Albany Herald

Photo by Danny Aller

DAMASCUS -- Austin Boyd could've just as easily played football in college. The offensive and defensive lineman was getting the looks.

But when it came time to make a decision, he chose the second sport he's a star in: baseball.

"I thought about it. I really did," said SGA's two-sport standout Monday just before signing with Division III LaGrange, where he'll join former Warriors multi-sport star and close friend, Miles Lee, who graduated last year and now plays outfield for the reigning Great South Athletic Conference champs. "(The football and baseball coaches) there even said I could do both, but I thought that'd be too much. I'm happy just playing baseball."

The Warriors and coach Tommy Manry, meanwhile, are happy to see Boyd move on -- but aren't so happy about having to try and replace him.

"You can't. It's as simple as that. A guy like Austin, you can't replace; he is so valuable," Manry said. "The coach at LaGrange (Kevin Howard) -- when he recruited Miles -- told him, 'Don't you even think about going anywhere else. You've gotta come play for me.' "

Boyd's stats this past season show why.

He batted .412 with 21 hits and 20 RBI -- the latter two figures both being team highs -- and he even hit one home run.

And boy was it a big one.

"If I had to pick a favorite moment to look back on, it'd have to be the grand slam I hit this year, plus it was my only home run," said the senior, who plans to major in sports medicine. "We won that game 15-0."

Boyd was also 2-1 on the mound with a 2.62 ERA, and could play anywhere on the field for Manry.

In fact, one minute in the Warriors' first-round state playoff series he was catching, the next he was pitching and then before he knew it he was playing in the outfield.

"He can play anywhere," Manry said. "LaGrange got a good one."