July 21, 2009

Bill Brown just completed his 28th season as head coach of the George Mason baseball team and it was one of his finest as he set school record for wins, home wins and winning percentage while leading the Patriots to an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament. He was honored for these achievements by being named the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) East Region Coach of the Year.

Brown, who has been named CAA Coach of the Year a record six times, has put together a 795-698-5 record in his 28 seasons. He has guided the Patriots to six NCAA Tournaments, three via automatic bids and three via at-large berths. This past season, a school-record six Patriots were chosen in the First-Year Major League Baseball Amateur Draft. Chris Henderson was named a first-team All-American, the first Patriot to receive such an honor. He was also a semifinalist for the Howser Trophy and a finalist for the Bench Award, the first Mason player named a semifinalist of finalist for a National Player of the Year award.

Brown has had 35 players drafted and 13 others sign as free agents to play professional baseball. He has led the Patriots to 13 30-win seasons including five of the past seven years.

Last month, Henderson, Scott Krieger, Justin Bour and Mike Modica were honored as first-team ABCA All-East Region players. Henderson and Krieger have received additional honors as they were named second-team All-Americans by the ABCA. Henderson was also named first-team All-American and Krieger third-team All-American by CollegeBaseballInsider.com.

Henderson is currently playing for the Arizona League Dodgers where he has a .325 on-base percentage in 20 games while learning a new position, third base. Krieger, meanwhile, leads the Rookie Pioneer League with nine homers and 31 RBI in 24 games for the Helena Brewers.