Cougar Trio Earns All-ACCAC Honors, Jayden Smith Named All-Region

PHOENIX ---

South Mountain Community College baseball freshman Jayden Smith earned 2022 Second Team Region I Division I honors. He and fellow SMCC freshmen Carter Richey and Gustavo Sosa received 2022 Second Team All-ACCAC awards, as voted upon by the league's head coaches.

Smith led the Cougars with a .379 batting average, 42 runs, 67 hits and a .472 on-base percentage in 48 games. He added six doubles, a triple, a home run and 15 stolen bases, and he tied for sixth in the conference in batting average and seventh in hits. Smith had 22 multi-hit games and posted a season-high four in an 8-4 victory at Central Arizona on Feb. 22. He scored multiple runs in 11 games and had four games with two stolen bases. 

Richey batted .316 with 56 hits and 29 runs in 51 games. He led the Cougars with 14 doubles and 42 RBIs, tying for 12th in doubles and 13th in RBIs among all ACCAC players. Richey also hit seven home runs and stole nine bases, finishing with 15 multi-hit games and a season-high four hits in a contest against Central Arizona on Apr. 19. Richey went 3-for-5 with two runs, a double, a home run and a season-high six RBIs in a win at Eastern Arizona on Apr. 16. 

Sosa hit .337 with 63 hits and 33 runs in 54 games. He led SMCC with nine home runs, tying for ninth in the ACCAC, and added 13 doubles, a triple and 37 RBIs. He also had seven stolen bases, 24 walks and a .415 on-base percentage for the Cougars. Sosa posted 18 multi-hit games and nine multi-RBI games during the year and finished with a season-high four hits and four RBIs in a win at Gateway CC on Mar. 30. 

SMCC finished 27-29 overall and 15-23 in the ACCAC during the 2022 season. The Cougars posted a 10-14 mark at home and were 12-12 in away contests. SMCC batted .287 with 39 home runs and 355 runs scored as a team, and the pitching staff combined for a 5.21 ERA and 479 K's in 452.1 innings.