Simpson lands four on All-A-R-C Baseball Team
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- After leading the league in earned-run average, Simpson College baseball junior Brady Held has been selected to the All-American Rivers Conference First Team to highlight four selections for the Storm, the conference announced Wednesday.
Senior catcher Josh Breitbarth, junior pitcher Colton Major and senior outfielder Noah Sacco all landed on the second team. This is the first time since 2018 Simpson has had four all-conference honorees and the first since 2013 at least four made the second team or higher.
Simpson closed the season with an overall mark of 18-23 and went 14-18 in A-R-C action. The Storm ended the regular season by winning seven of their last 10 games to grab sixth in the league standings for their best finish since 2016.
Brady Held, first team
A native of Indianola, Iowa, the right-hander had a league-leading 1.53 ERA, which stands as a program record. His .171 batting average against topped the league rankings to go along with six victories. He ended the season with five-straight victories, including an average of 7.2 innings per outing during that span. At the plate, he batted .333 with 42 hits, 11 doubles, three homers and a triple. He was named the A-R-C Pitcher and Position Player of the Week during the season. He was an all-conference honorable mention selection as a freshman.
Josh Breitbarth, second team
A native of Hilo, Hawaii, Breitbarth appeared in 30 games to finish tied for fourth in the league with seven home runs. He batted .256 with 23 hits and four doubles to drive in 23 runs while splitting time between the designated hitter and catcher roles. In an 8-5 win over Nebraska Wesleyan, Breitbarth drove in six runners after clubbing a grand slam and a two-run double. From behind the dish, he threw out 11 would-be base stealers and had a .978 fielding percentage in 139 chances.
Colton Major, second team
A native of Knoxville, Iowa, Major posted a 4-3 record to capture his first conference award in his first season competing for Simpson. He ended seventh in batting average against (.246), ninth in strikeouts (53), 11th in ERA (4.66) and 14th in innings pitched (56.0) across the league. During a five-game stretch, Major tallied at least five strikeouts.
Noah Sacco, second team
A native of Omaha, Nebraska, the left-handed hitting Sacco tallied a .307 batting clip as the leadoff man for the Storm. He ended his final campaign with 43 hits, 12 doubles, three homers and a triple. Sacco showed his keen eye by drawing 29 walks for second most in the conference. After a hot start to the season, Sacco landed on the D3baseball.com Team of the Week. He was an all-conference honorable mention selection as a sophomore.
