JACKSONVILLE – After piecing together one of the best seasons across Division I baseball this season, Austin Peay State University's left fielder Cameron Nickens was named the Atlantic Sun Conference Player of the Year from the league's head coaches Monday.
It is the first time in program history that a Governor is named the conference Player of the Year in back-to-back seasons.
Another Governor earning major award recognition from the league was designated hitter Cole Johnson as the Freshman of the Year and head coach Roland Fanning as the ASUN's Coach of the Year for the second-straight year. Nickens and Johnson also led a program-record 14 Austin Peay athletes recognized on the 2025 All-ASUN Teams.
Joining Nickens and Johnson on the First Team All-ASUN Team were catcher Trevor Conley, second baseman Kyler Proctor, third baseman Ray Velazquez, and outfielder John Bay. Second team honorees included starting pitcher Gavin Braunecker, starting pitcher Lyndon Glidewell, and first baseman Gus Freeman. The third team included shortstop Andres Matias.
In addition to the league's All-ASUN honors, the ASUN presented its Academic All-ASUN Teams, which were voted on by the league's sports information directors and academic advisors. They named outfielder John Bay and outfielder Brody Szako to the team.
Cameron Nickens
- 2025 ASUN Player of the Year
- 2025 First Team All-ASUN
The Magnolia, Texas, native has done nothing more this year than play exceptional ball on the diamond. In a short amount of time, Nickens has put his name in the record books for what he has done in just one season with the Governors after transferring from the University of Houston after last season. He matched Austin Peay's single-game program record for three home runs and 15 total bases in a game at North Alabama (April 11), tying 2024 ASUN Player of the Year Lyle Miller-Green's record from last season against Middle Tennessee.
Following the conclusion of the regular season, Nickens was fourth in the nation with a .426 batting average, seventh with 23 doubles, second with 95 hits –three behind the national leader – ninth with a .529 on-base percentage, 16th with 70 runs scored, 15th with 69 RBI, fourth with a .789 slugging percentage, and was the national leader with 176 total bases. Nickens also ranked second in the ASUN with 18 home runs. The senior slugger was also named a semifinalist for the 2025 Dick Howser trophy, presented by the NCBWA. Nickens is the eighth Governor to be named the conference's Player of the Year.
Cole Johnson
- 2025 Freshman of the Year
- 2025 First Team All-ASUN
- 2025 All-Freshman Team
Johnson, a native of Austin, Texas, finished the regular season as the best freshman in the league, earning Freshman of the Year honors, as well as First Team All-ASUN honors as the top designated hitter in the league. The redshirt freshman finished the regular season leading all freshmen in the ASUN with a .356 batting average, a .582 slugging percentage, a 1.023 OPS, 48 runs scored, 74 hits, 18 doubles, nine home runs, and 67 RBI. He is just the third Governor in program history to be named the league's Freshman of the Year, and the first since Garrett Spain in 2019.
Roland Fanning
- 2025 ASUN Coach of the Year
For the second-straight year, the third-year head coach was named the league's Coach of the Year following a Gold Division title and the best conference (26-4) and overall record (43-12) in the ASUN. Fanning led the Governors to their second Atlantic Sun Conference regular season title, as this year's team rewrote the record book after becoming the fastest team to reach both the 30 and 40-win marks. He becomes the fourth head coach to lead his team to a 40-win season. The Govs also became the first in program history to win 43 games in a single regular season.
This year's team recorded a program-record nine series sweeps, while also becoming the winningest team in conference play in Austin Peay history. The Governors had the second-fewest losses at home this season after going 26-4 at Raymond C. Hand Park. In addition, this year's team was inside the top five of multiple offensive categories across all Division I teams. The Govs ranked second in the NCAA with a team batting average of .337, fifth with 132 doubles, fifth with 633 hits, fifth with 109 home runs, third with a .448 on-base percentage, second with 543 runs scored, second in scoring with 9.9 runs per game, second with a .598 slugging percentage, and fifth with a .782 win-loss percentage.
Fanning also reached the 100 career wins milestone, becoming the fastest head coach in program history to reach the mark, doing so in just 164 games. The Coalgate, Oklahoma native is the first head coach in program history to be named the league's Coach of the Year in back-to-back seasons.
