Nebraska Wesleyan University had seven members of the baseball team on the 2012 Great Plains Athletic Conference Baseball All-Conference team that was announced Wednesday (May 9). NWU junior Alex Heideman was named the Hauff Mid-America Sports/GPAC Co-Player-of-the-Year.

Heideman was joined on the All-GPAC First Team by first baseman Beau Kelly. Shortstop Josh Ostrom was selected to the All-GPAC Second-Team. Tanner Lewis, Griffin DePriest, Justin Van Dyke and John Kingston received All-GPAC honorable mention recognition.

Heideman (Jr., Lincoln, Neb.) had a record setting first season with the NWU baseball team after transferring from Benedictine College. Heideman led the Prairie Wolves in seven different offensive categories and set a new NWU single season record with 45 runs scored and seven triples. He batted .391 with 50 hits, 12 doubles, five home runs and 28 RBI. He was second in the GPAC in batting average and led the GPAC in slugging percentage (.711) to rank 18th in all of the NAIA. His 17 stolen bases were the most for a NWU player in a season since 1993.

Kelly (Jr., Colorado Springs, Colo.) was named the First-Team All-GPAC first baseman after earning honorable mention All-GPAC last season. Kelly had an excellent conference season hitting .458 in GPAC play to rank second among all GPAC players. On the season he was second on the team with a .385 batting average with nine doubles, three homers and 27 RBI. Kelly was fourth in the GPAC in batting average.

Ostrom (Sr., Fremont, Neb.) becomes a four-time All-GPAC selection at shortstop. He was named the 2nd-Team All-GPAC utility infielder marking the second straight season he earned All-GPAC Second-Team honors. He was honorable mention All-GPAC his first two seasons. Ostrom completes his career at NWU having played in more games than any other player in NWU history with 150 games. This season he batted .294 and led the team with 32 RBI. Ostrom was also the No. 1 pitcher for NWU going 6-4 with a 2.29 ERA and seven complete games.

Lewis (Sr., North Platte, Neb.) was the starting catcher for the Prairie Wolves all season, starting 35 games behind the plate. He also hit towards the top of the batting order all season and finished with a .278 batting average. He hit a home run in the GPAC Tournament opening round win over Concordia. Lewis started 80 games at catcher for his career at NWU.

DePriest (Sr., Lincoln, Neb.) earns his first All-GPAC honor in his final season with the Prairie Wolves. DePriest, a three-year starter at second base, started 40 games this season. He had an on-base percentage of .444 and committed just four errors all year at second base. DePriest finishes 10th on the NWU career list with 137 games played.

Van Dyke (So., Columbus, Neb.) also earns his first All-GPAC recognition as he is named honorable mention All-GPAC as a pitcher. Van Dyke led the NWU pitching staff with 10 starts on the season. He finished 3-4 with a 6.09 ERA and had 35 strikeouts. During a stretch of the season, Van Dyke threw over 17 straight innings of scoreless baseball.

Kingston (Jr., Lincoln, Neb.) was honorable mention All-GPAC in his first season at NWU. Kingston started 21 games in the outfield before an injury sidelined him for the majority of the final half of the year. He was hitting .288 before the injury as the NWU leadoff batter.

Sharing GPAC Player of the Year honors with Heideman was Anthony Hincy from Doane. Ethan Opsahl from Dakota Wesleyan was the GPAC Pitcher of the Year, while Jeremy Jorgensen was GPAC Coach of the Year.

Nebraska Wesleyan finished the season with a 20-22 overall record and a 12-8 mark in the GPAC to finish third in the GPAC standings after being picked to finish 10th. The Prairie Wolves advanced to the GPAC Postseason Tournament where they won two games, the most since the 2005 season.

NWU All-GPAC Team Selections

First Team

Beau Kelly, 1B, Jr., Colorado Springs, Colo./Doherty H.S.

Alex Heideman, OF, Jr., Lincoln, Neb./Benedictine College

Second Team

Josh Ostrom, SS, Sr., Fremont, Neb./Fremont H.S.

Honorable Mention

Tanner Lewis, C, Sr., North Platte, Neb./North Platte St. Patrick’s H.S.

Griffin DePriest, 2B, Sr., Lincoln, Neb./Lincoln Southeast H.S.

Justin Van Dyke, P, So., Columbus, Neb./Columbus H.S.

John Kingston, OF, Jr., Lincoln, Neb./Southeast C.C.