The University of Rochester baseball team has earned a total of 12 All-Liberty League accolades, including two of the major awards, following the 2023 season as announced by the conference on Tuesday afternoon.
Rochester’s Nolan Sparks was voted as the Liberty League Pitcher of the Year, while first-year Colton Averawas named the conference’s Rookie of the Year.
Sparks was one of five Yellowjackets to be named First Team All-League. He was joined by fellow starting pitcher Trevor Van Allen, relief pitcher Mark Aaronson, shortstop Jackson Reed and outfielder Aaron Whitley.
Catcher John Moses, 2nd baseman Joseph Rende and outfielder Josh Leadem were UR’s representatives on the Second Team. Relief pitcher Thomas Karpishin and utility player Colby Cruser earned Honorable Mention All-Liberty League.
Overall in 2023, the Yellowjackets compiled a 28-14 record and were the top team in the Liberty League throughout the regular season. UR earned an 18-3 mark in conference play and was the top seed for the Liberty League tournament last weekend.
Within the league voting, Rochester’s ten All-League honorees led the conference.
PITCHER OF THE YEAR/1ST TEAM:
Nolan Sparks (JR, P, Aurora, CO/Cherokee Trail): 2nd All-LL Award (2022 1st Team); Sparks was one of the best pitchers in the country in 2023, sporting a 7-0 record with a 2.76 ERA across 11 starts. UR was unbeaten in regular season games the junior started (10-0) and he finished the year with 77 strikeouts in 62.0 innings. The junior has allowed 53 hits, 25 runs (19 earned) and just 22 walks while holding opponents to a .230 average against. Sparks was nationally ranked in Division III in wins and ERA. Within the Liberty League, the junior is 1st in wins, 2nd in ERA and strikeouts, and is 4th in innings pitched. He earned a win against Marietta and struck out double-digit batters against Skidmore and Bard. In conference games, Sparks had a sparkling 1.67 ERA and 6-0 record while striking out 58 batters across 43 innings, allowing opposing hitters to bat just .185. His best outing of the season came against East Division champion Skidmore on April 15, when he struck out 12 and allowed just one hit over eight innings of work. Sparks was also a 3-time Liberty League Pitcher of the Week in 2023.
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR:
Colton Avera (FY, IF, Macclenny, FL/Trinity Christian Academy): 1st All-LL Award; Rochester’s lone first-year player has been a starter since day one, hitting .331 (53-160) across 40 starts batting in the middle of UR’s order. He added 21 runs, 17 doubles, 2 triples, 4 home runs and 39 RBI during the season. He slugged .538 and had a .374 on-base percentage for an OPS of .912. Avera finished tied for first in the conference and led UR in doubles and is fifth in the league in at-bats. He also ranked eighth in RBI and was third in the league in defensive putouts with 262 on the year. In Liberty League games, Avera finished among the conference leaders in hits and doubles, and had a .365 average with 10 XBH, 18 RBI and a .568 slugging mark. He earned Liberty League Rookie of the Week honors twice during the year.
1ST TEAM:
Trevor Van Allen (GR, P, Greenland, NH/Portsmouth):2nd All-LL Award (2022 1st Team); Van Allen had another spectacular season to close out his UR career finishing with a 7-1 record across 11 starts for the Yellowjackets. He compiled a team and league-best 2.59 ERA with 56 strikeouts across 55.2 innings pitched. He surrendered just 57 hits, 24 runs (16 earned) and 21 walks while limiting opposing hitters to a .266 batting average. The grad student also was ranked among the top-80 in both wins and ERA in Division III and was unbeaten in conference play, going 6-0 on the mound against Liberty League foes. Within the conference, Van Allen was first in wins and ERA and also was among the league leaders in innings and strikeouts. The right-hander earned UR’s lone win during the Liberty League conference tournament, tossing 7-innings against Skidmore while striking out seven. He notched a career-best 10 strikeouts in six innings against St. Lawrence in mid-April.
Mark Aaronson (SO, RP, Philadelphia, PA/Friends Select): 1st All-LL Award; Aaronson finished the regular season as Division III’s leader with 11 saves, and overall appeared in a UR-best 21 contests for the Yellowjackets. Overall, he finished with a 3.22 ERA in 22.1 innings and added a 2-2 record. He allowed 20 hits, 8 runs and 13 walks while striking out 25 batters in hits time on the mound. Aaronson only allowed four extra base hits this season and opponents combined for a .247 average against. The righty struck out multiple batters in eight of his appearances and locked down saves against NCAA Tournament teams Marietta, La Verne, Ithaca and St. John Fisher. Within the conference, the sophomore piled up a 1-1 record with eight saves and a 1.93 ERA. His saves mark established a UR single-season record and the 21 appearances rank as the third most in team-history.
Jackson Reed (JR, IF, Corte Madera, CA/Redwood): 2nd All-LL Award (2022 2nd Team); Reed was a mainstay in the middle of Rochester’s lineup as a junior, ending the year hitting .351 (54-154) with 46 runs, 7 doubles, 4 triples, 5 home runs and 38 RBI. He slugged .545 and reached base at a .429 clip, recording a team best 19 walks along with 5 hit-by-pitches. The junior added 12 stolen bases, 4 sacrifice flies and notched 102 defensive assists, second on the team. Overall, he appeared in 40 of UR’s 42 games and batted third, fourth or fifth on 35 occasions. Reed was Liberty League Performer of the Week on March 13th and ranked among the conference leaders in runs, triples, sacrifice flies and stolen bases.
