Baseball Hosts Six Games for Strike Out Cancer Weekend
3/15/2012 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
SETON HALL Weekly Notes - Strike Out Cancer Classic (.pdf)
March 16-18, 2012
STRIKE OUT CANCER CLASSIC
Owen T. Carroll Field
South Orange, N.J.
Game 16: vs. FORDHAM - Fri., March 16 - Noon
Daniel Munday (FU) (1-0, 4.29) vs. Jon Prosinski (SHU) (2-2, 5.24)
LIVE STATS: CLICK HERE
LIVE VIDEO STREAM: CLICK HERE
(NJIT vs. MAINE - 4:00 p.m.)
Game 17: vs. MAINE - Sat., March 17 - 2:00 p.m.
Shaun Coughlin (UM) (1-1, 4.19) vs. Rick Mangione (SHU) (0-2, 3.98)
LIVE STATS: CLICK HERE
LIVE VIDEO STREAM: CLICK HERE
(MAINE vs. FORDHAM - 10:00 a.m.)
Game 18: vs. NJIT - Sun., March 18 - 2:00 p.m.
Tripp Davis (NJIT) (0-1, 5.21) vs. Jose Lopez (SHU) (1-0, 2.08)
LIVE STATS: CLICK HERE
LIVE VIDEO STREAM: CLICK HERE
(FORDHAM vs. MAINE - 10:00 a.m.)
SETON HALL STATUS
Seton Hall heads into the Strike Out Cancer Tournament with a 6-9 overall record. Most recently, SHU completed a trip to Port Charlotte, Fla. for three games in three days at the 2012 Snowbird Classic last weekend. Five different players knocked in a run in the opener against Miami (OH), but a late comeback effort fell short and Seton Hall suffered a 7-5 defeat. On Saturday, junior Rick Mangione led a crew of five Pirate pitchers that kept preseason Big Ten favorites Michigan State off the scoreboard for 14 innings, tossing 6.2 shutout innings in his fourth start of the season. In the top of the 15th, a single by senior Mike Betz broke the scoreless tie, plating Chase Gray. The Pirates added two more runs to take a 3-0 advantage into the bottom of the frame, but an MSU rally sent the Pirates home with a heartbreaking 4-3 loss. The Hall rounded out the trip with a 3-2 win over Akron thanks to a walk-off RBI single from freshman catcher Tyler Boyd. Fellow newcomer Jose Lopez allowed just three hits and one run in seven innings of work.
SETON HALL - FORDHAM SERIES
Friday's game will mark the 37th meeting between the two Metropolitan area rivals with SHU holding a 27-9 edge. Last season, the Pirates defeated the Rams in what was also their first game of the Strike Out Cancer Tournament, 7-3. Fordham returned to South Orange for a late season matchup that ended in a 9-2 Seton Hall win, the Pirates fifth straight in the series.
SETON HALL - MAINE SERIES
Seton Hall enters its contest with Maine sitting at 4-8 all-time against the Black Bears. The teams will be playing for the first time since 2006, when the Pirates scored a 14-8 win that snapped a five-game losing streak in the series that dated back to 1989, the last time Maine visited South Orange. The Black Bears also defeated SHU in the Pirates' first ever game in the College World Series, 5-1, in 1964.
SETON HALL - NJIT SERIES
The Highlanders have been a mainstay in the field of the Strike Out Cancer Tournament and make their fifth appearance in as many installments of the event. SHU has never dropped a game to NJIT, coming out on top in all 10 meetings in school history. In 2011, the Pirates outlasted the Highlanders, earning a 2-1 victory to complete the "Strike Out" Tournament with an unblemished 3-0 record.
