2004 NECNECNEC BASEBALLBASEBALLBASEBALL NN EWSEWS && NN OTESOTES 200 Cottontail Lane, Vantage Court North, Somerset, NJ 08873 Baseball Contact: Ron Ratner, Associate Commissioner Phone: 732-469-0440/Fax: 732-469-0744 E-Mail: [email protected] Central Connecticut State • Fairleigh Dickinson • Long Island • Monmouth • Mount St. Mary’s Quinnipiac • Robert Morris • Sacred Heart • St. Francis (NY) • St. Francis (PA) • Wagner NEC Baseball Northeast Conference Baseball Facts & Figures (Week 7 - April 26, 2004) This Week’s Schedule School NEC Pct. Overall Pct. Streak Home Away Neutral 1. Quinnipiac* 16-4 .800 21-14 .600 W2 15-5 6-9 0-0 Tuesday, April 27 Thursday, April 29 (cont.) Brown at Sacred Heart Mt. St. Mary’s at Georgetown 2. Central Conn. St. 14-4 .778 29-10-1 .738 W6 13-5 16-5-1 0-0 Quinnipiac at UMass Army at Sacred Heart 3. Monmouth 11-5 .688 19-20-1 .488 W1 10-8 8-8-1 1-4 Long Island at Pace St. Francis (NY) at Iona 4. Fairleigh Dickinson 10-6 .625 11-19 .367 L1 5-5 5-10 1-4 Rider at Monmouth Monmouth at Rutgers 5. Wagner 6-9 .400 11-23 .324 W1 2-9 7-13 2-1 Lehigh at Wagner Wagner at Seton Hall 6. Mount St. Mary's 6-10 .375 20-14 .588 L1 8-4 6-9 6-1 Stony Brook at St. Francis (NY) Saturday, May 1 7. Sacred Heart 4-10 .286 6-30 .167 W1 5-11 1-11 0-8 Wednesday, April 28 Wagner at St. Francis (NY) (DH) 8. Long Island 5-13 .278 7-25 .219 L1 3-8 3-13 1-4 Monmouth at Wagner Monmouth at CCSU (DH) 9. St. Francis (NY) 1-12 .077 4-23 .148 L2 0-9 3-11 1-3 St. Francis (NY) at Long Island Mt. St. Mary’s at FDU (DH) Sacred Heart at FDU Quinnipiac at Sacred Heart (DH) * Clinched NEC Tournament Berth Rhode Island at Quinnipiac The top four teams based on conference winning percentage qualify for the NEC Tournament. Towson at Mt. St. Mary’s Sunday, May 2 Wagner at St. Francis (NY) Player of the Week Thursday, April 29 Monmouth at CCSU Keith Stegbauer, Central Connecticut State FDU at Long Island Mt. St. Mary’s at FDU CCSU at Albany Quinnipiac at Sacred Heart Sr., SS, R/R, 6-1, 190 lbs., Seminole, FL/St. Petersburg JC Stegbauer, the NEC’s leading hitter, becomes the fourth Central Connecticut State player to corral NEC Player of For starting times, see Schudule/Results page. the Week honors this season after leading the Blue Devils to a 6-1 week. Stegbauer batted .500 over the seven NEC games in italics. contests, rapping out 16 hits in 32 at-bats. He had five multiple hit games, swatted two homers, scored 12 runs and drove in 13 more. After plating two runners as CCSU salvaged a split with a 19-6 win over Quinnipiac in the NEC Player of the Week second game of a doubleheader on Wednesday, Stegbauer went 6-10 with a grand slam and six RBI in a Mar. 15 Rob Hosgood, CCSU Apr. 19 Rob Hosgood, CCSU doubleheader sweep of Rhode Island on Thursday and 8-12 with six runs and five RBI as the Blue Devils took three Mar. 22 Tim D’Aquila, CCSU Apr. 26 Keith Stegbauer, CCSU straight from Pace over the weekend. In the process, the Seminole, FL native established a new school record for Mar. 29 Albert Marano, QU runs (57) and tied a school mark for hits (79). Stegbauer, who has hit safely in 38 of 40 games this season, is Apr. 5 Matt Born, FDU batting .465 in 2004. He also leads the NEC in hits, runs and on-base percentage (.503). In the most recent NCAA Apr. 12 Tom Pezzello, CCSU statistics report, Stegbauer ranked fourth nationally in batting average and sixth in runs scored. NEC Pitcher of the Week Pitcher of the Week Mar. 15 Chris Skrypack, CCSU Apr. 19 Jesse Anziano, FDU Chris Della Rocco, Monmouth Mar. 22 Glen Keeton, MU Apr. 26 Chris Della Rocco, MU Sr., RHP, 6-2, 195 lbs., Wilmington, DE/Gloucester Catholic Mar. 29 Patrick Egan, QU Della Rocco was nearly flawless last week in picking up a win and a save for Monmouth, which has moved into Apr. 5 Patrick Egan, QU third place in the NEC standings with an 11-5 league mark. In 10.0 innings pitched for the week, Della Rocco Apr. 12 Patrick Egan, QU registered a perfect 0.00 ERA, permitted just five hits and held opposing batters to a .152 average, while fanning NEC Rookie of the Week eight. In a 6-1 win over Wagner on Wednesday, the Wilmington, DE product threw a complete game three-hitter, Mar. 15 Dustin Pease, MSM Apr. 19 Robert Rowen, LIU allowing just one unearned run. He came up big in a key spot on Sunday, tossing three innings of scoreless relief Mar. 22 Dustin Pease, MSM Apr. 26 Robert Rowen, LIU to earn his first career save as the Hawks rallied to beat Fairleigh Dickinson, 6-5, in the rubber game of a three- Mar. 29 Wilson Matos, QU game set. Della Rocco scattered two hits and struck out three. On the season, the senior rightander is 3-3 and Apr. 5 Bucky Kosyk, MSM ranks tenth in the conference with a 3.81 ERA. He has yielded just one home run in 52.0 innings pitched. Apr. 12 Dustin Pease, MSM Rookie of the Week NEC Baseball Tournament Robert Rowen, Long Island May 21-23 Fr., SS, 6-2, 195 lbs., Rosendale, NY/Rondout Valley at FirstEnergy Park, Lakewood, New Jersey Rowen makes it back-to-back NEC Rookie of the Week honors as the Blackbirds come off their finest week of the season, winning four of six outings. Rowen batted .500 (13-26) with three doubles, seven runs scored and four Four team, double-elimination tournament RBI. After a 3-5 effort with a double and two runs in an 8-7 setback to St. Peter’s on Tuesday, he collected three hits and an RBI in a doubleheader sweep of St. Francis (NY) on Wednesday. Rowen went on a tear over the NEC Website weekend, going 7-13 with five runs and three RBI as the Blackbirds took two out of three from Sacred Heart. In For all the latest news, scores, statistics and notes, visit Saturday’s doubleheader sweep of the Pioneers, he was 5-8, including a two-run double in game two that helped the NEC website at www.northeastconference.org cement the win. A Rosendale, NY native, Rowen is batting .426 (23-54) during a team season-best 13-game hitting Standings are updated daily; statistics are updated weekly. streak with at least two hits in eight of those contests. On the season, he leads LIU with a .350 average, .400 on- base percentage and .510 slugging percentage. 2004 NEC Baseball Schedule/Results Schedule Subject To Change. All times are local.
