Jan. 28, 2010

SPARTANBURG, S.C. - The fifth recipient of the Thomas L. Smith Memorial Scholarship is Brian Dempsey, USC Upstate head baseball coach Matt Fincher announced on Thursday.

Dempsey is a senior outfielder/left-handed pitcher from Montverde, Fla., where he played at East Ridge High School for David Bultema. He joined the USC Upstate baseball team as a freshman in 2007. Now in his fourth year at Upstate, Dempsey is set to graduate as a physical education major.

Dempsey has seen his playing time increase throughout his time at USC Upstate, as the outfielder is a lifetime .270 hitter. A good bunter, Dempsey has posted 10 sac bunts in his career and he also has nine doubles and two triples, including a bases-clrearing triple in the bottom of the eighth against A-Sun Tournament champion Lipscomb in 2008 that helped Upstate to a 9-5 win.

Also active in summer baseball during his time at USC Upstate, Dempsey helped both the Clermont Mavericks of the Florida Summer Collegiate League and the Waikiki Surfers of the Hawaii Collegiate Baseball League to league titles.

Brian has shown dedication to USC Upstate both on and off the field, and will be a major contributor to the program in 2010. The USC Upstate Baseball Program is proud to award Brian Dempsey with the Thomas L. Smith Memorial Scholarship.

Dempsey's Career Statistics
Year       Avg   GP-GS     AB    R    H   2B   3B   HR  RBI   BB   SO   SB-ATT
2007....  .288   24-22     80   16   23    2    1    0    5   11   24    0-0
2008....  .300   23-20     70   16   21    3    1    0    9    7   23    0-1
2009....  .229   25-21     83   15   19    4    0    0    7    6   35    3-3
TOTAL...  .270   72-63    233   47   63    9    2    0   21   24   82    3-4