Deans, Black headline award winners for Humber Baseball
Humber wins the league, OCAA pitcher of the year, OCAA coach of the year, four first-team and two second-team all-star selections.
WINDSOR – The 2022 OCAA pennant winners garnered numerous league awards Wednesday evening at the St. Clair Centre for the Arts. The league announced its yearly awards as determined by a polling of the conference's baseball coaches.
To no one's surprise, Humber ace Brandon Deans was the recipient of the 2022 OCAA Pitcher of the Year award – becoming the first player in program history to receive the honour. Deans, a flame-throwing righty from Mississauga, has been the talk of the league this year, shattering the OCAA record for strikeouts in a season and in a single game. He set a program record with five victories and a 14.2 strikeouts-per-seven mark, while combining with three teammates to record the program's second no-hitter of the season. Deans was also named a first-team all-star.
After leading Humber to its best regular-season finish and the third pennant title in program history, Troy Black was named the OCAA Coach of the Year. Black becomes the third Humber coach to win the award and now sits second all-time on Humber's all-time wins list. Humber's pitching staff led the league with a 2.46 era while its 166 strikeouts were the most in program history.
Second-year outfielder Hudson Lockwood paced the way for the Hawks at the top of the lineup, finishing fourth in the league with 22 RBIs, earning a first-team all-star selection. Jaykob Turner and David Boatto were also named to the first-team, leading the Hawks with two home runs this season. Turner topped the club with a .395 batting average, while slugging .628. Boatto's offensive numbers took a massive leap in his second season, while playing great defence up the middle for the Hawks.
Aidan Murphy was named to the second-team as a designated hitter, finishing second on the team in RBIs with 18. Murphy was also brilliant on the mound, finishing the season with a 3-0 record and didn't allow a run in 17 innings of work. His season saw him finish second in player of the year voting.
Freshman Justin Groves finished third in rookie of the year voting and was also named a second-team all-star. Along with his excellent defence in the outfield, Groves finished the year with one home run, 18 RBIs, 1.010 on-base plus slugging mark.
Top-seed Humber baseball will now set its sights on capturing the third provincial title in program history. The Hawks will open the tournament on Oct. 21 at 1:30 p.m.
