March 3, 2010
By Brian Ormiston
UCFAthletics.com
Orlando, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - Coming off a Freshman All-American season in 2009, UCF sophomore catcher Beau Taylor was selected to the 2010 Coleman Company-Johnny Bench Award Watch List by the Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission. It's the third-straight year the Knights have placed a catcher on the prestigious list.
The award is given annually to the top Division I collegiate catcher, and the list will be updated to include other candidates during the year. The watch list will eventually be narrowed down to 10 semifinalists on May 19, then three finalists June 2 prior to NCAA Regionals and the MLB Draft. A final vote among the national committee will occur during the College World Series, and all finalists will be brought to Wichita, Kan., where the winner will be announced at the 13th Annual Greater Wichita Sports Banquet on July 1.
Taylor joins Brandon Romans (2009) and Robert Lara (2008) as UCF representatives on the list in the last three campaigns. Two Knights have advanced to the semifinal stage: Drew Butera in 2005 and Ryan Bono in 2006.
One of the major reasons UCF baseball has jumped out to a 6-1 start this season, Taylor claims a .485 batting average in 2010, pounding out three homers while driving in eight and scoring nine runs from the cleanup position in the lineup. A career .360 hitter in a Black and Gold uniform, the backstop was the Conference USA Hitter of the Week after the Knights swept Savannah State to open the year.
In 2009, Taylor was the first catcher in UCF history to be honored as a Freshman All-American. He led all C-USA catchers with 26 runners caught stealing, and paced the team with a .371 average in league games.
Taylor and the Knights are getting prepared to host North Florida Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. and Central Michigan over the weekend beginning Friay.
Season tickets for the 2010 campaign are currently on sale, and reserved bleacher seats are only $150. Faculty/staff, youth and senior season tickets are $99. To purchase tickets, call 407-823-1000 or visit UCFAthletics.com.
And for the latest news on the Knights, log on to UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site, which also contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, is also the home of UCF's new online apparel store. Also visit UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures, and become a follower of the Knights at Twitter.com.