Central Connecticut State Fairleigh Dickinson Long Island (29-10-1, 14-4 NEC) (11-19, 10-6 NEC) (7-25, 5-13 NEC)
M 4 at UMES (DH) W 11-3, T 2-2 (8 inn.) F 28 at VCU L 5-6, L 0-9 M 6 at Charleston (DH) L 6-11, L 1-14 M 5 at Virginia L 1-17 F 29 at VCU L 2-29 M 7 at Charleston L 2-19 M 6 at Virginia L 0-10 M 6 at Lafayette Cancelled at Rollins Baseball Week, Winter, Park, FL M 7 at Virginia L 4-9 M 7 Lafayette (DH) L 0-4, L 0-3 M 10 vs. Georgetown L 1-5 M 10 Hartford W 22-1 M 10 at Rollins L 2-6 M 13 Bridgeport W 11-4 Games in Bradenton, FL M 11 vs. Penn W 8-5 M 14 Boston College (DH) W 8-7, W 14-7 M 13 vs. Army L 0-6 M 12 vs. Georgetown L 2-7 M 17 Saint Peter's Postponed M 14 vs. Eastern Kentucky L 1-14 M 12 at Rollins L 3-4 (10) M 18 at Holy Cross Postponed M 20 at Mount St. Mary's W 4-2 M 15 vs. Yale W 11-9 M 13 vs. Penn L 3-6 M 21 at Mount St. Mary's (DH) L 3-8, W 21-8 M 17 vs. Dartmouth L 9-23 M 14 vs. Penn L 7-10 M 24 at Fairfield W 9-5 M 18 vs. Northern Iowa L 2-7 M 19 Coppin State Postponed M 25 Vermont (DH) W 13-5, L 6-7 M 21 at St. John's (DH) L 5-9, L 3-6 M 21 Monmouth (DH) L 3-7, L 0-5 M 27 Long Island (DH) W 2-0, W 7-6 (8) M 24 Rutgers L 0-27 (7) M 24 Siena W 2-1 M 28 Long Island W 9-4 M 25 Albany Postponed M 30 Fairfield L 4-7 M 27 Wagner (DH) L 1-5, W 4-1 M 27 at Central Conn. St. (DH) L 0-2, L 6-7 (8) A 1 at Marist Postponed M 28 Wagner W 6-5 (12) M 28 at Central Conn. St. L 4-9 A 3 Wagner (DH) W 16-2, L 3-4 M 31 at St. Peter's Postponed M 30 Hofstra L 5-7 A 4 Wagner W 13-1 A 3 at Long Island (DH) W 11-2, W 8-0 M 31 Lafayette Postponed A 6 Maine (DH) W 9-8, L 3-8 A 7 Binghamton L 5-6 A 3 Fairleigh Dickinson (DH) L 2-11, L 0-8 A 9 at Sacred Heart (DH) W 7-2, W 8-3 A 9 St. Francis (NY) (DH) W 7-6, W 4-3 A 6 at Columbia L 6-9 A 10 at Sacred Heart W 15-1 A 9 at Quinnipiac (DH) L 1-2, L 5-7 A 12 at Hartford W 19-6 A 10 St. Francis (NY) W 8-3 A 14 Quinnipiac L 6-7 (7) A 17 at Quinnipiac (DH) L 3-11, W 4-1 A 10 at Quinnipiac L 7-8 (10) A 15 at Connecticut W 10-4 A 17 Wagner (DH) L 0-1, L 6-9 A 18 at Quinnipiac L 4-5 (10) A 18 at Wagner W 9-2 A 17 at St. Francis (NY) (DH) W 5-1, W 3-2 A 21 at Sacred Heart (DH) W 3-2 (7), L 2-7 A 18 at St. Francis (NY) W 11-7 A 20 at Saint Peter's L 7-8 A 21 at Quinnipiac (DH) L 2-7, W 19-6 A 24 at Monmouth (DH) L 2-4, W 5-3 A 21 at St. Francis (NY) (DH) W 10-7, W 3-2 (8) A 22 at Rhode Island (DH) W 12-9, W 9-6 A 25 at Monmouth L 5-6 A 24 Sacred Heart (DH) W 9-0, W 10-2 A 24 at Pace (DH) W 15-5, W 4-2 A 28 Sacred Heart 3:30 pm A 25 Sacred Heart L 3-4 A 25 Pace (DH) W 8-7 A 29 at Long Island 3:00 pm A 27 at Pace 3:00 pm A 29 at Albany 3:00 pm M 1 Mount St. Mary's (DH) 12:00 pm A 28 St. Francis (NY) 3:00 pm M 1 Monmouth (DH) 12:00 pm M 2 Mount St. Mary's 12:00 pm A 29 Fairleigh Dickinson 3:00 pm M 2 Monmouth 12:00 pm M 3 Monmouth 3:00 pm M 4 Brown (DH) 2:00 pm M 4 Iona 3:30 pm M 4 Fordham 3:00 pm M 6 at Boston College 3:30 pm M 6 at New York Tech 4:00 pm M 8 at Mount St. Mary's (DH) 12:00 pm M 8 at Fairleigh Dickinson (DH) 12:00 pm M 8 Central Conn. St. (DH) 12:00 pm M 9 at Mount St. Mary's 12:00 pm M 9 at Fairleigh Dickinson 12:00 pm M 9 Central Conn. St. 12:00 pm M 11 at Northeastern 3:00 pm M 21-23 Northeast Conference Championships M 12 at Massachusetts 3:00 pm M 21-23 Northeast Conference Championships at FirstEnergy Park, Lakewood, NJ M 21-23 Northeast Conference Championships at FirstEnergy Park, Lakewood, NJ at FirstEnergy Park, Lakewood, NJ NEC Games in CAPS NEC Games in CAPS NEC Games in CAPS
Monmouth Mount St. Mary’s Quinnipiac (19-20-1, 11-5 NEC) (20-14, 6-10 NEC) (21-14, 16-4 NEC)
F 21 at VCU (DH) L 3-4, W 7-3 F 21 Hofstra Postponed M 6 at Richmond L 5-12 F 22 at VCU L 3-7 F 22 Hofstra Postponed M 7 at Richmond (DH) L 1-6, L 3-7 F 27 at Central Florida L 0-13 F 25 at Georgetown L 1-6 M 8 at Virginia W 13-11 F 28 at Central Florida L 1-4 F 28 at UMES (DH) W 4-1, W 10-4 M 9 at West Virginia Cancelled F 29 at Central Florida L 1-5 F 29 at UMES W 27-10 Pepsi/Johnny Quick Tournament at Fresno State M 10 at West VirginiL 3-8 M 3 at Coppin State L 16-17 M 11 at West Virginia L 6-10 M 8 vs. Portland L 8-14 Games at Homestead, FL M 9 vs. Dallas Baptist L 3-13 M 6 vs. C.W. Post W 12-2 M 13 at Hofstra (DH) L 4-16, L 7-10 M 10 vs. Chicago State W 12-7 M 7 vs. Maine W 4-2 M 14 Hofstra W 8-5 M 11 vs. Brigham Young L 6-11 M 8 vs. Lebanon Valley W 6-5 M 16 New York Tech Cancelled M 12 at Fresno State L 3-11 M 9 vs. Pittsburgh L 0-8 M 18 Saint Peter's Postponed M 13 vs. Chicago State L 2-3 M 11 vs. Temple W 10-2 M 21 at Wagner Postponed M 21 at Long Island (DH) W 7-3, W 5-0 M 22 at Wagner (DH) W 7-1, W 10-6 M 23 at Seton Hall T 1-1 (10) M 12 vs. John Jay W 14-1 M 25 at La Salle L 4-10 M 12 vs. Manhattan W 12-7 M 23 New York Tech L 3-8 M 27 at Sacred Heart (DH) W 4-0 (9), W 5-2 M 20 Central Conn. St. L 2-4 M 24 Vermont W 12-5 M 28 at Sacred Heart W 5-1 M 21 Central Conn. St. (DH) W 8-3, L 8-21 M 25 Connecticut W 12-11 M 30 at Saint Peter's W 8-1 M 23 George Mason W 7-2 M 27 Mount St. Mary's (DH) W 9-0, W 1-0 A 3 Quinnipiac (DH) L 0-3, W 3-2 (8) M 27 at Quinnipiac (DH) L 0-9, L 0-1 M 28 Mount St. Mary's W 5-3 A 6 Rutgers L 0-5 M 28 at Quinnipiac L 3-5 M 30 Hartford L 2-5 A 7 Quinnipiac L 5-6 (10) M 30 Coppin State W 2-0 M 31 Dartmouth Cancelled A 9 Mount St. Mary's (DH) L 1-4, W 5-4 M 31 at Bucknell W 6-5 A 1 at Army Cancelled A 10 Mount St. Mary's W 7-3 A 5 St. Francis (NY) (DH) W 17-5, W 10-7 A 15 Lafayette W 5-3 A 6 Coppin State W 11-6 A 3 at Monmouth (DH) W 3-0, L 2-3 (8) A 16 at Pace W 8-4 A 9 at Monmouth (DH) W 4-1, L 4-5 A 6 Siena L 2-9 A 17 Pace (DH) L 2-8 (8), L 3-7 A 10 at Monmouth L 3-7 A 7 at Monmouth W 6-5 (10) A 18 NJIT (DH) W 3-2, W 9-3 A 14 at UMBC Postponed A 9 Long Island (DH) W 2-1, W 7-5 A 20 at Princeton L 5-12 A 17 at Sacred Heart (DH) L 1-3, L 0-6 A 10 Long Island W 8-7 (10) A 21 Wagner (DH) L 7-8, W 6-1 A 18 at Sacred Heart W 9-1 A 14 at Central Conn. St. W 7-6 (10) A 22 Saint Peter's W 15-1 A 20 UMES W 11-3 A 15 Holy Cross Cancelled A 24 Fairleigh Dickinson (DH) W 4-2, L 3-5 A 21 UMBC L 7-8 A 17 Fairleigh Dickinson (DH) W 11-3, L 1-4 A 25 Fairleigh Dickinson W 6-5 A 24 Wagner (DH) W 4-0, L 4-7 A 27 Rider 3:30 pm A 18 Fairleigh Dickinson W 5-4 (10) A 28 at Wagner 2:00 pm A 25 Wagner Postponed A 21 Central Conn. St. (DH) W 7-2, L 6-19 A 29 at Rutgers 3:30 pm A 28 Towson 3:30 pm A 22 at Connecticut L 5-26 M 1 at Central Conn. St. (DH) 12:00 pm A 29 at Georgetown 3:30 pm A 24 St. Francis (NY) (DH) L 9-10, W 7-2 M 2 at Central Conn. St. 12:00 pm M 1 at Fairleigh Dickinson (DH) 12:00 pm A 25 St. Francis (NY) W 10-3 M 3 at Long Island 3:00 pm M 2 at Fairleigh Dickinson 12:00 pm A 27 at Massachusetts 3:00 pm M 8 St. Francis (NY) (DH) 12:00 pm M 6 at George Washington 3:00 pm M 8 Long Island (DH) 12:00 pm A 28 Rhode Island 3:00 pm M 9 St. Francis (NY) 12:00 pm M 1 at Sacred Heart (DH) 12:00 pm M 13 at Rider 3:00 pm M 9 Long Island 12:00 pm M 21-23 Northeast Conference Championships M 17 St. Francis (NY) TBA M 2 at Sacred Heart 12:00 pm at FirstEnergy Park, Lakewood, NJ M 21-23 Northeast Conference Championships M 21-23 Northeast Conference Championships at FirstEnergy Park, Lakewood, NJ at FirstEnergy Park, Lakewood, NJ NEC Games in CAPS NEC Games in CAPS NEC Games in CAPS 2004 NEC Baseball Schedule/Results Schedule Subject To Change. All times are local.
Sacred Heart St. Francis (NY) Wagner (6-30, 4-10 NEC) (4-23, 1-12 NEC) (11-23, 6-9 NEC)
F 27 at Oral Roberts L 0-7 Games at Homestead, FL F 28 at Western Carolina (DH) L 3-15, L 11-17 F 28 at Oral Roberts (DH) L 4-8, L 1-11 F 27 vs. Villanova L 0-5 F 29 at Western Carolina L 4-12 Games at Homestead, FL F 28 vs. Detroit Mercy W 2-1 Games at Homestead, FL M 6 vs. St. Rose L 3-5 F 28 vs. Maine L 0-8 M 5 vs. Detroit Mercy W 4-1 M 6 vs. Detroit Mercy L 8-10 F 29 vs. La Salle L 1-6 M 6 vs. Maine W 9-8 (10) M 7 vs. Pittsburgh L 6-14 M 5 at North Carolina L 3-15 M 7 vs. Temple L 8-9 M 8 vs. Evansville L 3-13 M 6 at North Carolina L 5-22 M 9 at Hofstra Postponed M 9 vs. Evansville L 0-20 M 7 at North Carolina L 0-5 M 10 at Manhattan Postponed M 10 vs. West Chester L 8-12 M 10 at Pace Postponed M 15 at Central Florida L 2-16 M 11 vs. Temple L 4-9 M 17 at New York Tech Cancelled M 12 at Florida International L 9-18 M 20 Sacred Heart (DH) Postponed M 16 at Central Florida L 3-8 M 13 vs. Manhattan L 6-8 M 21 Sacred Heart Postponed M 17 at Central Florida L 6-20 M 17 Connecticut Postponed M 24 at Saint Peter's W 6-4 M 21 Quinnipiac Postponed M 18 Hofstra Postponed M 25 at Army L 5-14 M 22 Quinnipiac (DH) L 1-7, L 6-10 M 20 at St. Francis (NY) (DH) Postponed M 30 Albany L 4-11 M 23 Siena L 2-9 M 21 at St. Francis (NY) Postponed M 31 at Fordham Postponed M 26 New York Tech L 3-14 M 23 at Army L 0-2 A 5 at Mount St. Mary's (DH) L 5-17, L 7-10 M 27 at Fairleigh Dickinson (DH) W 5-1, L 1-4 M 24 Rhode Island W 4-3, L 1-8 A 6 St. John's L 0-5 M 28 at Fairleigh Dickinson L 5-6 (12) M 27 Monmouth (DH) L 0-4 (9), L 2-5 A 7 at Stony Brook W 6-3 M 31 St. John's L 0-21 M 28 Monmouth L 1-5 A 1 at Lafayette L 3-14 M 30 Massachusetts L 2-9 A 9 at Fairleigh Dickinson (DH) L 6-7, L 3-4 A 1 Iona Postponed A 10 at Fairleigh Dickinson L 3-8 A 3 at Central Conn. St. L 2-16, W 4-3 A 2 Maine (DH) Cancelled A 13 Hofstra Postponed A 4 at Central Conn. St. (DH) L 1-13 A 3 at Hartford (DH) L 3-7, L 2-3 (9) A 17 Central Conn. St. (DH) L 1-5, L 2-3 A 6 Saint Peter's L 17-21 A 6 Pace W 5-4 A 18 Central Conn. St. L 7-11 A 7 at New York Tech W 9-6 A 7 Bridgeport L 4-6 (10) A 20 Fordham L 8-17 A 8 Pace (DH) L 0-1 (10), W 3-0 A 8 at Iona L 6-8 A 21 Long Island (DH) L 7-10, L 2-3 (8) A 15 at Fordham W 9-7 A 9 Central Conn. St. (DH) L 2-7, L 3-8 A 22 Pace L 3-4 A 17 at Long Island (DH) W 1-0, W 9-6 A 10 Central Conn. St. L 1-15 A 24 at Quinnipiac (DH) W 10-9, L 2-7 A 18 Long Island L 2-9 A 13 at Yale (DH) Postponed A 25 at Quinnipiac L 3-10 A 21 at Monmouth (DH) W 8-7, L 1-6 A 17 Mount St. Mary's (DH) W 3-1, W 6-0 A 27 Stony Brook 3:30 pm A 22 Stony Brook L 7-11 A 18 Mount St. Mary's L 1-9 A 28 at Long Island 3:00 pm A 24 at Mount St. Mary's (DH) L 0-4, W 7-4 A 20 at Manhattan L 2-6 A 29 at Iona 3:30 pm A 25 at Mount St. Mary's Postponed A 21 Fairleigh Dickinson (DH) L 2-3 (7), W 7-2 M 1 Wagner (DH) 12:00 pm A 27 Lehigh 3:30 pm A 24 at Long Island (DH) L 0-9, L 2-10 M 2 Wagner 12:00 pm A 25 at Long Island W 4-3 M 4 Saint Peter's 3:30 pm A 28 Monmouth 2:00 pm A 27 Brown 2:00 pm M 5 New York Tech 3:30 pm M 1 at St. Francis (NY) (DH) 12:00 pm A 28 at Fairleigh Dickinson 3:30 pm M 8 at Monmouth (DH) 12:00 pm M 2 at St. Francis (NY) 12:00 pm A 29 Army 3:30 pm M 9 at Monmouth 12:00 pm M 4 Manhattan 3:30 pm M 1 Quinnipiac (DH) 12:00 pm M 11 at Manhattan 3:30 pm M 5 at Rutgers 3:30 pm M 2 Quinnipiac 12:00 pm M 17 St. Francis (NY) TBA M 8 Sacred Heart (DH) 12:00 pm M 8 at Wagner (DH) 12:00 pm M 21-23 Northeast Conference Championships M 9 Sacred Heart 12:00 pm M 9 at Wagner 12:00 pm at FirstEnergy Park, Lakewood, NJ M 21-23 Northeast Conference Championships M 21-23 Northeast Conference Championships at FirstEnergy Park, Lakewood, NJ at FirstEnergy Park, Lakewood, NJ NEC Games in CAPS NEC Games in CAPS NEC Games in CAPS NEC Baseball NEC Baseball Notes: Facts & Figures (through games of April 25) 2004 Northeast Conference Preseason Coaches Poll Team-By-Team Notes 1. Central Connecticut State (6) 6. Fairleigh Dickinson 2. Monmouth (3) 7. Long Island Central Connecticut State (29-10-1, 14-4 NEC) 3. St. Francis (NY) 8. Wagner The Blue Devils are now 29-10-1 overall and in second place in the NEC with a 14-4 4. Quinnipiac 9. Mount St. Mary’s 5. Sacred Heart record following a 6-1 week. Winners of six straight, CCSU is one game behind Quinnipiac (16-4), but tied in the loss column...In a battle for first place, CCSU split with Quinnipiac on Wednesday. The Bobcats took the opener, 7-2, before the Blue NEC vs... Devils rolled to a 19-6 win in the nightcap. CCSU then swept Rhode Island (12-9 and 9-6) and Pace (15-5 and 4-2 in a DH, followed by an 8-7 win in a single game)...With America East 9-9 MAAC 6-8 one more win, CCSU will secure its fourth straight 30-win season for head coach ACC 1-6 Mid-American 