All-Tribune First Team
Player School Pos. Yr. Comment
Kevin Cron Mountain Pointe C Sr. POY set single-season (27) and career (59) state HR records
Joey Curletta Mountain Pointe 1B Jr. Hit .426 with 21 HR, 56 RBI for 5A-I champs
Jamie Westbrook Basha 2B So. Young star hit .533 with 8 HR, 10 SB
Jeff Paschke Valley Christian SS So. Hit .620 with 17 HR, 72 RBI for 2A champions
Mitch Nay Hamilton 3B Sr. Fiesta Region POY hit .495 with 1.071 slugging percentage
Cole Gleason Red Mountain OF Sr. Hit .500 with 12 HR, 41 RBI, 23 BB
Ethan Springston Seton Catholic OF Sr. East Sky POY batted .533 with 11 HR, 54 RBI, 19 BB
Garrett Jeffries Mesquite OF Jr. Hit .509 with 6 HR, 43 RBI for top-seeded Wildcats
Nathaniel Causey Gilbert DH Sr. ASU commit batted .479 with 13 HR, 49 RBI
Willie Ethington Mountain View Util Jr. Big game pitcher and dangerous batter for Toros
Zach Davies Mesquite RHP Sr. 12-0 with a 1.68 ERA; hit .405 atop order
Chris Freudenberg Saguaro LHP Sr. 10-0, 1.21 ERA, 60 K’s in 44 2/3 IP
Player of the Year: Kevin Cron, Mountain Pointe.
Coach of the Year: Shane Hilstrom, Perry: Led the 12th-seeded Pumas to the 5A-II championship game.
All-Tribune Second Team
Player School Pos. Yr. Comment
Shaun Chase Desert Vista C Sr. Hit .427 with 13 HR; Reached base 56 percent of time
Chris Akmon Saguaro 1B Sr. Hit .504 with 9 HR, 56 RBI for 4A-I champs
Scott Kingery Mountain Pointe 2B So. Hit .494 with 10 HR, 39 RBI, 11 SB
Riley Unroe Desert Ridge SS So. Hit .491 with 9 HR, 57 RBI, 31 SB
Scott Hoffman Desert Ridge 3B Sr. Batted .436 with 15 HR, 65 RBI
Steve Casey Pinnacle OF Sr. Co-Desert Valley Region POY
Nick DeRegis Chaparral OF Sr. Hit .437, 11 HR, 10 2B, 48 RBI, .977 slugging percentage
Brandon Boggs Higley OF Sr. Hit .560 with 6 HR, 51 RBI; very good defensively
Ryan Cooper Valley Christian DH Sr. Hit .545 and set 2A record with 19 HR
Kyle Jorgensen Corona del Sol Util Sr. Batted .474 with 7 HR; slugged .897
Nick Valenza Horizon LHP Sr. 5A-II first team selection by coaches
Andrew Naderer Arcadia LHP Jr. 8-2, 1.73 ERA with 68 K’s
Honorable mention
Apache Junction: Nick Saathoff, Sr., IF; Arcadia: Brendan Satran, Jr., OF; Thomas Schellhardt, Sr., P; Basha: Anthony Conforti, Jr., IF; Brophy: Dan Graybill, Jr., IF; Joe Maggi, Sr., OF; Chris Beall, Jr. OF; Cactus Shadows: Sean O’Grady, Jr., OF; Joey Ford, Sr., P/OF; Connor Sabanosh, Sr., C; Brent Nurre, Sr., IF; Campo Verde: Ryan Rodriguez, So., IF; Chandler: Eric Barriga, Sr., IF; Kevin Carr, Sr., P; Chaparral: Joey Bielek, Sr., IF; Kyle Toth, Sr., IF; Nick Diamond, Jr., P; Peter Lenstrohm, Sr., P; Corona del Sol: Aaron Siple, Sr., OF; Coronado: Alex Buya, Sr., C; Wyatt Richardson, Sr., IF; Houston Edwards, Jr., IF; Harlan Gatewood, Sr., P/OF; Desert Mountain: David Greer, So.., IF; Drew McLaughlin, Jr., IF; Lucas Jacobi, So., OF; Austin Davis, Sr., OF; Desert Ridge: Dylan Barrett, Sr., P; Justin Donovan, Jr., IF; Dobson: Ryan Starzl, Sr., OF/P; Desert Vista: Casey Thomas, Sr., IF; Colby Woodmansee, So., IF; Ryan Modi, Sr., OF; Gilbert: Drew Stankiewicz, Sr., IF; Gilbert Christian: Micah Izquierdo, Fr., IF; Ben