Geiger NCC Player of the Year
MANKATO -- Minnesota State University, Mankato, senior catcher/third baseman Scott Geiger of Pierz was named North Central Conference baseball player of the year Thursday.
Back
Geiger also made the All-NCC first team with South Dakota State University outfielder Russ Langer of Brainerd. SDSU catcher Chris Studer of Brainerd made the second team.
Geiger, a two-time NCC Player of the Week this season, hit .377 in conference play with six home runs and 21 RBI. The Mavericks' team captain is one of only two MSU players to see action in all 51 games this year. He tied for second on the team in home runs with a career-high 10 and ranks fifth with a .346 batting average. He is third in RBI (38) and second on the team with 16 doubles, which is tied for second on the school's single-season all-time list.
A second-team pick last year, Geiger hit .417 (5-for-12) with five runs scored in three games at the NCC tournament.
Russ Langer
Langer, last year's NCC MVP, hit .389 this season with 31 runs, 30 RBI, a team-high 18 doubles and five home runs. Studer batted .388 with 35 runs, 31 RBI, 13 doubles and four home runs. SDSU finished 23-19-1.
Mankato, which won the NCC postseason tournament, enters this week's NCAA Central Regional with an overall record of 35-16. MSU was scheduled to play sixth-ranked Central Missouri State (45-10) in the four-team double-elimination tournament Thursday at Warrensburg, Mo.
Winner of the Central Regional advances to the NCAA Division II Tournament May 27-June 2 at Montgomery, Ala.
Chris Studer