Roseburg’s Johnson named SWC Player of the Year, Thompson Coach of the Year
The Roseburg Indians finished the regular season atop of the Southwest Conference baseball standings and that success has earned the Tribe some of the top honors in the All-Conference postseason voting.
Senior Jake Johnson was selected Player of the Year by a vote of the Southwest Conference coaches, while Troy Thompson has been named the Coach of the Year for the third time in six seasons after guiding the Indians to their first SWC title in five years.
Johnson had a dominating season on the mound, in the field and at the plate to earn his third all-conference honor. He previously earned pitching honors as a junior (first team) and a sophomore (second team).
“Really exciting and really relieving, because I’ve put in a lot of work this offseason and really had a goal this season,” Johnson said. “It’s a really special feeling, knowing that I won that award and not a lot of people win that award. Especially, no one in my family won it, so now I got a little bit of bragging rights.”
Johnson’s older brothers Cody and Caden both played for Roseburg High School.
The senior played in all 25 games for the Indians. Johnson pitched in 11 games, starting 10, and compiled an 8-1 record with one save over 62 2/3 innings. He tallied 76 strikeouts to only 19 walks and had a 2.57 ERA.
At the plate, Johnson hit .400 during the regular season with 17 RBIs. He had six doubles, a triple and a home run to go along with 10 walks and only seven strikeouts. As a fielder, Johnson split time between first and third base and committed just three errors.
“I was really hoping to have a better year at the plate this year, especially because it’s my senior year. This offseason me and Dane (St. Clair) were hitting all the time and putting a lot of work in. It was really cool to see that hard work pay off,” Johnson said.
Roseburg had three first team selections, indfielders Paxton Burke, Cal Robbins and designated hitter Luke Robbins.
Burke started every game at shortstop, providing excellent coverage up the middle. The junior led the Indians in on base percentage (.490) and walks (18) as the leadoff batter and hit .375 with 16 RBIs, 21 runs and six stolen bases.
Cal Robbins, a sophomore, started a majority of his games at third, but also played first base and catcher. The transfer from Douglas High School led the Indians in batting with a .410 average, 23 RBIs, 25 runs, four home runs, six triples and nine doubles.
Senior Luke Robbins, the older brother of Cal and also a Douglas transfer, spent most of the season as Roseburg’s designated hitter and provided a .314 average, 15 RBIs, four doubles and 12 walks.
Seniors Dane St. Clair and Kaden Austin were joined by freshman first baseman Danner Wertz as second team selections. This was the second All-Conference honor for St. Clair and the first for Austin and Wertz.
Sheldon, the conference runner-up, had the most players recognized with two second team selections and seven honorable mention honorees joining sophomore Cam Thomas, who was named the SWC Pitcher of the Year.
North and South Medford led the conference with four first team selections each.
SOUTHWEST CONFERENCE
BASEBALL ALL-LEAGUE TEAMS
Player of the Year — Jake Johnson, sr., Roseburg.
Pitcher of the Year — Cam Thomas, soph., Sheldon.
Coach of the Year — Troy Thompson, Roseburg.
First Team
PITCHERS — Macen Baker, sr., North Medford; Tristan Mallari, sr., South Medford; Mason Christian, soph., Willamette.
CATCHERS — Brady Patterson, soph., North Medford; Nathan Bassett, jr., Grants Pass.
FIRST BASEMAN — Evan Rhoden, sr., South Medford.
INFIELDERS — Paxton Burke, jr., Roseburg; Jace McGowan, sr., Grants Pass; Cal Robbins, soph., Roseburg; Keegan Painter, jr., South Medford.
OUTFIELDERS — Easton Curtis, sr., North Medford; Colton Miller, sr., North Medford; Owen Leavens, sr., South Medford; Gino Humphrey, soph., South Eugene.
UTILITY — Evan Valenzuela, jr., Grants Pass.
DESIGNATED HITTER — Luke Robbins, sr., Roseburg.
Second Team
PITCHERS — Dominic Daffron, sr., North Medford; Jake Lewis, jr., South Medford; Bayden Morris, sr., Grants Pass.
CATCHERS — Easton Douglas, jr., South Medford; Andrew Evans, sr., Willamette.
FIRST BASEMAN — Danner Wertz, frosh., Roseburg.
INFIELDERS — Jose Leon, jr., Sheldon; Grady McQuillan, sr., South Medford; Kaden Austin, sr., Roseburg; Jackson Doughty, jr., Willamette.
OUTFIELDERS — Tyson Rather, sr., Willamette; Dane St. Clair, sr., Roseburg; Jaxson Detzler, jr., Sheldon; Treyton Powers, soph., Grants Pass.
UTILITY — Brodie Butler, jr., Willamette.
Honorable Mention
PITCHERS — Berkley Grandberry, jr., Willamette; Eli Wallace, jr., Sheldon; Keaton Welch, frosh., Sheldon. CATCHER — Asher Olson, sr., Sheldon. FIRST BASEMEN — Braeden Reese, sr., Grants Pass; Parker Edwards, soph., Sheldon. INFIELDERS — Wyatt Michaels, sr., Sheldon; Liam Donlon, soph., South Eugene; Cam Holland, soph., Grants Pass; Landon Cook, frosh., Willamette. OUTFIELDERS — Chase Colling, frosh., Sheldon; Brendan Van Ryzin, sr., South Eugene; Remi Ballenger, soph., Willamette. UTILITY — Evan Colling, sr., Sheldon; Gavin Bush, sr., South Eugene.
