Team Fills Pot At The End Of The Rainbow
The pot at the end of the baseball rainbow was filled with a number of Aggie honors. In addition to winning the Lone Star Conference, Tyler Williams was named player of the year, Dennis Milius was pitcher of the year and Ron Ihler was named coach of the year.
"From the start of the season we thought we could win a conference title," said Head Coach Ron Ihler, "and that's what we were trying to do." The only disappointment was not making the national playoffs. Ihler noted that what hurt the team most when it needed a boost was the defense. "We've been inconsistent," he said. "Most of that has come from the defense."
Indeed the defensive play of the team was hampered by the inability to come up with the big plays. In all, the defense managed outs on only 32 double-plays for the entire season. Still, the Aggies did shine defensively at times. Senior shortstop Diego Hernandez, an All-American pick by Collegiate Baseball, picked up where he left off last season, providing exceptional play at his position.
However, where the team worked best was on offense. With a middle line-up featuring Hernandez, Brice Pleschourt, Williams, and Chris DeClerck, the Aggies showed some real power at the plate. "We've gone through stretches where we hit the ball pretty well," Ihler noted. In fact, three players hit marks that showed just how well the offense functioned at times. Hernandez broke the university record for most at-bats, with a total of 588, while sporting a .384 batting average. Sophomore Pleschourt, who had an average of .354, took a 21 game hit streak into the final LSC games of the season.
But the best showing at the plate in 1992 may have been that of Williams. Williams, a catcher and designated hitter, broke the school record for most home runs in a season with 17. With an average of .365, Williams also finished tied with Hernandez for third in most hits, with Pleschourt and DeClerck leading the team.
Even though the goal of making the playoffs was not reached, the team had little to complain about. "We lost a few games that we thought we could have won," Ihler said. "But other than that, we're where i thought we'd be."
Other players who participated on the Aggies baseball team included Jeff Barbier, Mike Crist, Eagle Fixico, Bill Horning, Shawn Nunley, Steve Johnson, Troy Ward, Marty Curry, Chris Foulk, Chad Funkhouser, Mark Grchan, Jason Green, T.J. Gusso, James Kicklighter, Bill Parrish, Eddie Parrish, and Adrian Wiggins.
