June 26, 2006
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Santa Clara Baseball head coach Mark O'Brien on Tuesday announced the signing of another standout member of his stellar recruiting class of 2006. San Francisco Chronicle Player of the Year Jon Karcich of Serra High School in San Mateo signed a Letter-of-Intent to attend classes on the Mission Campus in the Fall 2006 term.
Karcich, a shortstop/closer for the Padres, was also named to the San Jose Mercury News' All-Central Coast Section First Team along with fellow 2006 signees Nate Garcia and Tommy Medica of San Jose's Bellarmine College Prep. His signing gives the Broncos two Bay Area players of the year, as Garcia was named CCS Baseball Player of the Year by the Mercury News.
The Padres star set the tone right away in the first game of the 2006 season by smashing three home runs, driving in six and picking up the win in relief in Serra's 8-5 victory over nationally-ranked De La Salle. He went on to drive in 30 runs, score 27 and slug .782 from the plate, while on the hill Karcich posted a 2-0 mark with seven saves and an earned-run average of 1.90.
"Jon is a solid all-around player both offensively and defensively," O'Brien remarked about Karcich. "What I like most about him though is that he is a very good competitor. He likes to be in tough situations and wants to be in there when the game is on the line. Jon can play multiple spots in the infield and has a chance to make an immediate impact as a freshman."
In addition to Bellarmine's Garcia and Medica, Karcich joins fellow Californians Patrick Glenn (Amador Valley HS), Matthew Hiserman (Capistrano Valley HS), Steven Kalush (Aragon HS), Geoffrey Klein (Ocean View HS), Alex Rivers (Tokay HS), Dylan Slocum (Paloma Valley HS), Arizona native Tayler Thomas (Salpointe Catholic HS) and Jeremy Zink (Garfield HS) of Washington as a member of the Santa Clara University Class of 2010.