ABCA/Rawlings All-Midwest Region Teams

WINONA, Minn. — Ben Buerkle (Roseville, Minn.) closed out a memorable freshman season by going 7-for-13 with a double, three RBIs and two runs scored in the Saint Mary's University of Minnesota baseball team's three games during the season-ending Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament in early May.
 
And while Buerkle's 2014 "hit parade" may have come to a halt with the Cardinals' 7-4 loss to Bethel in the conference tournament, this year's post-season "award parade" was just getting warmed up.
 
Buerkle was named the MIAC's Rookie of the Year when the conference office announced its awards on May 14, and on Friday, the Cardinal freshman was again in the post-season spotlight when the American Baseball Coaches Association released its post-season awards.
 
Buerkle was one of just three freshmen among the 50 Division III players named to the three ABCA/Rawlings All-Midwest Region teams, as the Cardinal outfielder landed Third Team honors.
 
Buerkle took the college baseball world by storm in 2014, boasting a team-best .405 batting average, while also leading or sharing the team lead in runs (32), hits (60), home runs (2), RBIs (33), slugging percentage (.561) and on-base percentage (.467). He had at least one hit in 36 of the 40 games he played in — and reached base safely in 39 of 40 contests.
 
St. Thomas' Tyler Peterson was named the ABCA/Rawlings Midwest Region Player of the Year, while Luke Watson of UW-Stevens Point was tabbed the Midwest Region Pitcher of the Year, and UW-Whitewater's Jon Vodenlich was tabbed the region's Coach of the Year.
 
The Cardinals placed third in the MIAC regular-season standings with a 13-7 record en route to earning their third-straight conference tournament appearance.