SCF Baseball Earns 13 Awards

Bradenton, Fla - As the SCF baseball team (33-23) set their focus on the NJCAA Region 8 State Tournament, 13 members of the the team have earned several recognitions to represent the Suncoast Conference. Seven players were named on the Suncoast First Team while five were named to the Suncoast Second Team.

"This was a very nice honor for all of our guys who were well represented on the all-conference teams," said head coach Tim Hill II. "They have played really well and it's been a fun group to be around as well as a very talented group."

Suncoast Conference Coach of the Year:

Hill II was named the Suncoast Coach of the Year for the third time in his career (2013, 2018).

"I'm just very proud to coach these guys on this journey," said Hill.

Suncoast Player of the Year:
This years' Suncoast Player of the Year was sophomore Kevin Karstetter. He is the first Manatees since CJ Alexander (2018) to win the Player of the Year Award. Karstetter was also named a member of the All-Suncoast First Team, which is his third All-Suncoast Team accolade in his career. 

"Kevin had a tremendous year after setting numerous records," said Hill on Karstetter. "I think the most impressive thing he did was that hitting streak he set, which is not easy to do in Florida. He by far is the best player in the conference."

Karstetter is batting .421 with 96 hits, 30 doubles, 65 runs, 11 home runs and 73 RBI. The upcoming Arizona State University transfer went 2-for-3 with an RBI in the final game against IMG Academy.

Throughout his three-year career with the Manatees, Karstetter has already set six records in the Manatees' program history so far: at-bats (641 and counting), hits (229 and counting), runs (162 and counting), doubles (58 and counting), RBI (164 and counting) and the longest hitting streak (31 straight games). He is four doubles away from setting the single season doubles record held by Paul Stryhas (1997).

Suncoast Pitcher of the Year:
For Suncoast Pitcher of the Year, the award was given to freshman Michael Forret. Forret was also named on the All-Suncoast First Team. He is the first Manatee since Zach Attianese (2018) to win the Pitcher of the Year award.

Forret is 10-2 this season with a 3.38 ERA, 17 walks and 95 strikeouts. He ranks #1 in the state and tied for #8 in the nation in wins.

"Michael had another tremendous year," said Hill on Forret. "Every time he took the mound, we knew we had a great chance to win. He is very competitive, has good stuff and knows how to pitch."

All-Suncoast First Team:
Alongside Karstetter and Forret, sophomores Lucas Ismaili, Brayden Woodburn and Mario Lopez, Jr. and freshmen Ed Wagner and Erick Almonte joined them on the All-Suncoast First Team.

Ismaili, who will be transferring to the University of South Alabama, is batting .402 with 84 hits, 55 runs, eight home runs and 65 RBI. He went 1-for-4 with a run in his last outing.

"Lucas is a very polished hitter," said Hill on Ismaili. "He handles the bat well and uses the whole field while driving in a ton of runs for us. Having him and Kevin (Karstetter) hitting back to back makes it tough for opposing pitchers to get through the lineup."

Woodburn, who will be transferring to the University of Tampa, is batting .340 with 70 hits, 69 runs, seven home runs, 41 RBI and 23 stolen bases and 47 walks (#7 in the nation). In his career, Woodburn has 86 career walks and is 19 away from surpassing Jody Reed (59, 1982) for the single season record and 24 away from breaking Joey Collis (109, 1994-95) for the career walks record.

"Brayden brought a lot of experience to our lineup," said Hill on Woodburn. "I know he was disappointed sitting out last year due to injury, but I'm sure glad he was back with us. Like Lucas, he is a player who uses the whole field and draws a lot of walks while playing a variety of positions for us very well, which is really good to have. He has some pop in his bat and is able to turn a game around at any time."

Lopez is batting .327 with 54 hits, 43 runs, six home runs and 51 RBI. He went 4-for-5 with a home run and four RBI in the win over IMG.

"Mario was a great addition to our team this year," said Hill on Lopez. "He's very tough behind the plate and does not give many at-bats away when he's hitting. He drove in a lot of runs for us and had some very big hits throughout the season."

Wagner is 8-1 with a 3.65 ERA, 30 walks and 66 strikeouts. He earned the win in the game against IMG Academy after throwing one scoreless inning.

"Ed was a big addition for us," said Hill on Wagner. "I knew he had a chance to be pretty good when he decided to come our way. It was just a matter of him getting healthy from an injury from last year. He threw some really good games for us this year and we're really counting on him in the postseason."

Almonte is batting .318 with 61 hits, 59 runs, two home runs, 40 RBI and 42 walks (tied for #23 in the nation). He went 1-for-5 in his last game.

"Erick did an awesome job for us," said Hill on Almonte. "He is a very talented player on both sides of the ball while getting some very big hits for us and being a good defender. Like Woodburn, he has drawn many walks to help and is a tough out for the other teams."

All-Suncoast Second Team:
For the All-Suncoast Second Team,  there were four that made it for SCF: sophomores Richie Morales, Ben Gilbert, Connor Hults and Victor Sanchez and freshman Liam Best.

Morales, who will be transferring to the University of Arizona, is batting .310 with 40 hits, 33 runs, one home run and 21 RBI at the plate. On the mound, he is 2-0 with a 3.12 ERA, two saves, four walks and nine strikeouts.

"Richie has been one of the keys to our team" said Hill on Morales. "He brings some toughness to our lineup and plays outstanding at shortstop, which is not an easy position to play on the field. He only committed two errors and made some outstanding plays. He is one of the big keys to our offense leading off and setting the table for the guys behind him to drive him in."

Gilbert, who will be transferring to Florida Atlantic University, is batting .275 with 36 hits, 30 runs, three home runs and 27 RBI at the plate while on the mound, he is 1-0 with a 3.38 ERA, three saves, 13 walks and 32 strikeouts.

"Ben really helped to solidify our team when he started playing centerfield every day," said Hill on Gilbert. "He is an excellent defender and had some really key hits for us throughout this season. A very experienced and talented player who's willing to do anything to help our team. While we haven't been able to use him much as a closer due to some big conference wins that didn't require him to come in for, he is very tough one the mound and has a ton of strikeouts to show that he is very tough to hit off of."

Hults, who will transfer to Florida State University, is 2-0 with a 3.18 ERA, 18 walks and 39 strikeouts. In one of his best outings on the mound, he threw 10 strikeouts in the 7-6 win over St. Pete.

"Connor had a really good year coming out of the bullpen for us," said Hill on Hults. "He pitched some very key innings and got some big win for us. His fastball is very good and he has one of the best curveballs around. He's another guy with a lot of strikeouts and is very competitive on the mound. Like Ben (Gilbert), he is very tough to hit off of."

Sanchez is batting .301 with 40 hits, 24 runs, three home runs and 27 RBI.

"Victor had some good moments at the plate for us and has done a good job catching when we give Mario (Lopez) some rest," said Hill on Sanchez. "He's a very personable guy who brings some energy to the field."

Best is 3-0 on the mound with a 3.56 ERA, 26 walks and 49 strikeouts. In his last outing on the mound, he threw six innings with 10 strikeouts in the 14-1 win over Polk State.

"Liam has been a really big arm for us," said Hill on Best. "He has an excellent breaking ball as evidenced by all the strikeouts he has. He's another great player who I knew had a chance to be very good once he decided to come our way after recovering from an injury. Now, he is finally healthy and has been pitching really well down the stretch for us."

The Manatees will look to focus on #9 Santa Fe College (39-8) in the Bradenton Regional of the state tournament.