Four From MCCAA Named 2023 NJCAA Division II Baseball All-Americans
After a deep run into the NJCAA Division II World Series, three members of the Lansing Community College Stars baseball team have been named 2022-23 NJCAA DII All-Americans as Hunter Shaw, Hunter Lay and Shane Juday were honored for great seasons on the diamond. Jerad Berkenpas, a pitcher for Grand Rapids Community College (GRCC) and 2021-22 All-American, was also tabbed a 2022-23 All-American alongside the three Lansing standouts.
Berkenpas, Lay and Shaw were all named First Team All-Americans, while Juday was a Third Team All-American selection.
Shaw—the lone freshman All-American from the association—was impressive throughout his first season in a Lansing uniform. A left-handed pitcher, Shaw recorded 11 starts as part of 14 total appearances and went on to earn nine wins via four complete games in 62.2 innings pitched. Shaw held the opposition to 38 hits and only surrendered 11 earned runs across his near 63 innings of work for a 1.58 ERA. The southpaw finished the 2023 campaign with an impressive 88 strikeouts and a 12.64 K/9 ratio.
The only player from MCCAA and Region XII to earn back-to-back All-American nods in 2021-22 and 2022-23 is GRCC right-handed hurler, Jerad Berkenpas. Following another standout season on the mound for the Raiders, Berkenpas earned First Team All-American honors, a jump up from his 2021-22 Third Team All-American selection. This season, Berkenpas continued his winning ways by earning eight W's in 10 appearances, seven coming in complete game fashion. In 62.2 innings pitched, Berkenpas only allowed 10 earned runs and attacked the zone to the tune of a 71-strikeouts-to-six-walks ratio this season. The 71 punch outs in 62.2 innings was good for a 10.20 K/9 and the 10 earned runs across that span resulted in a 1.44 season ERA.
Lansing CC's Hunter Lay rounded out the 2022-23 First Team All-American selections. Lay, a sophomore infielder/utility player, registered a team-best .455 batting average, as well as a .540 on-base percentage and a .853 slugging percentage for one of the nation's top programs. In all, Lay connected on a whopping 22 home runs and hit 19 doubles and a pair of triples to earn the .853 slugging percentage (a team-high). The power numbers helped Lay drive in 82 runs, also a team-best, while scoring a team-high 90 runs.
This year's Western Conference Player of the Year, Shane Juday, rounded out a stellar season on the diamond with Third Team All-American honors. Juday earned his All-American nod by amassing 78 RBIs via 24 doubles, 11 home runs and a pair of triples as part of an 86-hit campaign. The sophomore infielder slashed .410/.496/.700 and also swiped 15 bases as part of an All-American season that helped lead the Stars to the semifinals of the NJCAA Division II World Series.
