Tiffin, Ohio – January 19, 2010 – D3Baseball.com announced its list of 2010 preseason All-Americans and Heidelberg University had two deserving honorees. Junior second baseman Gar Keen (Sparta, Ohio / Highland) and junior right handed closer Andy Lowe (Fort Wayne, Ind. / Carroll) were named to the second team.
Heading into 2010, Heidelberg is the three-time defending Ohio Athletic Conference Regular Season Champions and the two-time defending OAC Tournament winners. Overall the program has won four regular season titles and three tournament trophies, all of which have came under the guidance of 11th-year head coach Matt Palm. The Berg is coming off its second-straight appearance in the Mideast Regional, and finished with a 37-9 overall record. A season ago, the Berg was among the nationally ranked the entire year, reaching a program-best ranking of third.
Heidelberg begins its 2010 campaign at the Snowbird Classic in Port Charlotte, Fla. March 3-8. On its way home from Florida, the Berg will stop in LaGrange, Ga. for a four-game swing before returning to Ohio for its home opener against Bluffton University March 16.
Keen is coming off a season were he was tabbed an American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Third Team All-American and a D3baseball.com Honorable Mention All-American. His All-American selections came on the heels of earning his first all-region honor. Keen is a two-time All-OAC First Team recipient. He is a solid hitter that knocked in a team-leading, and a school record, 61 runs. Keen also led the team with 17 doubles and eight home runs. At the plate his 72 hits were second on the team, while his .377 batting average and 48 runs scored were third. In the field, Keen had a .977 field percentage and helped to turn 31 double plays.
Lowe joins Keen as a two-time All-American as a sophomore. He was named to the D3baseball.com All-American Second Team and the ABCA All-American Third Team. He is a two-time all-region honoree, earning first team honors in 2009. Lowe is the reigning Kent Tekulve Pitcher of the Year in the Ohio Athletic Conference and is a two-time all-league recipient. Last season, Lowe led the team, and the OAC, while standing among the nation’s leaders with a 1.34 ERA. His earned run average also set a new single-season mark. He posted a 3-1 record and tied his own single-season record of nine saves. He also led the team with a .191 opponent’s batting average and was second with 61 strike outs. Lowe not only tied the single season record for saves for the second-straight year, but set a new career mark at 18 and counting.