HILLSBORO, Ore. -Thanks to plundering the Northwest Conference baseball title by five games, Whitworth University took home plenty of spoils on the 2026 All-NWC baseball team, released Friday by the conference office.

Outfielder Kyle Memarian is the 2026 NWC Player of the Year for the second straight season.  He was joined on the first team by third baseman Caleb Gray, shortstop Spencer Shipman and starting pitcher Dillon Hartman.  First baseman Carson Coffield, second baseman Austin Paul and outfielder Nate Gray Jr. claimed second team recognition.  And head coach CJ Perry earned NWC Coach of the Year for the second time.

NWC coaches vote on the awards based on stats from conference games only.  In 24 NWC contests, Memarian finished second in overall batting average (.414), but led the league in OPS (1.254), runs scored (39) and stolen bases (15-15).  He had seven home runs, seven doubles, two triples and 23 RBIs as the Pirates' leadoff hitter.  Memarian is the first Pirate to win back-to-back NWC Player of the Year awards.

Gray, now a two-time first team honoree, started all 24 NWC games at third base and hit .268 with six home runs, five doubles and 25 runs batted in.  He also scored 24 runs.  Gray played a stellar defensive third base, making only four errors in 78 defensive chances (.949).

Shipman missed much of the first half of the season due to injury.  In 21 NWC contests he led the league with 34 RBIs while hitting .326.  Shipman posted the league's second-highest slugging percentage (.640) and had eight home runs and three doubles.

Hartman finished 8-0 in nine NWC starts on the mound with a 3.52 ERA.  One of those starts was a one-inning mid-week effort against L&C for which he was not eligible in the decision.  He led the league in victories and finished with 39 strikeouts in 46.0 innings.

Coffield claimed second team recognition after earning honorable mention in 2025.  He batted .280 with three home runs, six doubles and a triple in 24 NWC starts.  He drove in 24 runs and scored 26 (second in the NWC behind Memarian). 

Paul batted .348 with two home runs and three doubles.  He drew 17 walks and was hit by a pitch seven times for a .522 on-base percentage, which led the league.  Paul finished with 25 RBIs and scored 24 runs.

Gray Jr. batted .395 in his 23 NWC starts, the fourth best average in the conference.  He had a home run, tied for the league lead with two triples and drove in 25 runs.  Gray Jr. finished 12-12 in stolen bases.

Perry led Whitworth to the first 20-win campaign (20-4) by an NWC school since Linfield finished 21-3 in 2014.  The Pirates are 28-14 overall heading into their third NCAA Division III tournament under his guidance.  Perry was also the NWC Coach of the Year in 2019.