Willis Earns Gold Glove Honor

June 24, 2011

IOWA CITY, Iowa — The American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) announced today its Gold Glove honorees for the 2011 season, which included Hawkeye outfielder Trevor Willis. The Hawkeye senior becomes the first Iowa player to ever earn the defensive award.

Willis, who was a third team all-conference selection, started all 52 games in centerfield for Iowa. The senior led the Big Ten and tied three others nationally with 13 outfield assists during the regular season. Willis joins Taylor Dugas of Alabama and San Francisco’s Pete Lavin as the three outfield gold glove winners.

The native of Homer Glen, Ill., led the Big Ten and ranked second in the country with a career-high nine triples during the regular season. Also, the nine triples established a new school single-season record. He batted .271 and recorded 15 multi-hit games to rank third on the team. In back-to-back contests against Mississippi State (March 4-5), he tallied consecutive four-hit games, which earned him Big Ten Player of the Week accolades. Willis ranked second on the team with seven multiple RBI games and 26 total RBI.