FLORENCE, SC – Francis Marion University redshirt junior right fielder Charlie Bussey III was named to the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) NCAA Division II Southeast Region All-Defensive Team.

The nine-player squad was voted on by members of the American Baseball Coaches Association, and the process is led by the ABCA NCAA Div. II All-America & Coach of the Year Committee.

A native of Graniteville, S.C., Bussey III posted a .982 fielding percentage with just four errors all season while playing four different positions on the field. He recorded 218 putouts and was involved in 13 double plays. Bussey III claimed a second-straight Conference Carolinas All-Defensive Team honor in 2026 after earning the award as a first base in 2025.

At the plate, he boasted a .489 batting average with 21 homers, 22 doubles, 77 runs batted in, and 118 runs scored (an NCAA Division II record). Bussey III also had 40 stolen bases while posting an .866 slugging percentage and a .604 on-base percentage. He is the only player in NCAA Division II history to register 100 hits, 100 runs scored, and 40 stolen bases in a single season.

Bussey III has been recognized as the National Player of the Year by three organizations this season while being named a consensus First-Team All-American.

He helped the Patriots set a school record for wins in 2026 as they finished with a 46-14 record and ranked seventh nationally in the final ABCA and D2 Baseball polls. He contributed to an offense that led the country with 669 runs scored while ranking among the top five in hits (739), on-base percentage (.466), scoring (11.2), stolen bases (173), and batting average (.354). The Patriots spanned a 14-year hiatus from the NCAA Tournament in 2026 and reached their first-ever Super Regional.

Bussey III is a graduate of Aquinas High School and is majoring in sport management.


  Charlie Bussey III