Hernandez, DiNatale Named to ACC Academic Baseball Team

Aug. 6, 2009

GREENSBORO, N.C. – The 2009 University of Miami baseball team placed two student-athletes on the 2009 Atlantic Coast Conference All-ACC Academic Baseball Team, as announced today by Commissioner John D. Swofford. Rising junior Chris Hernandez and former Hurricane Dave DiNatale have been recognized by the league for their outstanding performance in the classroom this past school year.

DiNatale’s selection marks the third time the former UM outfielder was named to All-ACC Academic squad while Hernandez is a first time honoree.

The 2009 All-ACC Academic Baseball Team features 16 repeat selections from 2008 and 13 players that earned first- or second-team All-ACC honors in 2009 (Hernandez; Boston College’s Tony Sanchez; Duke’s Nate Freiman, Jeremy Gould and Andrew Wolcott; Florida State’s Tyler Holt; Georgia Tech’s Derek Dietrich, Tony Plagman and Jeff Rowland; North Carolina’s Adam Warren, and Virginia’s Phil Gosselin, Dan Grovatt and Danny Hultzen. In Hultzen, the All-ACC Academic team also features the ACC Freshman of the Year.

A Management major from Miami, Hernandez is also a Dean’s List member at UM, in addition to being a two-time member of the Athletic Director’s honor roll and a three-time UM Book Buster recipient. DiNatale, a Parkland, Fla. native, is also a member of the Dean’s List as well as a Athletic Director’s Honor Roll member and a UM Book Buster.

On the field in 2009, Hernandez led the UM pitching staff in wins (7), innings pitched (90.2) and strikeouts (93). DiNatale started 57 games as an outfielder, hitting .311 with six homers, 39 RBI and 36 runs scored.

Duke’s Freiman – a four-time member of the All-ACC Academic Baseball Team – was named the conference’s Baseball Scholar Athlete of the Year.

Each of the ACC’s 12 member schools placed at least one student-athlete on the 2009 All-ACC Academic Baseball Team.

To be eligible for consideration, a student-athlete must have earned at least a 3.00 grade point average for the previous semester and maintained at least a 3.00 cumulative average during his academic career.

*Repeat All-ACC academic honorees from 2008
**Three-time honorees
***Four-time honorees