AWARD | ASC | ETBU's Massimini is the ASC Male Athlete of the Year

6/18/2026 7:39:00 PM

MARSHALL, Texas – Continuing to earn awards for his great senior season, East Texas Baptist University’s Connor Massimini is the American Southwest Conference’s Male Athlete of the Year. It is the third time in four years for ETBU to earn the award. It is also the third time that ETBU has swept both the ASC Male and Female Athlete of the Year as Graycee Mosley was the Female Athlete of the Year.

Massimini is the fourth ETBU student-athlete to earn the award joining fellow baseball alumni in Sayers Collins (2023-24, 2022-23), Casey Combs (2018-19), and Conner Combs (2015-16).

Congratulations to Graycee Mosley and Connor Massimini on a much deserved honor and being named the ASC Female and Male Athletes of the Year. Having two student-athletes earn Conference Player of the Year in the same year is a tremendous achievement and a reflection of the excellence we strive for at East Texas Baptist University. These awards recognize not only their outstanding performances and competitive success, but also their dedication, leadership, and commitment to representing our university with class. We are incredibly proud of both student-athletes and grateful to our coaches, student-athletes, and supporters who have contributed to their success. This is a testament to the continued growth and strength of Tiger Athletics.

RYAN ERWIN | ETBU Senior Vice President for Campus Life

Massimini earned two All-American awards as an outfielder from the ABCA (3rd team) and D3baseball.com (4th team). The three-time All-Region selection, who made the ABCA and D3baseball.com First Team this year, finishes his career with 11 postseason career awards that include the ASC.

He was an All-ASC First Team selection and a member of the ASC All-Tournament team. Finishing the year with 16 home runs and 61 RBI to lead the ASC, he recorded a .342 batting average in 53 games played and started with 12 doubles and a .658 slugging percentage. He had a major impact on ETBU's offense this season with key hits in the postseason. In the Super Regional Championship game vs. No. 2 Lynchburg, he hit a solo home run in the top of the eighth inning to tie the game at two. Ending No. 1 Denison's 44-game winning streak, he went 2-of-4 in the upset, 5-1, win. Hosting the NCAA Marshall, Texas Regional Tournament in the opening round, ETBU was trailing Concordia Texas, 5-4, when he hit a grand slam in the bottom of the fifth inning to put ETBU up, 8-5, as they went on to win, 9-6. In the ASC Tournament, he hit .445 with three RBI.

What an absolute honor for Connor. He is a prime example of what being completely dedicated to your craft can lead to. It has been an honor to be around this young man for his four years at ETBU. He has set a high standard for ETBU Baseball and has represented the program to the highest degree. His work ethic, determination, and leadership are unmatched. I am unbelievably proud of this young man.

JARED HOOD | ETBU Baseball Head Coach

ETBU posted one of their best seasons in program history advancing to the NCAA Division III National Championship Tournament and finishing third. They won the 2026 Lynchburg, Va., Super Regional Championship and Marshall, Texas Regional Championship along with the ASC Tournament Championship. Along the way, they earned wins over No. 2 Lynchburg, No. 10 Baldwin Wallace, and broke No. 1 Denison University’s 44-game win streak. They posted a program record 21-game win streak going undefeated in April and finished the year with 40 wins.

Below is the ASC recap on Massimini:

Connor Massimini | East Texas Baptist | Senior | Baseball

Massimini helped ETBU to one of its finest years in baseball, with 40 wins and a run to the NCAA Division III National Championship Tournament, finishing as one of the top four teams in the nation. He earned two All-American awards, being on the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) All-American Third Team and the D3baseball.com All-American Fourth Team as an outfielder. Both ABCA and D3baseball.com voted him All-Region First Team, as he was an All-ASC First Team selection and made the ASC All-Tournament team. Finishing the year with 16 home runs and 61 RBI to lead the ASC, he recorded a .342 batting average in 53 games played and started with 12 doubles and a .658 slugging percentage. In 16 games, he had 2+ RBI and hits, too. His offensive numbers helped ETBU to the ASC Regular Season and Tournament Championships, the NCAA Division III Regional and Super Regional Championships, and to the NCAA Division III National Championship Tournament.

He had a major impact on ETBU’s offense this season with key hits. In the Super Regional Championship game vs. No. 2 Lynchburg, he hit a solo home run in the top of the eighth inning to tie the game at two. That started a five-run inning, with two home runs by his teammates coming after his, as ETBU won its second Super Regional Championship in four years. Ending No. 1 Denison’s 44-game winning streak, he went 2-of-4 in the upset, 5-1, win. Hosting the NCAA Marshall, Texas Regional Tournament in the opening round, ETBU was trailing Concordia Texas, 5-4, when he hit a grand slam in the bottom of the fifth inning to put ETBU up, 8-5, as they went on to win, 9-6. In the ASC Tournament, he hit .445 with three RBI. One of his best games of the year came on March 24 when he hit two home runs vs. LeTourneau, going 4-of-5 for seven RBI and three runs scored.

ETBU set a program record with 21 consecutive wins, starting on March 31 and going to May 22 before being defeated in game two of the Super Regionals by No. 2 Lynchburg. ETBU went 14-0 in April as he had two 14-game hitting streaks in the season. ETBU won their second consecutive ASC Tournament Championship and third in four years, along with their third NCAA Regional Championship in four years.

For his career, he is a three-time ABCA All-Region Selection, ABCA and D3baseball.com All-American, three-time All-ASC award winner, three-time ASC Hitter of the Week, made the D3baseball.com Team of the Week once, and an ASC All-Tournament Team member. He won three ASC Tournament Championships, three NCAA Regional Championships, four ASC Regular Season Championships, two Super Regional Championships, and played in two NCAA Division III National Championship Tournaments. He leaves ETBU with a .329 batting average, 118 games played with 104 games started, 118 runs scored, 126 hits, 24 doubles, 30 home runs, and 116 RBI.