Baseball Completes Highlighted 2008 Season

SOUTH ORANGE, N.J.   The Seton Hall baseball team has completed their most memorable season since winning the 2001 BIG EAST Championship.  The following are a few highlights from the campaign.

         Qualified for the BIG EAST Tournament for the first time since 2001.

         Reached the 30-win plateau for the first time since Interim coach Rob Sheppard completed the feat in 2001.

         Corey Young (Shrewsbury, N.J.) received All-BIG EAST First Team pitching honors while Greg Miller (Shamong, N.J.) earned All-BIG EAST Third Team outfield honors.

         Nine players earned New Jersey Collegiate Baseball Association awards:  Young Pitcher of the Year, Chris Roach (Andover, N.J.) Rookie Pitcher of the Year, Mark Pappas (Ocean Township, N.J.) First Team, Miller First Team, Sean Black (Mt. Laurel, N.J.) Second Team, Singer Second Team, Affinito Second Team, A.J. Rusbarsky (Freehold, N.J.) Rookie Team, and Joe DiRocco (East Hanover, N.J.) Rookie Team.

         Young received Seton Hall’s Male Co-Junior Athlete of the Year, and Chris Spagnuolo (Tabernacle, N.J.) received Male Sophomore Athlete of the Year during the Annual Seton Hall Student-Athlete Awards Banquet on April 28.

         Picked-up six BIG EAST Weekly Honors including three BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week awards, two BIG EAST Pitcher Weekly Honor Rolls, and one BIG EAST Player Weekly Honor Roll.

         Earned a BIG EAST Weekly Honor each week in the month of April:  Young BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week week-ending April 6, Matt Singer (Bayonne, N.J.) BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll week-ending April 13, Chris Affinito (East Brunswick, N.J.) BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll week-ending April 20, and Young BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week week-ending April 27.

         Went on a stretch of winning 18-of-22 games from March 20 through April 20.  During that span, the Hall put together a nine-game winning streak and swept conference rivals Villanova and Pittsburgh while winning two-of-three against West Virginia and Connecticut.

         Eliminated the conference’s top seed St. John’s in the BIG EAST Tournament by winning 12-6, led by a nine-run seventh inning.  The win was the first in the tournament since their championship-game victory in 2001.

         Had two pitchers in the top seven of the conference in ERA Young 2.91 and Black 3.28.

The Seton Hall baseball team thanks everyone for their support and looks forward to the 2009 season.