Corvallis Skipper Brooke Knight Named WCL Coach of the Year.

Eleven Knights Earn All-WCL Honors Including Returnee Catcher Corey Davis of Wright State

Brooke Knight of the Corvallis Knights was the West Coast League's pick for Coach of the Year for the third time as announced last Thursday by WCL president Ken Wilson.

Knight led the Knights to the 2011 WCL championship and their fifth consecutive WCL West Division regular-season title.

A graduate of Oregon State and Crescent Valley High School, Knight directed the Knights to a 45-18 overall record. Corvallis swept Walla Walla in the WCL Championship Series for their second WCL title; their first came in 2008, Knight's first as the Knights' head coach.

Over four years at the Corvallis helm, Knight has compiled an impressive overall record of 170-66 and won two league crowns and four West Division titles.

"The coach often gets the credit but in this case it's definitely an award to be shared by the entire team, as evidenced by the large number of players (13) who earned postseason recognition," said Knight, whose team won its last nine WCL series and 27 of its final 33 games, without back-to-back losses in that span.

"Our club had great chemistry, understood and embraced their roles, never let up down the stretch and played hard until the last out of the last game. I had great help from (assistant coach) Billy Clontz and (pitching coach) Connor Lambert.

"It was really a pleasure coaching this group. They answered the bell ever night, especially over the final month, and they made our job much easier."

Knight was also WCL Coach of the Year in 2008 and 2009.

Corvallis shortstop Trent Oleszczuk of Seattle, catcher Corey Davis (pictured) of Wright State and closer Mark Trentacosta of UC Irvine earned first-team All-WCL honors in a vote of the league's coaches.

Oleszczuk (.262) was a stellar leadoff batter and solidified the infield defense. Davis (.335) hit .474 in the playoffs, and Trentacosta (4-1, 1.24) set a Corvallis record with 11 saves and allowed just one run in 23 relief appearances.

Knights' first baseman David Armendariz of Cal Poly (.286, 1-28), second baseman Corey Moore of Pacific Lutheran (.261, 1-24), utility man Ryan Gorton of Oregon State (.318, 2-28) and pitchers Dylan Stuart of UC Riverside (2-1, 1.38), Chris Johnson of Portland (6-0, 2.91), Max Beatty of PLU (6-2, 2.70), Jace Fry of Southridge High in Beaverton (2-1, 1.41) and Ben Wetzler of OSU (0-0, 0.38, two saves) were second-team All-WCL selections.

Third baseman Jimmy Allen of Cal Poly (.255, 2-23) and first baseman Sean Myrom of Concordia (.277, 2-18), the Home Run Derby champion at the WCL All-Star Game, earned honorable mention honors.

Alex Stanford (Gonzaga) of the Walla Walla Sweets was named the league's Most Valuable Player and Wenatchee right-hander Owen Jones (Portland) was the Pitcher of the Year.

Stanford hit .340 and set a WCL record with 66 hits while leading the Sweets to the post-season. Jones set a WCL regular-season record with seven wins and was 7-1 with a 2.00 ERA and 78 strikeouts in 77 innings.

The Cowlitz Black Bears won the Jim Dietz Sportsmanship Award, given to the team showing exceptional sportsmanship. First-year owner Eddie Poplawski of the Bellingham Bells was named the WCL Executive of the Year.

2011 All-WCL:

FIRST TEAM

First Base: Brock Gates (Pacific Lutheran), Wenatchee.
Second Base: Alex Stanford (Gonzaga), Walla Walla.
Shortstop: Trent Oleszczuk (Seattle), Corvallis.
Third Base: Adam Nelubowich (Washington State), Wenatchee.
Catcher: Corey Davis (Wright State), Corvallis.
Utility: Michael Benjamin, Jr. (Arizona State), Bend.
Outfield: Payden Cawley-Lamb (Gonzaga), Wenatchee; Breland Almadova (Hawaii), Wenatchee; Kyle Garlick (Oregon), Cowlitz.
Starting Pitchers: Adrian Sampson (Bellevue College), Bellingham; Alex Phillips (Kentucky), Wenatchee; Owen Jones (Portland), Wenatchee; Daniel Chavez (College of San Mateo), Bend; Jeff Gold (Oregon), Cowlitz.
Relief Pitcher: Mark Trentacosta (UC Irvine), Corvallis.

SECOND TEAM

First Base: David Armendariz (Cal Poly), Corvallis; Turner Gill (Portland), Klamath Falls.
Second Base: Corey Moore (Pacific Lutheran), Corvallis.
Shortstop: Mitchell Walding (St. Mary's HS, Stockton, CA), Cowlitz.
Third Base: Tyler Christian (San Jose State), Bend; Graham Saiko (Oklahoma State), Klamath Falls.
Catcher: Aaron DeGuire (Lewis-Clark State), Wenatchee; Braxton Miller (Lewis-Clark State), Cowlitz.
Utility: Ryan Gorton (Oregon State), Corvallis.
Outfield: Ryan Barnes (Oregon State), Wenatchee; Andrew Mendenhall (Oregon), Walla Walla; Rich Sanguinetti (Texarkana College), Klamath Falls.
Starting Pitchers: Dylan Stuart (UC Riverside), Corvallis; Chris Johnson (Portland), Corvallis; Max Beatty (Pacific Lutheran), Corvallis; Jace Fry (Southridge HS, Beaverton, OR), Corvallis; Tim Culligan (Nevada-Reno), Walla Walla.
Relief Pitcher: Jeff Brigham (Washington), Bend; Ben Wetzler (Oregon State), Corvallis.