NORFOLK, Va. (NSUAthletics.com) – Norfolk State University senior utility man Danny Hosley was voted the 2021 MEAC Player of the Year, leading a total of six All-MEAC selections for the Spartans as the conference released its postseason baseball awards on Tuesday.
Hosley earned first-team All-MEAC honors at shortstop and was joined on the first team by senior second baseman Alsander Womack, senior first baseman Mason Velasquez and junior outfielder Dionte Brown. Hosley also picked up a second-team All-MEAC nod at pitcher while fellow hurler, junior James Deloatch, was voted to the third team.
Hosley has starred at the plate, on the mound and in the field for the Spartans. He has won MEAC Pitcher of the Week four times and Player of the Week honors twice, including this current week. He leads the MEAC and ranks 34th nationally with a .387 batting average while also recording seven doubles, two triples, one homer and 20 runs batted in. He is also a threat on the bases, with nine steals, and has made just four errors while primarily playing shortstop.
When he's not manning the left side of the infield, Hosley doubles as one of the top pitchers in the conference. He is 6-1 with a 2.98 ERA in 10 appearances, nine of them starts. He has struck out 70 batters and allowed just 54 hits in 66.1 innings pitched. Hosley has thrown six complete games, tied for second-most in the country. Hosley was also named Monday as one of 10 semifinalists for the John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award. He is NSU's second MEAC Player of the Year all-time, following fellow two-way star Alex Mauricio in 2017.
Womack earned his second career first-team All-MEAC selection, following the one from his sophomore season in 2019. The two-time Preseason MEAC Player of the Year is hitting .345 with 10 doubles, three home runs, 33 RBI, 45 runs scored and 15 stolen bases entering this week’s MEAC Championship. Womack leads the MEAC in hits (60) and runs scored, while ranking top five in average, steals, doubles, RBIs and total bases. A two-time MEAC Player of the Week this season, Womack recently recorded his 200th career hit, tied for eighth-most in school history.
Velasquez has been a steady presence in the middle of the NSU lineup. He is batting .279 with nine doubles, four home runs and 23 runs batted in. He ranks sixth in the MEAC with 27 walks and has posted a .391 on-base percentage. His nine doubles are tied for eighth in the MEAC. Velasquez has 12 multi-hit games this year.
Brown serves as the catalyst to NSU’s offense in the lead-off spot. He is the MEAC’s leader in stolen bases, with 19, which ranks him 37th nationally. Brown also ranks seventh with a .325 batting average, is tied for fifth with 51 hits, ranks sixth with 35 runs scored and is second with two triples. Brown has also notched seven doubles, one homer and 16 RBIs.
Deloatch has flourished in his first season as a member of NSU’s weekend rotation. The left hander is tied for Hosley for the team-lead with six wins. Overall, Deloatch is 6-2 with a 2.98 ERA, has thrown two complete games and struck out 58 hitters in 57.1 innings pitched. Opponents are batting just .225 against him. Deloatch was named MEAC Pitcher of the Week once this season.
NSU’s six All-MEAC selections ties the 2007 and 2016 teams with the most in program history.
North Carolina Central took home the other top honors besides Player of the Year. Ryan Miller was voted Pitcher of the Year, Chet Sikes Rookie of the Year and Jim Koerner Coach of the Year.
