Cumberland (Tenn.) Bulldog Matt Greener named Player of the Year

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) has announced the 2010 NAIA Baseball All-Americans, as selected by the NAIA-Baseball Coaches Association (BCA) All-America Selection Committee. Senior Matt Greener of Cumberland University (Tenn.) headlines the All-Americans as the third baseman is the 2010 Rawlings-NAIA National Player of the Year.



Greener becomes the first Cumberland player to win Player of the Year honors since the awards' inception in 1983. His Bulldogs are playing in today's Avista-NAIA World Series and guaranteed no worse than a fourth-place finish. He is hitting .380 (5-for-13) with one home run and four RBIs during the World Series.



During a season that has seen Cumberland go 56-9 and make its 11th World Series, Greener has been an instrumental part of the success. On the year, he led the NAIA in hits (112) and RBIs (95) and tied for first in home runs (26). In 241 at-bats, the product of Jupiter, Fla., hit .465 with 26 doubles. An everyday player, Greener has played in 64 of the team's 65 games this season. He has 37 multi-hit games, including 13 of three or more base knocks. He began the season on an 11-game hitting streak and amazingly, he has recorded a hit in 59 of the 64 games that he has appeared in.



If the Bulldogs win the World Series, Greener will be a player on the title team for the first time since Lewis-Clark State won the World Series in 2008 and Kyle Greene was the Player of the Year.



Greener is one of four Bulldogs on the All-America First Team. Pitcher Shawn Schaefer and outfielders Troy Frazier and Kris Miller join Greener to post the most First Teamers of any school this year.



Two of the three other teams still participating in the World Series, Embry-Riddle (Fla.) and Lee (Tenn.) place three players total on the First Team. Lee's Junior Rodriguez and JJ Costantino join Embry-Riddle's Austin Quinn on the First Team. Point Loma Nazarene did not place anyone.



Jono Waugh of Southern Poly State (Ga.) is the only returning First Team All-American from a season ago. The senior shortstop is listed on the Second Team.

The All-America Teams consist of 17 members on the First Team, 17 on the Second Team and an Honorable Mention Team, which is limited to 34 players. The HM Team is not position-specific.

The 2010 NAIA Coach of the Year will be announced in early January at the ABCA Coaches Convention.