Dec. 5, 2008

2009 Brooks Wallace Award Preseason Watch List

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - Charlotte baseball standouts Rob Lyerly and Corey Shaylor of Charlotte are among the student-athletes named to the 2009 Brooks Wallace Award Preseason Watch List.

The Wallace Award is presented annually to the nation's top collegiate baseball player in conjunction with the College Baseball Hall of Fame induction ceremonies. The 2009 award banquet will be at 7:00pm, Thursday, July 2, in the United Spirit Arena on the campus of Texas Tech University. Last year's award went to Florida State junior catcher Buster Posey, the consensus national player of the year and a No. 5 overall draft pick by the San Francisco Giants.

In his first season with the 49ers, Lyerly led the Conference in doubles (26), slugging percentage (.705) and runs batted in (76). The senior infielder was second in the A-10 in home runs (15) and total bases (155). An A-10 All Conference first-team selection, Lyerly was third on the team in average with a .364 clip and was tabbed the Most Outstanding Player of the 2008 Atlantic 10 Championship.

Shaylor, a second baseman, was named the A-10 Rookie of the Year last season. A second-team All-Conference selection, Shaylor enjoyed an impressive rookie campaign for Charlotte, leading the 49ers with a .373 batting average, good for second in the Conference. Over the course of the season Shaylor had only 15 strikeouts in 158 total at-bats. The 49ers posted an overall record of 43-16/19-8 and claimed their second consecutive A-10 crown and NCAA berth.

The Wallace Award is dedicated to the memory of former Texas Tech player and assistant coach Brooks Wallace. Wallace was a slick-fielding shortstop at Texas Tech from 1977 to 1980. A four-year starter, he was named All-Southwest Conference and All-District his senior year. He led the Red Raiders to their first-ever appearance in the Southwest Conference Tournament in 1980.


After playing two years in the Texas Rangers organization, he returned to Texas Tech and served as a graduate assistant and later as an assistant coach. In the summer of 1984, he was diagnosed with cancer and fought the disease courageously until his death on March 24, 1985, at age 27. The Plano, Texas, native was married to the former Sandy Arnold and they had one daughter, Lindsay Ryan.