If I told you that Urban Meyer has the second highest winning percentage of any active college football coach that has coached 10+ years, who would you think has the highest? Probably Nick Saban, right? Actually, the answer is Jeff Devanney of Trinity College. When most people think of college football powerhouses they think of Alabama, Ohio State, and Clemson. I think of Trinity, Amherst, and Middlebury. The real college football is finally back and it’s shaping up to be an exciting year with more teams in contention than usual. The NESCAC has been very stratified in recent years, but we anticipate that there will start a bit more parity this season as the weaker teams are beginning to make some changes, and the top teams have lost some of their stars. It’s year two of the ninth game, so now teams should be adjusting to the shorter preseason since they’ve had a chance to experiment once already. Let’s see how the matchups look for Week 1 of the new season:
Williams @ Bowdoin, Brunswick, ME
Bobby Maimaron will look to pick up right where he left off last season (Courtesy of Williams Athletics)
Two years ago, these teams both finished 0-8, leaving a sour taste in their mouths as they looked to get back on track the following season. Williams was able to do more than just get back on track, as they surprised everyone with a 6-3 finish. Unfortunately, Bowdoin was unable to right the ship as they struggled even more, finishing 0-9. The Ephs feature a pair of star sophomores in QB Bobby Maimaron ’21 and WR Frank Stola ’21 who broke into the NESCAC scene with huge freshman seasons. They’ll be asked to carry a strong offense with very high expectations after such a successful 2017 campaign. The big question for the Polar Bears will be who is going to start at quarterback since they return both QB’s from last year’s team and welcome Lafayette transfer Austin McCrum. Aside from that there doesn’t appear to be a whole lot of change for a team that really needs it. Even with the addition at quarterback, I don’t see this being the week that things start to turn around in Brunswick.
Prediction: Williams 31, Bowdoin 14
Middlebury @ Wesleyan, Middletown, CT
As far as Week 1 matchups go, this is as big as it gets. Our game of the week features perennial title contenders Middlebury and Wesleyan as they’ll go to battle again this year right out of the gates. Wesleyan returns star quarterback Mark Piccirillo ’19 who led the league in passing last year in just about every category, but they lose their top receiving threat in Mike Breuler ’18 (who led the league in receiving in just about every category) as well as 4 of their top 5 receivers. It’ll be interesting to see how Piccirillo fares, as he has to make relationships with an entirely new group of receivers. On the other hand, Middlebury lost their star quarterback Jared Lebowitz ’18, but return the entirety of their very strong receiving corps, headlined by Conrado Banky ’19, Jimmy Martinez ’19, and Frank Cosolito ’20. They’ll have to make it easy on first-time starter Jack Meservy ’19, who was able to put up some impressive numbers last season playing behind Lebowitz. It’ll be tough to start against a defense as strong as Wesleyan, but I think Meservy is up for the challenge. The Panthers’ strong team rapport tips the balance because I think it’ll take the Cardinals a week or two to find their identity this season.
Prediction: Middlebury 31, Wesleyan 28
Tufts @ Hamilton, Clinton, NY
These teams each feature very talented – albeit inconsistent – quarterbacks who are in position to have big seasons. Both teams have the capability to compete with anyone, but haven’t been able to string together consecutive strong performances. Maybe it’s because I just wrote the team preview for the Continentals, but I really like their defense. Tyler Hudson ’19 is one of the best defensive players in the league, and he leads a unit that now has a few years of experience together. This is their year to prove that they belong, and it starts against a quarterback in Ryan McDonald ’19 who is notoriously turnover-prone. Losing to the same team twice in a row isn’t fun – especially when it’s in overtime. Hamilton isn’t going to let that happen again. I’m ready to hop on their bandwagon.
