JONES
EARNS PRESEASON BASEBALL HONORSJones led the Aggies to their first NCAA Regional last season
GREENSBORO, N.C., December 21, 2005 – With the N.C. A&T baseball team still two months away from starting its journey to return the NCAA Baseball Tournament, the preseason honors have already started coming in for their most accomplished player from a year ago.
Junior outfielder Jeremy Jones has been named as a candidate for the 2006 Brook Wallace National Player of the Year Award. Jones is one of 120 players across the country named to initial watch list.
Jones has also been named to the 2006 preseason National College Baseball Writers Association of America (NCBWA) All-America Third Team.
Jones batted .402 last season and broke the school’s single-season record for hits, when he became the first Aggie ever to compile more than 80 hits, finishing the season with 82. Jones led the MEAC in batting average, hits, doubles (20), runs scored (53) and was second in RBI (46) on his way to winning MEAC Player of the Year honors in 2005.
Jones was also named blackcollegebaseball.com’s Player of the Year as he led the Aggies to sites No. 1 ranking on three different occasions during the season. He also led the Aggies to their first MEAC Championship since 1993.
“I think these are great honors for not only Jeremy but for our baseball program, the A&T athletics department and the University as a whole,’’ said N.C. A&T baseball coach Keith Shumate. “We’re lucky to have a young man like Jeremy playing in an Aggies uniform. He has done nothing but represent the name on the jersey with honor.”
The Wallace Watch will be trimmed to 12 semifinalists by late May. Then the selection committee will narrow the list to three finalists following the NCAA Super Regionals at a press conference in Omaha, Neb. The award is dedicated to the memory of former Texas Tech shortstop and assistant coach Brook Wallace.
He played shortstop for the Red Raiders from 1977-1980 and was a four-year starter. After a two-year career with Texas Rangers organization, he was diagnosed with cancer and fought it courageously until his death in 1985.