Junior outfielder Nate Roberts, of the High Point University baseball team, was named the 2010 Big South Conference Player of the Year, the league announced Wednesday during the Big South Conference Tournament. Roberts was joined on the All-Conference first team by senior outfielder Matt Gantner. Freshman pitcher Jaime Schultz earned second team honors and sophomore infielder Sal Pezzino was named to the All-Academic team.

“I am extremely proud of all four of HPU's All-Conference selections and they tell four distinct stories about this season,” said head coach Craig Cozart. “Nate Roberts as Player of the Year is a testament to the variety of skills and dedication he brings to the field. Matt Gantner making the first team, in his fifth season after coming back from injury is a testament to his hard work. Jaime Schultz speaks of great things now and for the future of this program and Sal Pezzino is an example of hard work on the field and in the classroom. It is a privilege to coach these young men and they represent High Point in the highest manner.”

In his first season at High Point, Roberts set HPU single-season records in runs scored, on-base percentage and hit by pitch (23). His 84 runs scored and .578 OBP are also Big South records and top-two in the nation.

Roberts has a conference-leading .423 batting average, 18 home runs, 148 total bases, 50 walks and .763 slugging percentage. He has also stolen 35 bases and has 82 hits and 66 RBI. The Spring Grove, Ill. native has eight outfield assists.

Gantner had a breakout year as a senior, hitting .379 with an HPU-record 24 doubles to earn a spot on the All-Big South first team. Gantner leads the Big South with 68 RBI and is fifth with a .457 on-base percentage. All eight of Gantner's career home runs have come in his final season.

Schultz, a freshman from Castleton, N.Y., posted a 5-0 record with a team-high 65 strikeouts to earn second-team All-Conference honors. Schultz started the year as a reliever, but moved in to the starting rotation during conference play, posting a 2.70 ERA against Big South opponents. Four of his five wins have come in league play, with victories over Liberty, UNC Asheville, Gardner-Webb and Presbyterian. He has had a career-high eight strikeouts in each of his last two starts, a win at Presbyterian and a no-decision at Charleston Southern.

Pezzino, a sophomore computer science major, has a 3.82 GPA. He has played in 42 games, making 12 starts this season with a .355 batting average. The Huntington, N.Y. native has 27 hits, 11 RBI and 10 runs scored to go with six walks and six sacrifice hits. He has a .353 average as a pinch-hitter this season.

The Panthers set program records for overall and conference wins with a 29-27 (15-12 BSC) record in the regular season, finishing fourth in the Big South. HPU will face third-seeded Radford in the Big South Tournament Wednesday at 7 p.m. in Rock Hill, S.C.