Chants’ Beckwith nabs Big South’s top award after incredible season

As if Andrew Beckwith’s mantle wasn’t already full, the Coastal Carolina pitcher must now make room for yet another award.

Following a season in which he was 15-1 – the most wins for a pitcher in NCAA Division I competition since 2010 – and leading the Chanticleers to a national title, Beckwith on Thursday was named the recipient of this year’s Howard Bagwell Big South Male Athlete of the Year award.

Beckwith earned 105 points and 14 first place votes, well ahead of teammate Connor Owings and High Point basketball standout John Brown. Coastal Carolina football star De’Angelo Henderson finished tied for fifth with 20 points.

He is the eighth Coastal Carolina student-athlete to claim the award, and the athletic program’s third in a row. Football standouts Lorenzo Taliaferro and Quinn Backus won the award in 2014 and 2015, respectively.

Beckwith earned All-American status following a dazzling season in which he had a 1.85 ERA over 117 innings. Moving to the Chanticleers’ pitching rotation in the second half of the conference slate, Big South batters found him nearly unhittable with an overall average of .231.

The Coastal Carolina pitcher particularly earned the attention of a national audience during the Chanticleers’ run to a championship.

During the NCAA baseball tournament, Beckwith was 5-0 with a 1.96 ERA in six starts. His star shone brightest in the College World Series, however, winning three games – going the distance in two of them – posting a 0.76 ERA en route to being named the CWS’ most outstanding player.

The mark was fifth-lowest in CWS history among hurlers with at least 18 inning pitched. Beckwith also was the 12th pitcher to notch three wins in a single College World Series.

Liberty cross country and track and field athlete Ednah Kurgat claimed the Big South’s Female Athlete of the Year award, receiving 73 points and 10 first place votes. Coastal Carolina catcher Morgan Noad, the Big South’s Softball Player of the Year and the conference’s all-time leader in home runs and RBIs, finished fifth with 33 points.

This story was originally published July 21, 2016 at 5:19 PM with the headline "Chants’ Beckwith nabs Big South’s top award after incredible season."