College Baseball: UCI duo All-American

UC Irvine senior pitcher Andrew Morales has been named first-team All-American by Collegiate Baseball, while Anteaters’ junior closer Sam Moore was a second-team honoree.

Morales, the Big West Conference Pitcher of the Year, finished the regular season 9-2 with a 1.56 earned-run average. His season included a 31 1/3 scoreless-innings streak and 119 strikeouts in 109 1/3 innings overall.

Morales is holding opponents to a .183 batting average, seventh in the nation, heading into Friday’s NCAA regional opener against UNLV at 2 p.m. at Oregon State.

Morales, a second-team All-American after going 10-0 in 2013, allowed just 71 during the regular season. Currently UCI’s career leader with a 1.71 ERA, Morales is a candidate for the Dick Howser Trophy, Golden Spikes Award and National Pitcher of the Year.

Moore has an NCAA-best 23 saves, one shy of the single-season record. In his first year as the team’s closer, Moore shattered school and conference records (17 and 20, respectively) for saves in one season.

Moore has a 1.90 ERA and has struck out 38 in 42 2/3 innings, spanning 30 appearances. Also a right-hander, Moore is also in contention for the National Pitcher of the Year and Stopper of the Year awards as well as the Gregg Olson Award. He is 0-3 and has converted 23 of 27 save opportunities.

— From staff reports