UCI sweeps top Big West honors

The first Big West Conference title in the history of UC Irvine baseball produced unprecedented individual plaudits. Senior shortstop Ben Orloff was named Player of the Year, junior left-hander Danny Bibona was named Pitcher of the Year and Mike Gillespie was named Coach of the Year for the top-ranked Anteaters, who finished five games ahead of second-place Cal State Fullerton.

Senior Eric Deragisch, as well as juniors Eric Pettis and Francis Larson were additional first-team picks for the Anteaters (43-13, 22-2 in conference), who open NCAA Regional play Friday at home at 8 p.m. against defending national champion Fresno State.

Juniors Casey Stevenson and Christian Bergman, as well as freshman Ronnie Shaeffer were named to the second team.

Orange Coast College product Eric Oliver represented UC Santa Barbara on the second team.

Orloff, a two-time first-team all-conference performer, was the ’Eaters unquestioned leader, playing every inning of every game at shortstop all season to extend his steak of consecutive starts to 211. Orloff, a 19th-round draft pick of the Colorado Rockies in June, will be appearing in a fourth straight postseason. He hit .359 and topped the team with 85 hits and 59 runs. One of five finalists for the Brooks Wallace Award, given to the top shortstop in college baseball, Orloff owns school career records in at-bats (860), runs (175) and hits (274).

Orloff, who is also a finalist for the Lowe’s Senior Class Award, hit .410 to lead UCI in Big West play. His 17 steals also lead the team and he has a .978 fielding percentage.

Bibona went 7-0 in conference, en route to an 11-1 regular-season record. His 94 strikeouts led all Big West pitchers and he is a semifinalist for the USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award, as well as the College Baseball Foundation Pitcher of the Year award.

Bibona, who will start Friday night, has a 2.65 earned-run average and has held opponents to a .210 batting average. He has surrendered only 73 hits in 98 1/3 innings.

Gillespie, in his second season at the UCI helm, has lead the ’Eaters to the No. 1 national ranking for the final five weeks, as well as the No. 6 national seed and the school’s first home regional.

Formerly the USC coach for 20 seasons, Gillespie will be inducted into the American Baseball Coaches Assn. Hall of Fame next year. His career record at the Division I level is 848-502-2.

Pettis, an All-American closer who has 33 saves the last two seasons, has 16 saves in 2009, which ranks fourth nationally. The two-time first-team honoree is 5-2 with a 3.79 ERA and has 36 strikeouts in 40 1/3 innings.

Deragisch, who played third base and in the outfield, hit .363 with three home runs and 38 RBIs. He posted a team-high 14-game hitting streak and also had eight straight games with at least two hits. He has seven stolen bases in eight attempts.

Larson, a catcher, leads the team in home runs (nine) and RBIs (43), while hitting .316. He hit .407 in conference and also has 13 doubles and four triples.

Stevenson, a second baseman, is hitting .330 with 40 RBIs and three home runs. His 15 doubles are tops on the team and he is hitting .889 with the bases loaded. He has three walk-off hits this season and 13 games with at least two RBIs. He has seven steals in nine attempts.

Bergman, who went 6-1 in conference play, is 9-2 with a 3.33 ERA as the team’s Saturday starter. The right-hander has walked only 16 in 92 innings, with 59 strikeouts.

Shaeffer, who flirted with .400 during the regular season, takes a .397 batting average into the postseason after starting 40 games in his debut collegiate season.

The designated hitter has four homers, 12 doubles and 40 RBIs and has had 18 multiple-hit games.

Oliver, a senior first baseman, hit .325 with a team-leading 48 RBIs. He was the only player to start all 52 games for the Gauchos (29-23, 11-13). Oliver hit .389 in conference.

Senior Brock Bardeen and freshman Tommy Reyes received honorable mention.

Bardeen is 5-0 with a 4.84 ERA with one save on the mound, and is hitting .226 with six homers and 16 RBIs.

Reyes, an outfielder, hit .348 in 32 games, but posted a .407 average against Big West pitching. He has 15 RBIs and seven doubles.

Cal Poly Pomona second baseman Matt Jensen was named Freshman Player of the Year.

Cal State Fullerton starters Tyler Pill and Noe Ramirez shared Freshman Pitcher of the Year honors.

— From staff reports