Frank Califano Named First-Team All-Horizon League

by YSU

Sunday, May 24, 2015 9:36 am

Youngstown State junior outfielder Frank Califano has been named First-Team All-Horizon League in a postseason vote of the conference's coaches, the league office announced on Tuesday.

Califano, who is in his first season as a Penguin after transferring from Golden West College, is the first YSU outfielder to be named first-team all-conference since Tom Clayton in 2010.

"We are excited that the Horizon League coaches have recognized Frank as one of the top players in the conference," YSU head coach Steve Gillispie said. "He is quite deserving of the honor as he had an absolutely fantastic regular season. His level of performance has been a huge factor in the successes of our team."

Califano tied for the Horizon League lead with 74 hits, and he was six points shy of winning the batting title with a .365 average. He also ranked second in the conference with 19 stolen bases, which is the most by a Penguin since 2001 when the program was still competing in the Mid-Continent Conference. Califano hit safely in each of YSU's final 24 Horizon League contests, and that helped the Alpine, Calif., native post the top batting average in conference play at .383.

Califano and the Penguins will play Valparaiso in the first game of the 2015 Horizon League Baseball Tournament on Wednesday at 1 p.m. Eastern. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN3.

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