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BUIES CREEK, N.C. – Campbell's Ryan Thompson has been named Third Team Louisville Slugger All-American, announced today by Collegiate Baseball newspaper.
Thompson, a senior from Turner, Ore., becomes the first Camel to earn All-America honors in multiple seasons, also picking up honors last season from Louisville Slugger (Second Team) and the ABCA (Third Team) while leading the nation in ERA with a 0.88.
This season, Thompson owns a 1.22 ERA and a 6-2 record with 17 saves. He adds 81 strikeouts in 81 1/3 innings pitched across 37 appearances.
Last week, he was named the Big South Conference Tournament's MVP, pitching in all five of Campbell's tournament wins with a 1-0 mark and three saves in nine scoreless innings.
Thompson was also a First Team All-Big South performer in 2014.
Thompson is one of four Campbell All-Americans in the last three seasons, along with Michael Felton (2012), Ben McQuown (2013) and Brent Graham (2013).
Campbell opens its first NCAA Regional in 24 years Friday at 7 p.m., taking on site host South Carolina.
Big South Tournament Champion Campbell (40-19), seeded fourth in the Columbia Regional, is joined by No. 2 seed Maryland (36-21) and No. 3 seed Old Dominion (36-24) in the bracket, who will face off at 1 p.m. at Carolina Stadium, as well as the top-seeded Gamecocks (42-16).
The Camels are the only team in the Columbia Regional to win their conference tournament. In its five-game winning streak, tied for a season best, Campbell has not trailed in a game.
The Camels are 40-19 on the season after winning five in a row to claim their third Big South Tournament Championship last week. Sunday's 9-1 championship game win over Winthrop gave Campbell its 40th win of the year, hitting the benchmark for the third straight season.
Campbell is one of eight programs in the country to reach 40 or more wins in each of the last three seasons.
The Camels are one of only two fourth-seeded teams in the field with 40 or more wins on the year, joining Colonial Athletic Associate champion College of Charleston (41-17).
Joining the Camels from the Big South will be regular season champion Liberty as the third seed in the Charlottesville, Va. regional.
Campbell won the Big South Tournament Championship for the third time in program history for the league's automatic bid, also taking the crown in 1988 and 1990. The Camels will be making their second overall NCAA Tournament appearance, last making the field in 1990, when they traveled to Palo Alto, Calif.
