David Mershon named Brooks Wallace Award finalist

PRESS RELEASE (Mississippi State Athletics)– Mississippi State sophomore shortstop David Mershon is one of five finalists for the 2024 Brooks Wallace Award, the award committee announced on Tuesday. The Brooks Wallace Award is given out annually to the best shortstop across the country.

The five finalists for the 2024 Brooks Wallace Award are Mershon, Austin Peay junior Jon Jon Gazdar, Ball State senior Michael Hallquist, Rutgers junior Josh Kuroda-Grauer and Virginia junior Griff O’Ferrall.

“Our list of finalists this year comes with some stellar defensive stats with very few errors from all five players,” said Brooks Wallace Award co-chair Larry Wallace. “When it comes to the plate, there are some impressive numbers there as well. It’s always tough to determine who best represents all the qualities we look for in Brooks’ award, and I look forward to that process in the coming weeks.”

Over his sophomore season as a Diamond Dawg, Mershon was a key piece for State at the plate and in the field and helped guide the Maroon and White back to the NCAA Tournament. The infielder made 58 starts – 43 at shortstop, 11 at second base and four at DH – while posting a .979 fielding percentage for the season, which stands as the second best out of the finalists.

Mershon led the team in stolen bases with 27 for the season. The total was the second most in the Southeastern Conference and the fourth most in a single season in program history for Mississippi State. At the plate, Mershon had 77 hits and 41 RBIs with a .347 batting average. He finished second on the team with 23 multi-hit games.

He led the team in runs scored (60) and finished second in batting average and hits for the 2024 Diamond Dawgs.

Mershon was named First Team All-SEC Shortstop following the regular season. In the postseason, he was selected to the Charlottesville All-Regional Team. In the regional, Mershon hit .500 (8-for-16) with one homer and two RBIs. He had an on-base percentage of .600 in four games in Charlottesville.

Through his two years in the Maroon and White, Mershon has seen the plate 304 times and grabbed 100 hits, 61 walks and 46 RBIs for a .329 career batting average. He’s also stolen 39 bases.

The Brooks Wallace Award will be presented by the College Baseball Foundation later this year. It is named for former Texas Tech shortstop Brooks Wallace, who played for the Red Raiders from 1977 to 1980. Wallace died of leukemia at the age of 27.