Prediction: Hamilton 28, Tufts 24
Amherst @ Bates, Lewiston, ME
We’ll have to wait and see if Brendan Costa is ready to make the transition from a run-first to a pass-first offense (Courtesy of Bates Athletics)
Bates is experiencing more change than any team from 2017 to 2018 as they hired a new coach who put in a new offense. This is very promising for a team that underachieved last season, has an up and coming quarterback in Brendan Costa ’21, and a wide receiver who has a chance to make an immediate impact in Derek Marino ’22. Unfortunately, they start the 2018 campaign against one of the league’s best. Amherst has won 3 of the last 5 NESCAC championships and look like the favorites again this season. Andrew Yamin ’19 could very well be the defensive player of the year and he leads the league’s top defense against a team who will be playing their first game with a new offensive scheme. The Mammoths also return their top offensive threats in tailback Jack Hickey ’19 and wide receiver James O’Regan ’20 who will help walk game manager Ollie Eberth ’20 through the full 60 minutes. The Bobcats have potential and their massive system changes will be beneficial in the long run, but they won’t be ready this early to take on an opponent as strong as Amherst.
Prediction: Amherst 33, Bates 13
Trinity @ Colby, Waterville, ME
We don’t know who will be under center for Trinity tomorrow (probably Jordan Vazzano ’21), but it doesn’t really matter. Whoever it is, they’ll be able to either hand it to Max Chipouras ’19 who will probably find his way into the end zone or throw it to Koby Schofer ’20 or Jonathan Girard ’21 who will likely find their way into the end zone, too. Colby made the right move in getting Jack Cosgrove to be their next head coach, but it’s almost not fair that his first game is against Trinity. The Mules have nowhere near the amount of talent as the Bantams, but it’ll be important to see that they’re making strides in the right direction for when they face a more formidable opponent. I’d like to see Bernie Sander ’21 catch a few passes, as he’s one of the most promising receivers on the Colby roster. Plus I’m going to love referring to him as “The Senator.” This one is going to be a blowout, but at least there will be nowhere to go but up.
Don’t Cross the Line: Middlebury Football Preview 2018
Middlebury has a tough opening game that will set the tone for their season.
2017 Record: 7-2
Projected Record: 6-3
Projected offensive starters (*8 returning)
QB – Jack Merservy ‘19
RB – Peter Scibilia ‘21*
WR – Conrado Banky ’19*
WR – Jimmy Martinez ’19*
WR – Maxim Bochman ’20
TE — Frankie Cosolito ’20*
RT – Kevin Woodring ’20*
LG – Jack Purcell ‘20
LT – Andrew Rogan ’19*
RG – Parker Ferguson ’19*
C – Connor Roche ’19*
Projected defensive starters (*7 returning)
CB –Matthew Daniel ‘19*
CB – Bobby Ritter ’19*
S – Jordan Delerme-Brown ’20*
S– Kevin Hartley ’20
LB – Michael Joncich ’19
LB – Clay Hunt ’19*
LB —Kevin Maxwell ’19*
DL – Alex Norton ’20
DL –Emo Schiappa ’22
DL – Marty Williams ’20*
DE — Ian Blow ’19*
Projected specialists (*2 returning)
PK – Carter Massengill ’20*
P – Maxwell Rye ’20*
KR/PR – Conrado Banky ’19/Jimmy Martinez ’19
Offensive MVP:
Kevin Woodring ’20
RT Kevin Woodring ‘20
The returning 1st-Team All-NESCAC right tackle is going to bring the heat against opposing D-lines all season long. ‘Woody’ gets left on an island and lines up alone against a D-End and is going to have an even more important role in the new season in protecting an unexperienced QB and RB combo. Jack Merservy is a sniper from the pocket but not the most mobile of passers, meaning he will need all the time his line can give him. Adding to the importance of this task is the retirement of RB Diego Meritus who was out for most of last year and a heap of inexperienced runners who need to make a name for themselves. This RB group includes Charlie Ferguson, Wyllis McKissick, and Peter Scibilia, and the offensive line is the most important layer of the Middlebury offense.
It’s hard to let these clean uniforms speak for themselves as the players look painfully awkward waiting on photo day. I won’t read too much into this, but cmon, guys.
Defensive MVP:
Kevin Maxwell ’19
LB Kevin Maxwell ’19
After losing both John Jackson and Wes Becton, the two strongest linebackers on the Middlebury defense from a season ago, both Kevin Maxwell and Clay Hunt will need to step up their game in 2018. After tallying 66 total tackles, these two, but especially the more productive Maxwell will need to try to match the numbers of the two all NESCAC defenders. The Middlebury secondary is always strong but in the big games against Amherst and Trinity who have stellar ground attacks, Maxwell will be put in a make or break position.
