May 20, 2008

AUBURN, Ala. - Hunter Morris was named the Southeastern Conference's Freshman of the Year and three of his classmates were voted to the SEC's All-Freshman Team, the league office announced on Tuesday morning. Voted to the All-Freshman Team were third baseman David Cunningham, starting pitcher Grant Dayton and outfielder Brian Fletcher along with Morris, who was also the All-SEC Second Team choice.

Morris, from Huntsville, Ala., led Auburn with a .351 overall batting average, though his numbers were even better in league play where he hit .393, good enough for fourth in the conference. In 29 league games he smacked 10 doubles and seven home runs, finishing the year with a .670 slugging percentage in SEC games, seventh-best in conference play. He had 15 mulit-hit SEC games and eight multi-RBI games, collecting an eight-game SEC-only hitting streak while playing through an injury over the last 12 games of the conference season. Morris, who was also the All-SEC Second Team and All-Freshman Team first baseman, had a perfect fielding percentage on the year, not committing an error in 410 total chances. Morris, who had an on-base percentage of .465 in SEC games (tied for eighth), becomes Auburn's first SEC Freshman of the Year.

Cunningham hit .319 in 37 games, making 19 starts in conference play and finishing with a .274 league-only batting average. Moving into the everyday lineup in the middle of April, the Roswell, Ga., product hit a team-best .395 in 12 starts in the month, collecting four doubles and six doubles in the month, stringing together a six-game hitting streak.

Dayton was Auburn's Friday-night starter in SEC play and finished the year with a 7-2 mark and a 3.89 ERA overall. In 10 league starts the left-hander went 6-2, becoming Auburn's first six-game winner in SEC play since Hayden Gliemmo in 1998. After losing his SEC debut, the Huntsville product rattled off six straight wins. He finished the year with 79 strikeouts in 81.0 innings overall, issuing just 13 walks on the year, and his 28 batters struckout looking in SEC play led the league.

Fletcher, from Fayetteville, Ga., hit .324 in all games and 346 in league play, belting eight of his 10 home runs and driving in 29 of his 42 RBI against SEC pitching. His .710 slugging percentage ranked fourth in SEC play while his RBI tally was good enough for eighth in the conference. Auburn's everyday leftfielder, Fletcher collected at least one extra-base hit in 12 of the final 16 games.

Auburn has now had at least one representative on the All-Freshman team in three straight seasons and is the only school in the league to place four players on the team in a single season in the past four years.

Ryan Jenkins was also named to the 2008 Community Service Team. The junior catcher from Millbrook has participated in the annual Home Run Derby for the Boys & Girls Club of Lee County for the past three years, has helped stock shelves at the East Alabama Food Pantry and has also participated in the canned food and clothing drives.