Quinnipiac's Bender Named Senior CLASS Award Candidate
Bobcats' Senior Catcher One of 30 Candidates Nationally Recognizes Seniors
QU Athletic Communications
- BASEBALL CANDIDATES ANNOUNCED FOR THE 2021 SENIOR CLASS AWARD
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. – Quinnipiac baseball catcher Colton Bender (Lebanon, Conn.) has been named one of 30 candidates for the 2021 Senior CLASS Award, as announced on Thursday, April 8.
To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition. The complete list of candidates follows this release.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
The 30 candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists in May, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches, and fans, who will select one candidate who best exemplifies excellence in the four C's of community, classroom, character, and competition.
Bender is one of two players from the MAAC recognized as a candidate for the Senior CLASS Award, joining Manhattan's Matthew Padre.
Bender is the second Quinnipiac baseball player named a candidate for the Senior CLASS Award after Brian Moskey '19 was named a candidate in his senior year in 2019.
This season as a senior, Bender is batting .283 through 14 games with two home runs and nine RBIs. He is 13 for 46, and has come around to score nine runs. Bender has also walked seven times.
In his career, Bender owns a .299 batting average with 118 hits in 110 games played. He has five home runs and 56 RBIs as well as 46 runs scored. He also has thrown out 30 baserunners over four years.
Bender was an All-MAAC Second Team Selection in 2019 as well as an NEIBA All-New England Third Team Pick. He has been named to the Buster Posey Award Watch List twice in his career and is a two-time All-MAAC Preseason Team Selection.
Off the field, Bender is a stellar student-athlete as he has been named to the Dean's List seven times in his academic career and is a 2019 MAAC All-Academic Team selection.
The Quinnipiac baseball team returns to the field Friday afternoon to begin a four-game home weekend series with the Siena Saints. First pitch on Friday and Saturday is set for 12 p.m.
For more information on Quinnipiac baseball, visit gobobcats.com/baseball and follow the team on Twitter and Instagram, @TheQBaseball.
2021 Senior CLASS Award Baseball Candidates
Darren Baker, California Evan Russell, Tennessee
Matthew Beck, LSU Christian Scafidi, Notre Dame
Colton Bender, Quinnipiac Davis Sims, Western Kentucky
T.J. Collett, Kentucky Tyler Smith, East Carolina
Scotty Dubrule, Mississippi State Luke Smith, Louisville
Tim Elko, Ole Miss Preston Snavely, Wichita State
Drew Frederic, Troy Andy Thomas, Baylor
Brett Harris, Gonzaga Alex Toral, Miami
Daniel Jung, Notre Dame Alec Trela, Memphis
Alex Kachler, North Florida Marc Wangenstein, Albany
Ryan Knernschield, Eastern Illinois Ben Wanger, Miami
Kyle Mora, UCLA Robert Weissheier, Hofstra
Jake Mulholland, Oregon State Austin Wilhite, Georgia Tech
Matthew Padre, Manhattan Rankin Woley, Auburn
Zach Pettway, UCLA RJ Yeager, Mercer