May 21, 2007

GREENSBORO, N.C. - Florida State junior Tony Thomas, Jr., the 2007 ACC Player of the Year, heads up the All-Atlantic Coast Conference Baseball team announced today by Commissioner John Swofford. The team is selected by a vote of the league's 12 head coaches.

The Seminoles, the top seed in this week's ACC Baseball Championship, led all league schools with six players selected to the 16-member first team. North Carolina, the tournament's No. 2 seed, and Virginia had three players each, while Georgia Tech had two and Clemson and Miami placed one player on the team, respectively.

In becoming the first Florida State player to earn ACC Player of the Year honors since 2001 and the fourth overall, Thomas currently leads the league in seven statistical categories and is ranked in the top 10 in three others. The Valrico, Fla., product leads or is tied for the lead, in the ACC in hits (101), runs scored (82), doubles (30) triples (6), total bases (173), on base percentage (.537) and slugging percentage (.752). In addition, Thomas is second in batting average (.439), third in stolen bases (28) and ninth with 10 home runs.

North Carolina's Dustin Ackley was the coaches' choice as the ACC Freshman of the Year. A first-team All-ACC pick at first base, Ackley currently leads the ACC in batting average and is only the fifth Tar Heel with 100-plus hits in a single season. The Walnut Cove, N.C., freshman is batting .443 with seven home runs and 60 runs batted in and shares the NCAA lead with 101 hits on the year. In becoming only the fourth Tar Heel to garner the league's top rookie accolade, Ackley was one of only two players this year to be named ACC Player of the Week at least twice.

Florida State's Bryan Henry was named ACC Pitcher of the Year after finishing the regular season with a perfect 14-0 record and a 2.50 earned run average. The Tallahassee, Fla., senior recorded his 14 wins in only 16 starts this season and along with Thomas, was named as a semifinalist for the Dick Howser Trophy and the Golden Spikes Award. In addition to the NCAA-best 14 wins, including nine in ACC play, Henry leads the ACC in strikeouts (107), innings pitched (104.1) and is sixth in opponents' batting average (.232).

Florida State's Mike Martin was voted by his peers as ACC Coach of the Year for the fifth time after leading the Seminoles to the Atlantic Division title and the No. 1 seed in this week's ACC Baseball Championship. Florida State is 46-9 overall and, with its' 24-6 record in league play, tied the ACC single-season conference game win mark of 24 set by Clemson a year ago. The Seminoles have been ranked among the top three teams in the nation by three major polls since February 20, including a spot at No. 1 for six weeks (March 21-April 29).

2007 All-Atlantic Coast Conference Baseball Teams

FIRST TEAM

SECOND TEAM

ACC Player of the Year -- Tony Thomas, Jr., Florida State

ACC Pitcher of the Year -- Bryan Henry, Florida State

ACC Freshman of the Year -- Dustin Ackley, North Carolina

ACC Coach of the Year -- Mike Martin, Florida State