July 29, 2002

Haarlem, The Netherlands – South Carolina catcher Landon Powell continued his success this summer with the USA Baseball National Team, earning Outstanding Defensive Player honors as USA won the gold medal at the Haarlem Baseball Championship this past weekend. USA defeated The Netherlands, 5-4 in the championship game to clinch the gold. Powell is batting .273 in 19 games played with two home runs and 12 RBI for USA as the team heads to Italy for the World Championships.

Powell completed his sophomore year with Carolina batting .292 with 12 home runs and 53 RBI. Powell played in 74 of 75 games for Carolina this season with 73 starts behind the plate. One of the best defensive catchers in the nation, Powell threw out 23 runners this season and picked four runners off base. The native of Apex, N.C. was also named to the College World Series All-Tournament Team. Powell was also named to the Johnny Bench Award Watch List in 2002 for the best collegiate catcher.