WEST HAVEN, Conn. – After upsetting top-seeded Southern Connecticut State University in the Northeast-10 Conference Championship First Round on Tuesday, the Southwest Division's No. 4 seed Pace University baseball team has advanced to 2017 NE10 Championship Weekend, which will be hosted by Southwest No. 2 University of New Haven from May 11-13.
2017 Northeast-10 Conference Baseball Championship Central
2017 NE10 Baseball Championship Schedule
Tuesday, May 9th– First Round (single elimination)
Game 1: #4 SW Pace 5 #1 SW Southern Connecticut 2
Game 2: #2 SW New Haven 3, #3 SW Le Moyne 0
Game 3: #1 NE Southern New Hampshire 2, #4 NE Bentley 1, Final - 10 Innings
Game 4: #2 NE Franklin Pierce 8, #3 NE Merrimack 0
Thursday, May 11 - Saturday, May 13 - Championship Weekend
Hosted by the University of New Haven
Thursday, May 11th
- Game #5: #4 SW Pace vs. #2 NE Franklin Pierce – 12:00 PM
- Game #6: #2 SW New Haven vs. #1 NE Southern New Hampshire – 3:00 PM
Friday, May 12th
- Game #7: Game 5 loser vs. Game 6 loser - 10:00 AM
- Game #8: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner - 12:30 PM
- Game #9: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 loser - 3:00 PM
Saturday, May 13th
- Game #10: Game 9 winner vs. Game 8 winner - 11:00 AM
- Game #11: If necessary, 35 minutes after completion of Game #10
TICKETS
$6 for Adults, Faculty and Staff
$4 for Senior Citizens and Youth
$1 for Students with ID
Note: The University of New Haven is a tobacco-free campus and pets are not allowed on university property. Alcoholic beverages are also prohibited from the facility.
HOW TO WATCH
Live Stats:
http://www.sidearmstats.com/newhaven/baseball/
Live Video: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/newhaven/
HOW THEY ALL GOT HERE
Dominant pitching performances in all four NE10 First Round matchups helped all four of this weekend's teams advance to West Haven. After the Setters upset the Owls, New Haven's victory over Southwest No. 3 Le Moyne College earned the Chargers the right to host NE10 Championship Weekend as the top remaining seed in the Southwest. The favorites advanced in the Northeast, as No. 1-seed, and No. 5-ranked Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) escaped a potential upset with a 10-inning 2-1 victory over Northeast No. 4 Bentley University. Northeast No. 2 Franklin Pierce University blanked No. 3 Merrimack College, 8-0, to move on in the tournament.
For more on all the NE10 First Round matchups, check out Tuesday's recap from Northeast10.org:
Aces Wild During First Round of 2017 NE10 Baseball Championship
A DEEPER LOOK AT THE SETTERS
Pace enters the weekend with a 29-17 overall record. The Setters are led by a trio of NE10 All-Conference selections, senior
John Kukura (New City, NY/Clarkstown South), junior
Michael Gulino (Meriden, CT/Maloney) and sophomore
Michael Salmonese (Waldwick, NJ/Waldwick). Kukura ranks seventh in the NE10 with a team-best .345 batting average. Kukura is also third in on-base percentage (.459), third in slugging percentage (.552), third in runs scored (43) and third in doubles (15). Gulino is hitting .335 with a team-high 35 RBIs (8th in NE10), as well as six home runs (T-3rd in NE10). Gulino is also slugging .524, placing him sixth in the league. Salmonese is hitting .313 with 34 runs scored (14th in NE10) and a team-high 11 stolen bases this year (17th in NE10). The middle infielder is third in the league with 70 assists and tied for third with 30 double plays turned.
Senior
Domenick Luongo (Darien, CT/Cardinal Spellman) has had a stellar season, batting .306 with an on-base percentage of .455 (4th in NE10). Senior catcher
Frank Mayo (Middletown, NY/Minisink Valley) was red hot to finish the regular season to boost his average to .287 with 26 runs, 24 RBIs and 10 doubles. He is batting .343 with 16 RBIs and 15 runs over his last 17 games.
Pace's pitching staff is fifth in the NE10 with a team ERA of 3.54. Junior
Ryan Aquino (Mamaroneck, NY/Rye Neck), who tossed a complete game in Tuesday's First Round matchup to get the win, leads the way with a 7-4 record and a 2.42 ERA. He leads the team with 81.2 innings pitched, and opposing hitters are batting just .233 against him. Junior
Kyle Cashman (Hicksville, NY/Hicksville) is 4-3 with a 2.75 ERA, tossing 52.1 innings in nine starts and 12 appearances. Sophomore
Dan Wirchansky (Stony Point, NY/North Rockland/RCC) has a 4-4 mark with a 3.36 ERA and a team-best 58 strikeouts in 64.1 frames. Senior
Anthony Rocco (Jackson, NJ/Jackson Memorial) is 4-2 on the year
Junior reliever
Anthony Criscione (Bronx, NY/Cardinal Spellman) has a 3.03 ERA and is second on the team with 49 strikeouts. His impressive 12.36 strikeouts-per-nine ratio is the best on the team, as are his three saves. Sophomore reliever
Kevin Wiltse (East Setauket, NY/Ward Mellville) has a 3-0 record across 37 innings, and is holding opponents to a .195 batting average against him, two points ahead of Criscione's .197 batting average against. Junior reliever
Michael Amato (Farmingville, NY/Sachem East/Suffolk CC) has registered a pair of saves for the Setters, and has appeared more than any Pace pitcher, playing in 21 games in both short- and long-relief. He takes a 4.15 ERA into the NE10 Championship Tournament.
