HAMPTON, VA – Two local players have been recognized by the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA).

Mike Grant, a junior outfielder from Shaw University, and Jacob Harrell, a freshman catcher at Elizabeth City State University, were honored this week.

Grant was named to the CIAA Baseball All-Conference Team while Harrell was named to the Rookie Team.

A native of Woodland, Grant played his prep baseball at Northampton County High School n East.

In his junior year, Grant is hitting at a .472 clip in 41 games for the Shaw Bears including a .506 average with runners on base. He had hit safely in 68 of his 144 at-bats.

Those 68 hits include 20 doubles, seven triples and a homerun to go along with 52 RBIs.

Grant’s slugging percentage is a healthy .729 and he has an on-base percentage of .535. He has stolen successfully in 31 of 34 attempts.

The Northampton County graduate leads the CIAA in four statistical categories including hits, extra-base hits, RBIs and runs scored.

In addition to his solid work in the outfield, Grant has posted a 2-2 mark as a pitcher this season. He has tossed a total of 27 innings and has struck out 12 batters.

Shaw finished fourth in the CIAA regular season with a final record of 22-19 overall and 13-7 in the league.

At Elizabeth City State, Harrell moved from his natural second base position to catcher in his freshman season. After sitting out the first three games, he has become a mainstay behind the plate for the Vikings.

In his freshman year at ECSU, Harrell has a batting average of .324 and has scored 21 runs this season.

Harrell’s .459 slugging percentage has helped his club as has his .393 on-base percentage.

In addition, Harrell finished third on the team in both chances (110) and putouts (79).

Harrell was a standout performer at Lawrence Academy in Merry Hill where he played in three state championship series’ and was named Best Defensive Player in the Roanoke-Chowan area as a senior.

Other eastern North Carolina players who were honored by the CIAA included J.J. House of Williamston, a junior outfielder at Elizabeth City State, and Williams Stallings, an infielder at ECSU that is from Elizabeth City.