GRAND FORKS, N.D. — Seniors Andy Sadler (Grand Forks, N.D.) and David Spies (Grand Forks, N.D.) were named the Most Valuable Player and Most Valuable Pitcher of the University of North Dakota baseball team, respectively, by their Fighting Sioux coaches and teammates on Wednesday. Third-year head coach Jeff Dodson made the announcement after the votes were tallied. Each player and coach on the roster gets one vote for each category.
“It was great to see these two guys put together strong senior seasons,” UND head coach Jeff Dodson said. “They both performed great for us throughout the season and their efforts deserved to be honored.
“These awards are also special because they are two local kids, who are also great in the classroom. These two earned the respect of their fellow teammates and coaches and that showed up in the voting.”
Sadler led the Sioux offense with a career-high .385 batting average and became just the second UND player in school history to record 70 hits in a season. The centerfielder also had a team-best, 24-game hitting streak during the season and led the team with 24-multiple hit contests.
Spies posted a team-high three wins during his final season with UND and also picked up a save in 11 appearances. He pitched a season-high 7.2 innings in his last two starts, which were victories over NJIT and Northern Colorado.
Both players earned a Great West weekly honor during the season as Sadler was named the league’s Hitter of the Week on March 14 and Spies earned Pitcher of the Week honors on March 7.
Spies also earned a spot on the Great West All-Tournament team after helping the Sioux to a third-place finish in the event held late last month at Kraft Field.
– Go Sioux –
