Baughman Leads Three USCAA Baseball All-Americans
MEDIA, Pa. -- Senior Cam Baughman (Oxford, Pa./Oxford) was named First Team All-American by the United States Collegiate Athletic Association, highlighting three all-Americans from the Penn State Brandywine baseball team. Sophomore Sam Benvignati (Aston, Pa./Archbishop Carroll) was selected to the second team, while Connor Thompson (Finksburg, Md./Westminster) was named honorable mention all-American.
Now a two-time First Team All-American, Baughman enjoyed a standout final season at Brandywine, hitting .419, while ranking second in the USCAA with 27 extra-base hits. His eight triples were a USCAA-leading total. While making 37 appearances in center field, Baughman set career highs with six home runs, 49 hits and 34 runs batted in. He also scored 36 runs and stole nine bases.
Baughman hit safely in 15-straight games from Mar. 24-Apr. 13 and did so in 29-of-37 games overall. He produced 16 multi-hit games with a season-best four coming in a 10-1 win at Central Penn on Apr. 9 when he also drove in five runs.
During his five-year career at Brandywine, Baughman was a .344 hitter, collecting 137 hits, 107 runs scored and 75 RBI.
Benvignati hit a team-best .426, the 11th-highest average in the USCAA, while playing in all 38 games during his first year at Brandywine. He registered a Brandywine-high 40 RBI and scored 25 runs. Benvignati was also one of the toughest players to strike out, fanning just 12 times in 108 at-bats.
On Mar. 2, Benvignati became the first Brandywine player to hit for the cycle, going 4-for-4 with a program-record eight RBI in a win over Alfred University. He also tallied five three-hit efforts and drove in at least three runs on five occasions.
During his final year at Brandywine, Thompson earned his second consecutive all-American award after finishing fifth nationally in wins. He posted a 7-2 record and carried a 3.49 earned run average during 14 appearances and eight starts on the mound. Thompson fired four complete games, tying for fourth among USCAA pitchers, while striking out 32 batters in 56.1 frames.
Thompson pitched complete-game shutouts in wins over Penn State Hazleton on Apr. 5 and Penn State Scranton on Apr. 12. He also fanned a season-high eight hitters in an 11-1 victory over Penn State Wilkes-Barre on Mar. 28.
Thompson completed his four-year career with a 20-12 record and 146 strikeouts in 213.2 innings on the mound.
Brandywine finished the 2024 season with a 23-15 record under the direction of Head Coach Vinny Gallo.
