ESCANABA — Gladstone and Escanaba dominated the Great Northern Conference baseball selections.

First-year Braves’ coach Kelly Shea was selected as coach of the year after leading Gladstone to a 24-7 overall record and an 11-0 record in the GNC, helping the Braves win the conference title in their first year coming together for baseball.

Gladstone’s Carson Shea and Escanaba’s Jared Hanson and Austin Willette were selected at pitcher, along with Marquette’s Brendan Kaski and Kingsford’s Andrew Paupore.

Gladstone’s Cooper Cavadeas and Esky’s Tyler Lawson were named all-conference catchers, while Gladstone’s Jared Crow, Marquette’s Jakob Peterson and Kingsford’s Noah Wilcox were selected at first base.

Escanaba’s Craig Kamin and Grant LaMarche were selected on the infield, along with Gladstone’s Zach Hanson and Ian Schwalbach. They were joined by Kingsford’s Luke Terrian and Marquette’s Pete VandenAvond.

Escanaba’s Josh Bruntjens and Gladstone’s Cody Frappier were selected in the outfield, along with Kingsford’s Hunter Lindeman, Marquette’s Blake Henriksen and Menominee’s Hunter Goldschmidt.

Gladstone’s Dan Martin was also named the Utility Player of the Year, putting up impressive numbers as the designated hitter after being sidelined defensively due to a shoulder injury.

Cougars’ Smith

top SC ‘Player’

NORWAY — Superior Central’s Clayton Smith was selected as the Skyline Central Conference baseball Player of the Year by the league’s coaches at Monday’s annual coach’s meeting in Norway.

Smith, who signed with Mott Community College, led the Cougars to a first-place tie in the league with Norway. His biggest highlight of the season came April 19 when he threw a no-hitter and hit for the cycle in the same game in a 12-0 win at North Central.

The Jets finished in a tie with Bark River-Harris for second in the league, followed by Stephenson in third.

Smith, along with teammates Eli Werner, Zach Englund and Parker Maki, were selected to the All-Conference team. Jackson Bower, Aidan Johnson and Nick Javurek were selected from BR-H, while Noah Gorzinski, Carter Holle and Wyatt Riley were selected from North Central.

Norway selections include Trey Doda, Payton Thompson, Kody Hendricks and Bret Turini. Stephenson’s Merlin Thoune and Ashton Barstow round out the All-Conference team.