UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND, Va. - After enjoying outstanding careers at the University of Richmond, both Adam McConnell and Chris Cowell were selected in the 2012 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft on Wednesday afternoon.
McConnell was taken in the 29th round by the Arizona Diamondbacks with the 903rd pick, while Cowell was selected by the Colorado Rockies in the 34th round with the 1038th overall pick.
"I couldn't be happier to see Adam and Chris get a chance to play at the next level," Richmond head coach Mark McQueen said. "Both were terrific players for us at Richmond, helping us make back-to-back Atlantic 10 Championship game appearances. I am sure that both have bright futures ahead of them, both on and off the field."
Dating back to the 1995 MLB Draft, Cowell and McConnell mark the 29th and 30th former Spider baseball players to be drafted. Since head coach Mark McQueen took over the program prior to the 2008 season, five players have been selected a total of six times.
This season, McConnell ended his Spider career with a solid redshirt junior campaign. The Yorktown, Va., native hit .283 on the season with six doubles, two triples, two home runs, 24 walks, 12 stolen bases, and 24 RBIs. McConnell was also a standout defensively for Richmond, making numerous outstanding plays at third base.
McConnell's best season as Spider came during his first year on campus when he was named to the Ping Baseball Freshmen All-America Team. During that season, McConnell had one of the most prolific freshman years in school history, hitting .355 to with a freshman school-record 31 stolen bases. This year's selection is the second in the career for McConnell, who was taken in the 30th round in 2011 by the Los Angeles Dodgers, but chose to return to Richmond.
After enjoying one of the most impressive and powerful offensive seasons in school history this past year, Cowell was taken by the Colorado Rockies in the 34th round. The catcher earned First-Team All-Atlantic 10 accolades after leading the conference with 20 home runs and a .643 slugging percentage. The Devon, Pa., native hit .271 on the year and had 18 doubles and 58 RBIs to go with his impressive homer total.
For his career, Cowell graduated ranked fourth all-time in school history with 45 career home runs. The senior backstop also ranked 10th all-time in program history in total bases with 363. During his four years, Cowell was a two-time All-Atlantic 10 selection and made the all-tournament team in 2011.
For all the latest information on Richmond Spider baseball, be sure to go to RichmondSpiders.com or follow the team on Twitter - @SpiderBaseball.