0-0 Atlantic Sun 0-6 Mid-Con 1-4 Charlie Hickey. Hickey is also three wins shy of his 250th career head coaching Atlantic 10 5-10 MEAC 7-1-1 victory...As a team the Blue Devils are batting a league-best .346, 21 points higher than Big East 4-15-1 Missouri Valley 0-3 the school record set a year ago. CCSU is also scoring an NEC-high 8.7 runs per game. Big South 0-0 Mountain West 0-1 In the latest NCAA statistics report, the Blue Devils ranked third in batting average and Big Ten 0-0 Ohio Valley 0-1 16th in runs scored...Eight Blue Devils are hitting at least .321 on the season and nine Colonial 3-8 Pac-10 0-0 Division II 3-5 Patriot 2-6 have driven in at least 21...CCSU’s team on-base percentage is .435, including two Division III 2-0 Southern 0-6 players with an on-base percentage of at least .500 (Stegbauer, Rothkugel)...Senior Horizon 2-1 Sun Belt 0-1 infielder Keith Stegbauer (Seminole, FL/St. Petersburg JC), the NEC Player of Independent 8-7 WAC 0-1 the Week, is putting together one terrific season. Last week he batted .500 with 16 hits Ivy 2-5 WCC 0-1 in 32 at-bats including two home runs, 13 RBI and 12 runs scored. During the week he set a new school record for runs (57) and tied the program record for hits in a NEC Past Champions season (79). Stegbauer has now hit safely in 38-of-40 games in 2004 and is batting an NEC-best .465 on the year. He hit a grand slam against Rhode Island, smacked four hits Regular Season Tournament in the first game vs. Pace on Saturday, and belted his second homer of the week as the 2003 CCSU 2003 CCSU Blue Devils completed the sweep over Pace on Sunday...As of last week, Stegbauer 2002 Monmouth 2002 CCSU ranked fourth nationally in batting average and sixth in runs scored. Besides batting 2001 CCSU/St. Francis (NY) (N) 2001 UMBC UMBC/Monmouth (S) average, he leads the NEC in hits, runs and on-base percentage (.503)...Freshman 2000 Long Island (N)/UMBC (S) 2000 Wagner infielder Sean Salvatore (Southington, CT/Southington) has made the most of 1999 FDU/CCSU (N) 1999 Monmouth his time since entering the starting lineup in the last six games. For the week, he batted Monmouth (S) .409 with nine hits in 22 at-bats including his first career home run, eight RBI and 1998 St. Francis (NY)/Monmouth 1998 Monmouth seven runs. Salvatore has now started eight of the last 10 games and is batting .412 (14- 1997 Marist 1997 Marist 1996 Monmouth/Rider 1996 Rider 34) for the season with 12 RBI and 11 runs. His biggest game came in the win over 1995 Rider 1995 Rider Quinnipiac on Wednesday afternoon when he had a pair of doubles, scored two runs 1994 Rider/FDU 1994 Rider and drove in a career-high five. He had another big game in the game-one win vs. Pace 1993 FDU 1993 St. Francis (NY) on Saturday, hitting his first career home run, driving in two and scoring three 1992 St. Francis (NY) times...Junior pitcher Scott Vitelli (West Haven, CT/West Haven) leads the NEC in 1991 Monmouth 1990 Long Island victories (seven) and ERA (1.92). He has issued just 47 hits and seven walks in 61.0 1989 Monmouth innings...Senior outfielder Rob Hosgood (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa) is 1988 Fairleigh Dickinson second in the conference in hitting (.403) and first in home runs (eight), triples 1987 Fairleigh Dickinson (four), RBI (44) and slugging percentage (.662)...The Blue Devils play at Albany on Thursday, then return home for three against Monmouth this weekend. NEC in NCAA Statistics (through games of April 18) Fairleigh Dickinson (11-19, 10-6 NEC) The Knights went 2-3 last week, splitting a doubleheader at Sacred Heart (W 3-2, L 2- Individual Categories 7) before dropping two out of three at Monmouth over the weekend. FDU and Mon- Player School Statistics mouth split a Saturday twinbill, with the Hawks winning the opener, 4-2, and the Batting Average Knights coming back to take the nightcap, 5-3. FDU dropped the rubber game, 6-5, on 4th Keith Stegbauer CCSU .457 Sunday...The Knights currently stand in fourth in the league standings - one game 38th Rob Hosgood CCSU .413 Runs behind Monmouth - with a 10-6 record. The top four teams qualify for the NEC 6th Keith Stegbauer CCSU 1.42/game Tournament from May 21-23...In two appearances (one relief and one start), senior Doubles 22nd Bryan Sabatella Quinnipiac 0.45/game righthander Jesse Anziano (Meriden, CT/Platt) tossed 8.1 innings, allowing just Earned Run Average three hits and two earned runs, while striking out seven, to earn his first save of the year 14th Scott Vitelli CCSU 1.68 and his fifth straight complete game victory, both on the road. Anziano began his week with 1.1 innings of no-hit, shutout relief in the 3-2 win at Sacred Heart on Wednesday. Team Categories He followed up with seven innings of three-hit ball in Saturday’s victory at Monmouth. Rank School Statistics In six appearances vs. NEC opponents, Anziano is 5-0 with one save, a 1.49 ERA (third Batting Average 3rd CCSU .346 13th Mount St. Mary’s .329 in conference) and has struck out 31 batters, while walking only eight in 36.1 innings. Scoring 16th CCSU 8.5 rpg He has allowed just three extra base hits and limited foes to a .177 batting average...Junior NEC Baseball Rob Talamini (Wood Ridge, NJ/Wood Ridge) batted .438 (7-16) with a pair of Facts & Figures runs batted in and three runs scored. He went 4-5 against Monmouth on Sunday...Junior Ben Cass (Warwick, NY/Warwick Valley) made the most of his two appearances, 2003 NEC Final Standings going 3-7 with three runs batted in, including the game-winning three-run double in the Knights' win over the Hawks...Senior righty Gregg Pleeter (Spring Valley, NY/ NEC Pct. Overall Pct. Spring Valley) posted seven more strikeouts in two appearances last week to bring 1. Central Connecticut St.*# 19-6 .760 31-17-2 .640 his career total to 202, just 33 behind all-time leader Mike Ritchie '88...The Knights play five more NEC games this week, beginning with a home contest vs. Sacred Heart on 2. St. Francis (NY)* 17-10 .630 21-21-1 .500 Wednesday, followed by a road tilt at Long Island on Thursday, and ending with a three- 3. Monmouth* 15-11 .577 24-27 .471 game home set against Mount St. Mary's over the weekend. These games wrap up a 4. UMBC* 15-12 .556 20-27 .426 stretch of 16 straight league contests for the Knights. 