MOUNT VERNON — Konner Daughriety defended his crown while Luke Bryant regained the throne.
Mount Vernon’s Daughriety was selected the Ohio Cardinal Conference baseball Player of the Year while Ashland’s Bryant was the Pitcher of the Year when the OCC postseason honors were announced recently.
Both were seniors this season.
The Ashland University-bound Daughriety repeated as the OCC’s Player of the Year. He batted .512 with six home runs, 13 doubles and 30 runs batted in, propelling the Mount Vernon to the OCC title in its final season in the conference.
An Ohio University recruit, Bryant was the OCC Pitcher of the Year as a sophomore in 2022. This spring, he was 5-2 with a 1.54 earned run average and 76 strikeouts in 50 inning pitched, leading the Arrows to an 18-7 record.
Ashland’s Michael Franz and Alex Grissinger were selected to the first team, along with Madison’s Cameron Kuhn, Lexington’s Jaxon Brown and Mount Vernon’s Kayden Packard and Ezra Kurek.
They were joined on the first team by Wooster’s Brady Bowen and Hayden Reese, New Philadelphia’s Owen Courtney and Noah Bollon and West Holmes’ Carson Tanner.
Second-team picks included Lexington’s Zian Rhodes and Michael Togliatti, Madison’s Ethan Glasgo, Ashland’s Ethan Bunce and Mount Vernon’s Jonny Askew and Zac Clow. Other second-teamers were Wooster’s Sam Nielsen and Aidan McMillan, New Philadelphia’s Keaton Fausel, Mason Caterina and Sam Rufenacht and West Holmes Hunter Aurand.
Honorable-mention picks were Ashland’s C.J. Cox, Owen Shade, Lexington’s Braden Mumaw and Colton Murfield, Madison’s Owen Morrow and E.J. Fox, Mansfield Senior’s Guy Trader and Josh Malone, Mount Vernon’s Jagger Down and Isaiah Columber, New Philadelphia’s Carson Long and Gaven Blake, West Holmes’ Brock Gallion and Morgan Smith and Wooster’s Brian Lapp and Dylan Hudson.
Mount Vernon won the OCC with a 12-2 league record Wooster (11-3) was second and New Philadelphia (10-4) was third.