NEW YORK – A trio of Bulldogs were recognized as All-BIG EAST selections on Tuesday afternoon after a vote from the league's head coaches. The BIG EAST Conference office announced Tyler Houston as a First Team All-BIG EAST selection while seniors Jordan Lucio and Jeff Schank each earned a spot on the second team.
 
St. John's was the big winner on Tuesday as the Red Storm claimed three of the four major awards. Sean Mooney was handsomely rewarded for his outstanding freshman season. The right-handed pitcher was named Pitcher of the Year and Freshman of the Year in the BIG EAST. Ed Blankmeyer and the rest of his St. John's staff took home Coaching Staff of the Year and the final major award landed with Ryan Bannon, a junior third baseman from Xavier, who won Player of the Year.
 
Bannon and Mooney highlighted the All-BIG EAST First Team. They were two of four players to be unanimous first team selections along with Troy Dixon of St. John's and Butler's Tyler Houston.
 
Houston helped Butler post a 31-20 overall record in 2017. He hit .287 during his junior season with 13 doubles, one triple and a team-high 12 home runs. Houston took his game to a new level against conference opponents. He led the team with a .397 batting average against BIG EAST foes and compiled half of his home runs against conference arms.
 
Houston was one of just two Bulldogs to start in all 51 games for Butler. He led the team in at-bats (202), runs scored (42), RBI (38), total bases (109) slugging percentage (.540) and stolen bases (18).
 
Outstanding individual efforts from Houston came throughout the season. His most memorable game of the year however would have to be the 5-for-5 game at Ohio which included three home runs, three runs scored and six RBI. Houston tied the Butler school record for most home runs recorded in a single-game and set a new school record for recording 14 total bases in a single game. Five hits in a single game also went down as a career-high for Houston.

Another Bulldog that stepped up his game up during weekend play against conference opponents was first baseman Jordan Lucio. The senior from Fountain Valley, Calif. Hit .310 on the year, but .354 against BIG EAST opponents.  He ended his BU career with 53 hits and 26 RBI as a senior. 23 of his 53 hits came during the 17-game BIG EAST portion of the schedule.
 
Complete 2017 stats for Lucio also included 24 runs scored, 58 total bases and a .397 on-base percentage. He came up with five extra base hits which included a 3-for-4 game at Xavier where he recorded two doubles. Lucio also recorded three hits at Georgetown in the 5-0 BU victory on May 14.
 
Fellow Butler senior Jeff Schank joined Lucio on the All-BIG EAST Second Team. The Bulldog ace ended his season with a 4-2 record on the mound that included a 2.01 ERA. Schank was limited to just 10 starts, three of which came against BIG EAST opponents. His wins were recorded against Alcorn State, Fort Wayne, Eastern Michigan and Seton Hall.
 
The left-hander from Naperville, Ill. led the team in innings pitched despite missing some starts due to injury. He struck out 74 batters in 67 complete innings. Schank only walked 23 batters over the course of the season and ended the year allowing just 15 earned runs.
 
Schank's top performance during the 2017 season came in the home opener against Fort Wayne. During the first game of a two-game series, Schank tossed a complete game shutout against the Mastodons, striking out 11 and limiting the opposition to just four hits. He struck out six or more batters in eight of his 10 starts. Schank's season-high strikeout total of 12 came in his first win of the season at Alcorn State on Feb. 24. He exited the game after seven full innings and having only allowed one hit.
 
2017 BIG EAST Major Awards and All-Conference Teams
 
Player of the Year
Ryan Bannon, Xavier, Jr., 3B
 
Pitcher of the Year
Sean Mooney, St. John's Fr., RHP (Starter)
 
Freshman of the Year
Sean Mooney, St. John's Fr., RHP (Starter) ^
 
Coaching Staff of the Year
St. John's, head coach Ed Blankmeyer
 
All-BIG EAST First Team #
Rollie Lacy, Creighton, Jr., SP (RHP)
Sean Mooney, St. John's, Fr., SP (RHP) ^^
Zach Prendergast, Seton Hall, Sr., SP (RHP)
Hunter Schryver, Villanova, Sr., SP (LHP)
Zac Lowther, Xavier, Jr., SP (LHP)
Matt Kent, Xavier, So., RP (RHP)
John Valente, St. John's, RS-Jr., 1B
Josh Shaw, St. John's, So., 2B
Jesse Berardi, St. John's, Jr., SS ^
Rylan Bannon, Xavier, Jr., 3B ^^
Troy Dixon, St. John's, Sr., C ^^
Tyler Houston, Butler, Jr., OF ^^
Anthony Brocato, St. John's, Jr., OF ^
Michael Donadio, St. John's, Sr., OF ^
Juke Kuzbel, Georgetown, Sr., DH
 
All-BIG EAST Second Team ##
Jeff Schank, Butler, Sr., SP (LHP)
Keith Rogalla, Creighton, Jr., SP (RHP)
Cullen Dana, Seton Hall, So., SP (LHP)
Garrett Schilling, Xavier, Jr., SP (RHP)
Ethan DeCaster, Creighton, Jr., RP (RHP)
Joe LaSorsa, St. John's, Fr., RP (LHP)
Ryan Testani, Seton Hall, Sr., RP (RHP)
Jordan Lucio, Butler, Sr., 1B
Isaac Collins, Creighton, Fr., 2B
Chris Givin, Xavier, So., SS
Ryan Weisenberg, Georgetown, So., 3B
Michael Emodi, Creighton, So., C
Will Robertson, Creighton, Fr., OF
Michael DeRenzi, Georgetown, Jr., OF
Ryan Ramiz, Seton Hall, Jr., OF
Blaine Girffiths, Xavier, Jr., DH
 
^^ -  denotes unanimous first team selection
^ - denotes unanimous selection
# -  due to a tie in voting, there are five starting pitchers voted to the All-BIG EAST First Team
## - due to a tie in voting, there are three relief pitchers voted to the All-BIG EAST Second Team