May 9, 2008

Bay City, Mich. - Eight Grand Valley State baseball earned All-GLIAC honors it was announced Thursday by the GLIAC office in Bay City. Voting was done among the league coaches. Senior RF Derek Hinke (Cedar Rapids, Iowa), junior LHP Andre Benjamin (Grand Ledge, Mich.) and junior DH Casey Robrahn (Jenison, Mich.) headlined the GVSU honorees by earning First-Team All-GLIAC plaudits.

Benjamin recorded a 10-1 mark with a 3.04 ERA in his first year with the Lakers. His 10 wins rank second on the single-season list. Andre allowed 27 runs, 23 of which were earned, while striking out 51 in 68 innings of work. Laker opponents hit just .255 off Benjamin.

Hinke earned first-team honors after garnering second-team plaudits in 2007. Hinke is hitting .405 with a team-best 52 RBIs, 17 doubles, six home runs and 70 base hits. Derek's 17 doubles is the third-best single-season in Laker annals, while his 70 base hits and 52 RBIs rank 10th. In addition, Hinke recently went over the 100-RBI mark in his two-year career at GVSU. Hinke has hit safely in 37 of 43 games played.

Robrahn earned first-team honors this season after garnering honorable mention plaudits as a sophomore. The 2006 GLIAC Freshman of the Year, Robrahn is hitting .438 with 63 hits, 38 RBIs, 12 doubles and 43 runs scored. Casey is second on the GVSU career hits list with 188.

Josh Hillyard (Grand Rapids, Mich./Kenowa Hills) earned second-team honors in his first year with the Lakers. He hit .345 with 50 hits, 28 RBIs and 42 runs scored while manning second base. LF Matt Nickels (Novi, Mich.) is hitting .383 with 36 hits, 26 runs scored and 17 RBIs. Nickels is 9-for-9 in stolen bases. RHP Brad Raj (Southgate, Mich./Anderson) is 6-1 with an ERA of 4.39. He tallied 41 strikeouts in 55.1 innings of work as opponents recorded a .260 batting average. Raj handled third base duties when not on the hill for the Lakers. He is hitting .322 with 28 hits, 32 runs scored and 13 RBIs in 27 games.

Senior CF Pat Radde (Grand Rapids, Mich./Forest Hills Central) and sophomore 1B Cory Maguire (Davison, Mich.) earned honorable mention plaudits. Radde, who earned first-team honors a year ago, is hitting .363 with 57 hits, 46 runs scored, 35 RBIs and 11 doubles. Radde was also 12-for-13 in stolen bases. Radde has 177 hits, has scored 122 runs and driven in 97 runs in his career with the Lakers. Maguire is hitting .345 with 41 hits, 39 RBIs, 23 runs scored and four home runs in 2008. Maguire has 98 hits and 57 RBIs in 93 career games.