Grover & Samko Receive All-Region Honors from ABCA
WALTHAM, Mass. – Bentley University's Brandon Grover (Rocky Hill, Conn./Rocky Hill HS) and Mike Samko (Arlington/BB&N), a pair of first-team All-Northeast-10 Conference honorees, have been named to the Division II All-East Region second team by the American Baseball Coaches Association after excelling for the Falcons during the 2018 season.
Samko was also named to participate in the New England Intercollegiate Baseball Association (NEIBA) Joe Walsh All-Star Game, which will be held at McCoy Stadium in Pawtucket, R.I. on Thursday, May 31 (12 noon). The game pits the all-stars from Divisions II and III against those from Division I.
Grover, a junior outfielder who also spent time at first base for the Falcons, batted .337 and led the Falcons in a number of offensive categories, including home runs (7), RBI (38), slugging percentage (.566), doubles (13), total bases (94) and OPS (.976). The latter was the best by a Bentley player since Tom Nagy's 1.043 in 2014 and he had the most total bases by a Falcon since 2010.
Grover, who previously received honorable mention All-East recognition from the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, ranked third in the Northeast-10 in slugging as well as seventh in home runs and eighth in sacrifice flies (4). He had multiple hits 20 times and finished the season with an 11-game hitting streak.
The All-Region selection is the third of the year for Samko, the number two hitter in the Northeast-10. He previously earned first-team recognition from the Division II Conference Commissioners Association and second-team honors from the NCBWA.
Samko posted Bentley's highest batting average since 2010, finishing at .374 with his 67 hits including nine doubles, three triples and one home run. He scored a team-high 40 runs, had a .444 on base percentage and was second in both RBI (36), total bases (85) and OPS (.919).
Samko hit over .500 with runners in scoring position and reached base safely in 32 straight games during one stretch.
Bentley finished the season with a 20-21 record, including 19-16 against East Region opposition.