A. The right-hander, who pitched in just one game as a freshman, turned in a 5-1 record over nine starts (11 total appearances) and 54.2 innings.

“Taylor came out of nowhere and really grew up this season,” Powell said. “He practiced hard and never shied away from taking the ball in big games. Every year is a new year, and you never know when someone is going to bust out. Nobody saw him coming. I’m excited to see Taylor evolve even more the next two seasons.”

Otterbein (26-17) advanced to the conference’s four-team postseason tournament this year for the first time since 2009, making a run all the way to the championship game before falling, 5-4, to the University of Mount Union.