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 Junior transfer Mike Tavernier garnered second team All-SoCon honors in his first season as a Catamount |
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May 20, 2008
Cullowhee, N.C. - Western Carolina senior catcher Blake Murphy, sophomore second baseman Nick Liles, and junior pitcher Mike Tavernier were named to the 2008 Southern Conference All-Conference team as selected by the SoCon Sports Media Association and announced today by the league office. Murphy garnered first team accolades, while Liles and Tavernier were named to the honorary second team.
The seventh-seed Catamounts (29-26, 14-13 SoCon) are coming off of a wild 12-inning, 11-10, win over the tournament's ten-seed, Davidson, in the opening round of the 2008 Southern Conference tournament on Tuesday afternoon. WCU's Steven Notaro scored the game-winning run off an errant throw to second following a deep fly ball by junior J.C. Lyons in the bottom of the 12th.
Up next for Western will be a matchup against the second-seeded College of Charleston Cougars in the first round of the double-elimination portion of the tournament, set for 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday.
The Catamounts denied College of Charleston the SoCon regular-season title courtesy of a 13-12 win in the final day of the season, to prevent the Cougars from the series sweep, which would have given them the title and the top seed in the tournament.
Wednesday's game - as well as every game Western Carolina plays in the conference tournament - will be broadcast by the Catamount Sports Network and can be heard locally on WWCU-FM, Power 90dot5 in Cullowhee or online at www.WWCUFM.com.
A native of Waynesville, N.C., Murphy was recognized for the third-time in his career after garnering second team honors as a sophomore and first team plaudits the past two seasons. The Catamount battery mate blasted a team-high 16 home runs with 18 doubles for a team-leading .740 slugging percentage, fifth in the SoCon. He hit .358 (62-of-173) during the regular season and posted a career-best 12 game hitting streak.
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Behind the dish, Murphy caught 18 of the 26 would-be base stealers this season with 301 putouts and 39 assists and aided in three double plays.
Liles ended the regular season with 90 base hits for the 13th-best, single-season total in school history and enters the conference tournament tied for second in the SoCon. The Laurinburg, N.C., native hit .354 with his 254 at bats and 280 plate appearances leading the conference. He tied Murphy for the team lead with 18 doubles as the duo rank tied for ninth in the league.
He enjoyed a career-long, 17-game hitting streak at mid-season en route to posting team-best 29 multiple-hit games including four, four-hit outings. Liles opened the season at third base before making the transition to second to help sure-up the WCU middle infield. He helped turn 15 double plays with 137 assists.
In his first season as a Catamount after transferring from Hillsborough Community College, Tavernier finished second on the team with four wins and 61 strikeouts, while also finishing with a 4.43 ERA, good for second-lowest on the squad for the year. He made 19 total appearances, seven of which came in a starting role.
Tavernier twice amassed a team-high nine strikeouts in a game, doing so in back-to-back starts, against Wofford and The Citadel. In the game against The Citadel, he pitched the only complete game thrown by a Catamount pitcher this year, allowing just three runs in the nine innings of work to pick up the win.
He had one of his most dominant performances early in the year against Marshall, when he came in on injury relief in the second inning and tossed an eight-inning gem, allowing a single run and two walks while striking out eight batters to help lead the Cats to a win.
Sportswriters All-SoCon Team
First Team
Catcher- Blake Murphy (WCU)
First Base- Michael Harrington (COFC)
Second Base- Brandon Sizemore (COFC)
Shortstop- Jason Altenhof (ASU)
Third Base- Jeremie Tice (COFC)
Outfield- Chris Shehan (GSU)
Outfield- Cory Harrilchak (Elon)
Outfield- Sonny Meade (CIT)
Designated Hitter- Ty Wright (GSU)
Starting Pitcher- Steven Hensley (Elon)
Starting Pitcher- Jay Jackson (FUR)
Relief Pitcher- Tom Girdwood (Elon)
Second Team
Catcher- Dallas Tarleton (Elon)
First Base- Ricky Orton (UNCG)
Second Base- Nick Liles (WCU)
Shortstop- Mike Hentz (COFC)
Third Base- Bennett Davis (Elon)
Outfield- Chris Swauger (CIT)
Outfield- David Rubinstein (ASU)
Outfield- Gabe Marchant (COFC)
Designated Hitter- Reese Wade (FUR)
Starting Pitcher- Mike Tavernier (WCU)
Starting Pitcher- Drew Murray (GSU)
Relief Pitcher- Nick Karow (FUR)