Biggest Game: Saturday Sepember 15th @ Wesleyan
After narrowly beating the Cardinals a season ago 30-27, Middlebury will be in a different position this season as the underdog headed into the matchup. The Cardinals have a stronger lineup on paper with the potential NESCAC POY in Mark Picirillo. Wesleyan is our pick to win the NESCAC and in order to prove that Midd is still a contender, they are going to need to show up in week one in Middletown.
Best Tweet:
Middlebury doesn’t bring a whole lot of electricity in their twitter game, but this picture of Coach Ritter in the blue and white really gets me going. I would go to war for this guy who’s been going to war for Midd since 1978.
Along with Kevin Woodring, C Connor Roche, LT Andrew Rogan, and RG Parker Ferguson will push back against other NESCAC foes with him and should be one of the steadiest units in the conference. The last guard position will be decided between veterans Chris Taylor, Ian Arthur, and Jack Purcell, all bringing some heat in their own right. In addition to this line, the receivers are the strongest part of the Panther squad. Conrado Banky, Jimmy Martinez, and Maxim Bochman are all primed to have impact seasons as one of the speediest and talented groups we have sen in recent years. Frankie Cosolito should add even more depth to this position as one of the top tight ends in the NESCAC, bringing a more physical presence than the other members of the receiving corps. Although the tailback position is a bit of a question mark after modest seasons from Charlie Ferguson ’21 and Peter Scibilia ’21 . The duo should offer a reasonable attack for a pass heavy offense.
Fall at Middlebury means football and the Panthers are ready to bring it.
DE Alex Norton, DE Ian Blow, and DT Marty Williams should anchor the D-line who allowed the sixth most rush yards at 152 yards per game on the ground, but led the conference in sacks at 31last year. A first year player will replace Ibby Nasir who is out for the season with injury, a big blow in training camp to the defense. Bobby Ritter, Matthew Daniel, and Jordan Delerme-Brown will make up the secondary for the Panthers this year and will do their best to replace Kevin Hopsicker who was an All-NESCAC honoree last year. Delerme-Brown is the most athletic of the group and should take a step up from 2017 after posting a season with 11 tackles and nine assists. Both P Max Rye and K Carter Massengill return after executing some clutch field goals last season. Banky and Martinez should return kicks for the Panthers and represent a real threat on special teams as two of the most speedy athletes in the conference. While Midd doesn’t have quite the impressive signal caller in Jared Lebowitz as it did last season, Merservy should compete well enough to give them a shot. They should stay in the upper tier of the NESCAC but will be in some tight games against the traditional league powerhouses and will need to show that their linebackers and run game can balance out the stronger parts of their game.
After it was all said and done, Amherst showed everyone why you can’t count them out. Facing elimination against Middlebury, Amherst won some close ballgames to survive and advance, combining clutch pitching and hitting all the way to a NESCAC title. As the Harry Roberson and Max Steinhorn era comes to a close at Amherst, it was nice from a personal perspective that these guys won it all. With those guys leaving, however, it is tough to think that Amherst will be in the same position next year. While coaches Brian Hamm and John Casey will never put out a losing team onto the field, a product of superior coaching, recruiting, and pedigree, they have a tough task to replace their best hitters. Casey arguably has a harder task, needing to replace the meat of his lineup, but will likely have some hot shot recruits coming in to fill that void. As these guys graduate and move on to the real world, teams filled with underclassmen will start to rise. Middlebury, and Wesleyan of the west division were filled with strong underclassmen, while Trinity looks to be the most promising out of the East.
1). Wesleyan:
With sometimes inconsistent hitting, Wesleyan’s NESCAC success will rely on the control and success of their pitching staff.
