GREENSBORO, N.C. – Georgia Tech baseball was lauded in the annual end-of-year Atlantic Coast Conference honors as four student-athletes were named all-conference, the league announced Monday.
The Yellow Jackets’ and Loveland High School grad, Luke Waddell was a first-team selection.
Rated as the No. 7 shortstop in the country, Waddell has been Georgia Tech’s table setter and lockdown defender throughout the regular season. As tough-nosed at the plate as he is in the field, the Loveland, Ohio native is currently the toughest to strikeout in the ACC and the sixth-toughest in the nation, averaging 14.2 at-bats per strikeout. He’s second on the team with a .322 average and six home runs, and has a .419 on-base percentage. He’s also eighth in the ACC in double plays fielded (25). Waddell has been red-hot in the month of May, leading the team by hitting .431 and reaching base at a .508 clip.
Read the entire story at Georgia Tech Athletics…
Waddell’s 411
Before Tech: A three-sport athlete at Loveland High School … Was a four-year letterwinner and a two-time team captain in baseball under head coach Ken Reed … Rated as the No. 3 shortstop and the No. 11 overall prospect in the state of Ohio for the class of 2017 by Perfect Game … Also ranked as high as No. 141 nationally overall at the shortstop position by PG … A 2017 Rawlings-Perfect Game honorable mention all-American … Also a 2017 central region honorable mention selection by PG … A two-time Perfect Game underclassmen high honorable mention all-American (2015, 2016) … A two-time All-Ohio all-state selection and a two-time all-district honoree … Named the 2017 Eastern Cincinnati Conference (ECC) Baseball Athlete of the Year his senior season … Also a four-time ECC first-team all-conference selection on the baseball diamond … Played in the 2017 East vs. West All-Star game … Holds the school record in career games played, hits and doubles … Helped lead his Loveland High School team to a 21-6 overall record and a 13-3 conference record in 2016 as a junior …
Also lettered in football and basketball at Loveland High School … Led his football team to the state championship title, district title and ECC conference title in 2013 … Holds the Loveland High School football records in career rushing yards, receiving yards, touchdowns and points scored … Also holds the football school records with the most rushing yards and touchdowns in a single season … Tabbed a MaxPreps second-team freshman all-American in 2013 on the football field … Also a four-time first-team all-conference selection in football … A member of the Midland Redskins summer team for three seasons … A member of the National Honor Society and the high honor roll.
2020 CoSIDA/Google Cloud Second-Team Academic All-American
2020 CoSIDA/Google Cloud First-Team Academic All-District
2019-20 ACC Academic Honor Roll
2019 Brooks Wallace Shortstop of the Year Semifinalist
2019 All-ACC Academic Team
2018-19 ACC Academic Honor Roll
2017-18 ACC Academic Honor Roll
2020 (Junior): Started all 16 games at shortstop as one of the nation’s top table setters … Hit .300 for the year, recording 18 hits – including four extra-base knocks – for nine RBI … Drew seven walks to average a .419 on-base percentage during his junior campaign … Struck out just seven times, drawing seven walks as well … Led the team by reaching base each of the final 10 games of the season … Finished the year on a five-game hitting streak – good for fourth-longest on the team … Finished tied for second with four multi-hit games … Went 2-for-3 in the season opener against St. Peter’s (Feb. 14) … Drove in two runs on two hits against Ohio State (Feb. 21) … Recorded three hits, including an RBI double at then-No. 4 Georgia (Feb. 28) … Drove in three runs on his lone home run of the season, coming against Tennessee Tech (March 3) … Also had two hits in the ACC opener against Virginia Tech (March 6) … Knocked in the go-ahead run in the eighth inning of Game 2 during the ACC’s opening weekend against Virginia Tech (March 7).
