Little and Potter Highlight D3Baseball New York Region Honors
D3baseball.com All-New York Region
Ithaca College freshman Sam Little was selected d3Baseball.com New York Region Rookie of the Year and St. John Fisher College's Brandon Potter was named the Coach of the Year.
In addition, 12 players from around the Empire 8 were selected to one of the three all-region teams.
Little, an outfielder who was also named to all-region third team, finished the season with team-highs in batting average (.329), hits (48) and RBI (41). He also ranked second in homeruns with five, fifth in runs scored (28) and doubles (seven). Defensively, the Fayetteville, N.Y. native made seven outfield assists. He concluded his season with a 4-for-4 afternoon at the plate in the conference championship en route to being named to the all-tournament team.
Potter has tallied 209 wins to become the program's winningest coach since taking the helm back in 2010. Under his leadership the program has posted four seasons of 3- plus wins, while setting a single-season record in wins this year with 38.
FIRST TEAM
Seth Douglas (SUNY Canton) earns honors at first base and ranked 1st in the Empire 8 in home runs (8), 1st in RBI (51), 2nd in slugging percentage (.636), 3rd in triples (3), 4th in batting average (.383), 5th in hits (59), 7th in stolen bases (13) and 9th in sacrifice flies. He set both the single-season (8) and career (11) program records for home runs in just two seasons as a Roo. The junior has been named to the D3baseball.com National Team of the Week twice, the Empire 8 Player of the Week twice, as well as the ECAC Player of the Week and USCAA Player of the Week once. He led the team in home runs (8), RBI (51), slugging percentage (.636), total bases (98), hits (59), stolen bases (13) and putouts (242).
Jayson Yano (Stevens) collects First Team accolades as a utility player or the second straight season after being tabbed Second Team in 2014. The senior was named Empire 8 Conference Pitcher and Player of the Year for the second straight campaign. Yano batted .385 with 62 hits, 14 doubles, three home runs and 47 runs scored. On the base paths, Yano swiped 32-of-36 bags. He eclipsed the 200 hit mark for his career, and became the all-time leader in hits in program history, as Yano collected his 209th hit against Amherst College.
Yano went 5-3 on the mound in 2016, and had a 2.15 earned run average. In 83 2/3 innings, the Foothill Ranch, Calif. native struck out 69 against 15 walks, while also picking up his first career save against Amherst. Opponents batted a mere .232 against him this season.
Mike Roman (St. John Fisher) was named to the D3baseball.com's All-New York Region First Team at shortstop. The Empire 8 All-Conference First Team selection, collected his 200
th hit of his career this season which ranks him third on Fisher's All-Time Careers list in hits. His 203 at-bats this year are both a career-best and a single-season record. The accounting major, was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District team for his performance on the field and in the classroom. He graduated with a grade point average of 3.69.
Rounding out the rest of the All-New York Region First Team is starting pitcher Stephen Lewis (St. John Fisher). The senior this season has compiled a 7-0 mark to go along with his 1.86 ERA. The East Rochester native ranks third on the team in strikeouts with 40 and innings pitched with 58.0. The lefty was named to the Empire 8 All-Conference First Team this year.
SECOND TEAM
Dylan Bellinger (Elmira) collects honors as a first basemen. He saw his numbers spike across the board this season, setting new career highs for hits (62), RBIs (40), runs (32), doubles (21), and home runs (5). Bellinger's ability to create instant offense via the big hit was his calling card throughout the season. His 21 doubles paced the conference and ranked fifth-most in all of NCAA Division III. He also led the league with 27 extra-base hits on the year. He finished within the top-10 of the conference in all of the aforementioned statistical categories, while he additionally finished fourth in slugging percentage (.610) and seventh in batting average (.378). While most power-hitters often sacrifice consistency in the chase for big hits, Bellinger was remarkably consistent, recording multi-hit efforts in 20 of his 40 games played this season.
Wilson Matos (Canton) earns accolades at second base and lead the Empire 8 in triples (8). His eight triples are twice as many as his nearest competition in Fisher's Cody Wiktorski. The sophomore ranks 5th in the conference in batting average (.379), 6th in hits (58), 7th in stolen bases (13) and 9th in home runs (4) batting in the two spot. The sophomore is second on the team in batting average (.379), hits (58) and doubles (10). He tied for the team-lead in on-base percentage (.441) as well as stolen bases (13).
Loukas Brigham (St. John Fisher), who ranks ninth nationally in saves, earned All-New York Region Second Team as a reliever. The closer, set the single-season record in saves this year with 10 in 22 appearances. He also leads the team in ERA with 1.82.
Closing out All-New York Second Team is starting pitcher Marc Iseneker (St. John Fisher). The Empire 8 All-Conference Second Team selection leads the team in strikeouts with 80 and innings pitched with 81.1. The righty threw the program's third no-hitter back on March 26 against Elmira College and against Kean University in the NCAA Division III Mid-Atlantic Regional, he threw a complete game three hit shutout.
THIRD TEAM
Cody Wiktorski (St. John Fisher) was named to the All-New York Region Third Team as a third baseman. This is the third time he has been honored by D3baseball.com as an All-Region selection. The senior is tied for first on the team with 48 runs scored and 10 home runs. He leads the team in extra-base hits with 42.
Zeph Walters (Stevens) garnered a Third Team selection as a utility player, the first All-Region honor for the junior. The Diamond Bar, Calif. native led the team with six victories and a 1.69 earned run average, while striking out 32 against five walks. At the dish, Walters hit .370 with 51 hits, including 13 doubles and seven home runs. He led the team with 39 RBI's, and in the conference tournament, he belted two homers against Fisher to go along with six RBI's.
The final player to earn the accolade is Terry Engels (St. John Fisher), who was named to the All-New York Region Third Team as a starting pitcher. The senior ranks second on the team in strikeouts with 49 and innings pitched with 66.2. Against Stevens Institute of Technology back on April 23, he threw the program's fourth no-hitter.