RUSTON, La. ? Louisiana Tech shortstop Dennis Winn signed a free agent contract with the Philadelphia Phillies on Monday. The transfer from Western Kentucky earned first team All-Western Athletic Conference honors in his only season with the Bulldogs.

Winn led the team with a .351 batting average, scored 30 runs and drove in 26. He hit eight home runs on the year and had a 22-game hitting streak during the season, the longest on the team and second longest in the conference.

Winn said he is looking forward to playing professional baseball and trying to make a career out of playing his favorite game.

?I?m excited to have the opportunity and get the chance to play pro ball. I get to play against some former teammates and experience something new which is exciting,? Winn said. ?Ever since you can remember playing Little League, I know it sounds clich?, but you really do work a long time for this. Whether you can make a career out of it or not, you don?t know, but I worked hard to get there and I?m ready to get out there and start playing.?

Winn has been assigned to the Phillies Low A club in Williamsport, Pa., and his team will play against the Florida Marlins affiliate where Winn could face former Tech teammate Andrew Alsup on the mound.

Winn transferred to Tech for his senior season and was able to play ball with his younger brother Kevin. He said playing with his brother and the rest of the Bulldogs was a valuable experience, and he thanked Coach Wade Simoneaux and his staff for helping him get where he is.

?I have plenty of people I owe a lot of thanks to, especially those people being my coaching staff at Louisiana Tech for giving me the opportunity to play there,? Winn said. ?I?d like to thank is the staff at Tech for letting me play baseball there and have the type of season I did with the type of team we had. That was real enjoyable for me. I enjoyed that experience, and hopefully I?ll enjoy this one too.?