13 From Baseball Named to Division III Players to Watch List by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper
With the start to the 2018 season a few weeks away, 11 members from Empire 8 baseball teams have been included among the nation's elite as Collegiate Baseball Newspaper selected them to its annual Division III Players to Watch list.
St. John Fisher College seniors
Scott Eisenmenger and
Ryan Fahy, junior
Jake Hewitt and sophomores
Anthony Brophy and
Dillan Wilkinson were recognized along with Elmira College senior
Conor Bawiec and sophomore
Tommy Fogarty. Stevens Institute of Technology senior
Quinn DiPasquale and juniors
Danny Poidomani and
Charlie Ruegger were named to the list along with Ithaca College senior
Robby Buffis and juniors
Webb Little and
Jake Binder.
Eisenmenger, who has established himself as one of the program's best over the last three seasons, was named the Empire 8 Player of the Year in 2017 after putting together a phenomenal junior campaign. Over 43 starts at first base, Eisenmenger led the team in nearly every offensive category including batting average (.381), runs (48), hits (61), doubles (13), home runs (11), RBI (59), walks (25) and slugging percentage (.669). His homerun total was the third-highest among all Division III players while his 58 RBI represented the 13th-most in the country at the Division III level.
A Third-Team All-Region selection by D3baseball.com last year, Eisenmenger will enter his senior season as the program's all-time leader in career home runs (29) and RBI (147) while his 44 doubles are fourth all-time.
Brophy, who was named D3baseball.com's Rookie of the Year in 2017, owned a 9-1 overall record on the bump as the left-handed pitcher held opposing batters to a paltry .242 batting average over 70.0 innings of work. The 2017 Empire 8 Pitcher and Rookie of the Year, Brophy pitched to a conference-leading 1.54 earned run average while his 52 strikeouts were among the Empire 8's leaders.
Fahy, who made 34 starts on the season, hit .328 in 134 at-bats and produced 44 base knocks including nine doubles, a triple and five dingers. The outfielder, who was named Second-Team All-Conference following a standout junior year, ranked third on the roster with 35 runs scored while his 35 runs batted in trailed only Eisenmenger. Fahy's .522 slugging percentage ranked third overall on the team while his .410 on-base percentage was among the team's best.
A First-Team All-Conference honoree in 2017, Wilkinson was one of the Empire 8's best relievers as his 1.82 earned run average ranked in the conference's top five. In 15 appearances including two starts Wilkinson, who would go on to be named Second-Team All-Region by the ECAC, was 4-1 with 20 strikeouts in 29.2 innings of work.
Hewitt, who transferred to Fisher following a two-year stint at Monroe Community College, has three strong pitches and solid command as he helped guide the Tribunes to their third straight NJCAA Regional Championship in 2017.
Bawiec, a senior from Lebanon, Pennsylvania, the preseason honor is another on a laundry-list of accolades he's received since arriving at Elmira. The three-time E8 All-Conference and two-time All-ECAC Metro/Upstate honoree was one of just 10 utility players on this year's watch list. As one of EC's top arms, the 6-foot-4-inch right-hander posted a 4-2 record with a career-high 49 strikeouts in eight starts and 50.0 innings of work on the mound. At the dish, Bawiec tied team highs in hits (45), runs scored (26) and stolen bases (6), while ranking second in both batting average (.346) and on-base percentage (.427).
Fogarty will look to build upon an impressive freshman campaign as Elmira's starting first baseman in 2018. As a rookie, the product of Wayne, Pennsylvania, finished fourth on the club with a .304 batting average while logging the second-most hits (34), runs (20) and RBIs (19). He drove in multiple runs on six occasions, tied for the most such games on the team. Fogarty ended his debut season on an eight-game hit streak and reached base safely in 11 of his final 12 contests.
DiPasquale appeared in 14 games as a junior, making 11 starts, finishing the season with a 3-4 record. The Chelmsford, Massachusetts native collected 57 strikeouts over 60 innings to rank third on the team and finished with 3.60 ERA. DiPasquale was named a 2017 All-Star by the Northwoods League and finished the summer season with a 6-2 record.
Poidomani was named a Third Team All-Region performer by both ABCA/Rawlings and D3Baseball.com after setting the single-season program record for strikeouts with 91. The Rochelle Park, New Jersey native finished the season with a 6-4 record, while compiling a 2.94 ERA, and earned First Team honors from the Empire 8. Poidomani's performance in the classroom also earned the left-hander Academic All-District accolades from the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).
Ruegger earned Honorable Mention All-Empire 8 Conference honors after compiling a 2-1 record with eight saves. The Morris Plains, New Jersey native pitched to a 4.30 ERA and collected 27 strikeouts over 37.2 innings. Ruegger's eight saves led the conference and was the second-highest single-season total in program history.
Buffis, a right-handed pitcher, made 14 appearances and started 10 games, en route to a 4.52 ERA. He also recorded a 6-2 record on the season, striking out 27 batters in 63.2 innings pitched. In a strong second half of the regular season, he allowed three earned runs in 34.2 innings pitched. Buffis was also named to the 2017 Empire 8 All-Tournament Team after allowing one earned run over 8.2 innings pitched.
Little, an infielder and relief pitcher, posted a .321 AVG with three homeruns and 32 RBI in 41 games, helping fuel a powerful Bombers lineup in 2017. Little also impressed on the mound, appearing in seven games. He threw a total of 10.2 innings, giving up seven hits and posting a team-best 1.69 ERA. Little received Empire 8 Honorable Mention honors for the 2017 season.
Binder, another starting righty, appeared in 14 games, starting 12 of those games. In 77.2 innings pitched, Binder allowed 25 earned runs, posting a 9-1 record and a 2.90 ERA. He also struck out 38 while throwing three complete games on the season. After a standout sophomore season, Binder was named to the Empire 8 Second Team and Empire 8 All-Tournament team.
The Ducks open the 2018 season at Kean University on Feb. 17.
The Elmira baseball team will return to action on Monday, February 19, when the Soaring Eagles open a 10-game southern road trip against Covenant College in Lookout Mountain, Georgia.
The Cardinals and Bombers kick off their 2018 season on Feb. 24. Fisher heads south to Baltimore, Md. to take on No. 17 Johns Hopkins in a non-conference doubleheader, while Ithaca will be in Norfolk, Va. against Alfred State.