G-MAC All-Conference Baseball

Malone University head baseball coach Tom Crank was named the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) Coach of the Year on Tuesday evening when the league announced its postseason awards at the annual conference banquet in Mason, Ohio. He joined five of his players who also picked up postseason honors.
 
Among the five Pioneers voted G-MAC All-Conference, sophomore reliever Clay Cooper earned First Team recognition while junior pitcher Eric Mullet and sophomore right fielder Turner Hill each were selected to the Second Team. Senior catcher Matt Noel and redshirt sophomore pitcher Clyde Yoder received All-Conference Honorable Mention accolades.
 
In his 16th season in charge of the Pioneer program, head coach Tom Crank led Malone to a 32-16 overall record, including a 21-9 record in conference play, a G-MAC Regular Season Title, and the number one seed in the upcoming G-MAC Championship. Crank not only guided the Pioneers to the best mark in the conference, but to their first Regular Season Championship since 2009 and just the third since 1984. Malone was 10-2 in one-run games and 24-1 when leading after six innings.
 
Under his leadership, Malone was the only 30-win team in the conference and the only G-MAC team ranked among the top-10 in the Midwest Region. Despite dealing with a number of injuries, Crank pieced together a lineup that battled game in and game out and empowered a pitching staff that ranked among the nation's best. Malone pitchers led the G-MAC and the Midwest Region and were 14th in the country in team ERA.
 
The veteran coach has now led Malone to at least 27 wins in five straight seasons and five consecutive postseason appearances. Crank, who is three wins shy of 500 in his career, could reach the mark the prolific career mark this weekend. He trails only legendary skipper Bob Starcher (521 wins) as the winningest coach in program history.
 
Clay Cooper, a 6'4" lefty from Huron, Ohio (Edison HS), was a big part of the Pioneers' success this spring as he was named a First Team All-Conference relief pitcher. Cooper led the G-MAC with eight saves and was second in the conference with 20 appearances. He posted a 3-2 record with a 3.72 ERA and 38 strikeouts in 36.1 innings pitched. He walked just 13 batters and held opponents to a .241 batting average. Cooper did not allow a run in 15 of his 20 appearances.


 
Starting pitcher Eric Mullet, of Berlin, Ohio (Hiland HS), picked up his second Second Team All-Conference nod in as many years.  The 5'8" righty pitched in 13 contests, including 12 starts, and three complete games. Mullet went 7-3 on the season with a 4.09 ERA and a team-leading 64 strikeouts in 77 innings pitched. The crafty junior finished second in the G-MAC in innings, tied for second in wins, eighth in strikeouts, and 13th in ERA.


 
2018 G-MAC Freshman of the Year Turner Hill also earned his second straight Second Team All-Conference selection.  The multi-talented right fielder from Marietta, Ohio and Marietta High School led Malone with a .337 batting average and a .422 on-base percentage.  Batting in the third spot in the order for most of the season, Hill totaled 57 hits, including eight doubles and two homeruns. He scored 34 runs, collected 28 RBI, and stole 10 bases.  The second-toughest hitter in the conference to strike out, Hill went down via the K just 13 times all season and only three times in 30 G-MAC games. He did not strike out in his final 80 plate appearances to end the regular season.


 
One of two Honorable Mention picks, senior catcher Matt Noel, of Tallmadge, Ohio (Tallmadge HS), led Malone with 40 RBI in 48 games. Noel batted .290 with 49 hits, including a team-high 11 doubles, two triples, and two homeruns.  He scored 26 runs, stole two bases, and posted a .993 fielding percentage with 24 assists as he called pitches for the best pitching staff in the Midwest Region.


 
Redshirt sophomore Clyde Yoder, of Berlin, Ohio (Hiland HS), bounced back from injury last season with an impressive 2019. The hard-throwing righty made 12 appearances, including 11 starts, and threw two complete games. Yoder posted a 7-3 record with a 3.67 ERA and 60 strikeouts in 56.1 innings pitched.  He tied for third in the G-MAC in wins, ranked eighth in ERA, and finished ninth in strikeouts.


 
Malone begins G-MAC Championship play on Wednesday at Prasco Park with a 2:00 pm matchup against eight seed Alderson Broaddus.