Complete Release
MILLERSVILLE, Pa. – For the second time in the last four days, senior infielder
Matthew DiSanti and sophomore pitcher
Kaden Varela-Payne of the Concord University baseball team have been named to an All-Atlantic Region Team.
The duo earned spots on the Division II Conference Commissioner's Association (D2CCA) All-Atlantic Region Second Team Monday afternoon.
During his senior season, DiSanti batted a team-best .344 with a career-best 33 RBI. He had nine extra-base hits (seven doubles, one triple and one home run) across 46 starts at second base. DiSanti also led the team with 17 multi-hit games and finished second with 53 total hits. Throughout his two-year career at Concord, the Wilmington, North Carolina native batted .372 which ranks ninth all-time in program history of players with at least 300 at-bats. DiSanti had four hits in a win over Bluefield State (Feb. 18). Just two days later, he drove in a career-high five runs in a win over Shepherd. In 26 MEC games this spring, DiSanti had 12 multi-hit games, including three hits and three RBI versus West Virginia Wesleyan (April 12).
Varela-Payne, a native of Raleigh, North Carolina, went 8-4 with a 4.11 ERA over 87.2 innings. With a strong finish to the year, Varela-Payne set the single-season program record with 106 strikeouts while only issuing 27 walks. In the Mountain East Conference Tournament, Varela-Payne struck out a single-game Concord record and MEC single-game record 16 batters versus Wheeling (May 7). His final regular-season start resulted in a then career-high 10 strikeouts against Glenville State (May 1). Varela-Payne had at lest six strikeouts in 10 of his 14 starts, and went seven straight starts to end the regular season by allowing three or fewer runs. He tossed a complete-game shutout at Davis & Elkins (April 3). Varela-Payne's 106 strikeouts are tied for second most in a single season in MEC history and currently ranks third in Division II in 2026.
Seton Hill third baseman Brady McGuire was selected as the D2CCA Atlantic Regional Player of the Year. West Chester's Julian Costa was named D2CCA Atlantic Regional Pitcher of the Year.
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