No. 26 Kent State Baseball’s Lyon Secures Roster Spot On USA Baseball Collegiate National Team

CARY, N.C. -- Kent State junior catcher David Lyon (Emporium, Pa.) has secured one of the final roster spots on the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team's 22-man roster, as announced by USA Baseball today (June 30).

Lyon, who was named to the Collegiate National Team as an alternate earlier this month, grabbed a spot on the final roster as the squad toured the New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL). The backstop began his summer competing for the NECBL's Keene Swamp Bats, batting .364 with nine RBIs, five runs scored, two home runs and a double among his eight hits in five games. The highlight of the Collegiate National Team's season is a five-game series (July 3-8) against the Japan Collegiate All-Stars.

Lyon will have the opportunity to represent his country and Kent State along with seventh-year Golden Flashes skipper Scott Stricklin, who is serving as an assistant coach under Collegiate National Team manager and Missouri head coach Tim Jamieson. The catcher and his head coach had the unique opportunity to play and coach at Boston's historic Fenway Park in a contest against the NEBCL All-Stars last Saturday (June 27). The Collegiate National Team will be featured on the MLB Network as it competes in the Prospect Classic July 1-2 in North Carolina. Each game will air on a one-day delay, July 2-3, on MLB Network.

A 2011 American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA)/Rawlings NCAA Mideast Region Second Team, Second Team All-Mid-American Conference, All-MAC Tournament Team and Academic All-MAC team pick in 2001, Lyon tied the school's single-season record with seven triples. He finished second on the team in batting average (.315), tied for second in hits (75), fourth in slugging percentage (.538), fifth in on-base percentage (.384), second in RBIs (53) and fourth in doubles (12). Lyon also called the signals for a pitching staff ranked sixth in the nation in ERA and a defense ranked among the top 20 in the nation in fielding percentage. Lyon crushed a grand slam to help power the Golden Flashes to a 7-5 victory over No. 5 Texas in the winner's bracket final of the NCAA Championship Austin Regional and earned NCAA Austin All-Regional Team selection.

Kent State (45-17), which is ranked No. 26 in the nation according to the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, won both the MAC regular season and tournament championships and captured a berth in the 2011 NCAA Championship Austin Regional. After earning the program's first-ever national tournament No. 3 seed, Kent State tallied an 11-inning 4-2 win over Texas State and followed it with a 7-5 winner's bracket final triumph over regional host and No. 5-ranked Texas to earn the school's second-ever berth in a regional final. The Flashes became the first squad to win three straight MAC Tournament crowns and first since 2005 to win the conference's regular season and tournament titles in the same season. Kent State's mark of 45-17 matched the 1992 squad for most victories in program history. Stricklin was named MAC Coach of the Year for the second time in his career.

Stay tuned to KentStateSports.com for a complete report on how all the Golden Flashes are faring in summer league action.