Lowers: NJCAA Division III Defensive Player of the Year

MANCHESTER – The post season awards continue to roll in for Manchester CC’s A. J. Lowers .
The catcher from Newington, CT was named Easton’s National Junior College Athletic Association Division III Defensive Player of the Year after committing just one error in 315 chances in 2009 while throwing out 13 of 20 would-be base stealers. Lowers, who was also honored by Region 21 as its Defensive Player of the Year and named to the Rawlings Gold Glove team, was also named to the NJCAA Division III All-American second team for a second year.
The Central Connecticut bound sophomore led MCC in virtually all offensive catagories as the Cougars won their third consecutive Region 21 title on May 10th in Holyoke. Lowers hit .469 in 51 games with 75 hits, 16 doubles and 61 RBI for the 30-23 Cougars who placed fourth in the eight-team World Series in Tyler, TX. He leaves MCC with the school record for hits in a season and career (137).
MCC freshman lefthander Kevin Madera, also of Newington, was selected to the NJCAA Division III All-American first team after posting an 8-0 record and a Division III best 2.02 ERA. Madera was MCC’s second consecutive ERA title winner, following Steve Simon (Middlefield/Southern Connecticut) who won the title in 2009 with a 0.67 mark over 67.2 innings. Madera struck out 69 batters in 62.2 innings while walking 24.
Lowers and Madera, who are both playing for the Torrington Titans in the Atlantic Collegiate baseball League (ACBL), were also named to the All-New England (Region 21) first team, along with teammates Juan Bisono (New Britain) and Joey Allison (East Hartford), both sophomores. Freshmen Alec Brown (Montville), Adam Scanlon (South Windsor) A. J. Silberman (Meriden) and Kevin Wallace (Groton) were second team selections.
Bisono hit .386 and led the team with 50 runs scored while driving in 34 and Allison hit .389 with 22 steals in 23 attempts. Brown led the Cougars with five home runs, Scanlon was 6-4 with a 3.97 ERA, Silberman hit .321 with 36 runs and Wallace hit .321 with 27 RBI. Wallace and left handed pitcher Tyler Kapushinski (New Britain) were named to the NJCAA Division III World Series All-Tournament team. Kapushinski was the winning pitcher in both MCC victories at the national tournament.