IRVING, Texas – UTSA senior outfielder Drew Detlefsen and graduate pitcher Conor Myles each earned two major awards as the American Conference announced its 2026 baseball honors on Tuesday. The all-conference honors were voted on by the league’s head coaches.
Myles was recognized as the unanimous Pitcher of the Year, while Detlefsen claimed conference Player of the Year accolades. Wichita State infielder Jayson Jones was named the league’s Newcomer Position Player of the Year, Rice’s Tanner Wiggins captured Newcomer Pitcher of the Year, South Florida infield Jevin Relaford was selected as the Defensive Player of the Year and UAB’s Casey Dunn was voted Coach of the Year by his peers.
Regular season co-champion UTSA had five selections on the all-conference first team for the second straight season, as seven American team were represented by at least one first-team honoree.
Player of the Year
Drew Detlefsen, Sr., OF, UTSA
Detlefsen had the most hits (92) and RBI (67) in the conference across all games played during the regular season, batting .385 with an OPS of 1.093. Detlefsen’s 21 doubles were also tied for the conference lead, and he ranked third in home runs with 13. Over 27 games in conference play, Detlefsen batted .385 with 29 RBI and 27 runs scored against American foes.
Pitcher of the Year
Conor Myles, Grad, LHP, UTSA*
Myles fashioned a 9-1 record and a 3.52 ERA over 14 regular season appearances (12 starts), striking out 57 opposing batters over 69.0 innings pitched. Myles limited opponents to a .244 batting average against across all games thus far in 2026. Myles was unbeaten in nine conference starts, going 7-0 with a 3.42 against fellow conference opponents during the regular season.
Newcomer Position Player of the Year
Jayson Jones, Sr., INF, Wichita State
Jones batted .356 with 14 home runs, 52 RBI, 49 runs scored and a 1.025 OPS across 54 games (53 starts) during his debut season at Wichita State. The Oklahoma State transfer batted at a .323 clip with nine extra-base hits, 21 RBI and 19 runs scored in 26 conference games in 2026.
Newcomer Pitcher of the Year
Tanner Wiggins, R-So., RHP, Rice
Wiggins posted a 4-2 record with a 4.02 ERA in 16 appearances (10 starts) against all competition during the regular season, adding two saves to his stat total. Wiggins accounted for one solo shutout and helped combine for another spotless game thus far in 2026. The Tennessee transfer won three of his final four decisions against American opponents during the conference schedule.
Defensive Player of the Year
Jevin Relaford, Sr., INF, South Florida
Relaford posted a .961 fielding percentage on 230 chances in the field during his lone season at South Florida, registering 143 assists to rank in the top three of the conference during the regular season. Relaford added 78 putouts in the field and helped combine on 25 double plays throughout the year.
Coach of the Year
Casey Dunn, UAB
Dunn earned American Coach of the Year for the first after leading UAB to a 31-24 mark (15-12 American) during the regular season, a seven-win improvement over the 2025 campaign. It was also the first time the Blazers finished with a winning record in league play since joining the American prior to the 2024 season. Signature wins during the year for UAB included victories against No. 13 Alabama and No. 13 Florida.
All-Conference First Team
P – Ethan Norby, Jr., East Carolina
P – James Litman, So., Florida Atlantic
P – Conor Myles, Grad, UTSA*
RP – Joseph Webb, Sr., East Carolina
RP – Sam Simmons, Sr., UTSA
C – Andrew Stucky, Grad, UTSA*
1B – Caden Miller, So., UTSA*
2B – Braden Burress, So., East Carolina
SS – Jevin Relaford, Sr., South Florida*
3B – Jayson Jones, Sr., Wichita State
OF – JP Head, So., UAB
OF – Drew Detlefsen, Sr., UTSA
OF – Jason Wachs, So., Tulane
DH – Dylan Koontz, Grad, Charlotte
UTL – Max Price, R-Jr., UAB
All-Conference Second Team
P – Ryland Urbanczyk, R-Jr., Rice
P – Connor Kelley, Jr., UTSA
P – Matthew Cuccias, Jr., Wichita State
RP – Ty Thames, Fr., Rice
RP – Brady Pacha, Grad, Wichita State
C – Lance Trippel, Sr., South Florida
1B – Cody Gunderson, Sr., Charlotte
2B – JC Davis, Jr., Rice
SS – Javon Hernandez, Grad, Memphis
3B – Nick Romano, R-Sr., Florida Atlantic
OF – Alec DeMartino, Grad, Charlotte
OF – Todd Hudson, Sr., Charlotte
OF – Jack Herring, Sr., East Carolina
DH – Landon Beaver, So., UAB
UTL – Matt Rose, Sr., South Florida
All-Freshman Team
Austin Pierzynski, C, UAB
Baylor Roberts, SS, UAB
Carter Samuelson, P, UAB
Grady Lenahan, OF, East Carolina
Ethan Rose, P, East Carolina
Ethan Sanders, P, Rice
Ty Thames, P, Rice
Jack Lutz, 3B, South Florida
Dominic Pontbriant, P, South Florida
Michael Senay, P, South Florida*
* denotes unanimous selection