KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Bryce Milligan and Tyler Williams of Oklahoma City University became first-team NAIA baseball all-Americans.
Milligan and Williams led the Stars to a 46-14 record with their 10th appearance in the NAIA Baseball Championship Opening Round in 11 years.
Milligan, a junior right-hander from Blanchard, Okla., provided the Stars with an 11-2 record, 1.94 earned run average, 113 strikeouts, four complete games and two shutouts in 83.2 innings pitched this year. He ranked eighth in ERA, ninth in wins and 13th in opponents' batting average (.185) in the NAIA.
On Feb. 1, Milligan twirled a no-hitter against Grand View (Iowa) at Jim Wade Stadium. He fanned eight, walked none, allowed two hit batsmen and logged 98 pitches in seven innings. He maintained a perfect game through five innings against Southwestern Assemblies of God (Texas) on April 5 in Oklahoma City.
Milligan snagged first-team all-Sooner Athletic Conference and four SAC pitcher of the week honors. Milligan became a two-time first-team all-SAC performer and five-time SAC pitcher of the week during his OCU career. He accumulated a 24-4 record with a 2.04 ERA, 229 strikeouts, six complete games and three whitewashes in 189.2 innings thrown for OCU.
Williams, a senior outfielder from Peoria, Ariz., produced a .408 batting average with 61 runs scored, 71 hits, 16 doubles, two triples, 19 home runs, 79 RBIs and 12 stolen bases this year. Among the NAIA, Williams ranked fourth with an .851 slugging percentage, seventh in RBIs and runs driven in per game (1.41), ninth in homers and 10th in homers per game (0.34).
Williams collected SAC player of the year. He clouted four homers with eight RBIs on May 5-6 against Mid-America Christian in the SAC Tournament.
Denney Crabaugh has coached 88 all-Americans. He has guided OCU to a 1,499-460-2 mark with 14 NAIA World Series appearances, 14 50-win seasons and the 2005 national title in 31 years.