Donovan, Kent, Wilson Named Preseason Baseball All-Americans

Webster University juniors Shane Donovan and Kyler Kent and Spalding University junior Garrett Wilson were named to the Preseason D3Baseball.com All-American Team that was released late Thursday afternoon. On this year's Preseason All-American Team, Donovan and Wilson were tabbed First-Team selections while Kent earned Second-Team honors. 

Donovan, a pitcher from Bartlett, Ill., earns his spot as a Preseason All-American after being a Third-Team D3Baseball.com All-American a season ago. Last season, Donovan posted a 6-0 record and a 1.80 ERA during the regular season and closed the 2018 campaign with a team-best 1.72 ERA and a 6-1 record. Along with winning six games, Donovan, who was also tabbed a Third-Team All-St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference selection, a Second-Team ABCA/Rawlings All-Central Region selection, and a First-Team D3Baseball.com All-Central Region selection, also set a new Webster single-season record for saves with eight, which was tied for 20th most in Division III a season ago. Donovan made a team and SLIAC-leading 25 appearances, which is second most in a single season in school history and in those 25 appearances, he tossed 62.2 innings and allowed 49 hits, 13 runs, while walking 14 and striking out 33. Opposing batters hit just .228 on the year against the righthander. 

Kent, a first baseman from Pottsboro, Texas, earns his spot as a Preseason All-American after earning First-Team D3Baseball.com All-Central Region honors a season ago. As a sophomore in 2018, Kent, who was named a First-Team All-SLIAC selection, a Third-Team ABCA/Rawlings Division III All-American and a First-Team ABCA/Rawlings All-Central Region selection, hit .435 during the regular season and finished the season with a .428 batting average. On the season, Kent recorded a single-season school record 83 hits and also scored 44 runs, hit 17 doubles and led the Gorloks in both home runs (6) and RBI (46) and struck just 15 times in 194 at-bats. In addition, Kent was 9-for-12 on the stolen bases and led Webster with 28 multi-hit games, including just the 17th 5-hit game in school history in late April against Iowa Wesleyan. The 83 base hits this season bettered the old single-season mark of 75 set by Tom Henke in 2012. Kent finished the 2018 campaign sixth nationally in base hits, 24th nationally in total bases and 36th nationally in batting average.

Wilson, an outfielder from West Point, Ky., was named a Preseason All-American after a breakout season in 2018. Wilson earned Second Team All-America honors by both the ABCA and D3baseball.com last season. Last year he set NCAA era program highs in multiple batting statistics on his way to being named the SLIAC Player of the Year, ABCA and D3baseball.com First Team All-Central Region, Google Cloud CoSIDA Academic All-District and SLIAC First Team All-Conference. The outfielder led the nation in hits with 86 on the season. He also set an all-time school record batting at a .470 clip on the year ranking 6^th in NCAA Division III. Once on base, Wilson stole 32 bases which ranks second all-time in program history and is the most in one season during the NCAA era.

The D3Baseball.com Preseason All-American Team is chosen from the previous years' All-American and All-Region nominations.