May 22, 2006

CLEARWATER, Fla. - On Monday evening at its annual awards banquet, the Big East announced the 2006 end-of-year awards and all-conference selections on the eve of the conference tournament. Four different Wildcats were chosen as All-Big East performers, including two players each on the second team and third team.

Senior first baseman Jeremy Hunt (Tampa, Fla.) and junior starting pitcher Kevin Mulvey (Parlin, N.J.) were each second team picks, while senior designated hitter Craig Mirsky (Holland, Pa.) and senior centerfielder Kris Molloy (Hillsborough, N.J.) each garnered third team status.

Hunt put together one of the best all-around offensive seasons in recent Villanova history. He led the Big East in home runs (15) and slugging percentage (.743), while also leading the Wildcats with a .385 batting average, 14 doubles, 56 runs batted in and 35 walks. He finished the season on a 19-game hitting streak and reached base safely in each of his last 33 games. Hunt batted a torrid .415 against conference competition and had hits in 22 of 26 games played against league foes. His 15 home runs are tied for the fourth most in a single-season in school history.

In his third collegiate season, Mulvey established himself as one of the top professional draft prospects in the Big East. In 14 starts, he logged 92.1 innings pitched while striking out 88 batters with only 23 walks. Mulvey allowed three earned runs or less in 11 of his 14 starts and at one point in the season went 25 straight innings without issuing an unintentional walk. Mulvey pitched to a team-best 3.61 ERA despite owning a 3-8 record. He made nine starts against Big East opponents and pitched four complete games, while maintaining a 3.39 conference ERA.

A third team selection, Mirsky led the Big East and set a single-season school record with 18 sacrifice bunts. That shattered the previous school record of 11 sacrifices and ranked among the most in the nation. When not bunting, Mirsky was one of the team's top hitters, batting .332 with 41 runs scored and 32 runs batted in. He was one of five players on the squad with over 60 hits, had a .406 on-base percentage and struck out just 26 times in 237 plate appearances.

Meanwhile, Molloy displayed his skill as one of the fastest players in the conference both at the plate and on the field. In his finest collegiate season, Molloy was second on the team with a .356 batting average and 14 stolen bases. He legged out five triples, which matched the highest total by a Villanova player in the last 20 years, and struck out just 18 times in 205 plate appearances. Molloy was second to Mirsky with 10 sacrifice bunts and he bunted for hits eight other times. As usual, Molloy also thrilled fans with his spectacular defense in centerfield. Using his outstanding speed to increase his range, Molloy ranked third on the team with 149 putouts.

The Wildcats finished the season with a 27-27 record this season, marking the 11th time in the last 12 years that the team had at least 24 wins in a season. Villanova has finished with at least a .500 record in four out of five seasons under current head coach Joe Godri.