Wesleyan had to play a perfect game against Tufts to stay alive in the tournament and they revealed some weaknesses in their pitching staff as a result. Despite some stellar offensive numbers (.298 team AVG), the Cards struggled against quality pitching down the stretch. At times they looked overmatched in the NESCAC tournament, seeing their true advantage of starting pitching fail to execute when it counted. Mike McCaffrey and Kelvin Sosa, two of the most talented pitchers in the league, went 5.1 innings, allowing 11 runs and 13 BBs in the NESCAC tournament, leading to an early exit. They have the offensive depth and starting pitching to go a long way, but they need to compete better in big games and show that their bullpen can keep the score close if their starters don’t got deep into outings. The Cards are young, though and just might have the talent to go all the way. Alex Capitelli, Danny Rose, Kelvin Sosa, and Mike McCaffrey are just a few of the names the Cardinals are returning.
2). Middlebury:
Colin Waters is a wild card for 2019, putting up solid numbers as a sophomore and coming on only at the end of this year. Not playing football could turn him into one of NESCAC’s best arms.
Middlebury came close to making the playoffs, but a weak start to the season made any road to the postseason a long shot if not impossible. Getting swept by Wesleyan in one of the early serieses gave Midd absolutely no momentum and a 2-4 record at the halfway point. The squad stopped underachieving around three-quarters into the year, but by then, it was too late. They were hampered all year by injuries too as highly touted recruit Michael Farinelli and starting pitcher Spencer Shores both went down with Tommy John surgery after the preseason. Shores, a hard throwing righty with jerky mechanics and a wipeout slider, saw tons of success at the beginning of 2017 and if he can get healthy, the Panthers should have a formidable pitching staff. Anchoring that pitching staff is Colby Morris, one of the NESCAC’s top arms and Colin Waters who really came on at the end of the year, dominating Union in a 5-3 victory and shutting down Amherst in relief. 1B Kevin Woodring (1st Team All-NESCAC Nose Tackle for the football team) went down with a knee injury against Williams and did not return the rest of the way, and has the potential to lead the league in HR. They also have the NESCAC defensive POY, Brooks Carroll at SS, First-Team All-NESCAC 2B Justin Han, and a breakout hitter in Hayden Smith. The ceiling is high for this team, but as always the question will be: Will they put it all together?
3). Trinity:
Trinity has solid starting pitching and their offensive is anchored by the powerful Koperniak.
Trinity must be kicking themselves after such a heartbreaking change of events at the end of the regular season. The Bantams started off the season so strong, winning the series against Tufts and Bowdoin and sweeping Colby, setting themselves up for an early playoff clinch with a 7-2 record. With Tufts underachieving, Bates not hitting, and the rest of the east not playing well all together, it seemed like a playoff spot for Trin was locked up. Losing three tight games in a row to Bates, however, killed the Bantams season. The potential returns, though: no weekend starter for Trin was a senior, so they’ll be back. Alex Shafer dominated all year and is in the conversation for pitcher of the year, Erik Mohl had a down year but could return to his All-NESCAC form. C Alex Rodriguez needs to step up though, seeing his stellar freshman numbers collapse in his sophomore campaign. Hopefully a second stint in the NECBL will help him find that talent once again. Matt Koperniak broke out and garnered both All-NESCAC and All-Region honors and will be their on field leader in 2019. With their new field, good coaching, and likely some talented recruits coming in, the Bantams will be an exciting team to watch come next spring.
4). Tufts:
Tufts didn’t surprise anybody by winning the East division regular season title, proving our preseason rankings correct. Although they made it to the tournament, they lacked pitching dominance like they have enjoyed in their previous eras, seeing their #2 and #3 starters combine for a paltry 4.05 K/9. Despite sub-3.00 ERAs from both of these players, Brent Greeley and Spencer Langdon, their strikeout numbers reveal that they can’t generate swings and misses and rely on good defense and a bad BABIP (batting average on balls in play) from opponents. Well, it might not get much better, as their corner infielders Tommy O’Hara and Nick Falkson graduated. Their seniors represented a 4x First Team All-NESCAC honoree in 3B Tommy O’Hara, the 2018 NESCAC POY Malcolm Nachmanoff, and the 2017 NESCAC POY Nick Falkson which is tough for even the legendary coach John Casey to replace. RJ Hall will lead the staff to a number of wins, but they might not have the offense to dominate like they usually do. One thing to count on is that they will lead the league in hit by pitches by about 50.
