Five Blue Streaks Named All-OAC Highlighted By Aukerman as Pitcher of the Year

5/15/2023 10:30:00 AM | By: Garrett Siegel, Senior Staff Writer

Matthew Aukerman and Joe Olsavsky were named First Team All-OAC, while Sean Connolly, Connor Mayle, and Justin Hanley were named Honorable Mention.

The 2023 Ohio Athletic Conference Tournament Champions have five players that were awarded All-OAC recognition this morning.

Matthew Aukerman and Joe Olsavsky were named First Team All-OAC, while Sean Connolly, Connor Mayle, and Justin Hanley were named Honorable Mention.

To cap it all off, Aukerman was awarded the Kent Tekulve OAC Pitcher-of-the-Year. This is the first time a Blue Streak has won the award since Drew Doring's 10-1, 92-strikeout season in 2015.

Joe Olsavsky is officially in rarified air in Blue Streak baseball and athletics history. Olsavsky was named First-Team All OAC for the third consecutive season. His .472 average and .728 slugging percentage rank second in single season history, while his .551 OBP is third in school history. Olsavsky missed the first 12 games of the season and still had 54 hits, 13 doubles, four home runs, 38 RBIs, and 19 stolen bases in the regular season. The junior shortstop had just eight games without an RBI, and only three games without a hit. He is in the middle of his second 13-game hit streak of the year.

Matthew Aukerman saved his best season of his career for his last for JCU. The senior from Hudson, OH went 8-0 with three complete games, a 1.79 ERA, and just 16 earned runs and 50 hits in 80.1 innings pitched. His .180 batting average against is 7th in school single season history. Aukerman has allowed just 27 walks and 14 extra base hits, with a 0.96 WHIP and 72 strikeouts. In his 11 regular season starts, the Blue Streaks lost just one game, and he went less than six innings just twice. Aukerman allowed more than six hits just once, and allowed zero earned runs three times. All of that before mentioning his no hitter against Capital back on April 8.

The Blue Streaks' middle of the order round out their All-OAC selections. Connor Mayle, Sean Connolly, and Justin Hanley were named All-OAC Honorable Mention. The trio were staples anywhere from the 2-6 spot in the lineup all year.

Connor Mayle hit .305 with seven doubles and nine home runs, while leading the team in sacrifice bunts. His 35 RBI is third on the team, and is one of the best defensive third basemen in the conference, making just eight errors all year.

Sean Connolly is all over the Blue Streak hitting leaderboards. He is hitting for a .356 average with a .964 OPS. His 16 doubles lead the team, while he is fourth on the team in RBIs and OBP, third in total bases with 86, and second in stolen bases.

Justin Hanley will go down as one of the best power hitters in program history. He is now the all-time JCU career leader in RBI and home runs. The graduate student has 12 doubles and nine homers this year, and his 45 RBI are fourth in the OAC. The Florida man is second on the team in total bases, and is one of four JCU players to start in all 42 games this year. This is Hanley's third All-OAC selection in his career.

With an OAC Tournament Championship, these Blue Streaks and many more will be in the NCAA Tournament starting this weekend. Stay tuned for an update later today on where the Blue Streaks will play, as the team looks for their first NCAA win in school history.

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