5. Quinnipiac 14-13 .519 17-24 .415 6. Fairleigh Dickinson 12-15 .444 14-25 .359 Long Island (7-25, 5-13 NEC) 7. Long Island 11-15 .423 16-24 .400 Long Island enjoyed a 4-2 week that included doubleheader sweeps of St. Francis (NY) 8. Mount St. Mary’s 9-14 .391 14-23 .378 on Wednesday, 10-7 and 3-2, and Sacred Heart on Saturday, 9-0 and 10-2. The Blackbirds also lost Tuesday to St. Peter's, 8-7, and Sunday to the Pioneers, 4-3...Fresh- 9. Wagner 10-16 .385 11-36 .234 man shortstop Robert Rowen (Rosendale, NY/Rondout Valley) batted 7-13 10. Sacred Heart 7-17 .292 13-29 .310 (.538) against Sacred Heart and .500 (13-26) over six contests to earn his second straight NEC Player of the Week honor. Rowen is hitting .426 (23-54) during a team * NEC Playoff Participant # NEC Tournament Winner season-best 13-game hitting streak with at least two hits in eight of those contests...Sophomore outfielder Richard "Trey" Bell (Georgetown, DE/Sussex Central) has an eight-game hitting streak and senior second baseman Anthony 2004 NEC Baseball Tournament Bracket Valvano (Lyndhurst, NJ/Seton Hall Prep) owns a personal-best seven-game streak, during which he is hitting .591...Sophomore righty John Dooley (Deer Park, NY/ #1 Half Hollows Hills West) fired a three-hit shutout Saturday - the first for the Black- Game #1 May 21, 12:30 pm birds in 2004 - in game one vs. Sacred Heart with four strikeouts. Dooley faced just two #4 batters above the minimum, retired the last nine hitters to face him and only allowed two runners to reach third...Sophomore righthander Matt Bunyan (Belle Harbor, Game #3 May 22, 12:30 pm NY/Archbishop Molloy) tossed eight strong innings against St. Francis (NY) in the game two on Wednesday, allowing just two runs with three strikeouts for the Black- #2 Game #2 birds' first doubleheader sweep of the Terriers since April 11, 1998...LIU visits Pace on May 21, 4:00 pm Game #6 Tuesday and hosts NEC makeup contests Wednesday vs. St. Francis (NY) and Thursday #3 May 23, 12:30 pm against Fairleigh Dickinson. Game #7 May 23 Game #5 (30 minutes NCAA Monmouth (19-20-1, 11-5 NEC) May 22, 7:30 pm after Game 6 Tournament Game #4 if necessary) Automatic Bid Monmouth went 4-3 last week, including 3-2 in the NEC, to move into third place with May 22, 4:00 pm an 11-5 league mark...The Hawks lost at Princeton (12-5), split a doubleheader with Wagner (L 7-8, W 6-1), routed St. Peter’s (15-1) and then took two of three from New Jersey rival Fairleigh Dickinson (W 4-2 and L 3-5 on Saturday; W 6-5 on Sunday)...Senior righty Chris Della Rocco (Wilmington, DE/Gloucester Catholic) went 1-0 with NCAA Play-In Results NCAA Tournament Results a save to claim the NEC Pitcher of the Week award. He threw a three-hitter, allowing one unearned run in Monmouth’s 6-1 win over Wagner on Wednesday and hurled 1994 Yale 5, Rider 3 1994 Miami 17, Rider 4 three scoreless innings of relief vs. FDU on Sunday. For the week, he did not allow a Rider 3, Yale 1 West Virginia 19, Rider 7 single earned run in 10.0 innings...Junior infielder Brett Hardie (Toms River, NJ/ Rider 6, Yale 2 1997 Florida State 4, Marist 2 Toms River South) led the team with a .500 average in five games. He collected eight 1995 Penn 13, Rider 3 West Carolina 8, Marist 3 hits, including a double, and four RBI in five games before fracturing his nose against Rider 6, Penn 1 1998 Florida 1,2 Monmouth 8 FDU...Senior shortstop/reliever Mike Kelly (Freehold, NJ/Freehold Twp.) threw Penn 2, Rider 1 (10 inn.) Illinois 12, Monmouth 2 one inning against St. Peter's, striking out the side in the ninth. The shortstop also tied 1996 Princeton 9, Rider 6 1999 Texas A&M 6, Monmouth 0 for the team lead with 11 hits on the week, posting a .440 batting average in seven Princeton 7, Rider 6 Mississippi 12, Monmouth 3 games. He added a double and four RBI, while crossing the plate four times...Sophomore 1997 Marist 7, Siena 6 2000 Miami 19, Wagner 5 lefty Vince Grande (Barnegat, NJ/Southern Regional) made his first career NEC Marist 9, Siena 7 FIU 10, Wagner 1 start in game two vs. FDU on Saturday, but did not figure in the decision. He went 5.1 1998 Monmouth 5, Navy 1 2001 East Carolina 7, UMBC 0 innings, allowing three runs on three hits...Sophomore righthander Kevin Schneider Navy 11, Monmouth 4 Winthrop 6, UMBC 0 (Lawrenceville, NJ/Lawrence) earned his first collegiate victory on Sunday vs. FDU...Senior first baseman Anthony LaSpada (River Vale, NJ/Pascack Valley) hit Monmouth 8, Navy 4 2002 Texas 7, CCSU 2 his first career home run vs. St. Peter's...Senior righthander Glen Keeton (Middle- Lamar 9, CCSU 4 town, NY/Minisink Valley) went 1-0 on the week, earning the win in game one 2003 Arizona State 14, CCSU 2 against FDU by throwing 6.0 innings. He allowed two runs on two hits despite battling INLV 22, CCSU 3 a muscle strain in his back...Since being inserted into the starting lineup (in the leadoff spot) in game two of the DH against NJIT on April 18, junior outfielder Jon Lewis (Ocean Gate, NJ/Central Regional) has batted .483 with 14 hits (two doubles), 10 runs scored, eight RBI and eight stolen bases. He hit .440 with seven stolen bases last week...In his last two starts, junior righthander Cip Apicelli (Oakhurst, NJ/Ocean Twp.) has gone a combined 2-0 with a 2.13 ERA. He went 12.2 innings in the two contests, allowing just three runs on four hits, while striking out 10 batters. He fanned a career-high seven vs. NJIT in 5.2 innings of work, then allowed one run vs. St. Peter's in the Hawks’ 15-1 triumph...Monmouth hurlers have combined for an NEC-low 2.69 ERA in league play. In conference games only, Keeton is the league leader with a 1.21 ERA...The Hawks return to the diamond against visiting Rider on Tuesday, then play at Wagner on Wednesday and Rutgers on Thursday before heading to CCSU for a three-game series this weekend.
