WILMINGTON, N.C. (May 25, 2011) - James Madison junior catcher Jake Lowery (Midlothian, Va.) was selected as the 2011 CAA baseball Player of the Year, while William & Mary senior Logan Billbrough (Miami, Fla.) and Old Dominion senior Kyle Hald (Springfield, Va.) were selected as the CAA Co-Pitchers of the Year in voting by the league's head coaches.

Other top honors went to Towson senior shortstop Nick Natoli (Ellicott City, Md.) as the CAA Defensive Player of the Year and Northeastern freshman outfielder Aaron Barbosa (Dracut, Mass.) as the CAA Rookie of the Year. Old Dominion's Nate Goulet was named the CAA Coach of the Year.

Lowery posted one of the best offensive seasons in CAA history in 2011. The Dukes' catcher batted .348 and led the conference in runs (72), home runs (22), triples (8), RBI's (81), total bases (178) and slugging percentage (.805). He currently ranks among the top five in the nation in runs (2^nd), triples (4^th), homers (2^nd), RBI's (1^st), total bases (1^st) and slugging percentage (3^rd). Lowery is one of 36 semifinalists for the Dick Howser Trophy, which is awarded to the nation's top player, and is one of 13 semifinalists for the Johnny Bench Award, which is presented to the nation's top collegiate catcher.

Billbrough went 7-2 for the Tribe this season and led the CAA with a 2.58 ERA. The senior right-hander topped the conference with 97.2 innings pitched and recorded a league-high 105 strikeouts while walking only 32. He threw a complete-game, 1-hit shutout in W&M's victory at Delaware on March 26 and struck out a school-record 16 batters in a complete-game shutout of Northeastern on April 30. The effort against Northeastern earned him National Player of the Week accolades from Collegiate Baseball. Opponents batted just .225 against Billbrough this season.

Hald compiled an 8-2 record with a 3.51 ERA for the Monarchs this season. The senior left-hander led the conference with 10.24 strikeouts per game, fanning 102 batters in 89.2 innings. He went at least six innings in 12 of his 13 starts and struck out seven or more batters 10 times. Hald walked just 42 batters and limited opponents to a .229 batting average. 

Natoli, who was also the CAA Defensive Player of the Year in 2008, had an excellent year in the field for Towson, committing only 13 errors in 283 chances at shortstop for an impressive .954 fielding percentage. He played a vital role in a Tigers' defense that led the CAA with a .969 fielding percentage and turned 59 double plays. Natoli, who led the league with 168 assists, also had a solid season offensively batting .314 with 32 RBI and 19 stolen bases.

Barbosa batted .335 with eight doubles and a team-high 31 runs scored for Northeastern. The freshman outfielder was 29-for-34 in stolen bases, which led the conference and broke the Huskies' season thefts record.

In his first season as head coach of the Monarchs, Goulet guided the Monarchs to a 28-24 overall record and a second-place finish in the conference with a 19-11 mark. His squad won eight consecutive CAA series from mid-March until mid-May and posted their most league victories since 2006. ODU was picked to finish seventh in the CAA's pre-season coaches poll.

Georgia State and Old Dominion placed a league-high three players on the All-CAA first team. The Panthers were represented by senior second baseman Rob Lind (.333, 37 RBI), junior third baseman Brandon Williams (.350, 36 RBI) and senior outfielder Mark Micowski (.362, 48 RBI). Making the squad from the Monarchs were Hald, junior shortstop Josh Wright (.376, 44 RBI) and senior relief pitcher Adam Wisniewski (14 saves).

Delaware had a pair of repeat selections on the All-CAA first team with senior first baseman Steve Ulaky (.339, 54 RBI) and senior outfielder Pat Dameron (.363, 45 RBI). Five other schools had one player make the first team. Joining JMU's Lowery and W&M's Billbrough were Hofstra junior outfielder Danny Poma (.382, 28 RBI), VCU junior utility player Taylor Perkins (.320, 38 RBI) and UNC Wilmington junior designated hitter Thomas Pope (league-best .411, 44 RBI).

The awards were presented on Wednesday evening in Wilmington, N.C. on the eve of the 2011 CAA Baseball Championship, which gets underway Thursday afternoon at Brooks Field.

2011 ALL-CAA BASEBALL TEAM

(selected by CAA Head Baseball Coaches)