FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  
S-54-99-00  
Thursday, May 4, 2000

FIVE ETOWN PLAYERS NAMED FIRST TEAM MAC BASEBALL ALL-STARS, AASAN NAMED COMMONWEALTH MVP, JONES NAMED COMMONWEALTH CO-COACH OF THE YEAR

ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. --- Five members of the Elizabethtown College baseball team have been named Middle Atlantic Conference Commonwealth First Team All-Stars. Senior pitcher Derik Aasan (Cary, NC/Smithtown, NY), junior right fielder Jared Ness (McPherson, KS/McPherson), junior pitcher Bryan Pittinger (Westminster, MD/South Carroll), senior third baseman Chris Romig (Beavertown, PA/West Snyder) and sophomore catcher Chris Turtell (Lindenhurst, NY/Lindenhurst) have all been named first team conference all-stars.

In addition, Aasan has been named the Most Valuable Player of the MAC Commonwealth, and first-year Elizabethtown head coach Matt Jones has been named MAC Commonwealth Co-Coach of the Year.

Aasan, a senior pitcher, has started 12 games and appeared in 14 for the Blue Jays in 2000. He leads the staff in victories (8), innings pitched (76-2/3), strikeouts (44) and complete games (2). He has a 2.11 ERA and has held opposing hitters to a .249 batting average. He has dominated MAC Commonwealth teams this season, running up a conference record of 5-0.

A two-year letterwinner, he started ten games and appeared in 15 for the Blue Jays in 1999. He led the team in ERA (2.02), saves (3), innings pitched (75-2/3), complete games (7) and strikeouts (56). He was second on the team with six wins in 1999. He is majoring in business administration/management at Elizabethtown and is a 1996 graduate of Smithtown (NY) high school.

Ness, a junior right fielder, has played in 33 games for the Blue Jays. He currently leads the team in hits (45), doubles (13) and triples (3). He is among the team leaders in batting average (.378), runs (26), RBI (28), slugging percentage (.563) and on base percentage (.424).

A two-year letterwinner, he appeared in 26 games, including 21 starts for the Blue Jays last season, collecting 18 hits, 11 runs batted in, 14 runs scored, three doubles and 10 walks. He is majoring in marketing at Elizabethtown and is a 1997 graduate of McPherson High School.

Pittinger, a junior relief pitcher, has appeared in 23 games for the Blue Jays. He leads the team in earned run average (0.99), saves (9) and has held opponents to the lowest batting average (.150). He has also compiled three wins in relief this season, and he was ranked second in the nation in saves as of April 24. He has more than doubled the former Elizabethtown program single season save record of four.

A two-year letterwinner, he appeared in 14 games, including nine starts in 1999. He went 5-6 on the mound and was among team leaders in earned run average (4.30), innings pitched (58-2/3) and strikeouts (51). His five wins were third best on the squad. He is majoring in computer engineering with a minor in mathematics at Elizabethtown and is a 1997 graduate of South Carroll High School.

Romig, a senior third baseman, has played in 32 games for the Blue Jays in 2000. He currently leads the team in home runs (6), slugging percentage (.633) and walks (18), and is among the team leaders in hits (38), runs (23), RBI (38), batting average (.349), doubles (11), and on base percentage (.446). In his most recent game May 3, he hit the 43rd double of his collegiate career, tying the Elizabethtown program record for most career doubles.

A three-year letterwinner, he started all 38 games for the Blue Jays last season. He led the team in batting average (.377), slugging percentage (.549), hits (46), runs batted in (32), doubles (17), triples (2) and total bases (67) in 1999.
In addition, he was named a MAC Commonwealth First Team All-Star in 1999. He is majoring in business administration and marketing management at Elizabethtown and is a 1996 graduate of West Snyder High School.

Turtell, a sophomore catcher, has played in all 34 games for the Blue Jays in 2000. He currently leads the team in runs batted in (40) and triples (3), and is among the team leaders in hits (41), batting average (.320), doubles (11) and home runs (2).

A one-year letterwinner, he appeared in 30 games, including 28 starts, for the Blue Jays last season. He finished among the team leaders in batting average (.337), hits (33), runs scored (24), total bases (37) and stolen bases (8) in 1999. He is majoring in accounting at Elizabethtown and is a 1998 graduate of Lindenhurst High School.

The Elizabethtown baseball team is currently 22-12 overall. The team finished its 2000 MAC Commonwealth season with a 9-5 record after losing its first five games in a row.

The Blue Jays won their last nine consecutive games to capture the MAC Commonwealth title, clinch home field advantage in the opening game of the MAC playoffs, and clinch their first NCAA Regional berth since 1994.

The Blue Jays' next game takes place Friday, May 5 at Quakertown Memorial Park in Quakertown, PA against Susquehanna in the MAC Playoffs. Game time is 11:00 a.m. NCAA Regional competition is set to begin May 18.