5). Williams:
Williams had a tough season without their ace Johnny Lamont. He’s an elite pitcher, although even he wouldn’t have been able to solve all of the Ephs’ pitching problems. Williams simply lacked ‘stuff’ on the mound this year and their offense wasn’t deep enough to make up for it. Kyle Dean will likely move back to the bullpen next year where he saw success as a freshman, and Lamont should help balance out the staff. Jack Bohen will need to be more consistent for his team to have a chance to win NESCAC weekend games. Kellen Hatheway and Jack Roberts had talent sure enough, but got off to slow starts and never got back to the All-NESCAC level that they were at in the past. Hatheway will surely figure it out (unless he gets an internship this summer) and is still an elite DIII defender, with arguably the most range in the conference. Losing is never fun, and the Ephs’ playoff drought is getting longer and longer, so they will assuredly come back next year with a new sense of energy especially with their ace returning.
6). Amherst:
Nick Nardone is one of the lone powerful bats remaining in Amherst’s lineup.
What a run it was for the Amherst Mammoths. They won 5 straight to head to the New York Regional, and while they exited after a quick 0-2 performance, they lost both games by one run, competing and showing that they deserved to be there. Ultimately their offensive depth was an issue as Max Steinhorn, Ariel Kenney, and Harry Roberson were far more dangerous than their other hitters, but they had the best all around team in the conference. Their pitching, both starting and relief, performed when they needed it to, and some unlikely offensive heroes stepped up in big spots. Bolstering the lineup in 2019 will be first year standout Joseph Palmo, whose wide batting stance is surprisingly balance and consistent, offering a contact heavy and line drive approach. He, along with Severino Simeone and Nick Nardone, should lead the Mammoth team who desperately needs to retool after losing some of their program’s all time best players. Andrew Ferrero finally pitched up to his potential too, and with Zach and Davis Brown, they could easily keep most of their NESCAC opponents at bay to compete for another title.
7). Bates:
Bates, underwhelming in most statistical categories, somehow got into the playoffs again. I don’t know what’s in the water up in Lewiston, but once you make the playoffs, nobody could care less about your stats. What it came down to was doing what Middlebury couldn’t–winning with their season on the line and coming from behind to take tight ballgames. A .237 team average is one of the worst in the ‘Cac, but the Bobcats beat out other teams with better team averages to see their season continue. What was especially huge was how they saw a future ace emerge as Nolan Collins threw the ball extremely well in tight spots. The sophomore posted a 2.75 ERA, and was the go to pitcher for Bobcats in must win games, knocking off Tufts in their final series to clinch a trip to Hartford. No hitter posted above a .267 average with most hitters barely hitting their weight though and that is a recurring issue. It will be tough for the Bobcats to get in again with that hitting, but Zach Avila was a breakout player who could see continued success in the NESCAC along with second year starting catcher and All-NESCAC honoree Jack Arend. I counted them out before, so it’s hard to predict what they’ll do next year. All I have to say is it ain’t over until all 12 games are played.
8). Bowdoin:
Bowdoin either needs to have a stellar recruiting class coming in or Lopez needs to be the ace that the Polar Bears were missing in 2018.
The Bowdoin Polar Bears’ end of year record was solid at 7-5, but they lost out on a playoff bid in tiebreaking fashion to Bates. I’m sure that they want to get revenge on Bates for making the playoffs two years in a row, seeing their season end exceptionally early. Like in the west, Bowdoin has a lot of young guys in All-NESCAC honoree Eric Mah and Connor Lee who led the team in hitting. Those two will put up another good year at the plate in 2019, as the team will be bolstered by all around athlete Brandon Lopez. Lopez started off the season terribly and looked as if his velocity dropped from previous years, but turned it around back to back gems against Colby (not a huge confidence booster) and Southern Maine. The game against Southern Maine really gives the Polar Bears some momentum moving forward as the ranked Huskies dominated all the other NESCAC teams they played (Bates, Colby, Amherst). Brett Osterholtz and Colby Lewis will need to step up to make the starting staff more formidable, but if they do, look for Bowdoin to compete for a playoff bid again next year.
