Bradley Baseball Recruiting Class Receives National Attention

Bradley University Baseball 9/24/2009 2:30:00 PM

PEORIA, Ill. - Collegiate Baseball newspaper recently released its annual list of top-40 NCAA Division I baseball recruiting classes for the 2009-10 season. For the first time in school history, Bradley appeared on the rankings, cracking the top-50 at No. 48. The only Missouri Valley Conference baseball program ahead of the Braves in the poll was Wichita State, who came in at No. 19.

"This class is a great start and a solid foundation for what we are trying to build here for years to come," said second-year head coach Elvis Dominguez. "To be mentioned for the first time among the best in the country is a tremendous honor for Bradley and Bradley Baseball."

The 2009 Bradley Baseball recruiting class features 16 players from seven different states, including 13 freshmen and three junior college transfers. Of the 16 recruits, six are pitchers, four patrol the outfield, two play infield and one is a catcher. Three others are listed as playing multiple positions, including outfield, infield and catcher. Nine of the squad's new members are from the Land of Lincoln.

Three players, RHP Patrick Cooper (Danville, Ky./Boyle County H.S./Des Moines Area C.C.), RHP John Nasshan (Niles, Ill./Niles West H.S.) and OF Christian Segar (Mendon, N.Y./McQuaid Jesuit H.S.), were selected in the 2009 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. All three declined the opportunity to play professionally and honored their commitment to coach Dominguez and the Bradley Baseball program.

Cooper, RHP Gus DeQuesada (Miami, Fla./Christopher Columbus H.S.) and OF Brian Martin (Glen Ellyn, Ill./Montinie Catholic H.S./College of DuPage) received All-American honors last season, while five players garnered all-state attention.

"This class is a great credit to our coaching staff who identified and recruited these outstanding high school and junior college student-athlete to Bradley," said Dominguez. "These young men could have gone anywhere in the country for school, but chose our great university not only because of the great national reputation it has academically, but also because of the vision and direction of our baseball program."

Bradley Baseball Recruiting Class

Player             Pos.   Ht.  Wt.  Hometown

Josh Camalick      3B/C   5-11 185  Burr Ridge (Ill.) Hinsdale Central H.S.

David Compitello   IF/OF  6-1  160  Schaumburg (Ill.) H.S.

Patrick Cooper     RHP    6-3  205  Danville (Ky.) Boyle County H.S./Des Moines Area C.C.

Gus DeQuesada      RHP    6-2  210  Miami (Fla.) Christopher Columbus H.S.

Mike Falsetti      C      6-1  190  Elmwood Park (Ill.) Fenwick H.S.

Eric Holmes        LHP    6-2  195  Wilton (Iowa) H.S./Des Moines Area C.C.

Andy Johnson       RHP    6-1  190  Medina (Minn.) Wayzata H.S.

Rob Kennedy        RHP    6-0  180  Chicago (Ill.) Northside Prep

Jason Leblebijian  IF/OF  6-1  175  Arlington Heights (Ill.) Prospect H.S.

Brian Martin       OF     5-11 175  Glen Ellyn (Ill.) Montini Catholic H.S./College of DuPage

John Nasshan       RHP    6-6  195  Niles (Ill.) West H.S.

Chris Ritter       IF     6-2  195  Madison (Wis.) Edgewood H.S.

Bob Schuch         OF     6-3  210  Evergreen Park (Ill.) Brother Rice H.S.

Christian Segar    OF     6-0  190  Mendon (N.Y.) McQuaid Jesuit H.S.

EJ Sexton          1B     6-2  230  West Bend (Wis.) H.S.

Mike Tauchman      OF     6-1  200  Palatine (Ill.) William Fremd H.S.

Josh Camalick - 3B/C - Burr Ridge (Ill.) Hinsdale Central H.S. - Camalick earned special mention all-state honors from the Chicago Tribune and DuPage County all-area honors from the Daily Herald after setting school records with a whopping .554 batting average, 10 home runs and 45 runs batted in.

David Compitello - IF/OF - Schaumburg (Ill.) H.S. - Earned Cook County all-area honors for a third straight season by batting .401 with 18 stolen bases ... Finished third in Schaumburg High School history with 121 career base hits ... Of the high school seniors in the state of Illinois, Compitello was ranked 49th by Perfect Game Crosschecker.

