MASCAC releases Baseball preseason poll
Westfield, Mass.— The Worcester State Lancers have been selected to win the 2015 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference Baseball Championship as voted on by the coaches from around the league.
Worcester State, the 2014 MASCAC Regular Season and Tournament Champions earned four first place votes for 44 points. Last season Worcester State went 11-3 in MASCAC action. Under the helm of reigning Champion's Choice Coach of the Year Dirk Baker, the Lancers return several key players from last year's squad, including All-Conference honorees Dave Ruggiero and Ben Libuda. Ruggiero, the 2014 MASCAC Tournament MVP, finished last season with a .381 batting average with 53 hits, including nine doubles and five triples while Libuda netted a 3.20 earned run average and 37 strikeouts.
Coming in second with two first place votes for a total of 43 points is Salem State. Last season the Vikings finished the regular season with an 11-3 record in conference play. Reigning MASCAC Player of the Year Richard Fecteau returns after a sophomore season where he had a 3.60 batting average, 47 runs scored, 24 doubles and three triples.
Westfield State landed in third with one first place vote for a total of 34 points. The Owls closed out the 2014 season with a 7-7 record in league action. Coming back for Westfield State is Dan McCormack, who received First Team All-Conference accolades last season. Outfielder McCormack tallied a .316 batting average with 27 runs batted in and five doubles.
Earning the final first place vote in fourth place is Framingham State with 31 points. The Rams were 8-6 in conference play last season. They bring back MASCAC Co-Rookie of the Year and Second Team All-Conference Team member Mike Andrews, who led the conference in earned run average at 1.25, second in wins with seven and two shutouts.
Massachusetts Maritime is next in fifth place with 23 points. The Buccaneers closed out 2014 with six wins in conference action. The All-Conference duo of shortstop Bobby Rosano and pitcher Kyle Kennedy return for the squad. During the 2014 season, Rosano had a .302 batting average while knocking in six doubles and three triples. On the mound, Kennedy finished with a 1.90 earned run average with 39 strikeouts and three complete games.
Up next in the sixth slot is Bridgewater State with 22 points. The Bears collected six MASCAC wins during the 2014 season. Returning for Bridgewater State is Nicholas White who finished with a .364 batting average with 44 hits, including 11 for extra bases.
Rounding out the poll is Fitchburg State with 19 points and MCLA with nine points in seventh and eighth, respectively. The Falcons bring back MASCAC Co-Rookie of the Year and First Team All-Conference honoree Stephen Drury Jr. Last season, Drury Jr. led the league in batting average (.438), slugging percentage (.742) and triples (9).
For the Trailblazers, Chase Preite returns after a 2014 season that saw him finish with the second best batting average in the conference (.403), fourth in slugging percentage (.537) and eighth in doubles (9).