Complete All-OVC Teams & Individual Award Winners
JACKSON, Tenn. – For their leading roles as the anchors of Eastern Illinois baseball's pitching staff and lineup, Mike Recchia and Alex Gee both received All-Ohio Valley Conference honors at the annual league banquet on the eve of the conference tournament. Daniel Rowe also represented the Panthers on the OVC All-Freshman Team.
Recchia was named a First Team starting pitcher for the second year in a row. Gee was selected as the Second Team designated hitter. Rowe, who has started in center field, right field and at second base this season, was one of 13 players around the league named to the All-Freshman Team.
Recchia becomes the first EIU pitcher to be a back-to-back First Team all-conference performer. He also joins Nathan Stone (2002-03), Scott Metz (2001-02), Mike Ziroli (2000-01), John Larson (1999-00), Jeremy Sanders (1998-99) and Steve Lemke (1991-92) as EIU pitchers to earn all-conference recognition of any kind in consecutive seasons.
Gee, meanwhile, closes his collegiate career with an all-conference honor after enjoying his finest season as a Panther.
Rowe joins the likes of Brett Nommensen (2006), Richie Derbak (2007), Josh Mueller (2008) and Zach Borenstein (2009) as EIU players to earn All-Freshman Team recognition since the league began recognizing first-year players in 2006.
Recchia leads the OVC in total strikeouts (84) and innings pitched (80 2/3). His .196 batting average in conference play was also tops in the league. Among starting pitchers, he also led the conference with a 2.39 ERA against OVC competition.
Recchia emerged as the most durable and flexible member of the EIU pitching staff. He has started a team-high 12 games and also pitched in relief eight times. With five wins and two saves, he has played a role in seven of EIU's 17 victories entering the OVC Tournament.
Recchia put together a streak of 17 1/3 consecutive scoreless innings from March 18 through April 2, earning OVC Pitcher of the Week honors on April 5 after pitching 7 1/3 innings of one-hit ball in a series-opening victory against Austin Peay. He struck out seven in each of his first four OVC starts and fanned a season-high nine in wins against UT Martin and Jacksonville State.
Gee leads EIU in walks, on-base percentage and slugging while ranking second with eight home runs and 12 doubles. He connected for six of his home runs and recorded 29 RBIs in OVC play. He went deep four times and drove in nine runs in the series at Jacksonville State, earning Louisville Slugger National Player of the Week honors from Collegiate Baseball. He also hit a big three-run homer late in the rubber game win against Morehead State and a grand slam early in the series-opening victory against Southeast Missouri.
Gee rebounded from a slow start by hitting a team-best .412 with 16 extra-base hits since the team returned from the annual spring break trip. He has walked more than he has struck out this season and batted cleanup in every OVC game, during which he batted .444 with runners in scoring position and recorded 14 of his 29 RBIs with two outs in an inning.
Rowe opened the season strong, leading off the year with a single on the way to a four-hit effort and hitting safely in the first five games. He enters the OVC Tournament riding a seven-game hit streak and also posted a nine-game run midseason.
Rowe made arguably the biggest defensive play of the season when he threw out the potential tying run at the plate to end the nightcap of the April 2 doubleheader sweep of Austin Peay.
Rowe's .331 batting average ranks third on the team and he's also second with a .435 on-base percentage. For the season, he has reached base safely 50 percent of the time when leading off an inning.
The Panthers open OVC Tournament play against Southeast Missouri State Wednesday at 3 p.m. in the opening game of the six-team event.
2010 OVC Individual Award Winners
Player of the Year: Wes Cunningham, Murray State
Pitcher of the Year: Lee Henry, Tennessee Tech
Freshman of the Year: Shae Simmons, SE Missouri
Coach of the Year: Matt Bragga, Tennessee Tech
