Austin Wells becomes first Arizona Wildcat to be named Pac-12 Freshman of the Year

Austin Wells accomplished something this season that no other Arizona Wildcat has done.

Wells was named Pac-12 Freshman of the Year on Wednesday, becoming the first UA player to be so honored. Two of Wells’ teammates, infielders Nick Quintana and Cameron Cannon, were named to the all-conference team. Wells and fellow catcher-first baseman Matthew Dyer earned honorable-mention recognition.

Wells hit a home run in his first collegiate at-bat and never stopped hitting. He finished the season batting .353 with 15 doubles, seven triples, five home runs, 60 RBIs and 73 runs scored. The latter set a UA freshman record, led all Division I freshmen and ranks sixth among all D-I players.

Wells ranks in the top five in the nation among freshmen in triples, RBIs, walks (46), batting average and on-base percentage (.462). He had a 28-game on-base streak from Feb. 23 through April 14, and set UA freshman records in Pac-12 play with six triples, 39 runs, 34 RBIs, a .465 OBP and a .597 slugging percentage.

Quintana — who, like Wells, hails from Las Vegas — earned all-league recognition for the second straight year. The junior third baseman posted career highs in home runs (15), doubles (18), runs (65), RBIs (77), batting average (.342), OBP (.462) and slugging (.626). Quintana’s 77 RBIs were 16 more than second-place Hunter Bishop of Arizona State.

Quintana’s classmate, Cannon, received all-league honors for the first time. The middle infielder finished the regular season leading the nation with 29 doubles, one shy of the UA record. Cannon batted .397 (third best in the Pac-12) and led the conference with 92 hits. He also ranked in the top five in runs (71), total bases (151), OBP (.478) and slugging (.651).

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Dyer, a high school teammate of Cannon’s at Glendale’s Mountain Ridge High School, batted .393 with a .480 OBP in his first season at Arizona. The transfer from Oregon missed the final 12 games because of an injured hand.

Williams, a sophomore, had a .993 fielding percentage, the best among UA players with at least 100 chances. Splitting time between center and left field at spacious Hi Corbett Field, Williams was charged with only one error all season.

Quintana earned an honorable mention for the all-defensive team, which consists of only 10 players. He posted a career-best .921 fielding percentage.

Oregon State catcher Adley Rutschman, the projected No. 1 pick in next week’s MLB draft, was named Pac-12 Player of the Year and co-Defensive Player of the Year. He shared the latter with Stanford catcher Maverick Handley.

UCLA’s Ryan Garcia was named Pitcher of the Year. The Bruins’ John Savage was named Coach of the Year after leading his team to the Pac-12 championship and the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, which begins Friday.

Despite all the individual accolades, Arizona did not capture a berth. The Wildcats finished 32-24, 15-14 in the Pac-12, and ended the season on a 10-game winning streak.