« Baseball 2016

Joey Roach

School
Georgia State University
Position
Catcher
Major
Actuarial Science

Classroom

Joey Roach is an actuarial science major who maintains a 3.89 cumulative grade-point average. He was named to the 2015 CoSIDA Academic All-America Second Team and has been honored on the Sun Belt Conference Commissioner’s List (2014, 2015) and given the Colonial Athletic Association Commissioner’s Award (2013). Roach has been recognized on Georgia State’s Dean’s List (3.5 GPA) or President’s List (4.0 GPA) every semester.

Character

As a four-year starting catcher, Roach is the ultimate team leader on and off the field. He is well-respected by his teammates, coaches and fellow student-athletes in all sports. He sets a tremendous example with his work ethic, positive attitude and excellence while playing the most demanding position on the field and tackling a challenging major.

Community

Roach is active member of Georgia State’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. He has volunteered for the athletic department’s annual blood drive the last four years. He and his teammates conduct an annual youth clinic on the Martin Luther King holiday. While playing summer baseball, Roach has participated in team outreach efforts, reading to children and conducting clinics. He has also volunteered at an animal shelter.

Competition

Roach has been named the first-team All-Sun Belt Conference catcher the last two years and entered 2016 on the Preseason All-Sun Belt Team. He was a semifinalist for the Johnny Bench Award as the nation’s top catcher in 2015. As of March 9, the left-handed hitter was leading the Sun Belt with a .483 average, along with three home runs and 12 RBI, after hitting .302 with seven homers and 39 RBI as a junior in 2015 when he also caught a pitching staff that set the school record for ERA. Also as of that date, his career batting average stood at .311, and he had a .981 fielding percentage in more than 150 games behind the plate.