Gorgen shares top Big West honor

UC Irvine junior Scott Gorgen was one of three players named Big West Conference Pitcher of the Year as the All-American shares the award with Jeff Kaplan of Cal State Fullerton and Andrew Liebel of Long Beach State.

Gorgen becomes the first Anteater to be named Big West Pitcher of the Year as well as the first two-time first-team selection. Joining Gorgen on the first team are shortstop Ben Orloff and pitchers Christian Bergman and Eric Pettis. Ollie Linton became a two-time second-team choice while Bryce Stowell received honorable mention.

Gorgen (10-3) tops the league in strikeouts with 109 while holding opposing batters to a .161 average, also a conference-best. He is second in the Big West with a 1.90 earned-run average and in innings pitched with 104. Gorgen collected three Big West Player of the Week honors and was also recognized twice by Collegiate Baseball and CollegeBaseballInsider.com while receiving one weekly award from the College Baseball Foundation. Gorgen posted a career-high 14 strikeouts against UC Riverside and most recently became UCI’s all-time strikeout leader (313), accomplishing the feat in just three seasons. He is a semifinalist for the USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award as well as the Roger Clemens Award.

Orloff earned his initial first-team award after posting a .370 average with 34 hits and six doubles in Big West games. Orloff was one of the Anteaters’ most consistent players as the junior posted an overall average of .356 and a team-high .457 on-base percentage at the conclusion of the regular season. Orloff leads UCI with 72 hits and 15 doubles and is second on the team with 45 runs and 19 stolen bases. He is ranked 35th in the NCAA’s “Toughest to Strikeout” category and has struck out just 13 times in 202 at bats.

Bergman leads UCI with a 1.38 ERA and earned his initial first-team award. Serving as both a starter and a middle reliever, Bergman has pitched 52 innings while striking out 31. The sophomore right-hander has allowed eight earned runs and is 5-2. In 13 relief appearances, Bergman has allowed two earned runs and posted shutout performances in four of his seven starts.

Closer Eric Pettis also received his first nod from the conference after posting a league-leading 15 saves to rank third in the nation. Pettis is 4-2 with a 1.76 ERA and is tied for eighth in the UCI season annals with 28 appearances. He has hurled 41 innings while striking out 46. The sophomore standout has allowed just eight earned runs and in the month of May, Pettis has allowed just two earned runs in eight appearances.

Linton, an outfielder batting .323 on the season, tops all Big West players with 37 stolen bases and became UCI’s career and single-season leader in steals this season. He has 66 steals in three seasons. Linton is second on the club with 71 hits and is first in runs scored with 49 while adding six doubles and three home runs.

Stowell, a right-hander named one of Baseball America’s Top 100 college prospects, is 7-2 with a 3.04 ERA. He is second on the team with 88 strikeouts in 80 innings. Stowell posted four shutout performances and struck out a career-high nine batters on three occasions.

The Anteaters (38-16) travel to Lincoln, Neb. and will face Oral Roberts in the evening game of the Lincoln Regional Friday at 5:05 p.m.

— From staff reports