Aaron Whitley (SR, OF, Niskayuna, NY/Niskayuna):3rd All-LL Award (2021 POY/1st Team, 2022 1st Team); Whitley was again one of the best players not only on Rochester, but across Division III in 2023. The senior finished with a .377 batting average (63-167) while playing in all 42 games for Rochester. He led the team in average, runs (51), home runs (5), slugging (.587) and on-base percentage (.448). He also recorded 12 doubles, 4 triples, was 23-for-25 in stolen base attempts and played outstanding defense in center field for the Yellowjackets. Within conference action, Whitley hit .444 (36-81) with 24 runs, 10 extra base hits, 14 RBI and was 9-for-10 in steals. He ranked first in the conference in runs and triples, while being second in hits and third in both steals and at-bats. Overall in league contests, Whitley ranked among the conference leaders in average, runs, hits, slugging, triples, at-bats, steals and OPS. He was honored with weekly Performer of the Week honors in early May from the Liberty League and also earned a spot on the D3baseball.com Team of the Week.
2ND TEAM:
John Moses (SR, C, Union City GA/Episcopal [VA]): 2nd All-LL Award (2021 ROY/1st Team); Moses was steady behind the plate and offensively for the Yellowjackets, appearing in 40 games, making 34 starts as a senior. He finished with a .315 average, going 41-for-130 at the plate with 23 runs, 10 doubles, 2 triples, 2 home runs and 23 runs batted in. Slugging mark of .469 and on-base percentage of .372 after drawing 12 walks and two HBP. Perfect fielding percentage behind home plate, converting 278 chances cleanly, including throwing out or picking off 11 runners. Ranked tied for first in the league with a 1.000 fielding percentage, was third in defensive chances and ended top-10 in runners caught stealing, sacrifice flies and sacrifice hits.
Joseph Rende (GR, IF, Babylon, NY/Babylon): 4th All-LL Award (2019 HM, 2021 1st Team, 2022 1st Team); Rende, a graduate student co-captain, was one of two UR players to play in all 42 games, tying for the conference lead. He combined to hit .343 (58-169) with 43 runs, 11 doubles, 2 triples, 3 home runs and a team-high 40 RBI. He added 15 walks and 7 HBP for a .404 OBP and slugged .485 on the season. The graduate student anchored the middle infield at second base, recording 116 assists and 74 putouts while also contributing 29 double plays. Rende ranked among the Liberty League’s top-10 in runs, hits, RBI, at-bats, sacrifice flies, defensive assists and double plays. He was first in the conference in at-bats, sacrifice flies, assists and double plays and finished the campaign among the top-15 in Division III in sacrifice flies. Within league games, Rende hit .405 in 21 games, being UR’s leading run producer with 26 RBI and 22 runs scored.
Josh Leadem (JR, OF, Barrington, RI/Barrington):3rd All-LL Award (2021 2nd Team, 2022 HM); The junior wrapped up the 2023 campaign with a .309 average across 40 games (39 starts) for the Yellowjackets. Served as the primary leadoff hitter for UR, ranking among the team and league leaders with 19 HBP, 29 steals and 46 runs scored. Added 11 doubles, 3 home runs, 21 RBI and 14 walks, contributing to a .430 on-base percentage and .441 slugging percentage. Finished the season among Division III’s leaders in hit-by-pitches (19th) and steals (25th). Ranked as UR’s third best hitter in Liberty League games, going for a .371 average, including a .516 on-base percentage and conference best 26 runs scored and 12 steals.
HONORABLE MENTION:
Thomas Karpishin (SR, RP, San Mateo, CA/Hillsdale): 3rd All-LL Award (2021 1st Team, 2022 1st Team); The reliever was consistently used in some of the most high-pressure situations out of the Yellowjacket bullpen. Overall, the right-hander appeared in 19 games and finished with a 5.23 ERA and 2-2 record on the mound. He added two saves and ranked third on UR with 32.2 innings pitched. Allowed 32 hits, 23 runs (19 earned) with 15 walks and 30 strikeouts over his season. Was lights out in conference play, with a miniscule 0.64 ERA in seven appearances, allowing just one earned run over 14 innings. Conference foes hit just .167 off Karpishin and he struck out 14 to just two walks in league games.
Colby Cruser (SO, UTIL, Littleton, CO/Chatfield): 2nd All-LL Award (2022 2nd Team); Served as a two-way player for the Yellowjackets, providing a solid bat in the lineup while also seeing time on the mound. Finished the season with a .294 average (20-68) across 23 games (18 starts). He chipped in a dozen runs scored, 6 doubles, 2 home runs and 15 RBI. His slugging percentage was .471 and the left-handed hitter added a .333 on-base percentage. On the mound, Cruser appeared in eight contests, making six starts. He finished with a 7.40 ERA and 1-2 record across 24.1 innings. He struck out 31 batters and allowed just 28 hits and 20 earned runs. The sophomore’s pitching numbers were drastically improved in conference play, as he was 1-0 with a 4.05 ERA in four appearances. He pitched 13.1 innings and struck out 21 while only allowing 10 hits and six earned runs.
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