THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, June 2, 1996 TAG: 9605310206
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 14 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BILL LEFFLER, CURRENTS SPORTS EDITOR
LENGTH: 74 lines
AN OUTSTANDING SEASON as a hitter earned Wilson's Jason Morgan honors as the city's top high school baseball player for the 1996 season.
And, for the second year in a row, Churchland's Robert Jones was the runner-up.
The annual All-Portsmouth squad was picked by Currents after nominations from coaches in the city.
Churchland's Aaron Bailey was chosen as an outfielder for the third consecutive year. He was the only repeater last year and is one of four holdovers this year.
Churchland dominated the 12-player first unit, which included two pitchers, a designated hitter and a utility player, by grabbing six positions. The other all-city players repeating on the team all are Truckers - outfielder Otis Jones, pitcher Chris Kelley and first baseman Robert Jones, who was picked as a pitcher last year.
Wilson placed three, Norcom had two and Alliance Christian had one.
The squad has seven seniors, three juniors, one sophomore and one freshman. Players were not considered for more than one position on either all-city unit.
MVP Morgan, a senior in eligibility, batted .512 for the Presidents and smacked five home runs. He drove in 19 runs. Last year's most valuable player was Churchland second baseman Gary Denette.
A pitcher/first baseman, Morgan was chosen at the utility position.
He was named to the second unit as a pitcher with a 3-3 record.
``I've never seen a high school player with more power at the plate than Jason,'' said Wilson coach Billy Kline.
Alliance's Shannon Insley joined Churchland's Kelley as a first-team pitcher. The junior right-hander was a four-game winner in a rebuilding year for coach Charlie McKay.
Pete May of Churchland edged Wilson's Paul Connolly for the catching slot. May batted .381 and had a sparkling .995 fielding average. May, a senior, was elevated from last year's second unit. Connolly is only a sophomore and also made last season's No. 2 squad.
Robert Jones batted .400 and had a .982 fielding average in getting the first base position. The senior was a second-team pitching choice with a 3-5 record but with a 1.74 earned run average.
The other infielders were Wilson's Nate Anthony, Norcom's Kevin Jones and Churchland's Jason Lawson.
Anthony, who played shortstop, outfield and pitched for the Presidents, gained the nod at second base. Anthony, the lone sophomore picked, batted
Kevin Jones, only a freshman, hit .314 for the Greyhounds and garnered the shortstop slot with his exceptional defensive play.
The smooth-fielding Lawson, a senior, won third base with a good glove and a .365 batting average.
Joining holdovers Bailey and Otis Jones in the outfield was Norcom's Belton Taylor. A junior, Taylor batted .371.
Bailey batted .364, exactly three percentage points ahead of his 1995 efforts. He had a .984 fielding average. Jones hit .368 and his fielding average was .957. A year ago, he batted .372. Both are seniors.
Wilson's Brandon Todd, who was named as the second-unit third baseman, was chosen as the designated hitter for the first team. A junior, Todd led Wilson in batting with a .524 average.
The second team included five players from Wilson, three from Norcom, two from Churchland, one from Alliance and one from Portsmouth Christian.
It includes five seniors, two juniors, two sophomores and three freshmen. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photos by MARK MITCHELL
Top player Jason Morgan, a pitcher/first baseman for Churchland,
batted .512 for the Presidents, smacked five home runs and drove in
19 runs.
Jason Morgan
Most Valuable Player by CNB