AUSTINTOWN, Ohio - Three members of the Capital University men's basketball team took home All-Ohio Athletic Conference honors on Tuesday following voting conducted amongst the OAC's head coaches.
Senior Nate Stahl (St. Henry, Ohio/St. Henry HS) won the Mike Gregory Award for the second straight season as the OAC's Player of the Year. Stahl is joined on the All-OAC First Team by classmate Ryan Wood (Pickerington, Ohio/Pickerington Central HS). Fellow senior Quintin Mitchell (Toledo, Ohio/Toledo Libbey HS) was an All-OAC Honorable Mention selection.
Stahl is just the fourth Crusader to win the Mike Gregory Award and is only the sixth player in the 49-year history of the Ohio Athletic Conference to take home top individual honors in back-to-back seasons. He was named the Player of the Year in the OAC despite not winning a single OAC Player of the Week honor. Stahl's consistent play throughout the season has moved him into fourth place on the all-time in scoring at Capital including a 14.0 ppg average this season. A four-time All-OAC pick and a three-time First Team selection, Stahl was tabbed as a D3Hoops.com National Team of the Week honoree this season and is a candidate for All-America honors.
Wood leads the Crusaders in scoring at 14.5 ppg and earns his third All-OAC honor this season. He was named as the OAC Player of the Week on Nov. 24 after winning Tournament MVP honors at season-opening Case Western Reserve Alumni Tip-off Tournament. Wood also put up a career-best 32 points on two different occasions this season including Jan. 17 at Otterbein when he became the 29th Crusader to surpass the 1,000-point plateau. He was the second Capital player to be named to the D3Hoops.com National Team of the Week and is also a candidate for All-America recognition.
Mitchell served most of the season as the top reserve in the Ohio Athletic Conference. He has averaged 11.1 ppg and 5.9 rpg to rank third and second on the team in scoring and rebounding respectively. Mitchell has been at his best against top competition with 21 points and 12 rebounds in a win over Wilmington and 10 points and 11 boards in a victory over John Carroll. This is the first All-OAC award of Mitchell's career.
#13 Capital enters the postseason with a 24-4 overall record and has been nationally ranked for the entire regular season including a mark of No. 5 nationally, which was the highest in program history. All four of Capital's losses were on the road to teams from the Ohio Athletic Conference.
The Capital men's basketball program will be making its 11th appearance overall in the NCAA Tournament this weekend including its third straight. CU will be hosting an NCAA Tournament game for the second consecutive year as the Crusaders won an NCAA First Round matchup with Bethany last season. Capital has a perfect 13-0 record at the Capital Center this season.
The action begins with a doubleheader on Friday as Wooster faces Gettysburg at 6 p.m. followed by Capital playing host to Thomas More at 8 p.m. The winners will square off in an NCAA Second Round matchup on Saturday at 7 p.m.
Tickets are only $6 for General Admission and $3 for all students/children/senior citizens. A separate ticket will be sold for each day.