MALONE SIGNS FOUR TO FIRST RECRUITING CLASS

[Guest abovetherim]

First-year Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi baseball coach Scott Malone has announced the signings of four players for the 2009 season during the early signing period which began Wednesday.

Malone’s first class includes three high school seniors and one junior college transfer. The early signees include a pair of infielders, a pitcher and an outfielder. Three of the players hail from Texas while the other is coming from the Northeast.

“Our recruiting coordinator, Chris Ramirez, has put together a very talented group of kids for next year,†Malone said.  “Chris traveled all over the state of Texas, and as far as Arizona and Florida to bring together this group of kids that we expect to have an immediate impact on our program.  We have very high expectations for this incoming group – our hope is that they will be the foundation for the future of Islander Baseball.â€

The first signee won’t have to go far as Carroll High School standout Jeremy Narvaez will continue his playing days with the Islanders. The Tiger’s third baseman was the District 27-5A MVP as a junior, winning the league’s Triple Crown. Narvaez led the district with a .525 average, 11 home runs, and 43 RBI. His home run and RBI totals were a school and district record. He was also named the All-Metro and All-South Texas MVP by the Corpus Christi Caller-Times and a first-team All-State selection. Narvaez was also recruited by Navy and Texas State.

Ennis High School’s Weston Montgomery is the second prep player from Texas to sign this season. The middle infielder has a career .429 batting average for the Lions and was named first-team all-district the past two seasons. Montgomery led his team to the area finals in two of his first three seasons.  The senior has played three seasons for the Dallas Mustangs summer ball team and is ranked as the No. 557 collegiate prospect in the country by Perfect Game National Crosschecker scouting service.  Montgomery turned down offers from several of Texas's top junior college programs.

Danny Lackner will be heading from one island to another when he heads to South Texas. Lackner is a senior at St. Dominic High in Long Island, N.Y. The outfielder has led the Long Island Summer League in multiple categories each of the last three seasons including home runs, RBI, and stolen bases. He is the top rated position player on Long Island and one of the top 200 players in the country. Lackner has participated in numerous clinics and all-star competitions across the Northeast. He was also being sought by Florida Atlantic, St. John’s, Rutgers, UConn and Elon.

Transferring to the Islanders from Wharton Junior College is pitcher Brett Carnline.  As a freshman at Wharton, he was the No. 1 starter leading the team in starts, innings and strikeouts, while limiting opponents to a .250 batting average. This past summer he played for the Samford Mainers in the New England Collegiate Baseball League where he tossed 14 innings and allowed 1 earned run as the team’s closer.  Carnline who was a multi-sport athlete at Caney Creek High School in Conroe, was 7-3 with a 2.73 ERA as a senior. He was a three-time first-team all-district performer in baseball and was twice all-district in football as a quarterback. Lamar, UAB, Northwestern State, and McNeese State also recruited Carnline.

“These kids are not only very talented, but more importantly, they will be great ambassadors of our baseball program and our University†Malone stated.  “We are excited and anxious to glimpse into the future and imagine these kids taking the field in an Islander uniform.â€