Mount St. Mary’s (20-14, 6-10 NEC) The Mount went 2-2 last week, splitting a pair of non-conference games before a split in a key NEC series with Wagner. Mount St. Mary’s stopped UMES, 11-3, on Tuesday, fell to UMBC, 8-7, on Wednesday, then won Saturday’s opener against Wagner, 4-0, before dropping the nightcap, 7-4. Sunday’s single game between the Mountaineers and Seahawks was rained out...When the Mount reached the 20 win plateau on Saturday, they became the first team at Mount St. Mary’s to win 20 games in a season since the women's basketball team went 20-9 in 1999-00...Freshman lefty Dustin Pease (Baltimore, MD/Archbishop Spalding) threw his first career shutout in the win over Wagner. Pease scattered five hits while improving to 6-2 on the season. The six victories are the most by a Mount pitcher since the school moved to Division I in 1989...In the second game of the twinbill with Wagner, the Mount led 4-2 heading into the top of the seventh, but Wagner hit two two-run blasts in a five-run inning to salvage the split...Senior centerfielder John Di Girolamo (Penllyn, PA/Germantown Academy) hit .556 (5-9) on the week with three doubles, three RBI and had an outstanding .714 on-base percentage hitting out of the leadoff spot...The Mount leads the NEC with a 4.06 ERA despite losing its top three pitchers to graduation last year, including Detroit Tigers draftee Brian Santo...The Mountainners ranked 13th in batting average in the latest NCAA report. The team is second in the NEC this season with a .329 average...Pease and sophomore righthander Justin Davis (Baltimore, MD/Catonsville) rank two-three in the conference in ERA. Pease has compiled a 2.34 ERA and has a league-best 67 strikeouts in 65.1 innings, while Davis is 3-3 with a 2.60 ERA. The duo has combined to issue just 20 free passes in 110.1 innings pitched...Senior outfielder Jim Jefferson (Lindenwold, NJ/Overbrook Regional) is sixth on the circuit with a .370 average...The Mountaineers welcome Towson on Wednesday, travel to Georgetown on Thursday then play three at Fairleigh Dickinson over the weekend.
Quinnipiac (21-14, 16-4 NEC) Quinnipiac won three of five league games and was 3-3 overall last week. The Bobcats hold a slim one-game edge over CCSU in the NEC standings - though the two teams are tied in the loss column - with a 16-4 mark...Quinnipiac became the first NEC team to clinch a playoff spot with a 10-3 win over St. Francis (NY) on Sunday. It will mark the Bobcats’ first-ever appearance in the NEC Tournament since joining the conference in 1998...In a showdown with CCSU in Hamden on Wednesday, Quinnipiac won the opener, 7-2, but fell in the nightcap, 19-6. The Bobcats then fell at UConn, 26-5, the following afternoon. After a 10-9 setback to St. Francis (NY) in the first game of a doubleheader on Saturday, Quinnipiac had allowed 55 runs in three game, but the Bobcats bounced back to take game two, 7-2, then picked up the 10-3 win on Sunday to close out the series...The 16 league wins breaks the school record of 14 established in 2003...The Bobcats have now won every NEC series that they have played this season...Sophomore righthander Pat Egan (Rocky Hill, CT/Rocky Hill) threw a complete game in the win over CCSU, allowing only four hits to the third best hitting team in the country (.346 team average), while striking out four as he improved to 7-1 on the season. Egan only yielded one hit in the first six innings of play against the Blue Devils and is the only pitcher to defeat CCSU twice this season...In the St. Francis loss, Quinnipiac trailed by many as seven (9-2), before mounting a comeback that came up just short as the Bobcats left runners on the corners in the bottom of the seventh...Sophomore righty Chris Wakefield (Ronkonkoma, NY/Connetquot) went the distance in Saturday’s game two triumph over the Terriers to improve to 3-1 on the season and lower his ERA to 3.74. He yielded one earned run on seven hits...Junior righthander Ari Kafka (Sharon, MA/Sharon) pitched six inning of no-hit ball in Sunday’s win over St. Francis, as seven Bobcats recorded two hits or more in the contest...Freshman centerfielder Tim Binkoski (North Haven, CT/North Haven) hit .350 (7-20) last week with five runs and eight RBI. He drove in five runs in the sweep of St. Francis and now leads the team with a .450 on-base percentage...Sunday’s game also marked the last home weekend series for seniors Buddy Bengel (New Bern, NC/New Bern), Dave Bennett (Fairfield, CT/Fairfield), Joe Dolhon (Katonah, NY/John Jay), Jeff Ford (Hamden, CT/Notre Dame), Albert Marano (Lincoln, RI/Bishop Hendricken) and Steve Silverstein (Merrick, NY/Merrick)…The Bobcats wrap up their scheduled regular season games this week with two non-league tilts at Massachusetts on Tuesday and at home against Rhode Island on Wednesday, before traveling to Sacred Heart for three games next weekend. Quinnipiac will then be off for 19 days prior to the start of the NEC Tournament.
Sacred Heart (6-30, 4-10 NEC) The Pioneers dropped four of six games last week and were 2-3 against NEC competition. Sacred Heart fell at Manhattan on Tuesday (6-2), split a doubleheader with Fairleigh Dickinson on Wednesday (L 2-3, W 7-2), dropped a twinbill at Long Island on Saturday (0-9 and 2-10) then concluded the week a 4-3 win over the Blackbirds in a nine-inning game on Sunday...Junior outfielder Curtis Lewsey (Greenwich, CT/Greenwich Central) hit the first two home runs of his career last week. He hit his first on Wednesday in the 7-2 win over FDU, and his second in the victory over Long Island on Sunday....Sophomore infielder/outfielder Jason Maiella (North Haledon, NJ/Manchester) also homered for the Pioneers in the win over the Knights, the second of his career...Senior lefty Chuck Ristano (Valley Stream, NY) went 1-1 last week with a 0.57 ERA. He allowed just one earned run in 15 2/3 innings. Ristano permitted 12 hits and a walk, while striking out seven. He was charged with three unearned runs over seven innings in a 3-2 setback vs. FDU, then went 8 2/3 innings four days later to pick up a victory over Long Island. In that contest, Ristano yielded three runs (one earned). In league play this season, Ristano is 2-2 but ranks second in the conference with a 1.44 ERA...Senior first baseman Jamie Schilkowski (Shelton, CT/Shelton) leads the Pioneers with a .313 average and .424 on-base percentage. He is third in the NEC with 23 walks...The Pioneers return to action on Tuesday, hosting Brown. They play a single game at Fairleigh Dickinson on Wednesday, return home to take on Army on Thursday, then welcome Quinnipiac for a three-game series this weekend.
