(Source DaytonaTimes):
ATLANTA – Bethune-Cookman Baseball saw four named to All-Conference teams, as announced by the Southwestern Athletic Conference on Tuesday, May 21 in Atlanta.
Tanner Boccabello was named AllSWAC First Team and SWAC Newcomer of the Year. Closer Pablo Torres was also named a first-teamer, as well as SWAC Relief Pitcher of the Year. Rounding out the Wildcats on the AllSWAC First Team was designated hitter Jose Gonzalez, while first baseman Manny Souffrain was named AllSWAC Second Team.
In his first season with the Wildcats, Tanner Boccabello was the top Friday-night arm in the SWAC, finishing the season with a 7-2 record in 13 starts. Boccabello finished the season ranked 13th in the country in ERA and tops in the SWAC at 2.79 and fifth in the country in innings pitched at 87.
He allowed only 27 earned runs on the season, the best mark in the conference while also walking a SWAC-low 15 batters to 66 strikeouts, with opposing batters hitting only .286 against him. Boccabello was named SWAC Pitcher of the week on two separate occasions in 2024, March 26 and April 9.
On April 22, Boccabello tossed a complete-game shutout over Florida A&M with six strikeouts to only four hits. Boccabello worked into the seventh or deeper six times and into the eighth or later four times. He exited starts allowing no earned runs four times, and struck out five or more batters in a start eight times.
No SWAC reliever recorded more saves than Pablo Torres, who notched six on the year. Torres finished third in the SWAC in ERA at 3.42 in 17 appearances and 23.2 total innings pitched. Torres struck out 29 on the season with only 12 walks, with opponents hitting only .159 against him with a 1.06 WHIP.
Torres did not allow a run in 12 appearances on the season, and struck out at least three four times, including a 2.2 inning, six-strikeout appearance in a win over the ACC’s Miami on April 17.
Torres becomes the third Wildcat in as many years to take home SWAC Reliever of the Year honors.
Jose Gonzalez emerged as one of the top bats in the SWAC in his first season with the Wildcats. In 52 starts, he led the team in nearly all offensive categories, including batting average (.356), Hits (69), triples (4), RBI (44), and total bases (98).
The grad student posted two separate on-base streaks of 24 and 26 heading into the SWAC Tournament, which lead the Wildcats. Gonzalez recorded 11 multi-RBI games on the season, including three games of 3+ RBI, one four RBI game, and one five RBI game.
He also led B-CU in multi-hit games with 19 total, including six games with three this and one four-hit game. Gonzalez posted more walks than strikeouts at 29/26. Gonzalez was named SWAC Hitter of the Week on February 27.
Miami native Manny Souffrain enjoyed an outstanding season at the first base spot for Bethune-Cookman. In 52 games, the junior topped his team with five homers, including a grand slam at Florida A&M.
He finished with a team-best .971 OPS, a top-10 mark in the SWAC. Souffrain finished third on B-CU with a .288 average, and first with a .500 OBP, the third-best mark in the conference.
Souffrain walked 49 times on the season, second in the conference, and took 18 hit-by-pitches, third in the SWAC. Souffrain recorded 44 hits, nine doubles, a pair of triples, and 34 RBI on the year. He also stole eight bases on nine total attempts. In the field, Souffrain recorded a .990 fielding percentage, 26 assists and 24 double-plays turned.
He posted eight multi-RBI games, including a five-RBI contest at Florida A&M on May 4. Souffrain was named SWAC Co-Player of the Week on March 12.
The Wildcats opened their chase to return to the SWAC Championship game for the second straight year as they took on the No. 3 seed in the Western Division, Prairie View A&M, at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, May 22 at Russ Chandler Stadium in Atlanta.
