ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) – The rookie duo of Rylan Thomas and Joe Sheridan earned Perfect Game/Rawlings Freshman All-America Second Team honors on Thursday.
Both Thomas and Sheridan recieved the distinction from Collegiate Baseball Newspaper/Louisville Slugger, while Thomas also earned a nod from the NCBWA earlier this week. Both became the 12th and 13th freshmen to receive the accolade at UCF. It is also just the fourth time in program history that multiple Knights have garnered the honor.
Thomas connected on a UCF freshman record 14 long balls, which were the most homers by a Knight since 2012 and tied for second-most by a rookie in the nation. He drove in a team-leading 53 RBI, while tallying a team-best .530 slugging pct. The first baseman posted a .303 batting average with 46 runs scored.
The Winter Garden, Fla., native was tabbed as the American Athletic Conference Rookie Position Player of the Year and received All-Conference Second Team honors.
Sheridan also set a UCF freshman record by notching 10 victories in 2017 and is tied for the NCAA lead in wins with Hayden Wesneski from Sam Houston State. The left-handed pitcher registered a 10-4 record with a 3.25 ERA, 64 strikeouts and only 24 walks in 72.0 innings pitched.
The Oviedo, Fla., native tallied a 6-2 mark in conference play with a 3.18 ERA and 44 strikeouts in 45.1 innings of work.
The Knights completed an extremely successful first season under head coach Greg Lovelady with their first NCAA Regional appearance since 2012. UCF posted a 40-22 record and captured The American regular season championship with a mark of 15-9.
UCF's Freshman All-Americans
Jason Arnold, P – 1998
Matt Bowser, 1B – 1998
Dee Brown, OF – 2002
Clay Timpner, OF – 2002
Taylor Meier, RHP – 2004
Beau Taylor, C – 2009
Ryan Breen, C/DH – 2010
Joe Rogers, LHP – 2010
Chris Taladay, C/IF – 2010
Eric Skoglund, LHP – 2012
Zac Favre, RHP – 2013
Joe Sheridan, LHP – 2017
Rylan Thomas, 1B – 2017