O’Donnell, Jr., P/IF; Hamilton: Trent Goodrich, Jr., IF; Malcolm Holland, Sr., OF; Colton Frabasilio, Sr., C; Jake Andrews, Sr., P; Derek Hill, Sr., P/IF; Highland: Gentry Kinsella, Sr., IF; Nolan Whittlesey, Sr., DH; Cody Moffet, Jr., P/IF; Higley: Kevyn Nunez, Jr, OF; Horizon: John Rubino, Sr., IF; Nick Valenza, Sr., P; Dean Jackson, Jr., P; Marcos de Niza: Nick Fatica, Jr., OF; Dallas Sigrist, Jr., OF; McClintock: David Renteria, Sr., IF; Richard Martinez, Sr., IF; Mesa: Eric Lenz, Sr., IF; Mesquite: Lane Doty, Sr., OF; Justin Rosales, Sr., IF; Seth Fretheim, Jr., C; Mountain Pointe: Anthony Balderrama, Sr., IF; Jordan Kipper, Sr., P/IF; Quinn Tucker, Sr., OF; Mountain View: Hayden Rogers, Sr., P; Notre Dame: Casey Scott, Sr., IF; Brian Poupore Sr., OF; Joey Greco, Sr., IF; Joey Luvisi, Sr., IF; Tayler Scott, Sr., P; Paradise Valley: Fernando Arrelano, Sr., UT; Perry: Alex Burridge, Sr., C; David Walker, Sr., IF; Pinnacle: Kris Ayers, Sr., IF; M.J. Hubbs, So., OF; Jake Winters, Sr., P/IF; Queen Creek: Adam Brzezcek, Sr., P; Julian Sandoval, Sr., OF; Chad Leonard, C, Jr.; Collinn Bonngard, IF, Jr.; Spencer Kottcamp, Sr., IF; Red Mountain: Aaron Smith, Jr., IF; Ryne Dean, Sr., C; Forrest Hendershot, Sr., P; Saguaro: Austin Anderson, Jr., OF; Zach Gibbons, Jr., OF; Brandon Demerest, Sr., IF; Matt Morris, Jr., IF; Kyle Young, Sr., OF; Reed Austin, Jr. IF; Travis Steinheiser, Sr. RHP; Scottsdale Christian: Logan Domenico, Sr., OF; Logan Gansei, Sr., P; Brad Winsbury, Sr., IF; Seton Catholic: C.J. McGrady, Jr., IF; Troy Ruggiero, Jr., P; Skyline: Ricky Alvarez, Jr., IF; Trent Keefer, Sr., P; St. Mary’s: Lucas Treffers, So., OF; Torin Sadow, Sr., IF; Tempe: Jose Flores, Sr., IF; Valley Christian: Will Lane, Sr., P/IF; Tyler Hunt, Sr., P/IF; Westwood: Gerardo Arzaga, Jr., P/IF: Josh Villenueva, Sr., OF; Williams Field: Adam Frank, Sr., P; Jake McDavid, Sr., IF/P; Drew Wahlers, Sr., IF; J.D. Layton, Sr., OF.
Memorable Moments from the 2011 season
The crushing crew: Mountain Pointe’s offense was prolific from the start of the season until the finish, when Jordan Kipper lined an RBI single to win the 5A Division I state title over Hamilton in extra innings. Catcher Kevin Cron was the biggest bopper, hitting 27 home runs to outdistance the previous record by five. He also set a career home run record with 59. Joey Curletta added 21 home runs on the season and the Pride hit a state-record 87 on the season.
Perry’s push: The 12th-seeded Pumas went 4-0 to start the state playoffs, defeating the Nos. 1, 4, 5, and 8 seeds to make the championship game without a loss. They had an early lead on Chaparral, but eventually lost to finish as state runners-up. Still, it was an unlikely and impressive run for a Perry team that was worried about simply making the postseason a few weeks prior.
Saguaro’s streak: The Sabercats repeated as 4A Division I state champs by reeling off 27 consecutive wins at one point, and beating Peoria Sunrise Mountain in the title game. Saguaro had a ton of talent, but still had the focus day in and day, as evidence by setting a 4A record for wins in a season with 34.