St. Francis (NY) (4-23, 1-12 NEC) The Terriers went just 1-6 last week, but the one win came against NEC leader Quinnipiac on Saturday. By turning back the Bobcats, 10-9, the Terriers recorded their first league win of the 2004 campaign...St. Francis dropped a 17-8 decision to Fordham on Tuesday, and was swept by Long Island (10-7 and 3-2 in eight innings) the following afternoon. On Thursday, the Terriers fell to Pace, 4-3, in a game that was stopped due to rain in the eighth inning. Following the win over Quinnipiac in the first game of a doubleheader on Saturday, the Bobcats returned the favor with a 7-2 victory in game two, then won the rubber game of the series, 10-3, on Sunday...Freshman outfielder Johnny Lluberes (Elmhurst, NY/John Adams) went 11-23 (.478) on the week with two doubles, four runs and three RBI. In the triumph over Quinnipiac, he was 3-4 with a double and three runs scored. Lluberes had more hits last week (11), than he had all season entering the Fordham game last Tuesday (ten)...In the 10-7 setback toLong Island, the Terriers scored two runs in the top of the seventh and the game ended with the bases loaded...In game two vs. the Blackbirds, senior southpaw Rob Eberhart (Freeport, NY/Freeport) pitched 6.0 innings, allowing two runs and scattering seven hits. He recorded four strikeouts in the game...Senior centerfielder Anthony Giudice (Brooklyn, NY/James Madison) was 2-4 and drove in three runs in the win over Quinnipiac...Giudice is third in the conference with a .406 average and ranks fourth with 13 stolen bases in 15 attempts...St. Francis has a busy week, hosting Stony Brook on Tuesday, then competing at Long Island on Wednesday and Iona on Thursday before returning home to meet Wagner for three games on Saturday and Sunday. Wagner (11-23, 6-9 NEC) Wagner comes off a 2-3 week, including doubleheader splits at Monmouth (W 8-7, L 1-6) and Mount St. Mary's (L 0-4, W 7-4), while also dropping an 11-7 decision vs. Stony Brook. Sunday’s single game with the Mount was postponed due to rain...The Seahawks are currently in fifth place in the NEC, three and one-half games behind Fairleigh Dickinson. Four teams will qualify for the NEC Baseball Tournament...Junior righthander Mike McTamney (Toms River, NJ/Toms River North) tossed four innings of relief to earn the win in the Seahawks' opening game victory at Monmouth. He allowed three hits and one earned run while striking out four...In that win, junior outfielder Troy Sogluizzo (Staten Island, NY/Curtis) hit a two-run homer...Sophomore outfielder Nick Papa (Freehold, NJ/Freehold) delivered an RBI single in the opener vs. the Hawks and was 3-3 in the nightcap...In the loss to Stony Brook, Wagner fell behind 11-0, and trailed 11-1 when the Seahawks sent eight consecutive men to bat with two outs in the eighth and scored six runs to cut the deficit to 11-7 before coming up short...Wagner tallied five runs in the top of the seventh inning to earn the 7-4 win in game two against the Mount on Saturday. With Wagner trailing 4-2 heading in the last inning, freshman outfielder Matthew Mastrianni (Ringoes, NJ/Hunterdon Central) unloaded a two-run blast to center to tie the score at 4-4. Junior infielder Kane Furst (E. Stroudsburg, PA/E. Stroudsburg) then slammed a two-run shot to center to give Wagner a 6-4 edge...Sophomore righthander Andrew Bailey (Haddon Heights, NJ/Paul VI) allowed four earned runs while striking out seven Mountaineers to earn the win and improve to 4-3 on the season...Papa batted .625 last week going 10-16 with two doubles, two runs and three RBI...Senior first baseman Chris Dick (Denville, NJ/Morris Knolls) was 6-17 on the week (.353). He needs two home runs in the 12 remaining games to tie the school career record of 31 set by Gil Barkman, from 1997-00...Mastrianni ranks twelfth in the NEC with a .350 batting average and is tied for third in the conference with 23 walks...Batters are hitting just .208 against Bailey and he ranks second on the circuit with 60 strikeouts. His 3.04 ERA places him sixth in the league...Wagner hosts Lehigh on Tuesday and Monmouth on Wednesday before making the short trip to St. Francis (NY) for three games this weekend.
Around The League
Quinnipiac Clinches NEC Playoff Berth Quinnipiac became the first team to clinch a 2004 NEC Tournament bid with its 10-3 win over St. Francis (NY) on Sunday. It will mark the first tournament appearance for the Bobcats, who joined the NEC in 1998. Sitting in first place with a 16-4 league mark, Quinnipiac holds a one-game lead in the standings over Central Connecticut State (14-4), though the two teams are tied in the loss column. If the two teams finish tied for first, the Bobcats would receive the #1 seed in the NEC Tournament based upon winning the season series with the Blue Devils, 2-1. One possible concern for Quinnipiac heading into the tournament: discounting any games that will need to be made up by rain, the Bobcats will be off for 19 days prior to the start of the tourney. The team’s last regular season game is scheduled for May 2.
Bring Us Your Best In league play this season, there are six NEC pitchers who have compiled an ERA of less than 2.00. These six pitchers are a combined 20-2 with a 1.60 ERA.
Sparkling Arms In NEC Play Glen Keeton (MU): 3-0, 1.21 ERA, 29.2 IP, 22 Hits, 10 BB, 28 K Chuck Ristano (SHU): 2-2, 1.44 ERA, 31.1 IP, 23 Hits, 3 BB, 19 K Jesse Anziano (FDU): 5-0, 1.49 ERA, 36.1 IP, 23 Hits, 8 BB, 31 K Adam Dinihanian (SHU): 2-0, 1.56 ERA, 17.1 IP, 18 Hits, 1 BB, 9 K Patrick Egan (QU): 6-0, 1.91 ERA, 42.1 IP, 33 Hits, 8 BB, 27 K Chris Della Rocco (MU): 2-0, 1.96 ERA, 23 IP, 21 Hits, 6 BB, 17 K
Mount Tidbit When Mount St. Mary’s reached the 20-win plateau with a 4-0 win over Wagner on Saturday, they became the first team at the school to win 20 games in a season since the women's basketball team went 20-9 in 1999-00. The 20 wins also added to the baseball team’s single-season school mark for victories, set back on April 18th with win number 18.
Blackbird Turnaround Long Island won more games last week (four) than it had won in the first six weeks of the season combined (three).
Mount’s Conundrum Mount St. Mary’s has been outstanding in non-league play this season, going 14-4 for a league-best .778 winning percentage. The eight other conference teams have a combined 41-101 (.289) mark in out of conference tilts. Unfortunately, the Mountaineers’ success in non-league action, including wins over George Mason, Maine and Temple, has not translated into NEC play, where the team is in sixth place with a 6-10 record.
CCSU Challenging NEC Marks For Wins, Winning Percentage Two-time defending NEC champion Central Connecticut State may be fielding the best team in the school’s Division I era based on the Blue Devils’ 29-10-1 mark entering the final two weeks of regular season play. With a .738 winning percentage, the Blue Devils are challenging the league’s single-season mark in the category currently held by Long Island, which posted a .675 percentage in 1990 on the basis of its 27-13 campaign. With 17 wins in its last 21 outings, including six in a row, CCSU is also on pace to surpass Rider, which maintains the NEC single-season record for victories with 35 in 1995. Discounting postseason play and games lost due to weather, the Blue Devils would have to win seven of their final 12 regular season outings to claim the record.
CCSU Murderers’ Row Nine Central Connecticut State players have 21 or more RBI this season. There are four teams in the NEC that do not have one player who has driven at least 21 runs. Blue Devil Bats Riding High CCSU’s league-leading 348 runs this season is 111 more than second place Mount St. Mary’s and more than double the number of runs scored by every team in the conference with the exception of the Mount (237) and Quinnipiac (212) and Monmouth (185). The Blue Devils have scored ten or more runs in 15 games this season. The eight other league teams have reached double digits in scoring a combined 26 times.
Poll Busters: Quinnipiac, Fairleigh Dickinson Emerge As NEC Contenders In 2004 Who could have imagined that Quinnipiac (16-4) and Fairleigh Dickinson (10-6) would combine for just ten league setbacks at this point in the season and sit first and fourth place in the NEC standings. Obviously not the league’s head coaches, who picked the Bobcats and Knights fourth and sixth, respectively, in the annual preseason poll. Quinnipiac has shown steady improvements since the return of Dan Gooley for his second stint as Bobcats’ head coach in 2002. Coming off a 3-19 league mark in 2001, the Bobcats jumped to 9-18 in 2002 and broke the .500 mark a year ago with a 14-13 record. The Bobcats are looking for their first NEC Tournament appearance since entering the conference in 1999. Ironically, 1999 was the last year Fairleigh Dickinson made an appearance in the postseason after winning the NEC North with a 12-8 mark. Since that time, the Knights have gone through some lean years with conference records of 10-11 (2000), 9-13 (2001), 7-19 (2002) and 12-15 (2003). With a trio of capable starting pitchers and some timely hitting, FDU and 19th year head coach Dennis Sasso have shown some resolve by winning four one-run games and yielding three or less runs on seven occasions.