STRIKE OUT CANCER
In an effort to continue in the fight against cancer, Seton Hall Baseball and the American Cancer Society have teamed up to promote advocacy and assist with raising awareness. This year the team will be selling pink "Astro" baseball jerseys that will commemorate the tournament and help raise necessary funds in the battle against cancer. You can order a personalized jersey at the field throughout the tournament for $100, or by contacting Kelly O'Neil at Kelly.oneil@shu.edu. All proceeds from the sale of jerseys, Rawlings tournament t-shirts, and other silent auction items will directly benefit the Metro New Jersey Region of the American Cancer Society. This tournament assists with raising funds that support the American Cancer Society's mission, dedicated to eliminating cancer as a major health problem, save lives, and diminish the suffering from cancer through research, education, advocacy, and other services.
FAMILIAR FACES
When Seton Hall welcomes Fordham to Owen T. Carroll Field this weekend, it'll welcome back Kevin Leighton, who played for Seton Hall from 1998-01. Leighton became Fordham's head coach in the offseason after six seasons as head coach at Manhattan. Earlier this season, Seton Hall welcomed Manhattan, who is currently led by former Pirate coach and player, Jim Duffy.
THAT'S THE WAY, JOSE
Freshman Jose Lopez surrendered only three hits and one run in seven innings in the Pirates 3-2 win over Akron in SHU's final game of the 2012 Snowbird Classic. In his first four collegiate appearances, Lopez has earned a win and a save, boasting a 2.08 ERA after allowing just three runs in 13.0 innings.
ATTA-BOYD
With a walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the ninth, freshman Tyler Boyd lifted the Pirates to victory against Akron. The Succasunna native has posted a .308 average and knocked in four runs in his first eight games for Seton Hall.
BONUS BASEBALL
Seton Hall battled Michigan State in a pitcher's duel that remained scoreless for 14 innings. Chase Gray and Mike Betz combined to help the Pirates break through, and SHU tallied three runs in the top of the 15th. MSU responded with a rally in the bottom of the frame, coming back to take a 4-3 victory. Seton Hall is no stranger to goose eggs on the board in extras, having defeated Louisville 1-0 on May 5, 2011 on the strength of an RBI single by Mike Genovese in the home half of the 18th.
WE'RE GOING STREAKING
The Pirates enter the Strike Out Cancer Tournament with three players riding a hitting streak of five games or more. Junior infielder Giuseppe Papaccio has seven base knocks during his current five-game run while senior outfielder Will Walsh has belted a total of nine hits having hit in six consecutive games. Sophomore outfielder Zack Granite leads the team with a streak that spans the last eight games, posting 10 hits during the stretch.
"STRIKE OUT" SUCCESS
With three consecutive wins in the 2011 Strike Out Cancer Tournament, Seton Hall improved its all-time record to 11-2 at the event. Hosting the tournament for the fourth time, the Pirates have recorded wins over six different schools in the tournament's brief history, including this year's participants NJIT (4-0) and Fordham (1-0).
CRIME DOESN'T PAY
The Pirates have had a pair of weapons emerge early in the season to help curb their opponents' aggressive base running. Junior Rick Mangione is tied for the BIG EAST lead in pickoffs with three while Dillon Hamlin is tied for tops in the conference with seven runners caught stealing.
MANGIONE LOVES THE GREAT LAKES STATE
Junior Rick Mangione has excelled in a pair of starts against teams from the State of Michigan this season. He has given up just two earned runs over 11.1 innings with 14 strikeouts and just one walk against Michigan and Michigan State. On Feb. 18, Mangione gave up two earned runs over five innings. Most recently, he shut out Michigan State over 6.1 innings and struck out eight Spartans.
THEIVERY
Sophomore Zack Granite now has a team-leading seven steals on the season. He is already more than half way to matching his team-leading total of 12 steals in 2011.
PIRATES OPEN HOME SLATE WITH WIN
Five pitchers combined to throw nine innings of shutout ball as Seton Hall baseball blanked Manhattan, 3-0, in its 2012 home opener on March 7. Senior Henry Warner received the start for Seton Hall, giving up just a pair of hits with three strikeouts over four innings of work to pick up his first win of the year. Mike Genovese, Giuseppe Papaccio and Tyler Boyd all knocked in an RBI for the Pirates.
