Men's Baseball History 2020-2021
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Men’s Baseball History 2020-2021 SEASON CANCELLED DUE TO COVID-19 PANDEMIC 2019-20 Reg. Season Record: 10-2 (1st in OUA standings) OUA Championship Tournament: Eliminated following round robin stage (2-1 record during round robin play) 2019 Canadian University National Invitational Baseball Tournament: Champions (defeated WLU 2-1 in final) The Gryphon baseball team put together a memorable 2019 season, which included finishing the regular season portion of the schedule atop the OUA standings, followed by a postseason run that culminated in the team taking home the title of national champions. During the regular season, in which the Gryphons boasted a league-best 10-2 record, U of G rookie second baseman Braedon Walsh helped lead the team with a .459 batting average in 11 games. Pitching-wise, the Gryphs were led by fellow rookie Dylan Clark who posted a 1.75 ERA and 22 strikeouts in 25 innings of work. The OUA Championship Tournament in Ajax started off well for the Gryphons who won their first two games 3-0 against Brock and 2-1 against Waterloo. However, in their last round robin game, the Gryphons fell 8-3 to Ryerson and ended up on the wrong side of a tiebreaking scenario, which saw the Gryphons eliminated from the conference championship tournament, failing to reach the knockout stage despite their 2-1 record in round robin play. One week after their disappointing exit from the OUA Championship tournament, the Gryphons would re-group in a big way as they would make their way back to Ajax to take part in the inaugural “Canadian University National Invitational Baseball Tournament.” The three-day event, which took place from Oct. 18-20, 2019, featured a total of 6 different schools representing three different provinces, with Concordia, McGill, Acadia, Guelph, Laurier and McMaster all in attendance. The Gryphons started the tournament with a 4-1 win over the Concordia Stingers, followed by a 7-6 win over the Marauders to earn a spot in the gold medal game against Laurier. The Gryphons would go on to complete a perfect weekend, earning a 2-1 win over the Golden Hawks to claim gold at the inaugural Canadian University National Invitational Baseball Tournament. Team Awards: MVP: Dylan Clark Head Coach: Dean Mariani (2nd season) Assistants: Marek Deska, Alex Hawley, Justin Interisano, Blair Gignac, Tim Schell, Andrew Van Wout, Brandon Washkevich Graduate Assistants: Paul Neophytou, Sam Salemi 2019-2020 Roster: Hayden Adair Thomas Henderson Ashton Patterson David Bruinsma Craig Henning Cipriano Primicias Brendan Callaghan Jordon Inkol Zachary Rachar Dylan Clark Nicholas Interisano Tyler Randa Mason Copeland Evan Kiser Michael Rourke Alexander DeVos Arthur Kowara Braedon Walsh Alex Drouillard Troy Lacoste Luke Whitehouse Ryan Freemantle Jonathan Lay Graham Wilmot Robbie Gauthier Garret Morgan Peter Zytner Matthew Gravelle Mitchell Over 2018-19 Season Record: 11-7 (4th in the OUA) Playoff Record: 3-1 (lost to Toronto OUA semi-final) The Gryphons’ baseball program began a new chapter after former four-year player Dean Mariani took over the head coaching duties on an interim basis in 2018. Guelph certainly responded to the new boss. A team that featured 11 rookies, including a few returnees from schools in the United States, enjoyed an excellent regular season that that began with wins in six of the first eight games. The Gryphons were anchored by a pair of OUA All-Stars in outfielder Mason Copeland and infielder Robert Wolfer, who was named the Team MVP. Veteran Sam Salemi was the team’s ace, finishing the regular season with a 4-0 record, including four complete games, a 2.45 ERA and 21 strikeouts in 33 innings. Guelph wrapped up the regular season with a sweep of Western and rode that momentum into the playoffs. The Gryphons, making their seventh consecutive playoff appearance, came out strong at the OUA Championship Tournament with three straight wins in round-robin play over Queen’s, Laurier and Ryerson. The season eventually came to an end in the OUA semi-final in a 5-2 loss to perennial power Toronto. Team Awards: MVP: Robert Wolfer OUA All-Stars: OUA First Team All- Star: Robert Wolfer (2B) OUA Second Team All- Star: Mason Copeland (CF) Head Coach: Dean Mariani (1st season) Assistants: Marek Deska, Alex Hawley, Justin Interisano, Tim Schell, Brandon Wazkevich Trainer: Danielle Stark Hayden Adair Jonathan Lay Lennon Richards Evan Britt Connor Mitchell Michael Rourke Brendan Callaghan Garret Morgan Samuel Salemi Matthew Carscadden Avery Moxey Steven Shum Mason Copeland Chase Nelson Grayson Wesley Alexander Devos Paul Neophytou Luke Whitehouse Alexander Fishback Mitchell Over Graham Wilmot Ryan Freemantle Ashton Patterson Robert Wolfer Thomas Henderson Cipriano