Crestwood, Ill. – August 18, 2021 – The Crestwood Panthers’ historic 2021 season has come to an end, and three of the team’s biggest stars down the stretch have been recognized as league-wide standouts.  

Gannon Andrews (Purdue University Northwest / Portage, Mich.), Ronald Applewhite (Culver-Stockton College / Chicago, Ill.) and Michael Laudondo (Rockhurst University / Westchester, Ill.) were all named to the 2021 All-MCL team on Wednesday, joining 11 other players across the league in receiving the honor.  

Andrews, who had started at catcher in the MCL All-Star Game, earned further acclaim with his superb .299 batting average, to go along with 20 RBIs and 24 runs scored. His patience in the batter’s box was also well-documented, as evidenced by his 20 walks against just 17 strikeouts. Down the stretch, Andrews played stellar defense behind the plate, throwing out eight would-be base stealers, which led the team.  

Applewhite proved to be the Panthers’ top power threat throughout the season. He proceeded to lead the team in a plethora of offensive categories including batting average, slugging percentage, on-base plus slugging, and home runs. His .342/.467/.534 slash line made him an MCL MVP finalist, and helped to propel Crestwood to its first MCL playoff appearance in franchise history.  

Laudondo served as the Panthers’ de facto ace, leading the team in ERA, innings pitched, and wins. He struck out 37 batters, and allowed just nine free passes in 30 innings of work, pitching to a minuscule 2.70 ERA in the process. The fact that he did not join the team until June 19, nearly one month after the season started, makes Laudondo’s totals even more impressive. 

This marks the second consecutive season in which the Panthers produced multiple All-MCL honorees. The generous recognition comes after Crestwood won 23 games, and sat just one game away from earning an MCL Championship berth.