Defending New England champion Wheaton selected as NCAA's top seed

May 14, 2007

NORTON, MA- The defending New England champion Wheaton College baseball team recently found out it drew the one seed for this week's seven-team NCAA Division III Regional Tournament, as the Lyons will hold the top spot for the second consecutive year at Whitehouse Field in Harwich, Massachusetts. Returning to the Cape for the third straight spring and fifth time since 2001, Wheaton qualified for its seventh NCAA Tournament in eight years after winning its eighth New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Tournament title.

With four games on Wednesday, the Lyons will await the loser of game one between fourth-seeded Curry College and number five Keene State College at 8:00 p.m., as Wheaton earned the bye in the double-elimination format for the second successive season. Wednesday's first contest is at 9:30 a.m. and is to be followed by number-three Williams College and sixth seed Western New England College at 1:00 p.m. The third game between second-seeded Eastern Connecticut State University and number seven Saint Joseph's College (ME) is slated for 4:30 p.m.

Wheaton, which reached the regional championship round in each the 2002, 2005 and 2006 seasons, is in the midst of a 30-win campaign for the fifth time in its 10-year varsity history. Boasting a 31-11 record and winners in 30 of their last 37 games, the Lyons have matched the program's fourth-highest wins mark and are six away from tying for second. The Blue and White carries the nation's sixth-best ranking according to the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) and has been first in New England all season.

Wrapping up its eighth league tournament title in the NEWMAC's nine-year history, Wheaton hosted its seventh consecutive conference championship after winning the regular season for the ninth straight year with a 9-3 record. The Lyons blanked Babson College, 2-0 and defeated Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), 6-1 before edging Babson, 5-3 in the championship. Eleventh-year skipper Eric Podbelski, who was voted NEWMAC Coach of the Year for the seventh time, has led Wheaton to a 118-21 mark against league foes.

The trademark of this year's team has been its precision pitching, as the Lyons ranked 11th in the country with a 2.85 earned run average through games of May 6. During its last eight games, Wheaton posted a 0.62 ERA, allowing just five earned runs in 72 innings. The Blue and White has surrendered multiple runs in an inning only twice in the last 79 frames, a span covering nine contests. In addition to leading the NEWMAC in team ERA, the Lyons are first with a .951 fielding percentage and second with a .302 batting average.

All five of Wheaton's starting pitchers possess ERAs under 3.50, combining to go 25-6. NEWMAC Pitcher of the Year Chris McDonough (Weymouth, MA/Weymouth) is 5-1 with a 1.56 ERA and 54 strikeouts as a junior, while classmate Louie Bernardini (Gray, ME/Gray-New Gloucester) is 7-0 with a 2.34 ERA. Senior Joe White (Bedford, NH/Manchester West), junior Josh Moore (Manchester, NH/Manchester Memorial) and sophomore Adam Gingras (Woonsocket, RI/Woonsocket) round out the rotation. White is 4-3 with a 2.87 ERA, Moore has posted a 7-1 mark with a 3.45 ERA and 47 strikeouts, while Gingras is 2-1 with a 2.91 ERA.

Out of the bullpen, sophomore Jared Barnes (North Attleboro, MA/Bishop Feehan) has appeared in 15 games, going 1-0 with a 0.84 ERA and 22 strikeouts in 21.1 innings. Junior Keith Pescosolido (Newton, MA/Newton North) is 4-3 in 17 appearances with a 3.31 ERA and 16 strikeouts in 16.1 innings. Sophomore closer Josh Simmons (Cranston, RI/Cranston West) has six saves and 19 strikeouts in 15 frames during 19 contests.

Offensively, sophomore Robert Foote (Walpole, MA/Walpole) is batting .380 with 57 hits, classmate Nick Pecora (Highland Park, NJ/Immaculata) is hitting .373 with 57 hits and 36 RBI, and junior Jake Yagjian (Brewster, MA/Nauset Regional) has a .344 average with 34 runs and 31 RBI. Senior NEWMAC Player of the Year Adam Laplante (Harwich, MA/Harwich) is batting .315 with 30 runs, while classmates Brandon Leonard (Brockton, MA/Brockton) and Travis Anthoine (Portland, ME/Portland) have 17 and 12 steals, respectively.

2007 NCAA Division III Baseball New England Regional Tournament Schedule:

Wednesday, May 16:
Game 1: #4 Curry (27-7) vs. #5 Keene State (29-13) - 9:30 a.m.
Game 2: #3 Williams (25-8) vs. #6 Western New England (27-10) - 1:00 p.m.
Game 3: #2 Eastern Connecticut State (34-10) vs. #7 Saint Joseph's [ME] (30-10) - 4:30 p.m.
Game 4: #1 Wheaton (31-11) vs. Loser of Game 1 - 8:00 p.m.

Scenario I
Thursday, May 17 (if seven teams remain after game 4):
Game 5: Loser of Game 2 vs. Loser of Game 3 - 9:30 a.m.
Game 6: Winner of Game 2 vs. Winner of Game 3 - 1:00 p.m.
Game 7: Loser of Game 4 vs. Winner of Game 1 - 4:30 p.m.
Game 8: Loser of Game 6 vs. Winner of Game 5 - 8:00 p.m.

Friday, May 18 (if five teams remain after game 8):
Game 9: Winner of Game 4 vs. Winner of Game 7 - 12:00 p.m.
Game 10: Winner of Game 8 vs. Loser of Game 7 - 3:30 p.m.
Game 11: Winner of Game 6 vs. Winner of Game 9 - 7:00 p.m.

Saturday, May 19 (if two teams remain after game 11):
Game 12: Winner of Game 10 vs. Winner of Game 11 - 12:00 p.m.
Game 13: Rematch of Game 12 (if necessary) - 3:30 p.m.

Saturday, May 19 (if three teams remain after game 11):
Game 12: Winner of Game 10 vs. Loser of Game 11 - 12:00 p.m.
Game 13: Winner of Game 12 vs. Winner of Game 11 - 3:30 p.m.

Scenario II
Friday, May 18 (if four teams remain after game 8):
Game 9: Winner of Game 6 vs. Winner of Game 7 - 12:00 p.m.
Game 10: Winner of Game 8 vs. Winner of Game 4 - 3:30 p.m.
Game 11: Loser of Game 9 vs. Winner of Game 10 - 7:00 p.m.

Saturday, May 19:
Game 12: Winner of Game 9 vs. Winner of Game 11 - 12:00 p.m.
Game 13: Rematch of Game 12 (if necessary) - 3:30 p.m.

Scenario III
Thursday, May 17 (if six teams remain after game 4):
Game 5: Loser of Game 2 vs. Loser of Game 3 - 9:30 a.m.
Game 6: Winner of Game 2 vs. Winner of Game 3 - 1:00 p.m.
Game 7: Winner of Game 4 vs. Winner of Game 1 - 4:30 p.m.
Game 8: Loser of Game 6 vs. Winner of Game 5 - 8:00 p.m.

Friday, May 18:
Game 9: Winner of Game 6 vs. Winner of Game 7 - 12:00 p.m.
Game 10: Winner of Game 8 vs. Loser of Game 7 - 3:30 p.m.
Game 11: Winner of Game 10 vs. Loser of Game 9 - 7:00 p.m.

Saturday, May 19:
Game 12: Winner of Game 9 vs. Winner of Game 11 - 12:00 p.m.
Game 13: Rematch of Game 12 (if necessary) - 3:30 p.m.

The winner will advance to the national tournament at Fox Cities Stadium in Grand Chute, Wisconsin, on May 25-29.

This page is maintained by Scott Dietz. Last updated on 5/14/07.
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