NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Vanderbilt’s Philip Clarke has been named among 14 semifinalists for the Buster Posey National Collegiate Catcher of the Year Award, the Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission announced Friday morning.
The recognition comes less than 24 hours after Clarke delivered a go-ahead two-out, two-run triple in the eighth inning to lift the No. 2 Commodores past Kentucky in their series opener. Clarke accounted for four RBIs and registered his third triple of the season.
The Franklin, Tennessee, native is among two student-athletes from the SEC on the list and one of three underclassmen up for the award. Clarke is tied for third in the league for RBIs (58) and has recorded a hit in 16 of his last 20 games and multiple hits in 12 of his last 18 contests.
He has thrown out nine batters and is tied for third in the conference with two pickoffs. Clarke has made 34 starts behind the plate, helping the Commodores to a 26-8 record in those games. In 20 games batting cleanup, Vanderbilt is an impressive 17-3.
Vanderbilt (43-10, 21-7 SEC) can clinch at least a share of its first league title since 2013 with a win Friday at 5:30 p.m. against the Wildcats. The contest can be seen on the SEC Network Plus and heard on WNSR 560 AM/95.9 FM and VUCommodores.com.
Buster Posey Catcher of the Year semifinalists:
Patrick Bailey, sophomore, North Carolina State
Philip Clarke, sophomore, Vanderbilt
Logan Driscoll, junior, George Mason
Nick Kahle, junior, Washington
Justin Kunz, senior, Gardner-Webb
Shea Langeliers, junior, Baylor
Korey Lee, junior, California
Kyle McCann, junior, Georgia Tech
Pedro Pages, junior, Florida Atlantic
Adley Rutschman, junior, Oregon State
Dustin Skelton, junior, Mississippi State
Taylor Smith, freshman, Incarnate Word
Eric Yang, junior, UC Santa Barbara
Harris Yett, senior, UNC Charlotte
