May 22, 2002

NKU BASEBALL PLAYERS HONORED

Four Norse named first team All-North Central Region

HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. - Four Northern Kentucky University baseball players have been named first team All-North Central Region by the American Baseball Coaches Association. Steve Walton, Jason Martin, Lenny Bays and Justin Rahschulte earned first team All-North Central Region honors for NKU. Pat Eschan was named second team All-North Central Region for the Norse. Walton, a senior first baseman from Rising Sun, Ind., batted .347 with an NKU single-season record 72 runs batted in this year. Walton also hit nine home runs and had 18 doubles. Martin, a senior catcher from Oak Hills High School in Cincinnati, batted .341 this season with eight home runs and 52 RBI. He also ended his career as NKU’s all-time hits leader with 270. Bays, a senior pitcher from Bellevue High School, posted a 9-4 record this season and was named the Great Lakes Valley Conference Pitcher of the Year. Bays led NKU with 81 strikeouts and had a 2.97 earned run average. Rahschulte, a senior center fielder from Boone County High School, led NKU with a .353 batting average this season. Rahschulte also had seven home runs, seven triples and 18 doubles. He led the Norse with a .609 slugging percentage. Eschan, a senior third baseman from Conner High School, batted .341 and set an NKU single-season record with 22 doubles. He also led the Norse with 11 home runs. NKU finished the season with a 37-24 record and won the GLVC championship. The Norse also advanced to the NCAA Division II Tournament for the first time since 1990.