MAY 15, 2007
CALARCO, VENARCHICK NAMED TO ESPN THE MAGAZINE
DISTRICT II ALL-ACADEMIC BASEBALL SQUAD
WILKES-BARRE -- A pair of King's College
student-athletes have been named to the 2007 ESPN the Magazine District
II All-Academic Baseball Team as second-team selections.
Players chosen for King's included senior pitcher Caleb Calarco (New
Ringgold/Tamaqua) and sophomore third-baseman Jon Venarchick
(Lehighton/Lehighton).
They were selected from a large pool of nominees from all NCAA Division
II and III colleges within District II, which encompasses Pennsylvania,
New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, West Virginia, and Washington D.C. The
duo led King's baseball to a school-record 28-11 season and a
third-place finish in the Freedom Conference Tournament. They also
helped the Monarchs to the 2006 Freedom Conference title.
Calarco
enjoyed a brilliant season for the Monarchs as he was named the Freedom
Conference Pitcher and Player of the Year. Calarco batted .369 (52-141)
with nine doubles, two home runs, and 27 RBI. As a pitcher, he posted a
7-2 record with a 1.69 ERA and 53 strikeouts in 58.2 innings of work.
Academically, Calarco was named to the Dean's List seven semesters,
posting a 3.72 grade-point average as a secondary education major.
He is a member of the Kappa Delta Pi Education Honor Society, Phi Alpha
Theta History Honor Society, and the King's Aquinas Honor Society. He
was also a three-time Middle Atlantic Conference All-Academic choice and
was honored as the MAC Baseball Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
Calarco has also been extremely active in the community, serving as a
frequent volunteer with Challenger Division Baseball and Wilkes-Barre
Veterans Memorial Hospital. He has raised money for Doug Dobson Memorial
Fund and volunteered for Baseball Day at Pocono Mt. High School for
mentally handicapped children. Calarco is a two-time Freedom Conference
first-team team selection and was the 2006 Freedom Conference Tournament
most valuable player.
Venarchick,
meanwhile, completed his second year as a starter with a .380 (62-163)
batting average with 12 doubles, four triples, two home runs, 35 RBI,
and a .540 slugging percentage.
In the classroom, he owns a 3.50 grade-point average as a biology major
and is a two-time Dean's List selection. Venarchick has also performed a
number of community service functions, including working with Parent's
of Downe Syndrome, Challenger Division Baseball, volunteering with the
elderly at River Street Manor, Tutoring fourth-grade students at Pringle
Elementary. He is also an MAC All-Academic selection.
"Caleb and Jon represent the best of college athletics in that they are
not only outstanding student-athletes, they are also active in the
community and making a difference in the lives of others," said King's
sports information director Bob Ziadie, who nominated both players for
the award. "Both recognize the importance of being well-rounded and have
put in a tremendous amount of time performing all of their academic
responsibilities, athletic obligations, and community service functions
at a high level."
