Baseball | 5/11/2022 8:54:47 AM
St. John Fisher College junior second baseman Noah Campanelli was named Player of the Year, while teammate Connor McHugh earned Pitcher the Year honors and head coach Brandon Potter and his staff were named Coaching Staff of the Year, as the Empire 8 Conference announced its 2022 Baseball All-Conference awards on Wednesday, May 11. The awards are voted on by the league's head coaches.
Campanelli, who also earned All-Empire 8 first team accolades last season, leads all Empire 8 student-athletes with 69 hits, 56 runs scored, 102 total bases, .529 on-base percentage, .618 slugging percentage and a 1.147 OPS in 42 games played. In addition, he is second in the Empire 8 with a .418 batting average, 35 walks, 21 stolen bases and 15 doubles. Campanelli has 22 extra-base hits, including four home runs and 40 runs batted in. In 20 regular season E8 contests, Campanelli hit .486 with 36 hits, 34 runs scored, eight doubles and 25 RBI. He also drew 23 walks to just six strikeouts in E8 play to maintain a .614 on-base percentage and 1.263 OPS. Campanelli is the ninth different St. John Fisher student-athlete to be named Empire 8 Player of the Year.
McHugh, a two-time Empire 8 Pitcher of the Week, is enjoying a tremendous 2022 season. He has appeared in 13 games, having started nine contests and is 7-1 on this season with a sparkling 1.52 earned run and 0.95 WHIP in 47.1 innings, while opposing batters have hit just .154 against him. McHugh has one complete game and has been a part of four combined shutouts for the Cardinals, while striking out 35 batters. In league play, McHugh went 4-0 with a 1.44 ERA in 25 innings, while opponents hit just .128 against him. He is the fifth different St. John Fisher student-athlete to earn Empire 8 Pitcher of the Year honors.
Third baseman Brett Warden of Elmira College was named the 2022 Empire 8 Rookie of the Year. He enjoyed an excellent debut for the Soaring Eagles in 2022, batting .315 with team-best totals of 40 hits, 26 runs scored, 11 doubles, four triples, and 10 stolen bases. Warden also walked 15 times and was hit by pitch 11 times for a .431 on-base percentage. A three-time E8 Rookie of the Week, Warden is the first Elmira student-athlete to earn an Empire 8 Baseball individual honor.
St. John Fisher College’s Brandon Potter and his staff of assistant coaches Evan Ryan, Matt Toohey, Dave Roth and Mike Cerame were named the Empire 8 Coaching Staff of the Year. The Cardinals won the Empire 8 Regular Season Championship with an 18-2 record in league play and enter the Empire 8 Championship series with a 28-14 record. The Cardinals are looking to win their fourth league title in program history. It is the fourth time that Potter and his staff earned E8 Coaching Staff of the Year honors and sixth honor for St. John Fisher overall.
Empire 8 Regular Season Champion St. John Fisher led all institutions with eight first team selections, while Utica College had three first team honorees and a league-high nine total selections. Campanelli and Brian Norsen of St. John Fisher both earned All-Empire 8 first team selections for the second consecutive year.
St. John Fisher and Utica will meet for the 2022 Empire 8 Baseball Championship for the second consecutive season this weekend. The-best-of-three series takes place from Dugan Yard on the campus of St. John Fisher starting with a doubleheader on Friday, May 13 at noon. Game three, if necessary, will take place at 1 p.m. on Saturday, May 14.
One member of each team was named that institution's representative on the 2022 Empire 8 Baseball Sportsman of the Year Team. The Empire 8 Conference emphasizes that "Competing with Honor and Integrity" is an essential component of a student-athlete's experience in conjunction with an institution's educational mission. These honorees have distinguished themselves and consistently exhibit the critical traits as outstanding sportsmen.
2022 Empire 8 Baseball All-Conference Selections
Player of the Year: Noah Campanelli, Jr., 2B, St. John Fisher
Pitcher of the Year: Connor McHugh, Jr., P, St. John Fisher
Rookie of the Year: Brett Warden, Fr., 3B., OF, Elmira
Coaching Staff of the Year: St. John Fisher, led by Head Coach Brandon Potter
Empire 8 First Team
Catcher – Michael Beimel, Gr., C, St. John Fisher
First Base – Brian Norsen, Jr., 1B, St. John Fisher
Second Base – Noah Campanelli, Jr., 2B, St. John Fisher
Shortstop – Nick Lemire, So., SS, St. John Fisher
Third Base – Zach Parr, Sr., 3B, Houghton
Outfield – Ben Lavery, Jr., OF, St. John Fisher
Outfield – Joe Crossley, Jr., OF, Utica
Outfield – Shamariah McCullogh, Jr., Fr., OF, Utica
Utility – Michael Muentener, Sr., U, Utica
Designated Hitter– Andrew Knapp, Fr., DH, Russell Sage
Starting Pitcher – Connor McHugh, Jr., P, St. John Fisher
Starting Pitcher – Alec Teska, Sr., P, St. John Fisher
Relief Pitcher – David Kruis, Jr., RP, Elmira
Relief Pitcher – Ryan O’Mara, Jr., RP, St. John Fisher
Empire 8 Second Team
Catcher – Dillon Maxon, Gr., C, Russell Sage
First Base – Ryan Seales, Sr., 1B, Keuka
Second Base – Zac Cronk, Sr., 2B, Utica
Shortstop – Brendan May, Jr., SS, Utica
Third Base – Brett Warden, Fr., 3B, Elmira
Outfield – Jason Kauffeldt, Jr., OF, Houghton
Outfield – Nick Brown, Sr., OF, Keuka
Outfield – Leandro Guzman, Fr., OF, Russell Sage
Utility – Ethan Cetton, So., U, Houghton
Designated Hitter – Joe Battista, Gr., DH, Utica
Starting Pitcher – Spencer Brown, Jr., SP, Keuka
Starting Pitcher – Ryan Cardone, So., SP, Utica
Relief Pitcher – Jake Mangino, Jr., RP, Utica
Relief Pitcher – Brendan May, Sr., RP, Utica
Empire 8 Sportsman of the Year
Angus Adams, Sr., P, Elmira
Issac Mann, Jr., 1B, Houghton
Ryan Seales, Sr., 1B, Keuka
Zachary Figueras, IF/P, Russell Sage
Erik Charnetski, So., OF/P, St. John Fisher
Noah Barber, Sr., C, Utica
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
www.empire8.com.
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