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By Compiled By Jim Ayello{/Byline}
New Palestine
Keegan Watson, sophomore outfielder
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In his first full season on varsity, the all-Hoosier Heritage Conference honoree hit .449 and reached base at a .552 clip (both second in Hancock County). The now two-time all-county selection hit two home runs, three triples, drove in 30 and posted county bests in doubles (13) and runs scored (38).
New Palestine
Jason Hall-Manley, junior outfielder
Despite having his season cut short by injury (knee), the Dragons’ opening day cleanup hitter did plenty of damage while on the field to warrant election to his first all-county team. The all-HHC honoree hit .341 (seventh) with four home runs (fourth), 31 RBIs (fourth) and 23 runs scored (seventh).
New Palestine
Evan Hickman, senior catcher
The county RBIs leader (37) and all-HHC honorable mention selection reached base in half of his 18 plate appearances during the state tournament to help the Dragons win a second straight sectional title and advance to the regional final. For the season, he collected 12 doubles (second in county), led the Dragons in walks (24) and hit .301.
New Palestine
Zach Lovell, junior pitcher/infielder
Lovell emerged from the Dragons’ bullpen to become one of the sectional champion’s top two starters. He shined brightest in the postseason, where he fired complete games in both the sectional and regional semifinals. He ended the year with a 2.98 ERA (sixth in county) and 63 strikeouts (second). He also hit .282 with 15 runs scored.
New Palestine
Braden Roberts, junior utility
Though limited by a shoulder injury this season, Roberts still posted a .328 (13th in county) batting average, while drawing 23 walks and securing a .521 on-base percentage that were both second for the Dragons. He finished with 25 runs scored (seventh) and 16 RBIs (13th). He reached base in seven of his 16 postseason plate appearances.
New Palestine
Hogan Fulkerson, junior pitcher
The all-conference honorable mention pitcher led the county in wins (seven), innings pitched (54.0) and finished fourth in strikeouts (45) and fifth in ERA (2.85). In the Dragons’ sectional title victory against Brebeuf Jesuit, Fulkerson tossed a complete game, allowing just one run on four hits.
Eastern Hancock
Cole Fout, senior catcher
Fout paced the county in hitting (.457), on-base average (.563) and home runs (nine). The all-Mid-Hoosier Conference honoree led the Royals to a program-record 15 wins and knocked in 36 runs (second in county). He finishes his career a three-time all-county member and the Royals’ all-time leader in hits (123), walks (67), batting average (.426), and triples (10).
Eastern Hancock
Garek Ferguson, junior, outfielder
Ferguson’s season was limited to just 18 games because of a broken toe, but while on the field the speedster was as productive as ever. He hit .357 (sixth in county), stole 14 bases (third) and scored 18 runs (15th). He also owned a .479 on-base percentage, which was second only to Fout on the Royals.
Eastern Hancock
Devon Wagoner, senior pitcher/infielder
Wagoner finished the season the county’s ERA king, boasting a minuscule 2.06 earned run average over 34 innings. He was the starting pitcher in four of the Royals’ record-setting 15 wins. On offense, despite missing time with a balky back, he hit nine doubles (sixth in county) and drove in 17, second on the team behind Fout.
Mt. Vernon
Noah Powell, junior infielder
Powell, who is making his second straight appearance on this team, led the county with 22 stolen bases, while finishing with a .432 batting average (third), a .545 OBP (third) and 35 runs scored (second). The all-HHC selection also collected six doubles, three triples and helped the Marauders finish second in the conference.
Mt. Vernon
Zach Spears, senior pitcher/infielder
The lanky lefty was not only the county’s strikeout king (76), but he also finished second in wins (six) and seventh in ERA (3.11), pitching the majority of the Marauders’ big games. On offense, the all-HHC player and University of Miami (Ohio) commit hit five home runs (third in county) with a .337 average, seven doubles and 23 runs driven in (seventh).
Mt. Vernon
Christian Smith, senior infielder
The Mt. Vernon veteran provided plenty of pop in the middle of the Marauders’ lineup, as he led the team in doubles (10, fourth in county), and RBIs (25, sixth). The all-HHC honorable mention selection hit .381 (fifth), reached base at a .465 clip and stole seven bases (11th).
Greenfield-Central
Slater Rush, senior infielder
The all-conference and two-time all-county honoree found himself atop the county leaderboard in most statistical categories this season. His finished second in home runs with six, third in RBIs (32), fourth in batting average (.386), fifth in runs scored (27), sixth in doubles (nine) and seventh in stolen bases (nine).
Greenfield-Central
Drey Jameson, sophomore pitcher/outfielder
The hard-throwing right-hander struck out more than a batter per inning this year, finishing with 51 (second in county) punch outs over 37.1 frames. He owned a 2.83 ERA (fourth) and four victories. On offense, he hit .337 (10th), with 10 doubles (fourth), nine stolen bases (seventh) and 30 runs scored (third).
Honorable Mention: Wes McBride, Tyler Woodcock, Cody Chandler (New Palestine); Austin Clutinger, Brandon Reid, Devin Denny (Eastern Hancock); Tyler Franklin, Kennedy Parker (Mt. Vernon); Tyler Farrell, Seth Adams, Dallas Pribble, Dylan Cheshier, (Greenfield-Central).
