June 11, 2014
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IOWA CITY, Iowa — University of Iowa baseball juniors Jake Yacinich and Jake Mangler were named 2014 American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) first-team All-Mideast Region honorees, it was announced today by the organization. They are the first Iowa players to earn all-region accolades since 2008.
Yacinich earned first-team honors at shortstop after pacing the Hawkeyes with a .365 batting average, 25 steals and four triples in 2014. He finished the season in the top 10 in the Big Ten in seven categories, and had 45 runs, 32 RBIs and had a .447 on-base and .438 slugging percentage. His 76 hits and 25 steals both ranked among the top-11 in a single season in school history.
After becoming the first Iowa player to garner first-team All-Big Ten honors since 2009, Yacinich was selected in the eighth round of the 2014 Major League Baseball Draft by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on June 6. The Des Moines, Iowa, native signed a professional contract with the organization Tuesday.
Mangler garnered a first-team all-region nod at second base after hitting .315 with 38 runs and a team-high 45 RBIs as a junior. He finished the season seventh in the Big Ten in RBIs and 12th in on-base percentage (.397). Mangler hit safely in 41-of-52 games and was third on the team with 20 multi-hit games. He hit .382 with runners in scoring position for the year en route to a team-high 13 multi-RBI contests.
The Clinton, Iowa, native was a second-team All-Big Ten selection in 2014 — the first honor of his career. He posted career-bests in every offensive category and had a .980 fielding percentage, committing just five errors in 254 chances.
The Hawkeyes advanced to and won a game in the 2014 Big Ten Tournament en route to a 30-23 season. The 30 victories were the most for the program since 2010.