MONMOUTH, Ill. - When it came time to take a cover photo for the 2002 Monmouth College Fighting Scots baseball program, the three players that came to mind were pitchers Joe Larkins and Ryan Johnson and catcher Taylor Thiel.

Today, that trio shares another thing in common, as the American Baseball Coaches Association announced that the MC seniors were named to the Midwest Region All-American team. Larkins and Johnson were named to the second team, while Thiel made the third-team.

“It came out the way we thought it should,” said Monmouth coach Roger Sander, who was concerned that his players might be lost in the shuffle because the Scots were a Midwest Region that hosted a Central-oriented regional. “Where I’m disappointed is that we ended up the season out of the national rankings.”

Monmouth was listed in the “also receiving votes” category, but not in the top 30. Meanwhile, Wartburg College, which went 0-2 at the Monmouth Regional, improved to No. 23 in the nation. Eastern Connecticut State, winners of the Division III championship, was ranked No. 1.

Johnson (Ottumwa, IA/HS) earned his first All-American honor by closing the season on an amazing run. Starting March 30, the southpaw went 9-0 with an 0.90 ERA and finished with a 10-2 record and a 3.05 ERA, striking out 56 in 76-2/3 innings. He allowed just 67 hits and 13 walks and tied Larkins for the team lead in shutouts with three. He finished his career at 23-12 with a 2.60 ERA.

“I honestly believe Ryan should have been first team,” said Sander. “His losses were to a Ferrum team that pitched their first team All-American against us and to Missouri Baptist, which has over 40 wins and is ranked seventh in NAIA. The stats he finished the year with are just incredible.”

Larkins (Galesburg, IL/HS) was nearly as dominant as he was in his outstanding 2001 season, when he was also a second team regional All-American. He was 6-2 with a 2.64 ERA and fanned 62 batters in 78-1/2 frames, walking 21 while surrendering 61 hits. Larkins wound up his MC career at 21-7 with a 2.84 ERA and also hit .303 in 131 games, adding 17 homers and 85 RBI.

Thiel (Galesburg, IL/HS) overcame a slow start to set the MC record for homers in a season with 11. He started 38 of the Scots’ 39 games behind the plate, batting .252 with a team-high 30 RBI. Defensively, Thiel committed just two errors and gunned down 18 basestealers. He received much of the credit for handling the Scots’ pitching staff, which posted a team ERA of 3.64. In 104 career games at Monmouth, Thiel hit .288 with a record-tying 18 homers and 77 RBI.

“Joe and Taylor were also very deserving,” said Sander. “I think Taylor’s defense was known throughout the region. He’s a very, very good defensive catcher, and the word spread.

“Together, those three players meant a lot of Ws to our program,” Sander concluded. “We’re going to miss them.”

Other Midwest Regional selections who played at least once at Glasgow Field this season included Ripon’s Nick Thoen, Aaron Johnson, Steve Fauk, Eric Roecker, Nick Johnson and Brad Mott; Grinnell’s Jimmy Bombulie; and St. Norbert’s Nick Olsen. Central Regional picks who appeared in Monmouth were Wartburg’s Greg Torgerson, Jude Burger, Chris Goerdt and Patrick Smith; Aurora’s Russ Lorenz, Josh Paddock, Brian Dolewski, Brian Chelgren, Uriel Quiles and Jason Smith; Carthage’s Jason Lensmeyer, Luke Martin, Dennis Jackson, Brandon Roth, Dan Grybash, Adam Husing and Dan Lorum; Illinois Wesleyan’s Eric Zier, Ryan Gilfillan and Jeremy Hunt; Knox’s Scott Rans; and Illinois College’s Jake Green and Dustin Devening.

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