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By Mike Anderson, NKU Sports Information HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Northern Kentucky University’s Evan McDole continues to pile up the superlatives, earning the Daktronics Midwest Region Player of the Year award on Wednesday. McDole was also selected to the All-Midwest Region first team, while four of his teammates – Kevin Dusold, Jason Cisper, Matt Winterhalter and Ryan Schmidt – were each named to the All-Region second team. The All-Midwest Region team is selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America. McDole, a junior from Cold Spring, Ky., also took the Great Lakes Valley Conference Player of the Year award last week. He is hitting .361, second on the team, and leads the Norse with 15 home runs on the year. McDole has also scored a team-best 56 runs and drawn 42 walks on the season, including five during last week’s GLVC Tournament. McDole maintains national top 100 rankings in home runs (26th), walks (11th), total bases (55th), on-base percentage (70th), slugging (80th), RBIs (92nd) and doubles (97th). Dusold, a senior from Cincinnati, Ohio, earns his second consecutive all-region second team selection after tearing apart the competition in the past week during the GLVC Tournament. Hitting behind McDole in the lineup, Dusold has made the opponents pay by driving in a team-best 66 runs on the strength of 29 extra-base hits while hitting .337 on the season. Dusold also earned a spot on the All-GLVC team for the second straight year. Cisper, a junior from Cincinnati, Ohio, has grown into one of the nation’s top hitters, batting .413 on the season to lead the Norse. Cisper also lays claim to a team-best four sacrifice flies and has stolen 15 bases in 19 attempts. Last season, Cisper earned a Gold Glove award from the American Baseball Coaches Association for his stellar defensive work in center field. Cisper was also an All-GLVC first-team selection this season. Winterhalter, a senior from Cincinnati, Ohio, is one of the most dominant pitchers in the GLVC, shutting down opposing batters for the second straight season as he claims a 7-2 record with eight saves in 32 1/3 innings of work. Winterhalter has also struck out 37 batters while maintaining a GLVC-best 0.84 earned run average and allowing opponents to hit just .175 against him. The right-handed fireballer has led numerous NKU comeback victories this season and serves as a flashpoint of intensity in the dugout. Winterhalter also took All-GLVC honors for the second straight season. Schmidt, a junior from Decatur, Ind., took his second All-Region nod this season after posting a 3-1 record with a 2.33 ERA, tops among NKU starters, and 52 strikeouts to go with just 17 walks. Ryan was a part of NKU’s dominant pitching staff that posted a GLVC best 3.82 team ERA while leading the Norse to their sixth 40-plus win season in program history. Ryan was also honored as an All-GLVC third-team selection. NKU returns to the NCAA Midwest Regional Tournament on Thursday, when they will open against Southern Indiana. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. from VA Memorial Stadium in Chillicothe, Ohio. FIRST TEAM
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