CHICAGO (NCBWA) – Trinity College (Conn.) second baseman Kurt Piantek (Sr., Wallingford, Conn.) was named National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association NCAA Division III Player of the Year, while Marietta College's Matt DeSalvo (Sr., New Castle, Pa./Union Area) has been named NCBWA NCAA Division III Pitcher of the Year.

Piantek, the New England Small College Athletic Conference Player of the Year and a first-team Rawlings/American Baseball Coaches Association All-American, batted .531 with 49 runs scored, 10 doubles, 18 home runs and 61 RBI. He was selected by the Detroit Tigers in the 44th round of the Major League Baseball Draft. DeSalvo, a three-time Ohio Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Year and a three-time first-team ABCA All-American, went 13-2 with a 1.31 earned run average and 157 strikeouts in 96.0 innings. DeSalvo, who broke the NCAA all-divisions career record for pitching victories (53) and the NCAA all-divisions career record for strikeouts (603), signed a minor league free agent contract with the New York Yankees.

The NCBWA regional awards were voted on by the membership at the NCAA Division III level. The two national awards were selected by a panel of eight regional coordinators, including sports information director B.L. Elfring from the University of Southern Maine, sports information director Michael Warwick from Ithaca College, commissioner Donna Ledwin from the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference, sports information director Tim Glon from Ohio Northern University, sports information director John Arenberg from Emory University, sports information director/national coordinator Steve Marovich from Carthage College, sports information director Kennan Timm from Wisconsin-Oshkosh and sports information director Chad Grubbs from Hardin-Simmons University.

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New England Regional Awards
Trinity College (Conn.) second baseman Kurt Piantek (Sr., Wallingford, Conn.) was named National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association NCAA Division III New England Region Player of the Year, while Eastern Connecticut State University's Joey Serfass (Jr., Newington, Conn.) was named NCBWA New England Region Pitcher of the Year. Piantek, the New England Small College Athletic Conference Player of the Year and a first-team Rawlings/American Baseball Coaches Association All-American, batted .531 with 49 runs scored, 10 doubles, 18 home runs and 61 RBI. Serfass, the Little East conference Pitcher of the Year and a second-team ABCA All-American honoree, took an 8-0 record with a 1.25 earned run average into the NCAA Division III Baseball Championship. Piantek was selected by the Detroit Tigers in the 44th round of the Major League Baseball Draft.

New York Regional Awards
Cortland State University first baseman Jeff Flegler (Sr., Gloucester, N.J.) was named National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association NCAA Division III New York Region Player of the Year, while Cortland State's Mike Hubbs (Jr., Averill Park, N.Y./Tamarac) was named NCBWA New York Region Pitcher of the Year. Flegler batted .406 with eight doubles, seven home runs, 48 RBI, seven stolen bases, a .630 slugging percentage and a .454 on-base percentage. Hubbs went 6-0 with a 0.65 earned run average and 43 strikeouts in 55.0 innings. Opponents batted just .141 against him.

Mid-Atlantic Regional Awards
Penn State University-Behrend outfielder Adam Best (Jr., Oil City, Pa.) was named National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association NCAA Division III Mid-Atlantic Region Player of the Year, while Rowan University's Josh Schwartz (So., Wenonah, N.J./Gateway Regional) was named NCBWA Mid-Atlantic Region Pitcher of the Year. Best batted .493 with 27 stolen bases. Schwartz, the New Jersey Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Year and a second-team American Baseball Coaches Association All-American, posted a 9-0 with a 2.75 earned run average and 70 strikeouts in 78.2 innings.

South Regional Awards
Emory University outfielder Kyle Foster (Sr., Huntington, W. Va.) was named National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association NCAA Division III South Region Player of the Year, while Ferrum College's Jason Beale (Jr., Charlottesville, Va./West Albermarle) was named South Region Pitcher of the Year. Foster, a third-team American Baseball Coaches Association All-American, batted .403 with 17 doubles, five triples, four home runs, 48 runs scored, 43 RBI, a .607 slugging percentage and a .455 on-base percentage. Beale, the Dixie Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Year and a second-team ABCA All-American honoree, went 9-2 with a 2.59 earned run average and 77 strikeouts in 82.0 innings.

