Both Boast 1st Team All-ACCAC, 1st Team All-Region, and NJCAA All-American in 2011

On Wednesday, June 08, 2011, the NJCAA honored one Mesa baseball star as a two-time All-American and gave notice to another one that seems set on the same path.

Sophomore left fielder Darian Johnson was selected as a NJCAA 2nd Team All-American at the outfield position.  Freshman third baseman Michael Wesolowski was chosen as a NJCAA 3rd Team All-American at the infield spot.  Both were previously honored as 1st Team All-ACCAC and 1st Team All-Region Division II.

Johnson was a consistent beast for head coach Tony Cirelli in his two seasons at MCC.  Both years he earned 1st Team All-ACCAC, 1st Team All-Region DII, and 2nd Team All-American.  Even though he was nagged by injuries all season in 2011, he still led the ACCAC with a .435 AVG.  The Skyline HS graduate from Mesa, AZ had 85 hits, which led the conference and was sixth in the nation.  Johnson had seven triples, good for a first-place tie in the ACCAC and sixth in the NJCAA among DII schools.  The sophomore switch-hitter had 36 RBI’s, third on the team, 12 doubles, best on the squad, and scored 39 runs, good for fifth on the team.  He had a team-leading on-base percentage of .476, drew 15 walks, which was seventh on the T-Birds, and hit three sacrifice flys, good for sixth on the team.  Johnson’s speed served him well on the base paths and in the outfield.  He stole 24 bases in 26 attempts, which was second best on the team.  In left field he had 88 put outs, with three assists, and zero errors.  Johnson had an outstanding two years at MCC.  He was consistently one of the top players in the ACCAC and in the country.  In his two years at MCC he averaged 80 hits, a .412 batting AVG., 10.5 doubles, 10 triples, 38.5 runs scored, 40.5 RBI’s, 193.5 at bats, 21.5 stolen bases, and a .452 on-base percentage.  In addition, he showed his pitching ability in 2010 with a 3.61 ERA.

Johnson is the type of all-around baseball player who can succeed at any level.  He recently completed his Associate’s Degree from MCC in Environment Engineering.  He has already committed to play next season at Lamar University, an NCAA Division I member of the Southland Conference located in Beaumont, TX.  Lamar went 29-27 in 2011, and has a strong history of success within the Southland Conference.  Cardinals’ head coach Jim Gilligan just completed his 34th season at Lamar University and is ranked sixth among active NCAA Division I coaches in victories and 24th overall.  He has sent over 145 players to the major leagues, including two who were taken in the 2011 Major League Baseball Draft.  He is a member of the Texas Baseball Hall of Fame and has won 10 conference championships, 4 conference tournament championships, in addition to 12 appearances in the NCAA Regionals during his tenure at Lamar.  In the 6’2” Johnson, coach Gilligan is getting another player ready to contribute to a long tradition of winning at Lamar.  T-Bird fans know firsthand he won’t be disappointed.

New news came down on Tuesday, June 14 that makes Darian Johnson a 2011 NJCAA Rawlings Gold Glove Award Winner with a perfect fielding percentage of 1.000.  This adds to the illustrious careers of one of the more decorated ballplayers to don the Thunderbird baseball uniform.

Wesolowski was a crowd favorite in 2011, and with good reason.  He is following the Darian Johnson model by becoming 1st Team All-ACCAC, 1st Team All-Region, and NJCAA All-American in his freshman year.  Not a bad model to imitate (see above paragraphs).  In 2011 the Skyline High School graduate had a .405 AVG, good for fourth in the ACCAC.  The Mesa native had 81 hits, second in the conference and eighth in the country.  “Weso” had 44 RBI’s, which landed him third in the ACCAC.  His six triples were 14th among NJCAA DII schools.  The 6’3” right hander knocked eight doubles, fourth on the team, and scored 45 runs, which ranked second on the T-Birds.  The psychology major had one home run, good for third on the squad.  Wesolowski recorded a .469 on-base percentage, third on the team, drew 13 walks, and produced five sac flys, which was the highest on the team.  From his third base position he made 35 put outs, with 75 assists, and a minuscule nine errors, good for a .924 fielding percentage.  He showed above-average speed for a corner infielder, stealing 13 bases in 17 attempts, good for fourth on the Thunderbirds. 

Coach Cirelli won’t have to look far for a RBI producer in 2012, as Wesolowski plans on returning to the T-Birds for his sophomore season.  It is an exciting time for Mesa baseball followers, as one T-Bird All-American moves on to challenge himself at the NCAA level and another returns to lead the 2012 Thunderbirds.