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News Nuggets, 06.08.06
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Compiled from staff reports and electronic dispatches

Smith selected by A's, Mathews by Giants

East Carolina's Jake Smith and Shane Mathews were selected in the 2006 Major League Baseball draft on Wednesday.

Smith, a finalist for the Johnny Bench award given to the top collegiate catcher, was taken in the 21st round by the Oakland Athletics. He led the Pirates in seven offensive categories including average, hits, doubles, RBI's, total bases and slugging percentage and was second on the team in home runs with 13.

The Greensboro native became the eighth Pirate to earn first-team All Conference-USA honors on May 23. Earlier in the season Smith took home C-USA Hitter-of-the-Week honors on Feb. 27 after collecting a then-best five RBIs against Duke in a 19-5 win. He finished his collegiate career with 29 home runs and 135 RBI's, which ranks in the top 12 on ECU's all-time charts.

Mathews, a native of Conover, was taken in the 26th round by the San Francisco Giants. The redshirt sophomore posted a 5-3 record with a 4.73 ERA in 19 appearances and led the team with 75 strikeouts. During the regular season, he established a new career-high in strikeouts with 9 against Stony Brook. In the 2006 C-USA Tournament, he set a new personal best for innings pitched, 8 1/3 versus Tulane, and was subsequently named to the all-tournament team.

Mathews recorded the lone save of the his career against the Green Wave on May 24, working an inning and two-thirds of hitless relief, fanning two of the six batters he faced.

Smith and Mathews are the 13th and 14th Pirate draft picks since the 2003 season.

ECU's Hunt, Krug take Scholar Athlete honors

East Carolina's Heidi Krug was recognized in volleyball and Sara Virginia Hunt shared honors in women's swimming and diving as Conference USA named its recipients of the 2005-06 Scholar Athlete of the Year Awards on Wednesday. The awards are presented to the top student-athletes in each conference-sponsored sport. The award is based on academic achievement (GPA), athletic achievement and service.

Krug, a 5-foot-8 rising senior from Kildeer, IL, helped ECU to a 20-11 overall mark and 9-6 record in conference play in 2005 as setter with a team high 1,510 assists.

Hunt, a senior from Goldsboro, was all conference for four years during her ECU career.

Tulsa produced a conference-best four Scholar Athlete Award winners, Rice and Texas-El Paso had three student-athletes selected, and four other schools had two recipients apiece.

Southern Miss senior baseball player Marc Maddox is the only repeat winner. Nine of C-USA's 12 institutions produced at least one scholar athlete winner, with co-winners named in men's golf, softball and swimming/diving.

NCAA nixes course credits from 'diploma mills'

USA Today has reported that four South Florida schools, including now-closed University High in Miami, are among 15 the NCAA has initially targeted in a crackdown on so-called diploma mills that provide prospective college athletes with questionable class credits.

The association's action raises questions about the college eligibility of players, most in basketball and football, coming out of those schools and needing a minimum number of credits from core high school courses to satisfy NCAA academic standards. The NCAA says it no longer will count credits from those 15 schools and others it's examining and expects to identify later this month.

The list of schools released on Wednesday, according to USA Today:

News Nuggets are compiled periodically based on material supplied by staff members; data published by ECU, Conference USA and its member schools; and reports from other sources. Copyright 2006 Bonesville.net and other publishers. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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