Army West Point Athletics
Ruta, Simoes Headline Patriot League Postseason Baseball Honors
May 12, 2021 | Baseball
WEST POINT, N.Y. – Freshman outfielder Sam Ruta and senior infielder Tim Simoes headline a group of eight Black Knights earning Patriot League postseason baseball honors, the league announced today. Ruta was named the Patriot League Rookie of the Year, while Simoes was named the Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year.Â
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Ruta becomes the seventh Black Knight to earn the Rookie of the Year honor and the first since teammate Anthony Giachin in 2018.Â
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Simoes becomes the second Black Knight to be named Defensive Player of the Year, following in the footsteps of past teammate Jacob Hurtubise, the only other Black Knight to earn the honor. The award was first given in 2017 and two of the five honorees to date have called West Point home in Hurtubise and Simoes.Â
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Ruta was also named First Team All-Patriot League, along with senior third baseman Anthony Giachin. Giachin has now earned three First Team All-Patriot League honors during his career.Â
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Five Black Knights were named to the Second Team All-Patriot League in pitcher Anthony LoRicco, Connelly Early, infielder Kevin Dubrule, designated hitter Nick Manesis and first baseman Ross Friedrick. It is the first postseason honor for all five selections.Â
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2021 Patriot League Rookie of the Year
Sam Ruta, Army West Point, Fr., OF, Yardley, Pa./Pennsbury
2021 Stats: .281 BA (41-for-146), .445 SLG, .375 OBP, 17 R, 6 2B, 3 3B, 4 HR, 32 RBI, 5 SB
*Ruta led the Patriot League in RBIs (32) and finished fourth in home runs (4) while batting .281 (41-for-146) in 42 regular-season games.Â
*In League play, Ruta led all Patriot League rookies with a .337 (30-for-89) batting average while tying for the League lead with 24 RBIs and finishing third in slugging percentage (.528), helping the Black Knights' offense lead the League in batting (.304) and runs scored (174).Â
*In the field, Ruta had 69 putouts and seven assists on 77 chances with a fielding percentage of .987. He made starts in left field and at first base this season.
2021 Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year
Tim Simoes, Army West Point, Sr., 2B, Hopkinton, Mass./Xaverian Brothers
2021 Stats: 132 chances, 49 putouts, 81 assists, two errors, .985 fielding pct., 22 double plays
*Simoes finished the regular season with 81 assists and 49 putouts in 132 chances at second base, ranking among the League leaders with a .985 fielding percentage and 22 double plays.Â
*He showed his range by leading all Patriot League second baseman with 132 chances. Simoes made just two errors to help the Black Knights' hold opposing offenses to a League-low .243 batting average.Â
*The Hopkinton, Mass. native had a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage on 83 chances with 54 assists and 29 putouts in League play. His 16 double plays in League games tied for second in the Patriot League.Â
2021 Patriot League Baseball Major Awards
Player of the Year: Casey Rother, Lehigh, Jr., 1B
Pitcher of the Year: Mason Black, Lehigh, Jr., RHP
Rookie of the Year: Sam Ruta, Army West Point, Fr., OF
Defensive Player of the Year: Tim Simoes, Army West Point, Sr., 2B
Gene Depew Coach of the Year: Sean Leary, Lehigh
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2021 First-Team All-Patriot League Baseball Team
SP: Chris DiFiore, Bucknell, So., LHP
SP: Mason Black, Lehigh Jr., RHP
SP: Matt Svanson, Lehigh, Sr., RHP
RP: Sam Wurth, Lehigh, Sr., RHP
C: Angelo D'Acunto, Holy Cross, Jr.
1B: Casey Rother, Lehigh, Jr.
2B: Nico Valdez, Navy Jr.
SS: Justin Johnson, Lafayette, Jr.
3B: Anthony Giachin, Army West Point, Sr.                                              Â
OF:Â Sam Ruta, Army West Point, Fr.
OF: Chris Cannizzaro, Bucknell, Jr.
OF: Eric Cichocki, Lehigh Sr.
At-Large: Christian Policelli, Navy, Jr.
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2021 Second-Team All-Patriot League Baseball Team
SP: Anthony LoRicco, Army West Point, So., RHP
SP: Luke Rettig, Lehigh, Jr., LHP
SP: Charlie Connolly, Navy, Sr., RHP
RP: Connelly Early, Army West Point, Fr., LHP
RP: Trey Braithwaite, Navy, Sr., RHP
C: Adam Retzbach, Lehigh, So.
1B: Zach Stevens, Navy, Jr.
2B: Joe Gorla, Lehigh, Jr.
SS:Â Kevin Dubrule, Army West Point, So.
3B: Logan Keller, Navy, Fr.
OF: Justin Grech, Lafayette, Fr.
OF: Peter Ciuffreda, Lafayette, So.
