AUGUSTA, Ga. – University of North Georgia baseball player Crews Taylor was tabbed as the Peach Belt Conference Player of the Year, earning first team honors in the process, the league office announced Thursday. Additionally, Jacob Lassiat was named the Elite 16 Award Winner, while Pierce Williams and Jake Arnold earned second team accolades.

Taylor was an offensive machine for the Nighthawks. The senior outfielder from Lawrenceville, Georgia, led the Peach Belt in home runs, doubles, runs scored, slugging percentage and total hits and was in the league’s top 10 in batting average and RBI. His 23 home runs this season is tied for ninth-most in a single season in PBC history and tied for fourth-most in NCAA Division II this season. He is also ranked 12th in DII in runs and 33rd in slugging percentage. Taylor becomes the second Nighthawk to be named the PBC Player of the Year, joining Brian Lauderdale who won in 2006.

Lassiat becomes the second Nighthawk in a row to win the Elite 16 Award, given to the player with the highest cumulative grade point average who is competing in the Peach Belt Conference Tournament. The league’s award, presented by EAB, models the NCAA’s Elite 90 Award. Nik Levensteins won the award last year, becoming the first baseball player in program history to win the award.

Williams and Arnold each earned second team All-Conference honors as pitchers with Williams a starter and Arnold a reliever.