HADLEY, Mass. -- The Bates football team picked up their most All-NESCAC honors since 2012 as four Bobcats were recognized Tuesday for their performances this season by the New England Small College Athletic Conference.

Sophomore running back Ryan Lynskey (Cranford, N.J.) was named first team All-NESCAC on offense as he led the conference with 1,091 rushing yards this season. He is the first Bobcat to earn first team All-NESCAC honors on offense since wide receiver Mark Riley '16 in 2014. His 121.2 rushing yards per game ranks 15th in all of NCAA Division III. Lynskey's 10 rushing touchdowns this year are also tops in the conference. He made history this year against Bowdoin, carrying the ball 20 times for a NESCAC and Bates record 344 yards and three touchdowns. Lynskey was twice named the NESCAC Offensive Player of the Week, and earned the Gold Helmet Award from the New England Football Writers along with a spot on the D3football.com Team of the Week following his performance against Bowdoin. Lynskey was so good this year that even if you took away his 344 rushing yards against Bowdoin, he still would have led the NESCAC in rushing. 

Junior slotback / wide receiver Sergio Beltran (East Palo Alto, Calif.) missed the first two games of the season due to injury, but upon his return was a dynamic player in the Bates offense, good enough to earn second team All-NESCAC honors. He finished the season with 37 carries for 239 yards and two touchdowns, with his 6.5 yards per carry the second-best mark in the NESCAC. Beltran also caught 20 passes for 257 yards and three touchdowns on the year, notching the game-winning touchdown catch against Middlebury. Beltran was named the NESCAC Offensive Player of the Week following his five catches for 72 yards and two touchdowns against the Panthers. 

Fifth-year senior offensive tackle Peter Simplicio (West Hartford, Conn.) is the first Bates offensive lineman to earn All-NESCAC honors since Liam O'Neil '14 in 2013. A second team All-NESCAC selection, Simplicio helped block for a Bates rushing attack that averaged 191.4 yards per game, tops in the NESCAC and 37th in all of NCAA Division III. Twice this year, following wins over Wesleyan and Middlebury, the Bates offensive line was named to the D3football.com Team of the Week. Simplicio and the rest of the "Hogs" up front helped block for a season-high 392 rushing yards against Bowdoin and a season-high 173 passing yards against Middlebury. 

Sophomore linebacker Ryan Rozich (Cromwell, Conn.) led the conference in tackling this year and earned second team All-NESCAC honors for his efforts. Rozich finished the year with 82 total tackles and his 9.1 tackles per game ranked 47th in all of NCAA Division III. He notched 6.5 tackles for loss on the year and his big pass break-up against Wesleyan late in the fourth quarter sealed the victory for Bates over the eventual NESCAC champions.