RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. – Troy Shields was named Great American Conference Player of the Year as the league announced its All-GAC Team on Wednesday. In total, seven Oklahoma Baptist players were honored, tying the program record.
There was a trio of All-GAC First Team honorees: Shields,
Alex Schroeder and
Isiah Lissade. OBU had the most first-team selections in all the GAC. Plus, these four garnered Honorable Mention:
Jayden Shafer,
Nolan Feazle,
Will Joseph and
Spencer Dickinson.
Shields is now one of only four Bison players in the D2 era to earn Player of the Year honors. That includes Jinny Parra (2016), Jake Gozzo (2019) and
Dan Pruitt (2022).
His senior season for OBU was outstanding. Shields ranked in the top five of the GAC in homers (20), RBI (77), runs scored (57), total bases (137) and batting average (.366). Among many standout performances, he produced an OBU record nine RBI during the April 24 game at Northeastern State and went 5-for-5 with two homers against Ouachita on April 12.
For the second straight year, Schroeder earned placement on the top team. During the season, he became the school's and conference's all-time home runs leader. He's got 22 this year, tops in the GAC and No. 1 nationally. His 87 RBI are best in the GAC and are the second-most in OBU single-season history. Schroeder's eight sacrifice flies also led the league. Plus, he produced four multi-home run games as well as 21 multi-hit contests.
OBU's final first-teamer was Lissade who was also sensational. His 78 hits and four triples were best in the GAC. He also ranked third with 15 stolen bases. The senior ranked seventh in on-base percentage (.488) and was slotted fourth with 129 total bases. Furthermore, Lissade boasted top-seven marks in walks (37) and batting average (.379). Among many performances, his effort versus No. 14 Missouri Southern on Feb. 27 was one for the ages. He hit for the cycle, becoming the first Bison player in the D2 era to accomplish that.
On the honorable mention front, Shafer's recognition marked the second straight year he made that list while the others, Feazle, Joseph and Dickinson, earned their first.
Shafer, OBU's first baseman, batted .316, generated 59 hits, and scored 66 runs, second-best in the GAC. Most noteworthy, he drew 54 walks. That's the No. 1 total in the country and in the conference. He had a pair of three-hit games during the season and finished with a .987 fielding mark with 372 putouts.
On the mound was Feazle. The senior from Byng, Okla, finished with seven wins, a top-three total in the league. He posted a 4.17 ERA, notched two complete games and struck out 62. In eight of 14 appearances, Feazle allowed no more than two earned runs and fanned at least five batters in eight games.
Rounding out OBU's selections were Joseph and Dickinson, both newcomers.
In centerfield was Joseph who collected 15 doubles, a top-eight mark in the conference. He also batted .362 and finished with 68 hits, the ninth-best total. During the season, Joseph had a 25-game hitting streak, the second-longest in OBU's D2 history. He also was an outstanding defender, totaling 109 putouts with a .974 fielding percentage.
Finally, Dickinson, who played third, rang up 10 homers, 48 RBI and a .316 batting average. He had separate 10- and 12-game hitting streaks during the year and produced a season-high three hits in four different contests. During a March 30 game with East Central, he hit two bombs and drove in six, both season-highs. Defensively, he helped turn 13 double-plays, third-best on the team.
