Mercer’s Backlund, Young Named NCBWA Preseason All-Americans

MACON, Ga. (MERCER RELEASE) – Mercer designated hitter Nick Backlund and third baseman Chesny Young captured spots on the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) 2014 Preseason All-America teams on Wednesday afternoon.

Backlund and Young join Georgia State’s Chase Raffield as the only players from the state of Georgia named to the NCBWA Preseason All-America teams and East Tennessee State’s Clinton Freeman as the only three members from the Atlantic Sun Conference recognized by the publication.

Backlund landed a spot on the first team after being named a NCBWA All-America second team performer following the conclusion of the 2013 campaign. The San Jose, Calif. native once again put up power numbers that rivaled the top hitters in the nation in 2013. Backlund led the A-Sun Conference with 68 RBI, 22 doubles, 13 home runs and a .592 slugging percentage last season. He also finished 2013 ranking second in the league with 140 total bases, sixth with a .426 on-base percentage and eighth with 79 hits.

Young secured a third team selection after ending a magical 2013 campaign with an A-Sun Conference leading .401 batting average. Young’s .401 clip was the sixth-highest in the nation and made him just the sixth player in Mercer baseball program history to finish a season with a .400 or better batting average. The Atlanta, Ga. native was named the 2013 A-Sun Conference Player of the Year after finishing last season on a 30-game hitting streak and ranking second in the country with 105 hits.

With Backlund and Young landing on the first and third teams, respectively, Mercer joins UC Irvine, NC State, Cal State Fullerton, LSU, UCLA, Mississippi State, Florida State, Vanderbilt, Oregon State, North Carolina, William & Mary and Wichita State as one of only 13 schools in the nation to garner multiple selections on the NCBWA Preseason All-America teams.

Backlund and Young join a very talented and veteran group of players back for the start of Mercer’s 2014 campaign. The Bears open their 2014 season at home against High Point on February 14.