Ithaca Edges Fisher in Empire 8 Baseball Poll
ROCHESTER, NY – Ithaca College enters the 2013 season as the league favorite as picked by the coaches. Close behind the Bombers in the coaches' preseason poll is St. John Fisher College and Stevens Institute of Technology. The coaches voted Utica and newcomer Houghton College to finish fourth and fifth, respectively.
The 2012 season saw three teams post winning records, including a pair of 29-plus game winners, and two programs made a trip to the NCAA Division III Tournament earning at-large bids. Will 2013 see similar results?
Who’s Back?
Ithaca was 29-10-1 last season and qualified for the NCAA Division III Baseball Championship tournament, where the Bombers went 2-2 at the Farmingdale, N.Y. Regional. Ithaca was 14-4 in the Empire 8 and won its tenth title in the 12 years the conference has sponsored baseball.
Pat Lemmo and John Prendergast highlight the list of returners for the Bombers. Lemmo recorded a 10-1 record on the mound with a 1.75 ERA and was named co-Pitcher of the year in the conference. Prendergast garnered Rookie of the Year honors as he compiled a 2.81 ERA with an 8-1 record and has fanned 76 hitters in 93 innings.
Fisher will ride the arms of an experienced pitching staff, solid returning bats in the lineup and a traditionally good-fielding defense. The Cardinals will be led by junior pitcher Justin D’Amato. D’Amato is the reigning two-time Empire 8 Conference Pitcher of the Year and was recently selected as the Division III Preseason Pitcher of the Year by Baseball America.
The Cardinals will look to return to the top of the standings after winning back-to-back conference titles in 2010 and 2011. Fisher won 31 games in 2012, tying a program record for wins in a season, including a win over national champion Marietta.
The 2013 Ducks feature a strong returning group of student-athletes as well as 18 freshman on the roster that will look to get Stevens another 20-plus win season, which has been eclipsed six of the past eight seasons. Headlining the list of returners is first-team all conference and third-team All-Region selection Dan Allen. Allen serves as a utility player with time in the outfield, at first base and on the mound. He batted .364 with 44 hits and 40 runs scored, while striking out 26 batters in seven appearances and holding opponents to a .274 average.
Utica has high hopes for the 2013 season as the Pioneers only lost four players to graduation. The Pioneers posted their best record in 2012 over the last six years and return their top offensive threat Nick Dunbar who posted an impressive .351 average with team-high 46 hits.
What’s New?
The 2013 season marks the inclusion of Houghton College as a competing Empire 8 program. The Highlanders are an NCAA provisional member and will complete a full league schedule. However, games against the Highlanders will not impact conference records/standings.
Head Coach Brian Reitnour, who in his second year at the helm is helping to re-establish a program after the sports 25-year absence from campus, will lead a young Houghton team.
Dates to remember
The 2013 season gets started in two weeks for Stevens and Fisher, while Houghton, Ithaca and Utica won’t throw out the first pitch until March. Conference play starts at the end of March with teams playing a four-game series.
A closer look
For more information, visit any of the participating schools' websites or go to the Empire 8 home on the Internet at
www.empire8.com. Don't forget to become a fan of the Empire 8 on
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@Empire8 on Twitter.
2013 Empire 8 Baseball Preseason Coaches Poll
|
Ithaca College |
16 points (4 first place votes) |
|
St. John Fisher College |
12 (1 first place vote) |
|
Stevens |
11 |
|
Utica |
7 |
|
Houghton |
4 |