Public Opinion Baseball All-Stars
FIRST TEAM
TRENT RIDER, Southern Fulton, sr., P/1B: Rider, the 2015 Player of the Year, capped off his senior season with 320 career strikeouts and 29 wins on the mound, setting the school record in both. He completed the season with a 0.39 ERA, hit .219 and brought in 17 runs. “He threw strikes and kept his pitch count down. He averaged around 12 pitches an inning, and I don’t think he had a single error when playing first base,” Southern Fulton coach Dustin Fischer said. “He’s such a leader for us, and you can’t take that kind of leadership off the field.”
JARRETT BIESECKER, Waynesboro, so., INF: Biesecker racked up the area’s highest batting average, leading the Indians at .533, and brought in seven RBIs. He also had 12 stolen bases, giving life to the back-end of the Waynesboro lineup. “He was our second leadoff hitter in the seven hole all year,” Waynesboro coach Greg Chandler said. “His speed is unbelievable, which helped him get on base with a lot of bunts - he’s a master at that.” Biesecker was also named to the Mid Penn Colonial First Team.
QUIN AMBEAULT, Greencastle-Antrim, sr., C: A Mid Penn Colonial First Team selection, Ambeault not only gave the Blue Devils an edge by calling clean, concise games as the starting catcher, but also boasted a .400 batting average, and drove in 18 runs as the cleanup hitter. "Quin was huge this year. I felt this year he earned the right to call pitches and I thought he made some calls that maybe I wouldn't have," Greencastle coach Eric Schaner said. "And at the plate it speaks for itself. He's a big ol' Canadian moose and he can hit the ball a long way."
JARED PINE, James Buchanan, jr., SS: Pine, the Rockets’ only representative on the Mid Penn Colonial First Team, used his speed and power at the plate to earn a .433 batting average and created a threat as the team’s top base runner. “Jared is so valuable to our team offensively and defensively,” James Buchanan coach Dave Sanchez said. “To have his speed for extra-base hits and RBIs, he kept us moving in a lot of big innings. He came through so many times for us.” Pine knocked in 20 RBIs and had 10 extra-base hits for the Rockets.
DEREK MEASELL, Greencastle-Antrim, sr., P/2B: Measell was a constant on the field for the Blue Devils. A two-time Mid Penn Colonial First Team recipient, Measell capped off his senior year with a 1.58 ERA and a 5-1 record on the mound, and boasted an even .300 batting average, and drove in 10 RBIs. "He's a big-game pitcher, and he's such a bulldog out there and a competitor," Greencastle coach Eric Shaner said. "He really stepped up and set the tone at the beginning of the season and gave us some big hits."
CARL POTTER, Southern Fulton, jr., P/RF: Potter had a breakout season for the Indians, hitting team-high .394, and also stepped up on the mound during a tough playoff stretch. “By the end of the year he was batting cleanup because he put the bat on the ball and was very consistent. He’s a good two-strike hitter. He knows how to choke up and put the ball in play,” Southern Fulton coach Dustin Fischer said. “And we really relied on his arm in the playoffs.” Potter was named to the Sideling Hill League/Inter-County Conference First Team.
KYLE HOFFMAN, Waynesboro, jr., P/OF: Hoffman, a Mid Penn Colonial First Team honoree, was a threat at the plate and on the mound for Waynesboro in his junior year. He was the Indians’ ace, with a 1.89 ERA and a 6-4 record on the season, and also put up a .383 batting average. “Kyle came up big at the plate in a lot of games with the bases loaded; he was clutch in that situation,” Chandler said. “He had a 20 scoreless inning-streak in the season, and that’s just the kind of effort he gives us on the mound.”
COLE FRIESE, Shippensburg, sr., SS/CF: Friese, a Mid Penn Colonial First Team recipient, closed out his senior season with a bang, leading the Greyhounds with a .423 batting average, including team-high three home runs. He also earned an impressive .712 slugging percentage thanks to 14 doubles. “He was our to-go guy. He played long, he played hard and he often got us started offensively,” Shippensburg coach Nate Rosenberry said. “Overall he did a lot of things well for us, and we will definitely miss him.”
MANNING BROOKENS, Chambersburg, sr., OF: Brookens was the Trojans' go-to guy as the team’s top hitter, completing his senior season with a .356 batting average. He brought in 10 RBIs and tied the Chambersburg school record with a 15-game hitting streak this season. He also led the team in stolen bases with four. “Offensively, we struggled all year, but our one constant was Manning, from the start of the season all the way to the end,” Chambersburg coach Scott Folmar said. “If we had guys on base, he’s the one we wanted up in clutch situations.”
GRAYSON HALL, Forbes Road, fr., P/IF: Hall , a freshman, busted onto the scene, surprising everyone with his advanced talent. He led the Cardinals with a .400 batting average, and was also the team’s top pitcher, finishing his first varsity season 6-2 with a 1.84 ERA. “I didn’t think he would do as well as he did pitching-wise, but by the end of the year, he really came on for us, and just got better as the year went along,” Forbes Road coach Randy Gelvin said. “We are more than pleased with the way he’s come along, it was a pleasant surprise.”
SECOND TEAM
ZACH CLARK, Southern Fulton, sr., P/OF
BRADY RIDDELL, Waynesboro, jr., C
MILES HEARON, Mercersburg, sr., P
ZANE HERSHEY, Shippensburg, sr., OF/P
MATT KLINE, Greencastle-Antrim, sr., SS/P
QUINTIN MILLER, McConnellsburg, sr., LF
CARLIN CHRISTIAN, Chambersburg, sr., SS
ADAM MARING, Shippensburg, fr., 3B
COLE FUNK, Fannett-Metal, jr., P/SS
ELI RILEY, Mercersburg, so., OF/IF
AARON SCHEPIS, Forbes Road, jr., CF
HONORABLE MENTION
Chambersburg — Hunter Brindle (sr., P/1B), Chance McClure (sr., P/INF), Hayden Kissel (jr., INF); Greencastle-Antrim — Dillon Morgan (sr., LF), Cade Bender (jr., P), Shawn Keller (sr., RF), Spencer Meyers (sr., 1B/P); James Buchanan — Remi Spoonhour (so., P/INF), Dylan Sanders (sr., C); Shippensburg — Teagan Staver (sr., P/1B/3B); Waynesboro — Clay Wolfe (jr., INF/P), Francisco Maya (sr., INF), Bubba Hamilton (jr., 1B), Cody Cline (sr., 3B); McConnellsburg — Landon Richards (sr., INF), Chase Novak (jr., P/SS), Matt Huston (jr., P); Fannett-Metal — Hunter Kahn (sr., P/1B); Forbes Road — Matt Brown (jr., P/INF), Brycen Hohman (jr., P/INF); Southern Fulton — Dylan Gordon (jr., SS), Tanner Elbin (sr., C), Cooper Grove (so., P/INF); Mercersburg — Brandon Thomas (jr., 2B); Shalom Christian — Colby Maun (jr., P/SS); Cumberland Valley Christian — Spencer Propst (jr., P/1B)