Baseball

Senior third baseman Chris Day was named to the All-NCAC first-team.

After posting a 19-18 record and advancing to the North Coast Athletic Conference semifinals, Denison University landed five players on the All-NCAC baseball squad, announced by the conference on Monday (May 14).

Leading the way for Denison was senior third baseman Chris Day (Glenmont, Ohio/Waynedale) and sophomore center fielder Justin Held (Hudson, Ohio/Hudson). Day, who made the shift from shortstop to third base in 2007, hit .296 with 30 runs batted in and a team-high five home runs. He played in 125 games in his career and totaled 51 extra-base hits while driving in 88 career runs. He ranks third among all-time stolen base leaders and is sixth in runs scored with 102.

In his first year of collegiate baseball, Held led the team in hitting with a .400 batting average. He also posted eight doubles, six triples and three home runs in 135 at-bats while starting all 37 games.

Junior starting pitcher James Clear (Hamilton, Ohio/Badin) earned second-team honors after leading the team in victories with a 5-2 record. In 14 appearances and 10 starts, Clear posted a 4.48 ERA and struck out 45 batters in 60.1 innings pitched. In three seasons he has a 9-5 record with four complete games and four saves.

Rounding out the list for Denison was senior Andrew Pakla (Lancaster, Ohio/Lancaster) and freshman Park Smith (Warren, N.J./The Pingry School) who were named to the honorable mention squad. Pakla enjoyed the best year of his career at the plate, hitting .318 with 15 RBI and 29 runs scored. He became the first Denison player to collect five hits in a single game since 2003 when he went 5-for-6 against Case Western Reserve at Jacobs Field on April 19.

Smith took over as the team's everyday first baseman while also making nine appearances and five starts on the mound for the Big Red. He was second on the team with a .364 average and drove in 21 runs. He also posted a 3-2 record as a pitcher and a 4.50 ERA in 36.0 innings pitched.