Willis, Waterbury Receive Postseason Accolades
Full D3Baseball.com All-Region Team | ABCA All-Region II Team
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (May 30, 2023) – Sophomore first baseman CJ Willis has been named to the D3baseball.com All-Region II Second Team at first base, earning the accolade for the second season in a row for the Golden Bears while also earning American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) All-Region First Team, as voted on by the ten committee members. Joining Willis on the ABCA list was teammate Cody Waterbury, who claimed ABCA Region II All-Region Third Team honors at third base.
Willis put together another star-studded performance for the blue and gold this season, leading the team in nearly every statistical category. On the season, the Auburn, Massachusetts native hit .370 at the plate, while playing in all 42 games for the Golden Bears. Willis recorded 173 at-bats, 39 runs, 64 hits, 12 doubles, a triple, 13 home runs, and 52 RBIs, while stealing 19 bases. Willis recorded a .456 on base percentage and a .676 slugging percentage on the season.
Through two seasons with Western New England, Willis has played in 82 games, collecting 344 at-bats. The sophomore has scored 82 runs, collected 132 hits, 54 for extra bases (23 doubles, four triples, and 27 home runs), and has driven in 100 runs for Western New England. Overall, Willis has collected a .384 batting average.
Cody Waterbury earns his second post-season award of the year for Western New England after previously being named to the All-CCC Third Team. Waterbury collects ABCA Third Team All-Region honors after slashing .338 for the Golden Bears on the season, playing in 41 games. Waterbury led the Golden Bears and the CCC through the regular season with 15 doubles on the year while also hitting five triples and crushing five home runs to go along with 39 RBIs for the blue and gold. Waterbury stole three bases on the season to help guide the Golden Bears to their best season since 2018.
The Golden Bears finished the 2023 season with a 25-15-2 record, which included an 8-7-1 mark in CCC play. WNE was 10-5-1 at Trelease Park and their 25 wins on the year is the most since the 2018 season when the Golden Bears made it to NCAA Regional Play.