THE REST OF THE FIELD
NE #2 FRANKLIN PIERCE
Pace's first matchup of the weekend is a rematch of last year's NE10 Championship Weekend opener, when the Setters upset the Ravens, ranked No. 1 in the country at the time, by a score of 2-1, handing the eventual NCAA East Region Champions only their fifth loss of the year. A pair of outgoing seniors led the way for the Setters, as
Josh Garran (Old Tappan, NJ/Northern Valley Regional) was brilliant in a complete-game effort, and
Andrew Coffey (Greenwich, CT/Old Avon Farms) knocked in both runs after going 3-for-4.
The Ravens come in with a slightly more modest 31-13 overall record. As a team, they are tied for the best batting average in the NE10 (.298), have the third most hits (453), and own the league's highest slugging percentage (.413).
Adam Chase is hitting a team-best .354 on the season, ranking him sixth in the NE10. He is also tied with Gulino for sixth in the league with 39 runs scored. Stephen Octave is batting .330, and is second in the conference with 43 RBIs this season. Dalton Davis is second in the NE10 with seven home runs, and is also hitting .311.
The pitching staff is headed by Cody McPartland, who is a perfect 7-0 on the year with a 2.07 ERA and 84 strikeouts. Right behind him is Thursday's likely starter, John Amendola, who stands 6-3 with an impressive 1.65 ERA and 64 strikeouts on the year. The NE10's top closer a year ago, Tanner Bird is 4-2 in four starts and 16 appearances, striking out 53 batters in 42.1 innings.
SW #2 NEW HAVEN
The NE10 Championship Weekend host and Pace's lone remaining division-mate New Haven heads into the weekend with a 26-10 overall record. The Chargers won a tight season series with the Setters, 2-1. Pace won the opening game in Pleasantville by a score of 9-0 after an East-Region Pitcher of the Week-worthy performance by Wirchansky. New Haven came back to Pace later in the season, and came out on top in a classic 11-inning contest, 11-9. New Haven then won a pitchers' duel in West Haven in the final contest with a 3-2 decision.
Jack Zagaja leads the Chargers with a .340 batting average, .489 slugging percentage and 31 RBIs. He is also tied for the team-high of four home runs with Tom Walraven. Walraven is hitting .319 with 28 runs scored. Robert Petrillo is right behind him with a .318 average, 28 runs and 24 RBIs. Matt Chamberlain has scored a team-best 31 runs, while hitting .305 with a team-high .453 on-base percentage.
David Palmer leads the pitching staff with a flawless 7-0 record across nine starts and 10 appearances. He has put together a league-best 1.29 ERA in 62.2 frames. Tim Kennedy is also undefeated, going 6-0 in seven starts and 10 appearances with a 1.64 ERA. He has 65 strikeouts in just 49.1 innings. Closer Kellen Croce has six saves on the season with a 2.14 ERA and 37 strikeouts in 21 frames.
NE #1 SOUTHERN NEW HAMPSHIRE
Defending NE10 Champion SNHU is the top team in the NCAA East Region and the No. 5-ranked team in the country in the latest NCBWA Poll. The Penmen are led by NE10 Player of the Year Zach Goldstein, who is hitting .339 with 47 runs scored, 32 RBIs and 20 stolen bases. He has also hit seven doubles, six triples and three home runs this season. Goldstein also owns a .479 on-base percentage.
Caleb Potter is close behind Goldstein with a .325 average, and has a team-best .536 slugging percentage. He leads the team with 11 doubles and has hit six home runs. Ryan Sullivan leads the conference with 10 home runs this season, is third in the NE10 with 43 RBIs and fifth with 40 runs scored.
Three different SNHU starters have gone the entire season without a losing decision so far. Alex Person is 7-0 with a 3.48 ERA in 75 innings. Jake Stearns is 6-0 with a 2.68 ERA in 47 frames. Ivan Clough has gone 5-0 despite a 5.36 ERA. Mitchell Powers is not undefeated, but has had a strong year with a 5-2 mark and a team-leading 1.70 ERA in eight starts and 11 appearances. He leads the team with 89 strikeouts in 74.1 innings. Nick Artymowicz has made four saves with 18 strikeouts in 17 innings, while Stephen Fortuna is 3-0, has registered three saves, and has 22 strikeouts in 20 frames.
WHAT COMES NEXT FOR PACE?
The winner of Pace vs. Franklin Pierce heads to Game 8 of the double-elimination tournament against the winner of New Haven vs. SNHU. The losers of each game will face off in Game 7 at 10 a.m. on Friday in the first elimination game of the weekend.
For all information regarding Pace baseball, log on to
www.PaceUAthletics.com and follow Pace Athletics on Facebook (
T-Bone, Official Mascot of Pace University Athletics) and Twitter (
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@PaceBaseball).
