Two Marietta baseball players earn All-Mideast Region honors in 2008
Knowlton named to first team and Cimino earned second team honors

May 21, 2008
MARIETTA, Ohio — The 2008 American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA)/Rawlings NCAA Division III All-Region Teams were announced Wednesday (May 21) afternoon and two Marietta College baseball players earned recognition. Junior right-handed pitcher T.J. Knowlton (Greenwich/Mapleton) earned first team honors, while junior third baseman Cameron Cimino (Boardman) was selected to the second team.

54 players were selected to one of the three All-Mideast Region teams. First-team All-Mideast Region players are automatically considered for All-America honors, which will be announced Thursday (May 22) night at a banquet to kick off the NCAA Division III World Series at the Radisson Paper Valley Hotel in Appleton, Wisconsin. Marietta had its 32-year streak of having at least one All-America selection snapped in 2007.

Knowlton, a first team Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) honoree, led Marietta and the OAC in wins with a 9-2 record. The right-hander tied for the team lead in appearances (16) while leading the Pioneers in earned run average (3.04), games started (14), complete games (5), shutouts (1) and innings pitched (83.0). Opponents batted just .265 against Knowlton, who earned All-OAC second team honors in 2007.

Cimino, who started 38 of his 40 games played, had a breakout season at the plate and eared All-OAC first team honors in 2008. The third baseman, which also saw time as the designated hitter, led the Pioneers in hits (47), doubles (11), triples (3), RBI (39), slugging percentage (.622) and walks (26). Cimino also finished second on the team in home runs (5) and third on the squad in batting average (.370). He tied for the team lead in multiple-hit games (14) and was second in multiple-RBI games (11), which included a seven RBI performance against Mount Union.

Marietta, under the direction of fifth-year Head Coach Brian Brewer, finished second in both the OAC regular season and the OAC Tournament, just missing a bid to the NCAA Division III Mideast Regional Championship. The Pioneers, who played arguably the toughest schedules in their 118-year history, ended the year 23-20 overall and 13-5 in the OAC.