Baltimore, Md. – Lenoir-Rhyne's Matthew De La Rosa was drafted by Major League Baseball's Baltimore Orioles this past weekend in the 2016 draft.  De La Rosa was drafted in the 28th round as pick No. 841.

De La Rosa, a senior shortstop from Austin, Texas, is the fifth player in Lenoir-Rhyne history to be drafted.   Ivan Vieitez was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers last summer.

Both Steve Davis and Michael Tidwell were selected by the Chicago Cubs in 1991 while Craig Corbett was the first-ever Bears' player drafted (Montreal Expos in 1981).  Corbett is a 2014 Lenoir-Rhyne Sports Hall Of Fame inductee.

De La Rosa is a two-time All-South Atlantic Conference Second-Team honoree (2015 and 2016) and set a school single-season record with 61 runs batted in this past spring in addition to a .357 batting average and a team-leading 10 home runs, 112 total bases and a .605 slugging percentage.

For his career, De La Rosa batted .309 with 108 runs scored, 34 doubles, two triples, 18 home runs, 112 runs batted in and a .489 slugging percentage in three seasons with the Bears.  On the mound, De La Rosa also tallied a pair of saves this year in relief.

De La Rosa led the Bears to a 33-18 mark in 2016 – the second-most wins in school history – and a berth in the South Atlantic Conference Baseball Championship for the first time in seven years.