May 24, 2010

SAN DIEGO, Calif. - UNLV baseball had three players selected to second team All-Mountain West Conference as the league announced its 2010 All-MWC team on Tuesday night on the eve of the league tournament. R.J. Arnold, Drew Beuerlein and Tanner Peters represented the Rebels on the team, which was voted on by the league's seven head coaches.

Regular-season champion TCU dominated the first team, with nine of the 13 spots belonging to Horned Frogs. Utah catcher/first baseman C.J. Cron earned MWC Player of the Year honors, while TCU right-hander Steven Maxwell was named MWC Pitcher of the Year and TCU left-hander Matt Purke garnered MWC Freshman of the Year accolades. TCU skipper Jim Schlossnagle earned his fifth consecutive MWC Coach of the Year honor.

Beuerlein was tabbed as the second team utility player/designated hitter, and he hit .357 with team highs of 10 home runs and 59 RBI, while also scoring 53 runs. Beuerlein hit six of his home runs during conference play and drove in 30 runs. He was one of only two Rebels to start all 54 of UNLV's regular season games.

Peters was UNLV's most consistent pitcher, making 14 starts and 17 total appearances while leading the MWC with 101 strikeouts to go with a 6-5 record and a 5.99 ERA. He is the first Rebel pitcher since 1996 to reach the century mark in strikeouts and Peters walked just 34 batters in 85.2 innings of work.

Arnold was voted second team third baseman and the freshman hit .327 with six home runs and 48 RBI in 50 total games, including making 48 starts. Arnold was one of just two freshman to be selected to either the first or second teams.

The Rebels are the fifth seed in the 2010 Conoco Mountain West Conference Baseball Championship, and they will be matched up with fourth-seeded BYU in the first game of the tournament, set for 3:00 p.m. (PT) on Tuesday from Tony Gwynn Stadium. The other first-round game will be No. 3 SDSU against No. 6 Utah at 7:00 p.m., while No. 1 TCU and No. 2 New Mexico have first-round byes.

For the fourth consecutive year, the entire Conoco Mountain West Conference Baseball Championship will be televised live on The Mtn.-MountainWest Sports Network. In addition to The Mtn.'s production, CBS College Sports Network will simulcast games all five days of the tournament. The combined reach of the two networks will make the championship available in 90 million homes nationwide.