June 3, 2009

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - In a vote of the city head coaches and sports information directors, Villanova junior right-hander Brian Streilein (Staten Island, N.Y.) was named the Philadelphia Big Five Baseball Pitcher of the Year and senior utility Kyle Carver (Aldan, Pa.) was chosen as the organization's Student-Athlete of the Year, it was announced this week. The Wildcats were named the city's Team of the Year and sophomore Mike Francisco (Newtown Square, Pa.) also received recognition on the All-Big Five Team.

During the season, Streilein was a three-time Big Five Pitcher of the Week selection and he finished the year as the Villanova staff leader in victories, innings pitched and strikeouts while tying for the team lead with 13 games started. Streilein went 5-8 with a 5.46 ERA for the season, pitching two complete games and striking out 54 batters in 84.0 innings pitched. He finished the year strong, winning each of his last two starts and going 2-0 with a 3.94 ERA with 12 strikeouts in 16.0 innings pitched in that span. On the second to last day of the regular season, Streilein struck out a season-high seven batters in a complete game win over Connecticut.

A young Wildcat team went 22-28 in 2009, finishing with three more wins than any of the other local teams. In addition, Villanova was 3-2 against other Big Five teams and was the co-champion of the Liberty Bell Classic. This is the second straight season that the Wildcats have earned Team of the Year honors.

Carver was voted the recipient of the Student-Athlete award for his contributions to Villanova both on the baseball field and in the classroom. He started 31 games at first base for the Wildcats and hit .229 with a .390 on-base percentage and .344 slugging percentage, with five doubles and two home runs. Carver also appeared in 15 games out of the bullpen and was 3-1 with one save and a 6.35 ERA. He limited opponents to a .274 batting average in 34.0 innings pitched, allowing 37 hits and striking out 18. Academically, Carver carried a 3.75 GPA as an Accounting major with a minor in Management Information Systems. The three-time BIG EAST Academic All-Star had the highest cumulative GPA on the Villanova team.

Francisco joined Streilein in being named to the All-Big Five team. After appearing in just nine games as a freshman in 2008, the southpaw was asked to step into a late-inning role in the bullpen due to an injury. He responded by leading the pitching staff with 23 appearances and four saves. Francisco was 1-2 with a 4.24 ERA and held opposing hitters to a .275 batting average in 34.0 innings. His 30 strikeouts led the team's relief corps and against Big Five competition, Francisco went 1-0 with two saves and a 0.82 ERA in six games and 11.0 innings pitched. He also finished the season on a strong note, recording a 2.79 ERA with two saves in his last eight outings of the season, striking out nine in 9 2/3 innings during that span.