DAC Stacked with Some of Nation's Best
DALLAS – Dallas Athletic Conference baseball is flexing its muscles again this year.
Players from around the league are among the leaders in the National Junior College Athletic Association Division III statistical categories entering the final week of the regular season. As it stands, the top five leaders in hits all compete in the DAC.
Dallas College Richland outfielder Trey Smith leads the nation in hits (86), doubles (29), extra-base hits (41) and total bases (148).
Dallas College Eastfield outfielder Michael Caputo is second in the country in hits with 75. Dallas College Brookhaven outfielder Philip Orr is third (74), and Bears second baseman Isaiah Nava fourth (71). Dallas College Cedar Valley outfielder Ryan Hernandez is fifth with 70.
Eastfield first baseman Jorge Herrera ranks second in the country with 70 RBI. Herrera, Caputo and Hernandez are tied for third in doubles (20). Caputo is fourth in total bases (121) and tied for fifth in extra-base hits (30). Herrera is tied for eighth in hits (67). Eastfield third baseman Sebastian Palma is tied for seventh in RBI (58).
Richland outfielder Sean Amarante is tied for fifth in RBI (59), seventh in home runs (11) and ninth in total bases (109). Orr is 10th in total bases (106).
Dallas College North Lake right fielder and corner infielder Leo Salas is sixth in doubles (19), 11th in hits (66) and 11th in total bases (105).
Brookhaven right-handed pitcher Oliver Overlin leads the country in wins with nine. Eastfield left-hander Benjamin Sheppard is tied for second with eight. Bears right-hander Clayten Mixon and Eastfield right-hander Ryan Dyer are tied for seventh with seven.
Eastfield right-handed reliever Traelyn James and Cedar Valley southpaw Rendon Garcia are tied for sixth in saves with three.
League-leading and third-ranked Eastfield (43-9, 22-5 DAC) meets No. 15 Brookhaven (29-24, 17-10) in this week's series. No. 8 Richland (29-22) plays North Lake (22-31, 12-15). Cedar Valley (25-26, 9-18) and Dallas College Mountain View (10-38, 3-24) will wrap up the regular season.
The NJCAA Division III South Central District Tournament is set for May 14-17. A single-elimination round between the third-sixth place teams in the DAC will be held Wednesday, May 14 at the site of the third place team. Eastfield will host the double-elimination portion of the tournament May 15-17.