Thursday, May 27, 2021

DALLAS, Texas – A trio of First-Team All-GNAC selections can now call themselves All-Americans.

Montana State Billings junior shortstop Will Riley, Central Washington senior outfielder Justin Hampson and Northwest Nazarene freshman outfielder Grant Kerry were all named honorable mentions on the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Division II All-America Team.

Riley spent time as a utility player before becoming the Yellowjackets’ everyday shortstop. He is third in the GNAC with a .401 batting average, fifth with a .484 on-base percentage and sixth with a .662 slugging percentage. Riley leads the conference with 63 hits and 16 doubles and is second with 42 runs scored. He earned the first GNAC Player of the Week award of the season on March 1 after he batted .500 with five runs, seven RBI, two doubles, a triple and two home runs in four games against New Mexico Highlands and Colorado Mesa.

Hampson batted .465 in 2021 with a .542 on-base percentage and a .746 slugging percentage. He totaled 33 hits, 22 runs scored and 15 RBI and leads the conference with four triples. Hampson tied the GNAC record for hits in a conference game as he went 6 for 7 with four runs, three RBI and a triple in the Wildcats’ 30-6 victory at Saint Martin’s on April 11.

Kerry was named the GNAC Newcomer of the Year after two years at Boise State. He ranks fifth in the conference in slugging percentage (.667), sixth in batting average (.369) and tied for eighth in on-base percentage (.455). Kerry is second in the conference with 52 hits and third with 48 RBI and 11 home runs.

Kerry delivered what proved to be the game-winning hit with a two-run double in the ninth inning of the Nighthawks’ 9-6 win over Central Washington in the GNAC Championships on May 21. The Nighthawks claimed their first GNAC title in five years and earned the No. 2 seed in the West Regional, which will be played at their own Vail Baseball Field in Nampa, Idaho.