Southern Miss’ Matt Wallner picks up top freshman national honor

Southern Miss star outfielder Matt Wallner was named the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association National Freshman Hitter of the Year on Tuesday.

Wallner, the Conference USA Freshman of the Year, hit .336 for the Golden Eagles, while setting school freshman records with 19 home runs and 63 runs batted in.

The outfielder also added 14 doubles, two triples and four stolen bases, helping Southern Miss post a school-record 50-16 overall mark and finish first in the 2017 Conference USA standings with a 25-5 mark.

Wallner was also named Baseball America second-team All-American and will join the USA Baseball Collegiate Team Training Camp to compete for a spot on this summer’s 24-man roster.

The NCBWA also honored St. John’s right-hander Sean Mooney as the National Freshman Pitcher of the Year. He was 8-2 with a 1.71 ERA in 16 appearances.

This story was originally published June 13, 2017 at 11:03 AM with the headline "Southern Miss’ Matt Wallner picks up top freshman national honor."