West Liberty’s Corey Pelle was named Atlantic Region Player of the Year and two of Pelle’s Hilltopper teammates joined the scintillating senior guard on the 2010 Daktronics All-Atlantic Region Team, which was announced on Wednesday by the region’s sports information directors.
Pelle was joined on the All-Region first-team unit by senior sharpshooter Jordan Fortney while another Hilltopper senior, Barry Shetzer, was a second-team All-Region selection after the trio helped Coach Jim Crutchfield’s Hilltoppers complete an undefeated regular season to earn the first No. 1 national ranking in school history.
A 5-11 guard from Silver Grove, Ky., Pelle was the straw that stirred the drink for a West Liberty team which averaged more than 112 points a game and was so dominant that 27 of its 29 wins came by double figures.
West Liberty’s first NCAA Division II Atlantic Region Player of the Year, Pelle led the West Virginia Conference in steals and assists – ranking among the top six nationally in both categories – while maintaining a 16.4 ppg. scoring clip. The electrifying southpaw has already broken his own single-season school record with 91 steals and is the Hilltoppers’ career record holder in steals (320) and assists (622).
The WVIAC Player of the Year, Pelle is No. 7 among West Liberty’s all-time scoring leaders and was the only repeat first-team selection on this season’s All-WVIAC squad. He was a second-team All-Region selection a year ago.
Fortney, a 6-5 senior guard from Bowling Green, Ohio, ranks No. 3 nationally with 3.8 3-point field goals per game and No. 3 nationally in 3-point field goal percentage (.462). He’s averaging 15.2 ppg. while also contributing nearly 4 rebounds and 3 assists a game. He currently shares the school’s single-season record of 110 3-pointers with Shetzer. They are the only teammates in NCAA Division II history to make 110 or more 3-point field goals in the same season. Fortney leads the Hilltoppers this season with 11 games of 20 points or more.
Shetzer, a 6-5 senior guard from North Canton, Ohio, is the leading scorer (17.0 ppg.) on the nation’s highest-scoring team and holds the WLU career record with 275 3-point field goals. The first Hilltopper ever to make 100 or more 3-pointers in back-to-back seasons, Shetzer leads this year’s team with 26 double-figure scoring games. The four-year standout is tied with Fortney for No. 3 nationally in 3-point field goals per game (3.8) and ranks 10th nationally in 3-point field goal percentage (44.4).
Joining Pelle and Fortney on the all-senior All-Region First Team are Indiana (Pa.) center Darryl Webb – the only repeat first-team choice – along with Cheyney (Pa.) guard Sharif Bray and W.Va. Wesleyan guard Marquis Weddle.
The Second Team unit includes Shetzer, Slippery Rock senior Maron Brown, Virginia Union senior Braxton Byerson, W.Va. State senior Josh Miller and Johnson C. Smith sophomore Trevin Parks.
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