May 19, 2009

PADUCAH, Ky. (Tuesday, May 19, 2009) - Southeast Missouri State University had four representatives earn Ohio Valley Conference baseball honors at the annual OVC Awards Banquet held on the eve of the 2009 OVC Baseball Championship. Junior catcher Jim Klocke (St. Louis, Mo./St. John Vianney) and senior outfielder Tyrell Cummings (Muskogee, Okla./Seminole State JC) were named to the 2009 All-OVC First Team. Sophomore designated hitter Louie Haseltine (St. Louis, Mo./De Smet) earned All-OVC Second Team honors, and freshman shortstop Kenton Parmley (Goreville, Ill./Goreville) was named to the All-Freshman Team.

Klocke and Cummings, who were both named to the first team in 2008, are just the fifth and sixth players in Southeast history to earn All-OVC First Team honors multiple times in their careers. The pair joins Jeremy Johnson (1999, 2000), Ryan Spille (1998, 1999), Tom Bruer (1995, 1996), and Rex Crosnoe (1993, 1994, 1995) as the only Southeast players with multiple All-OVC First Team selections.

Klocke leads all OVC catchers in batting with a .404 average, which ranks seventh overall in the conference. The junior catcher won the OVC Rookie of the Year award in 2007, and he was named a Ping!Baseball Preseason All-American this year. Klocke has had his best season at the plate in 2009, logging career highs in nearly every category, including batting average, doubles (19), home runs (9), runs scored (55), runs batted in (46), on-base percentage (.498), and slugging percentage (.674). He ranks third in the league in both doubles and OBP, and he ranks eighth in slugging. Klocke will look to extend his current 15-game hitting streak, another career best, during the OVC tournament.

Senior outfielder Tyrell Cummings joined Klocke as one of just six Southeast players all-time to earn All-OVC First Team honors multiple times in their career.

Cummings has led the Redhawks at the plate during OVC play, batting a team-high .416 in conference games. The senior outfielder is hitting .385 overall, and he is tied for the team lead with 52 RBIs after driving in a team-high 58 last season. Cummings leads the team with 74 hits, and he is among the team leaders with 14 doubles, eight home runs, .604 slugging percentage, and .449 on-base percentage. He recorded 20 multiple-hit games, and his 17-game hitting streak earlier this season is the longest by a member of the Redhawks this year.

Despite making just 32 starts, Haseltine batted .322 with 10 doubles, 11 home runs, and 36 runs batted in as the Redhawks designated hitter for most of the season. In his first season receiving significant playing time, the redshirt sophomore is among the league-leaders during OVC games, as he slugged .770, hit eight home runs, and drove in 30 RBIs in conference play. In the first game of a doubleheader at Tennessee Tech on March 21, Haseltine became the first Southeast batter to drive in seven RBIs in one game since Brice Nichols in 2002.

Parmley is the seventh freshman in Southeast history to earn OVC All-Freshman Team honors since the award was introduced in 2006. Parmley started all but one game at shortstop for the Redhawks this season, and he batted .293 with 33 runs scored, 10 doubles, one triple, three home runs, and 23 runs batted in. He was also among team leaders with 12 stolen bases as the Redhawks stole a total of 64 bases this season, the most since 2002 when the team swiped 69 bases. Parmley hit .305 in games against OVC opponents, and his seven stolen bases in league play is tied for third most in the OVC.

The first and second team All-OVC honors, as well as conference Player, Pitcher, Rookie, and Coach of the Year awards are voted on by league head coaches and sports information directors. Eastern Illinois shortstop Jordan Kreke was named OVC Player of the Year, while Murray State starting pitcher Daniel Calhoun earned OVC Pitcher of the Year honors. Jacksonville State outfielder Kyle Bluestein was tabbed OVC Rookie of the Year, and Murray State's Rob McDonald was named OVC Coach of the Year.

The No. 4 Redhawks will play No. 5 Tennessee Tech in the opening round of the OVC Baseball Championship at Brooks Stadium in Paducah, Ky., on Wednesday at 2:30 p.m. The game can be heard live on ESPN 1220 AM KGIR or via radio web stream at espn1220.com. Live video web streaming is also available by subscription at ovcsports.tv.