QU’s Home Run Derby Part of Quinnipiac’s turnaround can be attributed to the power the team has shown at the plate this season. The Bobcats, who have hit a league-leading 27 round trippers in 2004, boast three of the top sluggers in the conference thus far in 2004. Senior outfielder Albert Marano (Lincoln, RI/Bishop Hendricken) leads the circuit with six dingers and is third with a .575 slugging percentage and third with 26 RBI. Freshman second baseman Wilson Matos (Larchmont, NY/ Mamaroneck) is tied for second in homers (four) and leads the team with 30 RBI batting out of the leadoff spot. Sophomore backstop Kevin MacIlvane (Windsor, CT/East Catholic) has drilled five round trippers to tie for fifth in the NE. With 27 blasts in 35 games, the Bobcats have already surpassed their 2003 total of 20 accomplished in 41 contests.
Blazing Blue Devils: Stegbauer, Hosgood Dominate League Batting Categories Central Connecticut State, the two-time defending NEC champion, has earned a reputation as one of the top hitting teams in the Northeast over the last three years. The Blue Devils have led the league in batting average (and set school single-season records in the process) and runs scored in each of the last two seasons, and are on top of the conference rankings in both categories in 2004. As a team, CCSU is batting .346 and averaging 8.7 runs per contest as seven regulars are batting at least .321, including four over .382. Leading the way for the second place Blue Devils, who are 14-4 in NEC play, are senior infielder Keith Stegbauer (Seminole, FL/ St. Petersburg JC) and senior outfielder Rob Hosgood (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa). Stegbauer has been on fire as of late, with a league-leading .465 on the season, including .455 in league play. He also leads the NEC in hits (79), runs (57) and on-base percentage (.503). Hosgood is the circuit’s second leading hitter with a .403 average. He too leads the conference in a number of categories, including home runs (eight), triples (four), RBI (44) and slugging percentage (.662).
Highs and Lows With just two weeks of league play remaining, no one can utilize the term “parity” to describe NEC baseball in 2004. There is a stark contrast between the haves and the haves-nots within the conference as the top four teams have combined for a 51-19 (.729) league record, while the bottom five teams in the standings have amassed a 22-54 (.289) mark in NEC play.
Bobcats Bounce Big Name Foes One team in the NEC that is beginning to make some noise is Quinnipiac, which already has wins over Virginia and Connecticut to its credit this season and has won five straight and eight of its last nine games. The Bobcats, who have yet to qualify for NEC Tournament play since joining the conference in 1999, defeated Virginia, 13-11, on March 8. It marked the first-ever win for Quinnipiac over a team from the ACC. On March 25, the Bobcats knocked off intrastate rival UConn, 12-11, in another slugfest.
(K)eeton’s (K)orner When Monmouth senior righthander Glen Keeton (Middletown, NY/Minisink Valley) fanned 15 Long Island batters in a 5-0 complete game shutout of the Blackbirds on March 14, it established a new single-game school record for strikeouts. Even more impressive is the fact he mowed down 15 batters in a seven inning game. For the season, Keeton has 35 Ks in 38.2 innings.
NEC Coaching Institutions A testament to the longevity of NEC coaches is the fact that five skippers have combined for over 1,750 victories. Now in his 28th season at Long Island, Frank Giannone is the league’s winningest active coach with 524 career victories (also a school record). He has compiled 18 winning seasons and has been associated in roughly 65 percent of the Blackbirds’ games since the program’s inception in 1929. St. Francis (NY)’s Frank Del George enters his 24th year leading the Terriers, and is the school’s all-time leader with 396 career victories. Fairleigh Dickinson’s Dennis Sasso, a three-time NEC Coach of the Year now in his 19th season at the Teaneck campus, has amassed 336 wins. Monmouth’s Dean Ehehalt, in his 11th year at the Jersey shore school, recently collected his 250th career victory and has since upped that total to 255. Finally, Quinnipiac’s Dan Gooley has won 246 games in two separate stints with the Bobcats spanning 14 years.
NEC Regular Season Format In 2002, the NEC realigned as a single division after three years with a two-division format. Each team plays 24 league games, facing each member institution three times. The top four teams on the basis of winning percentage qualify for the NEC Tournament. NEC Tournament Remains In Lakewood For the third straight year, the Northeast Conference Baseball Tournament will be held at FirstEnergy Park in Lakewood, New Jersey. FirstEnergy Park, a $22 million facility that finished construction in April, 2001, is the home of the Lakewood Blue Claws, a class A affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. The venue seats 6,588 with grass availability for an additional 3,000 fans. The BlueClaws enjoyed terrific fan support in their first three seasons, leading the South Atlantic League each year with an average attendance of 6,889 in 2001, 6,860 in 2002 and 6,654 in 2003. The team also set a new record for minor league baseball attendance in the state of New Jersey in 2001. The three-day, double-elimination event is set for May 21-23 with a rain date on May 24. The championship field will feature the NEC’s top four regular season finishers. Central Connecticut State is the two-time defending conference champion.
Central Connecticut State Tabbed NEC Favorite Central Connecticut State is the preseason favorite to capture the 2004 Northeast Conference baseball championship, according to a poll of league head coaches. The Blue Devils claimed six of nine first place votes in the balloting, well ahead of the three received by Monmouth. St. Francis (NY) was chosen third, followed by Quinnipiac, Sacred Heart, Fairleigh Dickinson, Long Island, Wagner and Mount St. Mary’s.
CCSU (31-17-2, 19-6 NEC) was often dominating in 2003 in earning its third NEC regular season crown and second straight tournament championship. In the league tourney, the Blue Devils yielded just four runs in three games en-route to the crown. It was easy to pinpoint the team’s success as CCSU boasted the conference’s number-one rated offensive unit (.325 batting average and 6.4 runs per game) and pitching staff (4.00 earned run average), enabling the Blue Devils to post their third straight 30+ win season. Fifth year head coach Charlie Hickey, who has compiled a 112-92-3 record in his tenure at the New Britain, CT school, was named Coach of the Year by his peers for the second time in the last three seasons. Hickey will have plenty to work with this season, with the bulk of the lineup - including four all- NEC performers - returning, led by 2003 NEC Player of the Year Tim D’Aquila (Middletown, CT/Middletown). A two-time all-conference selection and former NEC Rookie of the Year, the senior catcher finished 2003 as the sixth leading hitter in the country with a .425 average. He led the conference in batting by over 50 points and also ranked second in the league in runs (46), third in RBI (38) and fourth in on-base percentage (.450). Junior first baseman Phil Rothkugel (Plainville, CT/Plainville), senior outfielder Rob Hosgood (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa) and senior second baseman Keith Stegbauer (Seminole, FL/St. Petersburg JC) are all returning NEC all stars who give Hickey a veteran presence in the lineup. Rothkugel, the 2002 NEC Rookie of the Year and a first team pick a year ago, is one of the top sluggers and run producers on the circuit. In 2003, he ranked first in the conference with 44 RBI and 34 walks, third with eight homers and hit .345. Hosgood is a three-time all-conference award winner who batted .343 and laced a league-leading six triples. He also finished second in the NEC with 42 RBI and 101 total bases, while swiping 15 bases. In his first season with the program, Stegbauer was the league’s fourth ranked hitter with a .360 average. He also drove in 35 runs and scored 46 more, tied for second in the league. With the loss of 2003 NEC Pitcher of the Year Barry Hertzler and reliable starter Zack Herrick - the duo ranked first and third in league in ERA last season - the Blue Devils will build their rotation around senior Lewis Pappariella (Palmyra, PA/Palmyra), who made the smooth transition from closer to starter last year. Pappariella finished with a 7-4 mark, including two shutouts, and a 4.17 ERA.