OVERLNAD PARK, Kan. – Johnson County Community College led all schools with 11 players named to the All-Kansas Jayhawk Conference East Division first, second and honorable mention teams. The all-conference honors are voted on by the league's head coaches.
JCCC had five first-team selections highlighted by freshman right-handed pitcher Trey Ziegenbeien, who was also selected the Freshman of the Year. Joining him on the first-team were sophomore outfielder Anthony Amicangelo, sophomore right-hander Zachary Ebert, first baseman Malik Williams and sophomore shortstop Chris Esposito. These five also were selected as All-Region VI performers. Amicangelo, Williams and Ebert were first-team picks. Esposito and Ziegenbein were named to the second-team.
Second-team honors went to sophomore third baseman Blake Shannon, freshman outfielder Landen Wood and freshman right-hand relief pitcher Paul Rector. Rounding out the honors were sophomore second baseman Mason Hartman, freshman catcher Anthony Slaughter and sophomore right-hander Sloan Thomsen as honorable mention selections.
Ziegenbein logged a team-high 85.1 innings in 2019, and finished the season 10-3 with 109 strikeouts and an ERA of 2.64. His 109 strikeouts are the 11th-most recorded in conference history and are new season-best at JCCC. He ranks second in the conference in strikeouts, tied for second in wins, third in ERA and third in complete games with seven. He also ranks fourth in strikeouts per nine innings at 11.50. Ziegenbein posted double digits in strikeouts six time this season, including a season-high 13 in a 4-2 win over Metropolitan. He also earned conference pitcher of the week in week seven.
Amicangelo had a tremendous season at the plate. He batted .492 (91-for-185) with 23 doubles, five triples, six home runs, 62 runs and 68 RBIs. His .492 average led the conference and ranks second in the NJCAA. It also is the second-best recoded in JCCC history. He led the team in hits, doubles and RBIs. He also led with 29 multiple-hit games and 21 multiple-RBI games. His 91 hits and 29 multi-hit games are the third most in team history. He tied the school record with five hits against Colby in the first game at the Central District Tournament and tied the longest hitting streak in team history at 24 straight. He also had a 17-game streak during the campaign which ties the sixth longest. In week seven, Amicangelo was selected the KJCCC Player of the Week.
Ebert leaves as one of the most dominant pitchers to play for the Cavaliers. He finished the season 12-1 with 107 strikeouts in 84.1 innings and an ERA of 3.20. His 12 wins led the conference and has him tied for first in the NJCAA. He also tied the season record wins at JCCC, and established a new career total with 19. Ebert also shattered JCCC's strikeout record finishing his career with 212, 50 more than the previous best, and he became just the fifth pitcher in conference history to register 200-plus career strikeouts. In 2019, Ebert topped double-digits in strikeouts five times, including a season-high 13 in a 5-3 win over Neosho County. In week five, Ebert was selected the KJCCC Pitcher of the Week.
Williams, a third-team All-America selection last year, batted .346 (71-for-205) with 18 doubles, two triples, 10 home runs, 44 runs scored and 54 RBIs in 2019. He also produced 23 multiple-hit games and 13 multiple-RBI games. Williams left his mark as one of the top offensive producers to wear a Johnson County uniform. He set the career record for multi-hit games with 54, and ranks second in multi-RBI games with 34. He also ranks third in hits (160), tied for sixth in doubles (33), sixth in home runs (27), fourth in extra base hits (64) and fourth in RBIs (132).
Esposito posted a .354 average (62-for-175) with 16 doubles, four triples, six home runs, 46 runs scored and 46 RBIs. He recorded 15 multiple-hit games, 11 multiple-RBI games and had team's second longest hitting streak at 20 games, which is the fifth-longest in team history. He also had 19 stolen bases. In week 9, Esposito was selected the KJCCC Player of the Week after batting .483 with three doubles, three home runs, nine runs and 15 RBIs during the week.
Shannon finished fourth on the team in hitting with an average of .392 (47-for-120) with five doubles, a triple, two home runs, 45 runs and 26 RBIs. He also recorded 15 multiple-hit games and six multiple-RBI games.
One of the fastest players in the league, Wood led the conference and ranks fifth nationally with 50 stolen bases. That total ranks fifth in team history. For the season, Wood batted .368 (75-for-204) with 15 doubles, five triples, three home runs, 32 RBIs and a season record 81 runs scored. His 75 hits were second on the team and he tied for the team lead in triples. Wood also recorded 22 multiple-hit games, eight multiple-RBI games and 15 multiple-steal games.
Rector developed into the Cavaliers' top closers in 2019. He made 18 appearances and logged 33.1 innings all in relief. He also finished with an ERA of 3.24 and earned five saves, which ranks tied for eighth at JCCC.
Hartman hit .308 (45-for-146) with four doubles, a triple, 48 runs scored, 29 RBIs and 24 stolen bases. He also was solid with his glove, committing just three errors in 134 field chances for a percentage of .978. Hartman also registered 12 multiple-hit games and seven multiple-RBI games. For his career he had 36 multi-hit and 20 multi-RBI games, which rank 14th and 15th respectively on JCCC's career charts.
Slaughter batted .331 (43-for-130) with 12 doubles, four home runs, 31 runs scored and 39 RBIs. He recorded 14 multiple-hit games and nine multiple-RBI games. He also had a .990 fielding percentage, committing just two errors in 205 chances. In a 16-1 win against Labette in mid-March, Slaughter tied a game record drawing for walks.
Thomsen was another key starter in the Cavaliers rotation in 2019. He finished 10-1 with 71 strikeouts in 68.2 innings, and posted an ERA of 3.67. He also only walked 21 batters and held opposing hitters to a .255 average. Thomsen finished with double figure strikeouts once when he mowed down 11 batters in a 5-2 win over Metropolitan in late February.