Utes' Khoury named All-American

OMAHA, Neb. — The 2006 American Baseball Coaches Association/Rawlings Division I All-America teams were announced, and University of Utah shortstop Ryan Khoury earned first-team All-America status.

"What a great honor for him and for our program," said Utah coach Bill Kinneberg said. "I'm just as proud as I could be of Ryan and it's certainly an honor that was well-deserved."

Khoury batted .438 to lead the Mountain West Conference and ranked in the top 10 nationally. He also led the Utes with 13 home runs, 56 RBIs and 16 stolen bases. Khoury, a senior, was selected by the Boston Red Sox in the 12th round of the Major League Baseball Draft. He was also named the Mountain West Conference Player of the Year earlier this spring.

Khoury joined New Mexico designated hitter Chris Carlson as the only two MWC baseball players on the ABCA All-America first team. New Mexico pitcher Danny Ray Herrera was a second-team selection, while BYU's Ben Saylor was a third-team choice.

Khoury's selection comes on the heels of being named a first-team All-Midwest Region selection by the ABCA last week. Saylor and Carlson also represented the MWC as first-team all-region honorees.