KNOXVILLE, Tenn — Tennessee baseball pitcher Chase Dollander is riding high following five first-team All-American selections.
The latest one came from D1 Baseball last Friday. He also picked up the honors from National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, Collegiate Baseball, Perfect Game and American College Baseball Association
"It feels good," Dollander said. "That's just me being really honest, it feels good. It just shows the hard work I've been putting in this season and my entire life is starting to pay off and it's really cool to see that."
He did this in his first year at Rocky Top. Dollander transferred from Georgia Southern, where he played his freshman year.
Vols pitching coach Frank Anderson told him from the start he could be dominant when he came here.
"He said, 'You have the potential to be one of the better starters here that I've coached,'" he said. "I didn't believe him at first because of how my season went at Georgia Southern, but I think it was just that belief he had in me that really excelled me to the next level."
Dollander became the fifth Vols baseball player to earn five first-team All-American selections. He did not know that until he was told during this interview.
He joins the elite company of Todd Helton, Jeff Pickler, Chris Burke and Luke Hochevar.
"That's awesome," he said with a smile. "I had no idea, to be honest with you. You saying that just makes my heart warm. Me and Luke Hochevar, he's our chapel for our team, and we talk all the time. He's like, 'Dude you're a guy. You're a dude,' and stuff like that. I'm like, 'Man, stop. You're a World Series champion, you've been in the bigs for a while now.' Looking back on everything and seeing it happening is crazy to see."
Dollander is proud of how far he's come and now turns his focus to improving even more so he can be even more dominant on the mound.
"I just want to keep up with what I've been doing and want to get better," he said. "There's always stuff to work on."
