Kent State Baseball Welcomes Western Michigan In Weekend Showdown of MAC Contenders

An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.

The finalists were chosen by a media committee from the list of 30 candidates announced in February. Nationwide fan voting begins immediately to determine the winner. Fans are encouraged to vote on the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award website through June 11. Fan votes will be combined with media and Division I men's head coaches' votes to determine the winner. Fans can vote for David once a day at http://www.seniorclassaward.com/vote/baseball_2012/.

Lyon put together a career season last year, posting a career-best .315 batting average, .384 on base percentage and .538 slugging percentage with a career-high 75 hits, 36 runs, seven triples (most on the team, second in the MAC; tied with Matt Rundels, 1991 for most in a single season in school history), nine home runs, 27 walks, 53 RBIs and 128 total bases (third on the team, fourth in the MAC). He also led Kent State with 404 putouts, the eighth most in a single season in school history. He earned 2011 ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Mideast Region Second Team and Second Team All-MAC honors for his efforts. He earned All-NCAA Championship Austin Regional honors after he produced perhaps the most memorable hit in Kent State history to help down then-No. 5 Texas, 7-5, on its home field as the Golden Flashes earned their first regional final berth since 2001. Trailing 2-1 with the bases loaded in the bottom of the sixth, Lyon sent a 1-2 pitch sailing over the left field wall and into the Kent State bullpen to give the Golden Flashes a 5-2 lead with his second career grand slam. Lyon was named to the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team under Kent State head coach Scott Stricklin, who served as an assistant coach for the squad and helped the USA win three of five games against Japan.

A team co-captain, Lyon sports a .288 batting average in 39 games in 2012, collecting 42 hits – including 12 doubles, two triples and four home runs – to go along with 24 RBIs. He serves as the backstop for a Kent State pitching staff ranked among the tops in the nation in strikeouts per nine innings and has helped the Golden Flashes jump out to the early lead in the race for the MAC title. Lyon and the Flashes are in search of an unprecedented fourth straight MAC Tournament title and NCAA Championship Regional berth.

Lowe's, an official Corporate Partner of the NCAA, will announce the Senior CLASS Award® winner during the 2012 NCAA College World Series®, which will be held June 15-26 in Omaha.

ON TO THE NEXT ONE

Kent State heads south to Athens, Ohio, next weekend (May 4-6) to battle East Division rival Ohio in its final MAC road series of the 2012 season