Two East Central Community College baseball players signed national letters of intent Nov. 16 to continue their careers next year at four-year colleges and universities.
Sophomore infielder George Farid of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada will play for Mississippi College in Clinton. The Choctaws are a member of the NCAA Division II Gulf South Conference.
Sophomore catcher/first baseman Alex Hay of Nesbit will play for Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tenn. The Governors play in the NCAA Division I Ohio Valley Conference.
Farid, who prepped St. Aloyisius Gonzaga, led the East Central Warriors in hitting in 2018 with a .351 average and tied for the team lead in doubles with 13 in 46 games played as a freshman. He also knocked in 37 runs and scored 34.
Hay, who prepped at Lewisburg High School, hit .294 as a freshman for the Warriors while compiling a .989 fielding percentage behind the plate with just two errors on the season. He had 27 RBI and five doubles in 31 games played.
Farid and Hay helped East Central to its ninth straight postseason playoff appearance in spring 2018.
"Both of these young men are tremendous representatives of our institution as well as our conference," said ECCC head baseball coach Neal Holliman. "These are two of the best players at their position in our league, if not the best, and we are extremely proud of their accomplishments and what they will continue to accomplish at East Central. They both possess championship caliber abilities and character. Our program continues to grow rapidly and this is just a small portion of what we continue to produce, which are young men advancing their careers either collegiately at the championship level or professionally."
Holliman said that several other current Warrior players opted to play the upcoming 2019 season before choosing a college and will sign letters of intent with four-year programs in the spring.
Under Holliman, East Central has produced nine professional players, 29 NCAA Division I signees, 46 NCAA Division II signees, three NCAA Division III signees, and nine NAIA signees.
East Central Community College sophomore baseball players George Farid (left) and Alex Hay signed national letters of intent to continue their careers at four-year programs. Farid will play for Mississippi College next fall and Hay will play for Austin Peay State University. (EC Photo)