Mideast Regional Awards
College of Wooster third baseman Jake Frank (So., Wooster, Ohio/Northwestern) was named National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association NCAA Division III Mideast Region Player of the Year, while Marietta College's Matt DeSalvo (Sr., New Castle, Pa./Union Area) was named Mideast Region Pitcher of the Year. Frank, the North Coast Athletic Conference Player of the Year and a first-team American Baseball Coaches Association All-American, batted .434 with 14 doubles, 11 home runs, 50 runs scored, 62 RBI, .a .790 slugging percentage, a .532 on-base percentage and eight stolen bases. DeSalvo, a three-time Ohio Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Year and a three-time first-team ABCA All-American, went 13-2 with a 1.31 earned run average and 157 strikeouts in 96.0 innings. DeSalvo, who broke the NCAA all-divisions career record for pitching victories (53) and the NCAA all-divisions career record for strikeouts (603), signed a minor league free agent contract with the New York Yankees.

Central Regional Awards
Elmhurst College first baseman/pitcher Rob Daggett (Sr., Meridian, Miss./Lamar Academy) has been named National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association NCAA Division III Central Region Player of the Year, while Carthage College's Dan Grybash (Jr./Sr., Palatine, Ill./William Fremd) was named Central Region Pitcher of the Year. Daggett was the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Player of the Year and All-CCIW at two positions. As a first baseman, he batted .411 with 39 runs scored, 18 doubles, seven home runs, 50 RBI, a .742 slugging percentage and a .554 on-base percentage. He went 6-0 as a pitcher with a 5.09 earned run average 39 strikeouts in 40.2 innings. Grybash was named first-team American Baseball Coaches Association All-American and first-team All-CCIW. Went 9-0 with a 1.39 earned run average and 70 strikeouts in 64.2 innings pitched, including a 13-2 win over Fontbonne in the NCAA Division III Central Region Championship. Opponents batted just .175 against him. Grybash was selected by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 34th round of the Major League Baseball Draft.

Midwest Regional Awards
University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh outfielder Vince Mancuso (Sr., Wisconsin Rapids, Wis.) has been named National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association NCAA Division III Midwest Region Player of the Year, while Jordan Timm (Jr., Pine River, Wis.), also from Wisconsin-Oshkosh was named Midwest Region Pitcher of the Year. Mancuso, the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Player of the Year, as well as the American Baseball Coaches Association NCAA Division III Player of the Year, batted .465 with 67 runs scored, 13 doubles, four triples, 17 home runs, 70 RBI, a .929 slugging percentage, 33 bases on balls and a .595 on-base percentage. Timm, the WIAC Pitcher of the Year and a first-team ABCA All-American, went 11-0 with a 2.09 earned run average and 85 strikeouts in 77.1 innings pitched. Opponents batted .193 against him. Timm was selected by the Baltimore Orioles in the 15th round of the Major League Baseball Draft.

West Regional Awards
Pomona-Pitzer College catcher Jose Cortez (Sr., Chino, Cal.) was named National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association NCAA Division III West Region Player of the Year, while Chapman University's Ryan France (Sr., Tustin, Cal.) was named West Region Pitcher of the Year. Cortez, a first-team American Baseball Coaches Association All-American, batted .446 with 20 home runs, 59 RBI and a .938 slugging percentage. He tied an NCAA Division III career mark with 70 home runs. France, also a first-team ABCA All-American, compiled a 9-1 record with a 1.39 earned run average, 67 hits and 96 strikeouts in 103.2 innings. Opponents batted just .190 against him. Cortez was selected by the Philadelphia Philles in the 14th round of the Major League Baseball Draft, while France was taken in the 17th round by the Oakland Athletics.