OF: Zane Raba, Navy, Fr.
At-Large: Nick Manesis, Army West Point, Jr.
At-Large:Â Ross Frederick, Army West Point., So
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Ruta becomes the seventh Black Knight to earn the Rookie of the Year honor and the first since teammate Anthony Giachin in 2018.Â
Â
Simoes becomes the second Black Knight to be named Defensive Player of the Year, following in the footsteps of past teammate Jacob Hurtubise, the only other Black Knight to earn the honor. The award was first given in 2017 and two of the five honorees to date have called West Point home in Hurtubise and Simoes.Â
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Ruta was also named First Team All-Patriot League, along with senior third baseman Anthony Giachin. Giachin has now earned three First Team All-Patriot League honors during his career.Â
Â
Five Black Knights were named to the Second Team All-Patriot League in pitcher Anthony LoRicco, Connelly Early, infielder Kevin Dubrule, designated hitter Nick Manesis and first baseman Ross Friedrick. It is the first postseason honor for all five selections.Â
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2021 Patriot League Rookie of the Year
Sam Ruta, Army West Point, Fr., OF, Yardley, Pa./Pennsbury
2021 Stats: .281 BA (41-for-146), .445 SLG, .375 OBP, 17 R, 6 2B, 3 3B, 4 HR, 32 RBI, 5 SB
*Ruta led the Patriot League in RBIs (32) and finished fourth in home runs (4) while batting .281 (41-for-146) in 42 regular-season games.Â
*In League play, Ruta led all Patriot League rookies with a .337 (30-for-89) batting average while tying for the League lead with 24 RBIs and finishing third in slugging percentage (.528), helping the Black Knights' offense lead the League in batting (.304) and runs scored (174).Â
*In the field, Ruta had 69 putouts and seven assists on 77 chances with a fielding percentage of .987. He made starts in left field and at first base this season.
2021 Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year
Tim Simoes, Army West Point, Sr., 2B, Hopkinton, Mass./Xaverian Brothers
2021 Stats: 132 chances, 49 putouts, 81 assists, two errors, .985 fielding pct., 22 double plays
*Simoes finished the regular season with 81 assists and 49 putouts in 132 chances at second base, ranking among the League leaders with a .985 fielding percentage and 22 double plays.Â
*He showed his range by leading all Patriot League second baseman with 132 chances. Simoes made just two errors to help the Black Knights' hold opposing offenses to a League-low .243 batting average.Â
*The Hopkinton, Mass. native had a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage on 83 chances with 54 assists and 29 putouts in League play. His 16 double plays in League games tied for second in the Patriot League.Â
2021 Patriot League Baseball Major Awards
Player of the Year: Casey Rother, Lehigh, Jr., 1B
Pitcher of the Year: Mason Black, Lehigh, Jr., RHP
Rookie of the Year: Sam Ruta, Army West Point, Fr., OF
Defensive Player of the Year: Tim Simoes, Army West Point, Sr., 2B
Gene Depew Coach of the Year: Sean Leary, Lehigh
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2021 First-Team All-Patriot League Baseball Team
SP: Chris DiFiore, Bucknell, So., LHP
SP: Mason Black, Lehigh Jr., RHP
SP: Matt Svanson, Lehigh, Sr., RHP
RP: Sam Wurth, Lehigh, Sr., RHP
C: Angelo D'Acunto, Holy Cross, Jr.
1B: Casey Rother, Lehigh, Jr.
2B: Nico Valdez, Navy Jr.
SS: Justin Johnson, Lafayette, Jr.
3B: Anthony Giachin, Army West Point, Sr.                                              Â
OF:Â Sam Ruta, Army West Point, Fr.
OF: Chris Cannizzaro, Bucknell, Jr.
OF: Eric Cichocki, Lehigh Sr.
At-Large: Christian Policelli, Navy, Jr.
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2021 Second-Team All-Patriot League Baseball Team
SP: Anthony LoRicco, Army West Point, So., RHP
SP: Luke Rettig, Lehigh, Jr., LHP
SP: Charlie Connolly, Navy, Sr., RHP
RP: Connelly Early, Army West Point, Fr., LHP
RP: Trey Braithwaite, Navy, Sr., RHP
C: Adam Retzbach, Lehigh, So.
1B: Zach Stevens, Navy, Jr.
2B: Joe Gorla, Lehigh, Jr.
SS:Â Kevin Dubrule, Army West Point, So.
3B: Logan Keller, Navy, Fr.
OF: Justin Grech, Lafayette, Fr.
OF: Peter Ciuffreda, Lafayette, So.
OF: Zane Raba, Navy, Fr.
At-Large: Nick Manesis, Army West Point, Jr.
At-Large:Â Ross Frederick, Army West Point., So
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Players Mentioned
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