State sports briefs

BASEBALL Allday All-American

Former Central Arkansas outfielder Forrestt Allday earned first-team Rawlings/American Baseball Coaches Association All-America honors Wednesday.

Allday, who was drafted by the Boston Red Sox and is now playing for the Lowell Spinners in the New York-Penn League, was one of five first-team outfielders. The others are Hunter Renfroe of Mississippi State, Michael Conforto of Oregon State, Mike Papi of Virginia and Mike Tauchman of Bradley.

Allday, from Friendswood, Texas, was the Southland Conference Tournament Most Valuable Player and was named a third-team All-American by Baseball America earlier this week. He led the Bears in hitting (.365) and ranked in the top 5 in the Southland in nearly every offensive category. He was first in runs scored (59), on-base percentage (.503) and walks (53). He was second in hits (85), third in average and total bases (101) and fifth in steals (15).

Allday was an eighth-round draft pick of the Boston Red Sox, UCA’s highest draftee since Marquis Riely went in the second round in 1992. He was one of a school-record three Bears taken in the 2013 major league baseball amateur draft last week. Allday helped the Bears win a school-record 42 games and advance to the final of the NCAA Starkville Regional, losing to Mississippi State, a team still alive and undefeated in the College World Series.

Also on Wednesday, Allday was named the Southland Conference’s student-athlete of the year. He was joined on the All-Academic team by junior pitcher Bryce Biggerstaff.

Allday is a health education major with a 3.57 grade-point average. He is the first UCA baseball player to earn the award. Biggerstaff had a 3.07 GPA and is majoring in insurance risk management.

VOLLEYBALL GAC Tournament to Hot Springs

The Great American Conference announced Wednesday that its tournament will be played at Summit Arena in Hot Springs in 2013 and 2014.

The 2013 volleyball tournament will be held Thursday, Nov. 21-Saturday, Nov. 23 while the 2014 tournament is Nov. 13-15.

Volleyball is the latest GAC sport to move its championship to a neutral site as it joins men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s tennis, men’s and women’s golf, softball and baseball.

SWIMMING & DIVING Hendrix coach retires

Hendrix Coach Jim Kelly is retiring after 31 years at the Conway school.

Kelly, who came to Hendrix in 1982, coached one national champion, 80 All-Americans as well as several conference champions and All-Conference selections. He was inducted into the Hendrix College Sports Hall of Honor in 2005 and the Arkansas Swimming Hall of Fame in 2007. Earlier this season, he received the Elijah Pitts Award, given for lifetime achievement to Conway athletics.

Kelly was also a professor in the Kinesiology department at Hendrix.

Sports, Pages 21 on 06/20/2013

Upcoming Events