NEW YORK – On the eve of the 2024 BIG EAST Baseball Championship Presented by JEEP, the conference announced the regular-season awards and all-conference teams.
Leading Connecticut to its fourth consecutive BIG EAST regular season title, right-handed pitcher Ian Cooke was awarded BIG EAST Pitcher of the Year. Georgetown's senior first baseman Christian Ficca garnered Player of the Year. For the second straight season, Butler sported the best freshmen in the conference, with first baseman Kade Lewis earning the accolade in 2024. Rounding out the major awards, St. John’s head coach Mike Hampton and his crew were selected as the BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year.
Along with the four major regular-season awards, the conference announced the 2024 All-Conference First and Second Teams, preceding the BIG EAST Championship, which will take place at Prasco Park in Mason, Ohio from May 22-25.
The league's tournament teams: Connecticut, Georgetown, St. John’s and Xavier, made up 11 of the 15 all-conference first team selections, including 20 out of 29 of the combined members on the first and second teams.
UConn, the regular season champion and the No. 1 seed in the upcoming tournament, had a league-high four all-conference first team selections and four all-league second team members.
No. 3 seeded Georgetown had six selected players overall, including three on each team respectively. While No. 2 seed St. John’s had three on the first team and four overall.
The 15-member first team was made up of four starting pitchers, two relievers, each infield position, three outfielders, a catcher and a designated hitter. The second team was based on a non-positional vote.
Voting for the All-BIG EAST Team and major awards was conducted by the league's eight head coaches who could not cast a ballot for their own players. Ties were not broken.
Ficca earned the BIG EAST's top individual honor after a productive campaign for the Hoyas. The senior first baseman batted .373 in 20 league games and 75 at bats, while driving in 15 RBI, scoring 17 runs and collecting four doubles. Over the course of a 52-game season, Ficca produced a .362 (75-for-207) average, scoring 44 runs, 63 RBI, collecting 34 walks and producing 11 home runs. Defensively, he registered a .975 fielding percentage with 371 put outs and 24 assists.
Earning five league starts, Cooke boasted a 3-0 record against BIG EAST opponents to lead the Huskies back to the BIG EAST Championship as the No. 1 seed, in addition to garnering BIG EAST Pitcher of the Year accolades. Cooke powered the Huskies with a 2.70 ERA and striking out 61 batters in 43.1 innings. Over the course of the regular season, Cooke earned the start in eight contests, capping the regular season with a 4.50 ERA and a 4-1 record over 60.0 innings pitched. He allowed just 49 hits and 30 runs, with 81 strikeouts.
A key contributor for Butler, Lewis earned the start at first base in all 21 conference games and scored 14 runs to be named the BIG EAST Freshman of the Year. In league play he batted .348 with a .470 slugging percentage, while collecting 15 RBI and hitting three doubles. Overall, he earned 51 starts, batting .377 with 43 runs, 51 RBI, 12 doubles, four triples, 10 home runs and 18 walks. Defensively, he posted a near perfect .987 fielding percentage, garnering 267 put outs and 30 assists against just four errors.
After capping the 2023 regular season in sixth place at 8-12 in the BIG EAST Standings, Mike Hampton and his staff quickly turned things back around in 2024 with a 14-7 league mark and the No. 2 seed in the BIG EAST Championship. Overall, Hampton leads the Red Storm back to the tournament for the first time since 2019.
For a full list of the honorees see below.
2024 BIG EAST Regular Season Awards
Player of the Year
Christian Ficca, Georgetown, Sr., 1B
Pitcher of the Year
Ian Cooke, UConn, Jr., SP
Freshman of the Year
Kade Lewis, Butler, Fr., 1B
Coaching Staff of the Year
St. John's, Mike Hampton
All-BIG EAST First Team ^
Carter Dorighi, Butler, Jr., SS *
Joey Urban, Butler, So., OF
Brady Afthim, UConn, Jr., RP
Luke Broadhurst, UConn, Gr., 3B
Ian Cooke, UConn, Jr., SP
Korey Morton, UConn, Sr., OF *
Everett Catlett, Georgetown, R-So., SP
Christian Ficca, Georgetown, Sr., 1B
Joe Hollerbach, Georgetown, Gr., DH
Jimmy Keenan, St. John’s, So., C
Mario Pesca, St. John’s, So., SP
Garrett Scavelli, St. John’s, Sr., OF
Michael Gillen, Seton Hall, So., RP
Ryan Reich, Seton Hall, So., SP
Jared Cushing, Xavier, Gr., 2B
All-BIG EAST Second Team
Kade Lewis, Butler, Fr., 1B
Garrett Coe, UConn, Sr., SP
Maddix Dalena, UConn, So., 1B
Matt Garbowski, UConn, Jr., C
Bryan Padilla, UConn, Sr., 2B
Kyle Hess, Creighton, Jr., 2B
Nolan Clifford, Creighton, Sr., SS
Nolan Sailors, Creighton, Jr., OF
Cody Bowker, Georgetown, So., SP
Owen Carapellotti, Georgetown, Jr., C
Jake Hyde, Georgetown, Sr., OF
Louis Marinaro, St. John’s, So., RP
Jackson Balzan, Seton Hall, Gr., RP
Connor Misch, Xavier, So., DH
*Unanimous Selection
^Denotes a tie in voting