ACE DELIVERS
Junior Jon Prosinski threw seven strong innings, while giving up just two earned runs in an 11-4 Seton Hall victory over Wright State on March 2. Prosinski improved to 2-1 on the season. He struck out three batters while walking only one.
WALSH GOES DEEP
Senior Will Walsh delivered Seton Hall's first home run of the season with a bomb to lead off the bottom of the ninth inning in a 10-8 loss to Wright State on March 4. Walsh is the career active leader for the Pirates with eight home runs. He led the team last year with four long-balls.
BENNY'S BRINGING IT
A major bright spot so far this season has been the pitching of senior Benny Mejia. The right-hander has made six appearances and has a miniscule 0.84 ERA. Mejia has pitched 10.2 innings, given up just one earned run, while striking out seven and walking just three.
SAVING THE DAY
After a rocky start to the season, junior Ryan Harvey has resumed his role as a dominant late inning pitcher for the Pirates. In his last two outings, Harvey has picked up a pair of saves while pitching three innings of scoreless ball to go with four strike outs.
BIGGIO'S NUMBER TO BE RETIRED
Seton Hall will officially retire #44 warn by future MLB Hall of Famer Craig Biggio from 1985-87. The ceremony will take place on Saturday, April 7 prior to Seton Hall's game with Notre Dame. The former Pirates' catcher helped lead the team to its first BIG EAST Championship in 1987 and batted .342 with 27 home runs and 148 RBIs in his three seasons in South Orange. A two-time First Team All-BIG EAST selection, he was named a First Team All-American in 1987 and was inducted in to the Seton Hall Athletics Hall of Fame in 1996.
GRIMM OUTLOOK FOR OPPONENTS
Freshman Kyle Grimm has appeared in all 15 games so far this season and has made 14 starts. The infielder currently leads the team with a .358 batting average. He leads the team with 19 hits Grimm's seven RBIs is second on the Pirates.
OPENING DAY WIN
For the second straight year, Seton Hall opened the season with Penn State. Unlike last year, the Pirates opened with a victory. Behind the strong pitching of ace Jon Prosinski, the Seton Hall defeated Penn State, 6-3. Prosinski went six innings and gave up only two earned runs for the win. The Pirates improve to 11-28-1 on opening day dating back to 1973, including a 3-6 mark since 2004 when Rob Sheppard took over as head coach.
HALL CALLS FOR RAMOS
George Ramos Curvy, who starred on the diamond for Seton Hall during a historic career in the 1970's, will be the newest member of the baseball family to be inducted into the Seton Hall Athletics Hall of Fame. Seton Hall's first African-American All-American, Ramos helped the Pirates advance to back-to-back College World Series appearances in 1974 and 1975, and saw the team post a 135-51-2 mark over his four seasons. Ramos earned American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Second-Team All-America honors in 1977, when he was also tabbed as the New Jersey Baseball Writer's Association Player of the Year.
MORE COMPETITION
The BIG EAST Conference has announced the addition of Central Florida, Houston, Memphis, SMU and Temple as future full members. Among these newcomers, only SMU is without a baseball program. With West Virginia and Pittsburgh leaving, the future BIG EAST Conference for baseball will have 14 members.
CUNDARI PITCHING COACH OF THE YEAR
Seton Hall's Phil Cundari has been named National Pitching Coach of the Year by the acclaimed college baseball newspaper, Collegiate Baseball. This prestigious award, now in its ninth year, is sponsored by EDGE charting software and web stats. Cundari was instrumental in guiding the pitching staff for last year's BIG EAST Champion squad that led the conference in earned run average and was second in strikeouts, opponent batting average, innings pitched and hits allowed. Seton Hall's ace, Joe DiRocco, was named an ABCA All-American and Most Outstanding Player of the 2011 BIG EAST Championship.
