Following one of the best baseball seasons in recent history, the Coffee Trojans placed six players on the All-Region team, including the Co-Offensive Player of the Year and Co-Freshman of the Year.
Sophomore infielder Jimmy Timothy, last year’s region Freshman of the Year, ascended to the top of the region offensive heap, bringing home Co-Offensive Player of the Year honors. Timothy, who played in 30 games, hit .416 with 22 RBI. He also amassed 10 doubles, three triples, and a .475 on-base percentage.
Catcher/designated hitter Conley McDaniel was named Co-Freshman of the Year. McDaniel played in 15 games, hitting .458 with one home run, 10 RBI, and four doubles.
Shortstop Ben Fussell made the All-Region First Team as a middle infielder (a look at Fussell’s stats and career are below). Two Coffee pitchers made First Team: Gavin McElroy (starting pitcher) and Evan Lingenfelter (relief pitcher). Barrett Harrell earned Second Team Outfield honors.
McElroy, a junior, pitched in 14 games, starting 13. He was 5-3 with a 2.36 ERA and 80 strikeouts to 26 walks in 68 1/3 innings. Opponents hit just .219 when he was on the mound.
Lingenfelter, also a junior, pitched in 14 games, starting four. He ended the season 2-0 with a 2.75 ERA, 42 strikeouts, 10 walks, and a .247 opposing batting average in 40 2/3 innings.
Harrell played in all 35 games, hitting .296 (.403 OBP) with two home runs, 25 RBI, three doubles, and three triples. He will play at South Georgia State College next year.
The following players received team awards at the annual Coffee High baseball banquet.
Fussell received the team Offensive Player of the Year Award. He led the team with 138 plate appearances, hitting .384 (.471 OBP) with four home runs, 26 RBI, 10 doubles, and a triple. Fussell, a senior, will continue his playing career at Mercer University next year. He finishes his Coffee High career with one major offensive record, tied with another, and near the top in several categories.
Robert Preston Jr./DouglasNow.com
Fussell’s 10 career triples are one ahead of the previous record, which was set by Willis Crockett from 1982-1984. Fussell also tied the career doubles record with 40. KG White, one of the greatest hitters in Coffee history, set that record from 1981-1984. White also holds the career hits record with 173; Fussell finished with 159, 14 off the mark. Fussell also was just off the single-season hits record. Another Coffee great, Andre “Pulpwood” Smith, known more for his football prowess than his baseball exploits, set the season hits record in 1982 with 55. Last season, Fussell tallied 51 hits on his way to Region Co-Offensive Player of the Year honors and a spot on the All-State team. Fussell’s 139 runs aren’t far off from White’s career record of 149, either.
McElroy was named team Pitcher of the Year, catcher Eli Vickers (junior) was named Defensive Player of the Year, and Best Teammate awards went to Eli Wood (junior), Barrett Harrell (senior), and Morgan Lewis (senior).
The players voted for team MVP; that award went to McElroy as well.
The Trojans finished the season 22-13, advanced to the Elite Eight of the state playoffs for the first time in 12 years, and were the state’s #7 team in 5A, according to the MaxPreps rankings.
