Jan. 9, 2008

SPARTANBURG, S.C. - The third recipient of the Thomas L. Smith Memorial Scholarship is Mike Colecchi.

Colecchi is a senior outfielder from Oxford, MA, where he played at St. Mary's High School for Steve Haggerty. Prior to transferring to USC Upstate Michael played for Barry Glinski at Quinsigmond Community College. Now in his third year in the Upstate program, Michael is a Criminal Justice major.

Colecchi hit .267 in 28 games as a sophomore. Playing mainly in right field, Colecchi posted a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage in 44 chances, including one outfield assist. Colecchi posted six multiple-hit games, including three-hit games against both Lander and Pfeiffer.

As a freshman, Colecchi played primarily as a designated hitter, finishing the season with a .325 average, five runs and nine RBIs. In his debut as a Spartan, Colecchi went 5-for-6 with two runs and two RBIs against Mars Hill. The five hits in a single game is tied for second in school history. He also posted three hits and four RBIs at Belmont Abbey during the season.

Michael has shown dedication to USC Upstate both on and off the field, and will be a major contributor to the program in 2008. The USC Upstate Baseball Program is proud to award Michael Colecchi with the Thomas L. Smith Memorial Scholarship.

Mike Colecchi Career Statistics
Year       Avg   GP-GS     AB    R    H   2B   3B   HR  RBI   BB   SO   SB-ATT
2006....  .325   12-12     40    5   13    1    1    0    9    6   12    0-0
2007....  .267   28-21     86    7   23    4    1    0   10    3   22    0-2
TOTAL...  .286   40-33    126   12   36    5    2    0   19    9   34    0-2