2019 (Sophomore): Appeared in 58 games, starting in all of them … Started year at second base before moving to shortstop full-time against Virginia (March 16), forming one of the most dynamic middle infield duo with teammate Austin Wilhite for the season … Finished the season hitting .322 with 75 hits, 12 doubles, two triples and homers for 34 RBI … Held the team’s longest hitting streak (14) and reached base streak (39) … One of the toughest to strikeout in the nation, averaging 10.6 at-bats per strikeout, which was good for third in the ACC and 45th in the country … struck out in back-to-back games only twice all year … Hit .321 in May to close out the regular-season … Hit .337 in 19 road games, amassing 28 hits, three doubles a triple and 10 RBI to reach base .417 percent … Struck out just 10 times in 83 at-bats on the road … Hit .318 for the month of April, striking out just seven times in 66 at-bats … Finished the season with 20 multi-hit games, including two four-hit performances … Had one of his best games in the elimination game of the Atlanta Regional, facing Coastal Carolina (June 2) where he went 4-fot-5 with two runs and a walk … Also went 4-for-6 with one RBI and two runs at eventual Athens Regional team Mercer (March 19 … Recorded three hits and an RBI against Miami (Fla.) (March 12), while also stealing a base in the rubber match game … Caught fire against Virginia, going 3-for-5 for two RBI on March 16 before going 2-for-3 for one RBI and three runs on March 17 … Finished 3-for-5 to help Tech clinch the series at then-No. 4 and eventual College World Series team Louisville (March 23) … Also helped Tech clinch Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate against Georgia (April 23), going 3-for-4 for three RBI, finishing a home run away from a cycle in front of the largest regular-season college baseball crowd (18,861) … Recorded back-to-back two-hit games in the ACC Tournament (Duke – May 24; NC State – May 25), scoring three times against Duke … Drew three walks five times on the season to amass 45 on the year (Northwestern – March 2; at Louisville – March 24; Notre Dame – March 31; Clemson – April 26; Western Carolina – May 3) … Spent his offseason competing on the USA Collegiate National Team, one of only five ACC players to help lead the United States to an 8-6 record in Japan … Hit .320 over the course of the 14 games, getting 16 hits, three doubles and five RBI, reaching base .404 … Was first Yellow Jacket to make Collegiate National Team since Derek Dietrich in 2008.
2018 (Freshman): Played in 42 games, making 31 starts on the season as a true freshman … Saw time at third base, second base and shortstop throughout the year … Hit .283 with a home run, a triple, eight doubles, 10 walks, 10 RBIs and 20 runs scored … Posted an on-base percentage of .348 on the season … Recorded a season-high five-game hitting streak and a six-game on-base streak for the year … Totaled nine multi-hit games and two multi-RBI games … Made his collegiate debut in the season opener versus Minnesota (Feb. 16) … Picked up his first career hit in the opening-weekend contest versus Bradley (Feb. 17), going 2-for-4 with two doubles, two RBIs and a run scored … Also drove in two RBIs in the road win at Georgia Southern (Feb. 20) … Scored a season-high two runs in the Friday night win against Virginia Tech (March 16), going 2-for-4 with a home run … Went 2-for-4 with a run scored in game two of the doubleheader with Dartmouth (Feb. 24) … Also went 2-for-3 with a double and a walk in the home win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff (Feb. 27) … Was a combined 4-for-11 with a double and three runs scored in the series win over Illinois-Chicago (March 2-4) … Went 3-for-12 with a home run, two RBIs and two runs scored in three starts versus Virginia Tech (March 16-18) … Drove in an RBI and scored a run in the Jackets’ home win over No. 6 Auburn (March 20) … Went 1-for-1 with a triple in game one versus Miami (March 30) before leaving the game with an injury … Was 2-for-5 with an RBI and a run scored in the double-digit win over Kennesaw State (April 18) … Went a combined 3-for-9 with two doubles, a walk and two runs scored in the ACC series at No. 8 North Carolina (April 20-22) … Was also 3-for-9 with a double, an RBI and a run scored in the series win over Wake Forest (April 27-29) … Went a perfect 2-for-2 with an RBI and a run scored off the bench in Tech’s regular-season finale versus No. 10 Duke (May 19).
Personal: Has an older brother … Also lived in Memphis, Tenn. … Enjoys playing ping pong … Chose Tech because of the coaching staff, the great academics and the chance to play in the ACC … Intends to major in business administration.
by Cassie Mattia
