NBC 11 Sports: Yuma Catholic baseball lights up 3A honors, Suns introduce new head coach

YUMA, Ariz., (KYMA, KECY) - Following a second straight trip to the 3A baseball semifinals, the Yuma Catholic Shamrocks made their presence felt in the end of the year honors - both at the conference and region level.

Six Shamrock players made either the 3A West All-Region 1st Team or 2nd Team - while three Rocks even reached the All-Conference lists.

At the top of it all stood senior Nomar Topete as the 3A Conference Defensive Player of the Year and the 3A West Region Player of the Year for his excellence on the mound and at the plate. Right beside him was Mickey Fox earning Region Defensive Player of the Year and All-Conference recognition. Ivan Guzman also getting a nod for All-Conference honors on the 2nd Team.

But the successful year did not come without some leadership at the top - and that's where head coach Judd Thrower comes in, being named the Region Coach of the Year after another 20-win season and reaching the semifinals for the second straight time.

Meanwhile, a new era in Phoenix Suns basketball was born on Tuesday when Frank Vogel was introduced as the next head coach. Vogel addressed the media and Suns community after being hired on a five-year, $31 million deal late last week.

"This is the beginning of a new era in Phoenix Suns basketball and it's going to be an exciting one. We're committed to bringing in championship level talent. I will be committed to bringing in a championship level culture both on and off the court," said Vogel. "We're going to have talent but we're going to be a scrappy team that plays harder than our opponent every night. And we're going to be a team that makes this community proud."