Five Canes Earn All-ACC Honors

Five Canes Earn All-ACC Honors

by David Villavicencio

CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Five Miami Hurricanes were among those recognized by the Atlantic Coast Conference Monday for their outstanding performances during the 2021 season.

Freshman Carson Palmquist was named to the All-ACC First Team, while redshirt junior Christian Del Castillo and sophomores Adrian Del Castillo and Anthony Vilar earned positions on the All-ACC Second Team. Palmquist and Yohandy Morales were two of 12 players selected to the 2021 ACC All-Freshman Team.

The most dominant closer in the ACC and one of the top relievers in America, Palmquist was named the first-team relief pitcher after an incredible first full season in Coral Gables. The lefty leads the ACC and ranks second nationally with 13 saves. Palmquist finished the regular season with a 1.38 ERA allowing just six earned runs over 21 appearances. His 69 strikeouts lead all Miami pitchers and he is averaging 15.9 strikeouts per nine innings pitched with an 11.5-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He is one save shy of cracking Miami’s all-time top 10 for saves in a single season. He was named a semifinalist for the Dick Howser Trophy.

Adrian Del Castillo picked up the second All-ACC honor of his career, as the catcher was also named to the 2019 All-ACC Second Team in his collegiate debut season. Del Castillo is one of the top hitters in the country and is expected to be selected early in the 2021 MLB Draft. The catcher finished the regular season batting .290 with a team-high 13 doubles, a triple, three homers and 36 RBI. The third-year Hurricane ranks second on the team with 16 multi-hit games and is third with eight multi-RBI performances. He was named a semifinalist for the Buster Posey Award.

Christian Del Castillo earned his first All-ACC recognition after being Miami’s top hitter in 2021. The outfielder, who transferred to Miami after graduating from Seton Hall, leads the Canes with 67 hits, a .430 on-base percentage and a .368 batting average that ranks second in the ACC. Del Castillo’s 40 RBI are second-most on the team, while his nine doubles rank third. He leads the Hurricanes with 21 multi-hit games and his 10 multi-RBI performances are second on the 2021 team.

Vilar earned his first All-ACC selection after a career-best showing in 2021. The third-year infielder closed out the regular season batting .301 with eight doubles, five homers and 28 RBI. One of the most consistent Hurricanes, Vilar has the longest hitting streak (11 games) and reached base streak (21 games) of any Miami player in 2021. He ranks fourth on the team with 13 multi-hit games and fourth with seven multi-RBI performances.

Morales proved to be one of the top freshmen in the ACC in his debut season with the Hurricanes. The rookie infielder led Miami with 10 homers, 42 RBI and 13 multi-RBI games. He ranks third on the team with 15 multi-hit games and had a 12-game on-base streak (Mar. 21 – Apr. 11).  Morales, who has started every game he’s played in this season, closed out the regular season batting .272 with 10 doubles and a team-high three triples.

The complete All-ACC Baseball Teams are listed below:

Player of the Year – Matheu Nelson, Florida State, R-So., C
Defensive Player of the Year – Sal Frelick, Boston College, Jr., OF
Pitcher of the Year – Parker Messick, Florida State, R-Fr., LHP
Freshman of the Year – Parker Messick, Florida State, R-Fr., LHP
Coach of the Year – Link Jarrett, Notre Dame

First Team All-ACC
Sal Frelick, Boston College, Jr., OF
Luke Gold, Boston College, So., 3B
Cody Morissette, Boston College, Jr., 2B
Parker Messick, Florida State, R-Fr., SP
Matheu Nelson, Florida State, R-So., C
Luke Waddell, Georgia Tech, Jr., SS
Henry Davis, Louisville, So., C
Carson Palmquist, Miami, Fr., RP
Austin Love, North Carolina, So., SP
Jonny Butler, NC State, Jr., OF
Terrell Tatum, NC State, Jr., DH
Jose Torres, NC State, R-Fr., SS
John Michael Bertrand, Notre Dame, Gr., SP
Niko Kavadas, Notre Dame, Sr., 1B
Andrew Abbott, Virginia, Sr., SP
Gavin Cross, Virginia Tech, Fr., OF

Second Team All-ACC
Emmet Sheehan, Boston College, Jr., SP
Caden Grice, Clemson, Fr., 1B
James Parker, Clemson, R-So., SS
Joey Loperfido, Duke, Sr., OF
Brant Hurter, Georgia Tech, R-Jr., SP
Cooper Bowman, Louisville, So., 2B
Adrian Del Castillo, Miami, So., C
Christian Del Castillo, Miami, R-Jr., OF
Anthony Vilar, Miami, So., 2B
Justice Thompson, North Carolina, So., OF
Tyler McDonough, NC State, So., OF
Austin Murr, NC State, Jr., 1B
Tanner Kohlhepp, Notre Dame, So., RP
Carter Putz, Notre Dame, Jr., DH
Zack Gelof, Virginia, Jr., 3B
Ryan Cusick, Wake Forest, R-So., SP

Third Team
RJ Schreck, Duke, Jr., OF
Robby Martin, Florida State, So., OF
Bryce Hubbart, Florida State, R-Fr., SP
Justyn Henry-Malloy, Georgia Tech, So., 3B
Kevin Parada, Georgia Tech, Fr., C
Alex Binelas, Louisville, So., 1B
Christian Knapczyk, Louisville, Fr., SS
Reid Johnston, NC State, Jr., SP
Evan Justice, NC State, Jr., RP
Sky Duff, Pitt, So., OF
Nico Popa, Pitt, Sr., OF
Mitch Myers, Pitt, Jr., SP
David Yanni, Pitt, Sr., 2B
Kyle Teel, Virginia, Fr., DH
Bobby Seymour, Wake Forest, R-Jr., 1B
Brock Wilken, Wake Forest, Fr., 3B

All-Freshman Team
Mack Anglin, Clemson, SP
Caden Grice, Clemson, 1B
Bryce Hubbart, Florida State, SP
Parker Messick, Florida State, SP
Kevin Parada, Georgia Tech, C
Christian Knapczyk, Louisville, SS
Yohandy Morales, Miami, 3B
Carson Palmquist, Miami, RP
Jose Torres, NC State, SS
Kyle Teel, Virginia, DH
Gavin Cross, Virginia Tech, OF
Brock Wilken, Wake Forest, 3B