Patrick Cooper - RHP - Danville (Ky.) Boyle County H.S./Des Moines Area C.C. - Selected in the 34th round by the Arizona Diamondbacks during the 2009 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft ... 2009 NJCAA Division II All-American and Region 11 Pitcher of the Year ... Ranked fourth nationally with 106 strikeouts in 72.1 innings pitched (13.2 strikeouts per nine innings) in 2009 ... Helped DMACC to a final No. 3 national ranking and a berth in the NJCAA Division II World Series ... Pitched in the prestigious Cape Code Baseball League this summer and was named a Cape Code League All-Star.

Gus DeQuesada - RHP - Miami (Fla.) Christopher Columbus H.S. - DeQuesada was tabbed a High School All-American by Collegiate Baseball News ... The Miami-Dade County Class 5A-6A Pitcher of the Year won his first 10 decisions before suffering the hard-luck loss in the Florida 6A state championship game ... Received first-team all-state honors and honorable mention All-American honors as a senior.

Mike Falsetti - C - Elmwood Park (Ill.) Fenwick H.S. - As a senior, Falsetti was recognized as the top defensive catcher in the state of Illinois ... Earned special mention all-state honors from the Chicago Tribune ... Perfect Game Crosschecker rates him No. 30 overall in the state of Illinois and 777th among all high school seniors in the country.

Eric Holmes - LHP - Wilton (Iowa) H.S./Des Moines Area C.C. - Holmes (10-2) tied for ninth nationally in NJCAA Division II with 10 wins in 2009 ... He helped DMACC to a final No. 3 national ranking and a berth in the NJCAA Division II World Series.

Andy Johnson - RHP - Medina (Minn.) Wayzata H.S. - An honorable mention all-conference selection, Johnson was the second-ranked prospect in the state of Minnesota and ranked 565th nationally among all high school seniors by Perfect Game Crosschecker ... Ended his high school career with a 10-5 record, 2.35 ERA and 96 strikeouts, while also batting .413.

Rob Kennedy - RHP - Chicago (Ill.) Northside Prep - His team's Most Valuable Player, Kennedy earned all-city and All-Public League honors ... The No. 26 ranked prospect in the state of Illinois by Perfect Game Crosschecker and rated 734th nationally among all high school seniors.

Jason Leblebijian - IF/OF - Arlington Heights (Ill.) Prospect H.S. - A repeat selection on the Cook County all-area team, Leblebijian hit .453 with 32 RBI's this spring ... Also earned all-conference honors ... The No. 74 prospect in the state of Illinois by Perfect Game Crosschecker.

Brian Martin - OF - Glen Ellyn (Ill.) Montinie Catholic H.S./College of DuPage - Martin was a NJCAA Division III All-American and shared the Division III single-season record with 13 triples in 2009 ... Drove in 131 runs and stole 80 bases in 101 junior college games the last two seasons.

John Nasshan - RHP - Niles (Ill.) West H.S. - Selected in the 48th round by the Chicago Cubs during the 2009 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft, Nasshan was 10-1 with a 2.21 ERA and struck out 60 in 52 innings as a senior at Niles West High School.

Chris Ritter - IF - Madison (Wis.) Edgewood H.S. - Ritter excelled on the mound and at the plate for Edgewood High School ... Batted .473 with 29 RBI's and was 5-0 with a 1.36 ERA on the bump ... Also selected as the first-team designated hitter/utility player for the All-District 5 squad by the Wisconsin Baseball Coaches Association.

Bob Schuch - OF - Evergreen Park (Ill.) Brother Rice H.S. - Earned third team all-state from the Chicago Sun-Times and special mention all-state honors from the Chicago Tribune after batting .455 with a .758 slugging percentage and 29 RBI's in 30 games ... Ranked as the No. 28 prospect in the state of Illinois by Perfect Game Crosschecker and 749th nationally among all high school seniors.

Christian Segar - OF - Mendon (N.Y.) McQuaid Jesuit H.S. - Although a hamstring injury limited his play as a senior, Segar was selected in the 49th round of the 2009 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft by the Chicago Cubs.

EJ Sexton - 1B - West Bend (Wis.) H.S. - A ferocious power hitter, Sexton batted .368 with 10 home runs and 36 RBI's as a senior at West Bend High School ... Selected to play on the East team at the Wisconsin Baseball Coaches Association All-Star Classic June 26 ... The 14th-ranked prospect in the state of Wisconsin by Perfect Game Crosschecker.

Mike Tauchman - OF - Palatine (Ill.) William Fremd H.S. - His league Player of the Year, Tauchman was a second-team all-state selection by the Chicago Tribune ... Also earned Cook County all-area honors after hitting .494 with 10 doubles, seven home runs and 38 RBI's ... Ranked as the No. 33 prospect in the state of Illinois by Perfect Game Crosschecker and the 876th nationally among all high school seniors.

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