Left-handed pitcher Aaron Dott, righthander Jason Hooper, infielder Ben Kuhlmann, catcher Rob Coe and infielder/outfielder Kevin Zalnis have been named First Team All-Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference for the 2009 season. Infielder Nick Rechlitz was UW-W's recipient of the WIAC Sportsmanship Award, and Warhawk head coach John Vodenlich was named the 2009 WIAC Baseball Coach of the Year.
complete All-WIAC team
Dott repeated the first team all-conference honors he earned in 2008. He was in the top five in the WIAC pitching statistics in wins (tied first, 7), strikeouts (first, 119), innings pitched (first, 99.2), opponent batting average (third, .227), and earned run average (fifth, 3.16).
Hooper, a junior like Dott, tied Dott for the league lead with seven wins. He was also fifth in strikeouts (65), fifth in innings pitched (73.2), and eighth in opponent batting average (.249).
Dott and Hooper carried the top of the Warhawk pitching rotation throughout the season, giving UW-W a lefty-righty combination at 1-2.
Kuhlmann, also a junior, split his time between first and second base for the Warhawks. He was third in the WIAC in hits (56), third in putouts (290) and tied for fifth in total bases (82). He also tied for seventh in both walks (23) and stolen bases (11). Kuhlmann was an Honorable Mention All-WIAC pick, and Whitewater's Sportsmanship Award recipient, in 2008.
Coe started all forty-seven games at catcher in his first year with the program. He had a fielding percentage of .976 despite handling the second most defensive chances (and just ten away from the team lead). He also played a role in UW-W ranking second in the WIAC in earned run average and opponent batting average. Coe batted .271, tied for the team lead with eleven doubles, led the team by reaching base twelve times with hit by pitches, and also topped the Warhawks with four sacrifice hits.
Zalnis, a senior, played wherever the Warhawks needed him, third base, outfield or even first base. He was among the league leaders in runs batted in (second, 45), home runs (tied fourth, 8), total bases (fourth, 87), doubles (tied sixth, 11), and hits (seventh, 52). Zalnis was also First Team All-WIAC in 2008.
Rechlitz, also a junior, played shortstop and second base for UW-W. The WIAC Sportsmanship Award, which recognizes the league's emphasis on personal conduct in intercollegiate athletics.
Vodenlich directed the Warhawks to a share of the WIAC championship, the runner-up spot in the league's postseason tournament, and into the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III championship tournament where the Warhawks advanced to the regional final (final sixteen teams). He was also named WIAC Baseball Coach of the Year in 2004 and 2008.
UW-W went 30-19 overall in 2009, including a 15-9 mark in the WIAC.
For additional information: John Vodenlich