FLORENCE, SC – Junior outfielder Charlie Bussey III has been named the Conference Carolinas Player of the Year for the second consecutive year, while four other Patriots picked up All-Conference Team recognition as the conference announced its 2026 post-season awards on Tuesday (Apr. 28)..

Joining Bussey III on the All-Conference first team are senior right-handed pitcher Robbie Jordan and junior designated hitter Ethan McAnally, while senior first baseman Riley Orr and senior utility player Will Dorrell were second-team selections.

Bussey III, a native of Graniteville, S.C., is among the national leaders in numerous categories.  He leads Division II in batting (.497), hits (school-record 95), runs scored (school-record 101), on-base percentage (.611), and total bases (school-record 170). He also ranks fourth nationally in slugging percentage (.890), seventh in stolen bases (38-of-44), 10th in runs batted in (71), 13th in home runs (school-record 18), and 21st in doubles (19).   He leads Conference Carolinas in OPS with a 1.472 figure and has been named the conference Player of the Week three times and the regional Player of the Week twice this season.  He has safely reached base in 49 of 50 contests this year, while recording 32 multi-hit games and 22 multi-RBI contests.  Earlier this year, he set the program's career home run record with 32.

Bussey III is only the second player to win the award twice, joining Erskine College's Bryan Fogle (2009 and 2010).

Jordan, a native of Florence, S.C., and a product of Florence Christian School, owns a 10-1 record with a 4.21 earned run average.  He has struck out 66 batters in only 66.1 innings of work.  He leads the conference in wins and ranks second nationally, while also ranking fifth in Division II for games started (13).  Earlier this year, he establish a new program mark for career wins with a 31-8 mark.
 
McAnally, a native of Molino, Fla., ranks eighth in the conference in hitting with a .409 average and is third in runs scored (73), eighth in home runs (17), second in RBIs (school-record 81), fifth in slugging percentage (.801), 12th in stolen bases (16-of-18), and 15th in on-base percentage (.498).  Nationally, he ranks third in runs scored, eighth in total bases (149), and 19th in slugging.  He is currently riding a 12-game hitting streak and this season has posted 23 multi-hit games and 20 multi-RBI contests.

Orr, a native of Maryville, Tenn., is 10th in the conference in hitting at .402, eighth in runs scored (66), eighth in doubles, (18), 15th in homers (11), fourth in RBIs (75), 10th in slugging (.723), fifth in stolen bases (20-of-24), and sixth in on-base percentage (.525).  In his 50 games played, he has recorded 21 multi-hit games and 22 multi-RBIs games.  Nationally in Division II, he is fifth in runs batted in and 12th in being hit-by-pitches (22).

Dorrell, a native of Rock Hill, S.C., saw time at third base, second base, and in the outfield this season.  He is batting .384 (18th best in the conference) and has scored 57 runs with 16 doubles, four homers, and 43 RBIs.  His on-base percentage is .464, he has stolen eight bases in nine attempts, and he ranks 15th nationally in hits with 78.  He has registered 24 multi-hit games and 10 multi-RBI games and earlier this year had a 62-game streak of safely reaching base.

This group helped lead Francis Marion to a 40-10 regular-season record, its second straight 40-win campaign, and the No.2 seed in this week's Conference Carolinas Tournament at CaroMont Health Park in Gastonia, N.C.  FMU continues to rank among the top-15 in all three national polls, including sitting seventh in the ABCA rankings and eighth in the D2 Baseball poll. The Patriots' tournament opener will be on Thursday (April 30) at 3 p.m. against the winner of Erskine College/Southern Wesleyan University.

Bussey III is a sports management major and a product of Aquinas High School, while Jordan is majoring in general business.   McAnally is majoring in mechanical engineering and is a product of J.M. Tate High School, while Orr is majoring in sport management and is a product of Maryville High School.  Dorrell is majoring in business and is a graduate of Northwestern High School.