Andrew Taccolini will see his name at the top of the record books at the end of the baseball season.
A senior right fielder, Taccolini started his fourth season playing with the Huskies in reach of several career batting records for the University's baseball program.
At the beginning of the season, Taccolini ranked third in hits, runs scored, home runs and RBIs and fourth in doubles and at-bats.
Two home runs in the 19th game of the season, a 12-11 road win over Louisiana Tech on March 22, gave Taccolini the record for RBIs. As of April 28, Taccolini held first with 185 career RBIs, 16 more than the previous record.
"When he relaxes and lets his natural talent take over, he does amazing things," said head coach Jared Moon.
Taccolini, who currently has 30 homers, hit his 29th home run in the next game, a 10-7 loss to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on the road March 24, to take the career record.
"That came as a bit of a surprise because I wasn't a big home-run hitter in high school," said Taccolini, who was named Great West co-Player of the Week for the week ending April 12.
As of April 28, Taccolini ranked second in at-bats and doubles and third in runs with eight games remaining in the season.
In his junior season, Taccolini finished with a .461 batting average, one point shy of the University's single-season record, and 86 hits, third most in a season.
After the season, Taccolini was named 2008 HBU Male Athlete of the Year. In his first two seasons playing for the University, Taccolini was a two-time member of the All-Red River Athletic Conference team.
"He was a standout his freshman year, which was a big accomplishment," said senior pitcher Keith Brunson, who has played with Taccolini at the University for four years. "He has been a standout every season.
Taccolini, who bats right-handed but throws left-handed, came to the University from Kempner High School, where he made the all-state team his senior year. Taccolini was also named first team all-district his junior and senior years.
After finishing his senior season of high school with a batting average over .450, Taccolini tried out for the University's team, a tryout former University pitcher J.D. Sellers helped set up.
Sellers, the career record holder with 15 saves and fifth in ERA with a career average of 2.64, pitched to catcher Jared Moon during Moon's playing career.
Moon, who recruited Taccolini while serving as assistant coach during the 2005 season, became head coach before the 2006 season.
"He was a big, strong kid coming out of high school," Moon said. "It was pretty obvious he was talented."
Teammates have echoed the praise of Taccolini's talent.
"He's just got that extra element that a lot don't have," said Brunson, who currently ranks first in games pitched with 78, second in saves with 11 and fifth in wins with 19.
A business administration and finance major, Taccolini, a Sugar Land native who attended Kempner for four years and graduated in the top 10 percent of his class, plans to finish his degree after his final season with the Huskies and begin a career in the financial industry.
"I definitely don't regret coming here," Taccolini said. "It has been a life experience I will be able to reflect on."
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