DAYTONA BEACH, FL-Five Sand Shark baseball players will get a jump start on the 2010 season by playing in the Sun Conference All Star Game to be played Sunday at Silwa Stadium on the campus of Embry Riddle in Daytona Beach. Game time is 12:00 noon.
Returning pitchers Jared Campbell and Ryan Kroko along with veteran third baseman Zack Rossetti will join Sand Shark newcomers, pitcher Spencer Cromer and infielder Larry Perry on the North squad. Fifty one players from the eleven Sun Conference teams will be featured in the game that will include seven returning Sun Conference All- Conference performers from a year ago. The North squad will be represented by players from Savannah College of Art and Design, Embry Riddle, Southeastern, Edward Waters and USCB. The South team will have players from Webber International, Warner, Northwood, Florida Memorial, Warner, St. Thomas and Ave Maria.
Both Campbell and Kroko will be returning for their second season as part of Coach Rick Sofield’s pitching staff. Campbell was one of the week-end starting pitchers last spring which was part of the inaugural season that saw the Sand Sharks finish with a 33-19 regular season record. Kroko led USCB in wins compiling a 6-1 record with most of his work coming out of the bullpen.
Rossetti was a mainstay at third base who hit for a .342 average with 34 runs batted in and 18 extra base hits that included three home runs.
Cromer and Perry are new additions to the Sand Shark team. Cromer is a transfer from Hagerstown (MD) Community College where he won nine games in 2008 and had 94 strike-outs in 84 innings pitched. Perry played junior college ball a year ago at USC Sumter where he hit .320 and had a slick .968 fielding percentage as the starting second baseman for the USC Sumter Fire Ants.
USCB will open their regular season on Saturday, February 6th as they will host Benedict College in a noon start at the Richard Gray Baseball Complex in Hardeeville.