Dec. 10, 2007
EVANSTON, Ill. -
Northwestern senior second baseman Jake Owens (Stevens Point, Wis./Pacelli) has been named to the 2008 Brooks Wallace Player of the Year Award Watch List.
Owens led the Wildcats with a .385 batting average and 18 stolen bases last season en route to earning second-team All-Big Ten honors. His 85 hits during the 2007 campaign set a Northwestern single-season record, while his 39 RBI were second-best on the team.
Owens is joined by eight other Big Ten players on the preseason list, including Matt Bischoff (P - Purdue), Nate Hanson (3B - Minnesota), Justin Miller (C/IF - Ohio State), Matt Nohelty (OF - Minnesota), Drew O'Neill (RHP - Penn State), Zach Putnam (P/OF/1B - Michigan), Derek VanBuskirk (1B/LF - Michigan) and Ryne White (1B/OF - Purdue).
The Wallace Award is presented to the nation's top collegiate baseball player in conjunction with the College Baseball Hall of Fame's annual induction festivities. The 2008 award banquet will be held Thursday, July 3, in the United Spirit Arena on the campus of Texas Tech University.
Last year's Brooks Wallace award went to Vanderbilt pitcher, David Price. Price was the first overall pick in the 2007 First-Year Player Draft and is currently pitching in the Tampa Bay Rays organization. The 2006 winner was standout pitcher/designated hitter Brad Lincoln of Houston. Nebraska's Alex Gordon, now with the Kansas City Royals, took home the 2005 trophy. The inaugural award was given in 2004 to Kurt Suzuki of Cal State Fullerton, who is now catching for the Oakland A's.
The Wallace Award is a dedication to the memory of the former Texas Tech player and assistant coach Brooks Wallace. Wallace was a slick-fielding shortstop at Texas Tech from 1977 to 1980. A four-year starter, he was named All-Southwest Conference and All-District his senior year. He led the Red Raiders to their first-ever appearance in the Southwest Conference Tournament in 1980. After playing two years in the Texas Rangers organization, he returned to Texas Tech and served as a graduate assistant and later as an assistant coach. In the summer of 1984, he was diagnosed with cancer and fought the disease courageously until his death on March 24, 1985, at age 27. The Plano, Texas, native was married to the former Sandy Arnold and they had one daughter, Lindsay Ryan.
Northwestern opens its 2008 season Feb. 22 when it begins a three-game series at Cal State Northridge.
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