June 26, 2006

ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. - St. Bonaventure junior first baseman Brian Pellegrini and junior left fielder Joe Rizzo have been named to the 2006 American Baseball Coaches Association/Rawlings All-Northeast Region Team.

Pellegrini was named to the first team while Rizzo was a second team choice.

Both players were also All-Region selections in 2005.

Pellegrini, the 2006 Atlantic 10 Conference Player of the Year, batted .367 with 13 home runs, 57 runs batted in, 15 doubles and 46 runs scored. He led the Bonnies and ranked among the Atlantic 10 leaders in batting, home runs, RBI, doubles and runs. His 69 hits broke the Eric Wilson's single season school record and his 13 homers is the second-best mark in school history. In his first season playing first base, Pellegrini posted a .993 fielding percentage.

Rizzo, who like Pellegrini was an Atlantic 10 All-Conference first team selection, batted .319 with 11 home runs and 54 RBI. It was the second straight season he hit 11 homers, a mark that is tied for third place in St. Bonaventure's single-season record book.

The head coaches of the 42 schools in the Northeast Region select the All-Region Team. Rizzo and Pellegrini are the sixth and seventh ABCA All-Region selections from St. Bonaventure since 2001.

Pellegrini and Rizzo, who will both return next season, led St. Bonaventure to a second place finish in the Atlantic 10. The Bonnies also were runners-up in the A-10 Tournament and finished the season 29-21 overall and 18-8 in conference play.