Nine for UCI honored

Nine UC Irvine baseball players were honored on the Easton Big West All-Conference teams, giving the Anteaters the most honorees in a single season since becoming a member of the Big West in 1985.

Headlining the list are senior Cody Cipriano, junior Taylor Holiday and sophomore Scott Gorgen, who were tabbed first-team selections. Juniors Tyler Vaughn and Wes Etheridge, and sophomores Ben Orloff and Ollie Linton were all first-time honorees and were voted to the second team. Junior Aaron Lowenstein and freshman Sean Madigan were named honorable mention to round out the list for the Anteaters.

Cipriano led the Anteaters in the regular season with 12 home runs to tie UCI’s single-season mark. The second baseman batted .342 and was third with 67 hits and 11 doubles. Cipriano, who was an all-conference second-team choice last season, led the team with 31 walks and was among the conference’s top 10 with 52 RBIs.

Holiday is third among the starters with a .346 average but leads the team in doubles with 21, triples with eight and runs scored with 59 to claim the top spot in the Big West in each category. Holiday, a Big West Player of the Week, led the team with 79 hits to tie for fifth in the conference and receives his first all-conference nod.

Gorgen, a two-time All-Big West choice, was named to the first-team after posting a 10-2 overall record on the mound this season. The sophomore pitched four complete games and went the distance twice to shut out Cal State Northridge and UC Riverside in back-to-back games. Gorgen also tossed eight shutout innings against Cal State Fullerton and finished the regular season with a 3.06 earned-run average after striking out 96 batters in 108.2 innings pitched. Gorgen received Easton Big West Pitcher of the Week honors twice this season.

Vaughn, a second-team choice, is batting .326 on the season with 56 hits and 32 runs scored while handling third-base duties for the Anteaters. Vaughn had eight doubles and a pair of triples for the team for UCI this season.

Orloff has started in every game for UCI this season and is second on the team with a .353 average, 76 hits and 18 stolen bases. The shortstop also tops the conference with 27 sacrifice hits and is third on the team with 10 doubles.

Linton leads the team with a .372 average and is second with seven triples in the Big West. Linton, who started in 33 games this season is also sixth in the conference with a .432 on base percentage.

Etheridge leads the team and is tied for first in the conference with 11 wins on the hill. The right-hander holds a 2.88 ERA and has struck out 96 batters in 109 1/3 innings pitched. Etheridge opened the season 8-0 before suffering his first loss and earned Big West Pitcher of the Week honors this season.

Lowenstein received his initial all-conference award after hitting .320 with 40 hits and 21 runs scored. Defensively, Lowenstein is third in the conference, having thrown out 19 base runners in 35 stolen base attempts.

Madigan hit .340 in 40 games played and totaled 24 RBIs on 35 hits, including seven doubles. Madigan also had 22 runs scored on the season.

The Anteaters, enjoying their most successful season in the program’s Division I history, travel to the Austin, Tex. this weekend to face Wake Forest in the Round Rock regional, hosted by the University of Texas.

First pitch is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. and will pit Anteater right-hander, Wes Etheridge against Wake Forest southpaw, Garrett Bullock.

— From staff reports