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Three Commodores earn preseason All-American
Navin, Gregor and Kemp named preseason All-Americans
Nashville, Tenn. – Three Commodores have been named Louisville Slugger preseason All-Americans by Collegiate Baseball.
Juniors
Spencer Navin, Conrad Gregor and Tony Kemp earned the honor from the
publication. It is the second consecutive season for Kemp to earn the
preseason honor but the first preseason accolades for Navin and Gregor.
Navin was named as one of two second team catchers while Gregor and
Kemp were placed on the third team.
Navin jumped
onto the scene in 2012 as a sophomore after sitting behind starter Curt
Casali as a freshman on the Dores’ College World Series team. The
backstop helped carry the Commodores to their first series sweep of the
2012 season over Rhode Island going 7-for-13 with six RBI and his first
career home run. Navin started 57 games for the Commodores hitting .298
with three home runs and 27 RBI. The Des Moines, Iowa native is best
known for his defensive skills and ability to shut down the opponent’s
running game, throwing out 20 would-be base stealers last season.
Gregor
followed up a Freshman All-American campaign with a solid sophomore
season in 2012 starting all 63 games for VU. The left-handed slugger is
the team’s leading returning hitter after hitting .328 with three home
runs and 35 RBI last season. The Carmel, Ind. native has started 112 of
his 121 games in a Vanderbilt uniform over his first two seasons.
Kemp
enters the 2013 season after a transition to the infield last season to
play second base and is now an All-American second baseman. Kemp
matched the single-season school record with eight triples last year
and has already equaled Nick Morrow’s (1991-94) school record with 15
triples in his first two seasons. The Franklin, Tenn. native hit .261
with 20 extra-base hits and team-highs in runs (55) and stolen bases
(21) for the Dores last season.
The Commodores
will open the season February 15 as the No. 3 team in the nation
according to Collegiate Baseball. Hawkins Field hosts opening weekend
games for the first time since 2010 when Long Beach State visits
Nashville.
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