Primicias Peter Zytner Craig Henning Tyler Randa Jordon Inkol Tanner Rankine 2017-18 Season Record: 8-8 (5th in the OUA) Playoff Record: 0-1 (lost to Toronto OUA quarter-final) The Gryphons entered the 2017 OUA season with one of the best collections of depth and pitching in head coach Matt Griffin’s nine-year tenure. Those characteristics played a big part in Guelph manufacturing a five-game win streak that culminated with a doubleheader sweep of Waterloo on Sunday, Oct. 1. It proved to be a special day as Griffin earned his 100th career coaching victory. The Gryphons made their sixth straight appearance in the OUA playoffs, with a new single-elimination format, knowing the bats would have to come through in a one-and-done situation. The hopes of making a run to the program’s first provincial title were high but they drew the eventual champion Toronto Varsity Blues, and their ace pitcher Graham Tebbitt, in the opening round. Guelph fell behind early and couldn’t recover in a 6-0 loss. Outfielder Kyle Kinsey was an offensive catalyst for the 2017 Gryphons, batting .386 with a home run, 11 RBI and four stolen bases. Departing third baseman Nick Interisano hit a solid .304, while fourth-year veteran Sam Salemi became Griffin’s go-to pitcher, striking out 14 batters in 22 innings of work. Hayden Adair 1L Ryan Freemantle 1L Christopher Parsons 1L Matthew Allen 4H Craig Henning 1L Brett Pond 2L Nicholas Boyd 4H Jordon Inkol 3L Tyler Randa 3L Evan Britt 2L Nicholas Interisano 4H Evan Ross 2L Brendan Callaghan 2L Kyle Kinsey 4H Michael Rourke 1L Matthew Carscadden1L Marshall Kovacs 4H Samuel Salemi 4H Denver Carter 5L Nathan Kramer 3L Grayson Wesley 3L Joseph Ciccia 5L Troy Lacoste 3L Luke Whitehouse 2L Mason Copeland 3L Nathaniel Lewko 2L Graham Wilmot 1L Aaron Dahan 1L Sean McLean 3L Robert Wilson 2L Alexander Devos 3L Avery Moxey 1L Robert Wolfer 3L Philip Drewniak 1L Paul Neophytou 1L Peter Zytner 1L Mitchell Ewing 5L Mitchell Over 3L Head Coach: Matt Griffin Assistants: Pat Griffin, Alex Hawley, Justin Interisano, Dean Mariani, Marc Walton Trainers: Agostina Franco, Keara Maynard, Danielle Stark Special Assistants: Jeff Jarockis, Charlie Toth 2016-17 Season Record: 11-7 (4th in OUA) Playoff Record: 2-2 (lost to Western in semifinal) Thanks to an impressive 6-game win streak to end the regular season, the Gryphons finished 4th in the OUA standings with an 11-7 record and qualified for the OUA Championship Tournament in Toronto (top 6 teams in the 10-team OUA field qualify). In the opening game of the OUA Championship Tournament, the Gryphons led 5-1 over No. 2-seeded Brock before eventually falling 7-6 to the Badgers. Despite the loss, the Gryphs still had life in the double knockout format. After winning 13-5 over the host Varsity Blues, the Gryphons would go on to defeat Laurier 11-8, ending the Golden Hawks season. Having to play their third game of the day, the Gryphons would see their season come to an end in a lopsided loss in a semifinal matchup versus the eventual OUA champion Western Mustangs. DH Nick Interisano was the lone Gryphon to be named as an OUA First Team All-Star after an impressive regular season that saw him hit .439 to go along with five doubles and 16 RBIs. Sam Salemi established himself as the ace of the staff during the regular season, posting an ERA of 2.86 with 15 strikeouts in 22.0 innings. Matthew Allen 2L Jacob Gerovac 2L Peter Ricciardi 5L C. Bouillere-Howard 2L Jordon Inkol 1L Liam Rivard 2L Nicholas Boyd 2L Nicholas Interisano 2L Kyle Carey 2L Kyle Kinsey 2L Evan Ross 1L Denver Carter 3L Daniel Kolominsky 2L Wade Sage 4H Alexander Chow 4H Marshall Kovacs 2L Samuel Salemi 2L Joseph Ciccia 3L Nathan Kramer 1L Jeffrey Snelgrove 4H Mason Copeland 1L Troy Lacoste 1L Cooper Stocco 3L Alexander Devos 1L Jamie May 3L Gordon Walmsley 3L Mitchell Ewing 3L Sean McLean 1L Grayson Wesley 1L Matthew Forer 3L Mitchell Over 2L Robert Wolfer 1L Stephen Fried 4H Tyler Randa 1L Head Coach: Matt Griffin Pitching Coach: Marc Walton Assistant Coach: Alex Hawley Assistant Coach: Justin Interisano Third Base/Infield Coach: Dean Mariani First Base Coach: Pat Griffin Special Assistant: Jeff Jarockis Special Assistant: Charlie Toth Trainer: Agostina Franco Trainer: Kira Mortimer Trainer: Keara Maynard Team Awards: MVP: Nick Interisano OUA Awards: OUA First Team All- Star: Nick Interisano (Designated Hitter) OUA Second Team All- Star: Troy Lacoste (Catcher) 2015-16 Season Record: 12-6 (4th in OUA) Playoff Record: 0-2 (lost to Western & Ryerson at OUA Championship tournament) The Gryphons varsity baseball team started their 2015-2016 season with a loud statement by sweeping a doubleheader versus the defending OUA champion Brock Badgers. It was part of a red hot start to the season that saw the Gryphons jump out to a perfect 8- 0 start to the season.