Aaron Klinec Earns Baseball National Gold Glove Award
WASHINGTON, Pa. – Washington & Jefferson College senior shortstop Aaron Klinec (North Olmsted, Ohio/St. Ignatius) was recently announced as the Presidents’ first-ever ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Division III Baseball National Gold Glove Award winner.
Klinec, a Second Team All-Mideast Region and First Team All-PAC choice, was one of nine players to earn the prestigious national honor.
Klinec moved to the shortstop position this season after starting the last three years at second base. He made only six errors in 231 chances for a .974 fielding percentage. Klinec finished his career as a .966 fielder after committing just 27 errors in 798 career chances.
Klinec also had a career-best year at the plate with a .325 batting average. He scored 49 runs (2nd in PAC and 39th in NCAA Division III), drove in 27 and stole 16 bases. Klinec, who tied for 23rd in the nation with six sacrifice flies, finished fifth in W&J history with 170 games played and 39 stolen bases.
His defense helped W&J rank among the national leaders in fielding percentage (.967, 21st ranked) and double plays (41, 28th ranked). W&J’s 36-10 overall record was the 14th-best winning percentage in the nation. The Presidents’ 36 victories set a new school record.
Joining Klinec on the national Gold Glove Team were: Stevenson first baseman Justin Anderson, Western New England second baseman Tim Clark, Texas-Tyler third baseman T.J. Martin, Wheaton (Mass.) outfielder Hal Landers, Stevenson outfielder Josh Morris, La Verne outfielder Jacob Ludvick, Marietta catcher Alex Toth and St. Joseph’s (Long Island) pitcher Jason Dierkes.