Trevor Conley
The Mt. Carmel, Ohio native, Conley earned All-ASUN honors for the first time in his three-year career at Austin Peay. After starting the first two weeks of the season batting just .040, Conley showed grit throughout the remainder of the season, finishing the regular season batting .312 overall, and .378 in ASUN play, which ranked seventh in the league. Conley was named to the Buster Posey National Catcher of the Year Award Midseason Watchlist (April 25) after raising his offensive stats rapidly. He ranked ninth in league play with a .610 slugging percentage and a .470 on-base percentage. He also ranked seventh in league play with a 1.080 OPS. Conley started 36 games behind the plate this season and fielded .988 on the year, with 201 putouts, which ranked eighth in the ASUN.
Kyler Proctor
Proctor, a native of Silo, Oklahoma, earned First Team All-ASUN honors following an outstanding first season at Austin Peay after transferring from Oklahoma State. Playing in all 55 games at second base, the sophomore second baseman finished the season batting .325 overall and .314 in league play. He ranked third in the league with 77 hits, which included 13 doubles, a pair of triples, and six homers out of the leadoff spot. His speed also showed on the bases, where he took 13 bases in 18 attempts. Defensively, he led the league with 136 assists and tied for sixth in the league with 28 double plays.
Ray Velazquez
The junior native of Lowell, Massachusetts, Velazquez was one of the best bats in the country after the midseason point of the year. He finished the season with a .377 batting average, which ranked fourth in the league. He was third in the ASUN with a .774 slugging percentage, which ranked 15th in the nation. His .487 on-base percentage – which ranked fifth in the league – helped him reach a 1.261 OPS. That ranked third in the league and was 15th in the nation. He also ranked in the top 10 in the league with 52 runs scored, 57 RBI, and 18 home runs. Fourteen of his home runs came during league play, which led the ASUN.
John Bay
For the second time in his career, the Shattuck, Oklahoma native, Bay earned First Team All-ASUN honors by unanimous decision amongst the league's coaches. The redshirt senior had a career year at Austin Peay, leading the ASUN with his 22 home runs, which ranked third in the nation. His 91 runs scored led the nation and ranked second across Division I with a .791 slugging percentage. Bay was also next to the national leaders with his five triples, ranking 16th in the NCAA. He had 156 total bases, which ranked second in the NCAA, and had a 1.272 OPS, which also ranked second in the NCAA. He was in the top 10 in 12 offensive categories in the ASUN, which included his .507 on-base percentage, 76 hits, 64 RBI, 45 walks, and 19 hit-by-pitches. He was 11-for-15 in stolen base attempts and had 25 multi-hit and 16 multi-RBI performances this year.
Gavin Braunecker
- 2025 Second Team All-ASUN
The Effingham, Illinois native and southpaw transfer from Bellarmine, Braunecker was named to Second Team All-ASUN after a perfect 9-0 year on the mound. He led the league in wins and ranked 12th in the nation. His 34 runs allowed this season were the ninth fewest given up in the league, and his 16 walks allowed were tied for the fourth fewest in the league. In league play, Braunecker had the 10th-lowest opponent batting average of .246 and ranked seventh with 47 strikeouts.
Lyndon Glidewell
- 2025 Second Team All-ASUN
The native of Temecula, California, Glidewell was named to the Second Team All-ASUN after finishing the year with a 7-0 record and a 3.44 ERA, which ranked sixth in the league. His .222 opponent batting average ranked fifth in the league, and his seven wins were tied for third in the ASUN. He allowed 57 hits this year, which were the seventh fewest of any pitcher in the league, and his 27 earned runs allowed were tied for the fifth fewest.
Gus Freeman
- 2025 Second Team All-ASUN
Freeman, a native of Leawood, Kansas, was named to the All-ASUN Second Team. The graduate finished the year with a .318 batting average and a .533 slugging percentage. He ranked fourth in the league with a .487 on-base percentage, which was supported by his 40 walks (7th in ASUN) and a program-record 25 hit-by-pitches, which led the league. His 399 putouts in the field ranked second in the league, and he fielded 31 double plays, which ranked third in the league.
Andres Matias
The native of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Matias was named to his first career All-ASUN Team, making the third team. The senior shortstop finished the season with a .315 batting average, a .517 slugging percentage, and a .409 on-base percentage. Out of the bottom of the order, he was very productive as he drove in 42 RBI and scored 45 times. He was also a great situational hitter, laying down five sacrifice bunts, which tied for sixth in the league.