SHEPPARD COACH OF THE YEAR
Head coach Rob Sheppard was named 2011 NCAA Division I Coach of the Year by FieldTurf. Award-winners were named in four categories, including two NCAA Coach of the Year winners, one NCAA Team of the Year winner, and the MLB Team of the Year. This year's winners are:
MLB Team of the Year - St. Louis Cardinals
NCAA Division I Coach of the Year - Rob Sheppard, Seton Hall
NCAA Division II Coach of the Year - Steve Lyon, Grand Valley St.
NCAA Team of the Year - University of Virginia Cavaliers
CUNDARI PROMOTED
Phil Cundari, Seton Hall's long-time Pirates' pitching coach, was promoted to Associate Head Coach this offseason. A Seton Hall Athletics Hall of Famer and long-time assistant coach, Phil Cundari, has served on the Pirates' coaching staff for the last 11 years and has two BIG EAST Championship rings to show for it.
PAPPAS PROMOTED
Mark Pappas, last year's volunteer assistant coach, was promoted to Assistant Coach after Jim Duffy left to take the Manhattan head coaching position. A player for the Pirates from 2005-08, he was a career .290 hitter with 101 runs scored, 92 RBIs, 34 doubles, three triples and 13 home runs. In his senior campaign, he led the team with 41 runs scored, nine doubles, and eight sacrifice flies.
BLACKWELL JOINS STAFF
Jay Blackwell is in his first season as a volunteer assistant coach for Seton Hall. He brings more than 15 years of collegiate coaching experience and joins the Pirate after spending last year as an assistant baseball coach at Kean University. Blackwell received his first head coaching experience at Bloomfield College, where he was the head coach for the 1999 and 2000 seasons.
PIRATES WELCOME 10
The Pirates will welcome 10 new members to the team this season. Sal Annunziata, Tyler Boyd, Chris Carroll, Daniel Ditusa, Anthony Elia, Alex Falconi, Kyle Grimm, Connor Kraus, Jose Lopez and D.J. Ruhlman will all don Seton Hall uniforms for the first time this spring. All are true freshmen.
"HALL" OF A COACHING STAFF
On January 7, 2011 Mike Sheppard, Sr. was inducted into the ABCA Hall of Fame following a stellar career at the helm of the Seton Hall Pirates baseball team. He held the position from 1973-2003 posting 28 winning seasons and 27 postseason berths including 15 BIG EAST Championships and two College World Series appearances. Eleven months earlier, current pitching coach Phil Cundari was elected into Seton Hall University's Hall of Fame as a pitcher. Cundari pitched for Sheppard's 1983-85 squads and began his coaching career during Sheppard's reign. Cundari enters his 13th season tutoring the pitching staff, while Sheppard remains a big part of the program as the head coach emeritus.
FOR ATEAMMATE
For the third straight season, the Pirates baseball team will honor David Bachner, a 2009 in-coming freshman who passed away on August 11, 2009, by hanging a t-shirt with his name and high school number in the dugout each game.
BASEBALL GOING RETRO
In the 1980's, the Seton Hall Pirates wore a light blue and black horizontal striped jersey. Last season, the Pirates brought them back by wearing them throughout the 2011 season. With Seton Hall winning the BIG EAST Tournament last season, you'll certainly see the retro uniforms again in 2012.
STRIKE OUT CANCER
March 16-18 will mark the fourth annual Strike Out Cancer Tournament hosted by Seton Hall. Each season, the Pirates have teamed up with American Cancer Society to host the four-team tournament and have raised over $2,500 each year through donations and merchandise sales.
FRIENDS OF JACLYN
This season, the Pirates will once again welcome Connor Mackay to their squad through the "Friends of Jaclyn" Organization. FOJ is a non-profit organization that connects children struggling with brain tumors with an NCAA team. Throughout the year, the team provides support and encouragement to the child and their family.
