Official Release

Wichita, KS – The Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission has announced that Wagner senior catcher Nick Dini (Monroe Township, NJ/Monroe Township) is one of 75 backstops to be named to the official watch list for the 2015 Johnny Bench Award presented by BaseballSavings.com, given annually to the top Division I collegiate catcher.

For Dini, it marks the second straight season in which the Garden State native was selected as a nominee for the award. In 2014, the fourth-year catcher batted .303 during Northeast Conference (NEC) play, with 24 runs, eight doubles, one triple, four home runs, 23 RBI and 18 stolen bases, tied for the second-most in the circuit while his four home runs were tied for seventh. Additionally, Dini threw out 39.4 percent (13-of-39) of runners trying to steal and currently is one of five Division I players to have started in every contest for his team (170 straight games) 

The watch list will be updated to include other candidates throughout the season until May, 4 before being narrowed down to the semifinalists that will be announced on May 14. Ballots will be sent to the national voting panel at the end of May for a vote to determine the three finalists who will then be announced on June 2, 2015. A final vote among the national committee will then occur during the College World Series. All finalists will be brought to Wichita and the winner will be announced at the 18th Annual Greater Wichita Sports Banquet on June 25.

"We are extremely appreciative to BaseballSavings.com and Mr. Johnny Bench for supporting this prestigious award," said Bob Hanson, President/CEO of the Sports Commission. "They are the ones who make all of this possible."

While Bench is remembered for his offense, he may have had the greatest impact behind the plate as he was the first receiver to use a protective helmet in the field, popularized catching one-handed, and kept his throwing hand behind his back to protect it from foul tips.

Bench's career honors include: National League Rookie of the Year (1968); National League Most Valuable Player (1970, 1972); World Series Most Valuable Player (1976); 14-time All-Star and 10-time Gold Glove winner. In 1980, he set an endurance record by catching 100+ games for 13 consecutive seasons. Bench was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in January 1989 with the fourth-highest percentage of total votes ever cast.

Johnny Bench presented Kennesaw State catcher, Max Pentecost, with the award last June in Wichita, KS. Will Allen of the University of Mississippi and Kyle Schwarber of Indiana University were the other finalists for the award.

 

2015 Johnny Bench Award presented by BaseballSavings.com Watch List

Player	Year	School
Riley Adams	Freshman	University of San Diego
Dylan Alexander	Sophomore	California State University, Northridge
Max Andersen	Senior	Miami University
Jake Atkinson	Freshman	Utah Valley University
Aaron Barnett	Sophomore	Pepperdine University
Danny Bermudez	Junior	Western Carolina University
John Bormann	Senior	University of Texas at San Antonio
Austin Bossart	Senior	University of Pennsylvania
Ben Breazeale	Sophomore	Wake Forest University
Cassidy Brown	Sophomore	Loyola Marymount University
Shaun Chase	Senior	University of Oregon
Andrew Clow	Senior	Mount St. Mary's University
Gavin Collins	Sophomore	Missisippi State University
Nick Collins	Junior	Georgetown University
Zack Collins	Sophomore	University of Miami
Danny De La Calle	Senior	Florida State University
R.J. Devish	Junior	Rutgers University
Dustin Dhanani	Senior	Alabama A&M University
Roger Diaz	Senior	Grambling State University
Nick Dini	Senior	Wagner College
Chris Eades	Junior	Southeastern Louisiana University
Cody Gaertner	Junior	Ohio University
Charles Galiano	Junior	Fordham University
Mitch Ghelfi	Junior	University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Roger Gonzalez	Junior	Winthrop University
Aaron Gretz	Senior	Ohio State University
Chase Griffin	Senior	Georgia Southern University
Brad Hartong	Senior	Indiana University
Parker Hills	Senior	Lafayette College
Ryan Hissey	Junior	College of William & Mary
A.J. Kennedy	Junior	California State University, Fullerton
Tyler Lawrence	Sophomore	Murray State University
Steven Leonard	Junior	Campbell University
Stuart Levy	Senior	Arkansas State University
Tanner Lubach	Senior	University of Nebraska
Charlie Madden	Sophomore	Mercer University
Kevin Martir	Junior	University of Maryland
Jon Mayer	Junior	Bucknell University
Patrick Mazeika	Junior	Stetson University
Max McDowell	Junior	University of Connecticut
Adam McGinnis	Sophomore	Western Illinois University
Matt Menard	Sophomore	Baylor University
Ryan Messex	Senior	Western Kentucky University
Scott Mitchell	Junior	Southeast Missouri State University
Sean Murphy	Sophomore	Wright State University
Chris Okey	Sophomore	Clemson University
Brian Olson	Senior	Seattle University
Josh Reavis	Senior	Radford University
John Clay Reeves	Senior	Rice University
Austin Rei	Junior	University of Washington
Ian Rice	Junior	University of Houston
Jarett Rindfleisch	Sophomore	Ball State University
Daniel Rizzie	Junior	Xavier University
Joey Roach	Junior	Georgia State University
Chris Robinson	Senior	Morehead State University
Jake Rogers	Sophomore	Tulane University
Mike Rosenfeld	Senior	Duke University
Daniel Salters	Junior	Dallas Baptist University
Tyler Sanchez	Junior	St. John's University
Kade Scivicque	Senior	Louisiana State University
Nick Sebastian	Senior	New York Institute of Technology
Brian Serven	Sophomore	Arizona State University
Evan Skoug	Freshman	Texas Christian University
Will Smith	Sophomore	University of Louisville
Josh Spano	Senior	High Point University
Garrett Stubbs	Senior	University of Southern California
Brett Sunde	Junior	Western Michigan University
Robert Swenson	Senior	Chicago State University
Cameron Toole	Junior	McNeese State University
Josh Treff	Junior	Northeastern University
Erik VanMeetren	Senior	University of Nevada- Las Vegas
Taylor Ward	Junior	Fresno State University
Travis Watkins	Sophomore	East Carolina University
Samm Wiggins	Senior	Houston Baptist University
Matt Winn	Senior	Virginia Military Institute

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