Perry Headlines UCLA's List of All-Pac-12 Honorees
May 23, 2023 | Baseball
Three members of the UCLA baseball team were selected to the 2023 Pac-12 All-Conference Team, the league office announced on Tuesday morning.
The Bruins' all-league contingent included senior catcher Darius Perry, senior right-handed pitcher Kelly Austin, and sophomore infielder Duce Gourson.
In addition to making the All-Pac-12 Team, Perry was one of just nine players โ and the only catcher โ named to the 2023 Pac-12 All-Defensive Team.
It marks the second consecutive All-Pac-12 honor for Perry, who was also cited as a junior in 2022. It's the first career All-Pac honor for Austin and Gourson.
UCLA also had a trio of players who were named All-Conference Honorable Mention: freshman right-hander Cody Delvecchio, senior righty Charles Harrison, and sophomore first baseman Jack Holman.
Perry has been a contributor on both sides of the ball for UCLA this season. He enters the postseason with a .285 batting average and .393 on-base percentage, and has already set career-best marks this year in hits (51), home runs (three), and RBIs (30). Behind the dish, his 19 runners caught stealing and 43% runners caught stealing percentage both lead the conference by a wide margin.
Austin has been one of the Pac's top starting pitchers in 2023, going 4-4 with a 3.26 ERA in 77 1/3 innings to this point in the season. His ERA is fourth-lowest among qualifying Pac-12 pitchers, and his 92 strikeouts are tied for the most in a single season by a Bruin since 2019. Austin has had several standout outings this season, throwing 6 2/3 shutout innings at Oregon on Mar. 12, allowing just four hits and striking out 11 against Utah on Apr. 6, and fanning a career-high 13 against Oregon State on May 13.
Gourson meanwhile has been UCLA's most-consistent offensive force this season, leading the team in each triple-slash stat (.308/.433/.513) while setting career highs in home runs (10) and RBIs (46). He also paces the club by a wide margin in multi-hit (19) and multi-RBI (13) efforts. UCLA's starting second baseman over the last season and a half, he has ably taken over the shortstop position since Cody Schrier was lost to injury in mid-April.
Each of UCLA's all-league honorable mentions are having strong campaigns as well. Delvecchio ranks second in the country in appearances (35) and was unhittable in the early going, posting a 0.74 ERA over his first 28 outings. Harrison has pitched to a 1.44 ERA in 25 innings this season, best on the staff among pitchers with at least two outings. Holman leads the Bruins with 12 home runs, the most in a single season by a UCLA player since 2019.
UCLA begins postseason play this week at the 2023 Pac-12 Tournament, facing USC and Washington and pool play on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Stay tuned to @UCLABaseball on Twitter for all team updates.
