Talk about an instant impact: In his one season at Master’s, Anthony Lepre (pictured above) produced one of the greatest single-season performances in the history of the program.

Lepre tallied 28 home runs, 80 RBIs and a team-high .438 batting average.

Tuesday, he was named a first-team NAIA All-American.

“It means a lot to me,” said Lepre, who began his career at College of the Canyons and UC Riverside before transferring to Master’s for his senior season.

“I put in countless hours in the gym and in the cage to be able to perform to my best ability for Master’s, so it’s awesome to see things pay off in the end. But it’s just one little step toward where I want to go,” he said.

Lepre – an Agua Dulce product – was not selected Tuesday in rounds 3-10 of the MLB Draft. But he is projected to be among those chosen in the final 30 rounds Wednesday.

His new team would be getting a catcher who helped the Mustangs make a major turnaround on offense this season. After struggling to score runs in 2018, Master’s was among the national leaders in home runs in 2019, with Lepre and Shackelford combining to hit 64 blasts, more than all but 13 of the NAIA’s 181 other teams. TMU’s 89 home runs as a team were a program record.

Aaron Shackelford was named a first-team NAIA All-American and the NAIA Player of the Year on Tuesday, and he also factored into one of Lepre’s favorite memories from the season.

Lepre said he would most remember watching relief pitcher Grant Collins take a rare at-bat, with Collins inadvertently letting the bat slip from his hands and watching it soar toward the netting behind home plate. Lepre also enjoyed watching Shackelford hit 36 home runs, two shy of the NAIA’s single-season record.

Lepre and Shackelford will be remembered as one of the most formidable duos in NAIA history.

“To be able to have the player of the year and a first-teamer on the same team is really a double blessing from the Lord,” said TMU head coach Monte Brooks. “We witnessed eye-popping performances all year long.”

At TMU’s senior day ceremony, Brooks framed Lepre’s season – in which he broke the program’s record for hits in a campaign with 91 – as one of the best in program history. Shackelford agrees.

“He had the best season I’ve ever seen,” Shackelford said. “It looked easy for him. He was an awesome teammate and really helped me with my swing throughout the year.”

— By Mason Nesbitt, TMU Sports Information Director