Luke Gorsett semi-finalist for Wallace Award

LUBBOCK, Texas ––The field of candidates vying for the 2006 Brooks Wallace College Player of the Year Award was reduced to the top thirty semi-finalists today, as announced by the College Baseball Foundation in Lubbock, TX. The Wallace Award is presented annually to the nation’s top collegiate baseball player and will be nationally televised on Fox Sports Network, and its’ award-winning family of regional affiliate networks, as well as Fox College Sports.

The annual award banquet will be held on Monday, July 3rd at 7 p.m. and hosted at the United Spirit Arena on the campus of Texas Tech University.  Information regarding the sale of individual tickets, as well as group and corporate tables to the VIP event, is available by calling [phone] or via the College Baseball Foundation website: www.collegebaseballfoundation.org

The selection committee will slash the list to three finalists following the NCAA Super Regionals and make that announcement in Omaha on Thursday, June 15, 2005.  The finalists, their head coaches and parents will be invited to Lubbock, where they will participate in a two-day celebration of college baseball on July 3-4, which will feature the theme ‘The Past Meets Present’.   The Wallace Trophy and winners will become part of the permanent display in the new College Baseball Hall of Fame in Lubbock.  The three finalists will also meet the Inaugural 2006 College Baseball Hall of Fame Class who will be recognized during the ceremony and enshrined during the Official Induction Ceremonies the following afternoon on Tuesday, July 4^th.

2006 Wallace Award Semi-Finalists

 

Emeel Salem, 3B, Jr., Alabama

Sean Doolittle, P-ATH, So., Virginia

Shane Robinson, OF, Jr., Florida State 

Wes Roemer, P, So., Cal State Fullerton

Kellen Kulbacki, OF, So., James Madison        

Tim Lincecum, P, Jr., Washington

Drew Stubbs, OF, Jr., Texas                            

Andrew Miller, P, Jr., North Carolina

Joe Savery, P-ATH, So., Rice                          

Nick Schmidt, P, So., Arkansas

Matt Weiters, C-ATH, Jr., Georgia Tech             

Heath Rollins, P-ATH, Jr., Winthrop

Luke Gorsett, OF, Jr., Nebraska                       

Tom King, SS, Jr., Troy

Ryan Strieby, 1B, Jr., Kentucky                        

Eddie Degerman, P, Jr., Rice

Chad Tracy, C, Jr. Pepperdine                          

Craig Cooper, 1B, Sr., Notre Dame

Tyler Mach, 3B, Jr., Oklahoma State                 

Matt McBride, C, So., Lehigh

Andy Alessio, 1B, Jr., Clemson                         

Steven Wright, P, Jr., Hawai’i

Brad Lincoln, P-ATH, Jr., Houston                    

Josh Morris, 1B, Jr., Georgia

Cole Gilliespie, OF, Jr., Oregon State               

Scott Cousins, OF/P, Jr., San Francisco

Chuckie Caufield, OF, Sr., Oklahoma               

Matt Dobbins, P-ATH, So., Jacksonville

Ronnie Bourquin, 3B, Jr., Ohio State               

Beau Mills, 3B, So., Fresno State 

Dedicated to the memory of the former Texas Tech player and assistant coach, Wallace was a slick-fielding shortstop at Texas Tech from 1977 to 1980.  A four-year starter, he was named All-Southwest Conference and All-District Six his senior year, when he led the Red Raiders to their first-ever appearance in the Southwest Conference Tournament.  After playing two years in the Texas Rangers organization, he returned to Texas Tech and served as a graduate assistant, and later as an assistant coach.  In the summer of 1984 he was diagnosed with cancer and fought the disease courageously until his death on March 24, 1985, at age 27.  The Plano, Texas, native was married to the former Sandy Arnold and they had one daughter, Lindsay Ryan. 

The selection committee for the Wallace Award is comprised of a select national panel of coaches, sports information directors, former winners and beat media (print, radio and television) who most closely follow the sport on a daily basis.  The Wallace Award is the only major collegiate honor of its’ type that tracks the nominees through the entire season, from first pitch through the completion of the NCAA College World Series.  Final balloting will conclude at Midnight, July 1st.  Voting for the Wallace Award winner will be conducted by confidential balloting, with totals tabulated by the J.W.Anderson & Associates accounting firm in Lubbock, TX.

Kurt Suzuki of Cal State Fullerton won the 2004 Brooks Wallace Award with Alex Gordon of Nebraska taking home the 2005 trophy.  The awards’ lineage includes former Player of the Year winners Andy Benes, Ben McDonald, Mike Kelly, Bobby Jones, Mike Smith, Darren Dreifort, Jason Varitek, Mark Kotsay, Kris Benson, Lance Berkman, Brad Wilkerson and Jason Jennings. 

The one-hour Wallace Award presentation will debut on Fox Sports Southwest, on Saturday, July 8^th at 3 p.m. (CDT), and will be carried nationally by FSN affiliates such as Sun Network, Fox Sports Southeast, FSN Arizona, FSN Northwest and FSN West, among others.  Fox College Sports networks (Atlantic, Central and Pacific) will also air the program during July.  Exact times, dates and additional clearances around the country will be updated, as they are made available.  Please check your local listings, as the complete list of clearances will be updated regularly at:

College Baseball Foundation - www.collegebaseballfoundation.org

Fox College Sports - msn.foxsports.com/fcs

For more information on the 2006 Brooks Wallace Award contact:

Mike [e-mail]

John Askins--

Ramon Alvarez--