9). Hamilton:
Hamilton Baseball’s 2021 class showed a lot of potential, leading to an exciting offseason for the young program.
Hamilton, as usual, is competitive at times with the league’s best but also finds a way to come up short. The West division is no cake walk with perennial winners Wesleyan and Amherst, but Hamilton showed to both teams that they should be respected. They won the series against Wesleyan and took one game from Amherst after losing the first two in heartbreaking fashion. The team is young, and didn’t return too many starters, putting out a product much better than most expected. Matt Zaffino raked all year, garnering the NESCAC Rookie of the Year honors—ending the season with a .359 average. If they can figure it out in close games, Hamilton could potentially make the playoffs next year. They need to keep games close to give the ball to their lights out closer Ian Nish, and have to improve on their defense and offensive execution.
10). Colby
Colby had a tough year and there’s no way around that with a 1-11 NESCAC season. It doesn’t look like it’ll get much better next year either. The Mules’ best hitter and my former classmate Matt Treveloni is graduating (congrats, Trev), and the east is far more variable than the West. Tufts is always a good team, however they didn’t dominate like they have in the past few years and aren’t likely to improve without their three best hitters. The other teams in the East–Bates, Bowdoin, and Trinity are likely to improve though, and the Mules will have a tough task ahead of them without any cake-walk serieses. If pitchers throw strikes for the Mules next year (and they find a new starting pitching staff or it Taimu Ito returns to this 2017 form), they could be 4-8 in conference, but to be better, they’ll need to find some more offense.
It was a great year. Teams that seem to always get the job done, Amherst and Tufts, made it to the finals and two great coached teams playing each other is every baseball fan’s dream. In the end, Amherst proved to everyone why the game always requires twenty-seven outs, cranking out stellar performances in must win games like it was easy. The highlight of the regular season was the way that the East division came down to a three team tiebreaker, showing that no matter how many games are played, everything still seems to come down to the wire. Thank you to all the players and coaches that make the season so enjoyable! See you next spring.
While the baseball season might be over, the awards season is just beginning. Not to be too self promoting here, but our awards are certainly less biased than the real NESCAC awards and should be taken more seriously. As it goes with the MLB awards, they are based on regular season results, not the postseason, and categorized based on league. Here’s to the best ballplayers in the ‘CAC…
West Player of the Year:
Ariel Kenney had a stand out season to finish off a great career.
OF Ariel Kenney ‘18 (Amherst) Chula Vista, CA: Kenney put a monster season this year en route to Amherst clinching of the #1 seed in the NESCAC West. Coming in at 3rd in the conference with his .383 AVG and 5th with his 4 big flys, Kenney was the heart of an Amherst offense that put up the 2nd most runs in the league. A few of Kenney’s impressive performances this season include a game versus Eastern Connecticut St. in which he went 4-5 with a homerun and a 2-2 stint with 3 RBI and a walk against Williams. Kenney’s 16 extra-base hits were third in the conference, helping boosting him to a .600 SLG%. Amherst will look to ride their MVP all the way to a NESCAC ‘ship, starting with Bates in NESCAC playoffs this weekend.
East Player of the Year AND Combat Silver Slugger POY:
Stony Brook transfer, Malcolm Nachmanoff, had by far the best season of any NESCAC player.
OF Malcolm Nachmanoff ‘18 (Tufts) Boston, MA: Another year, another Jumbo winning Player of the Year. That being said, there is absolutely no doubt that Nachmanoff deserves to take home the hardware after an incredible, breakout Senior spring. Nachmanoff lead the conference in Batting Average (.432), Homeruns (7), Slugging (.775), Doubles (15), Total Bases (86) and Extra-Base Hits (23). He was the NESCAC leader in 6 categories which is nothing less than absolute dominance. Nachmanoff transferred to Tufts after his sophomore season at D1 Stony Brook and proceeded to have a fairly rough Junior year for the Jumbos in which he only hit .182. He was able to find that D1 talent this season and prove that he is not just one, but several steps above the rest of the competition. Nachmanoff’s next challenge is to lead the Jumbos to his second ‘ship in 2 years and their first challenge will be the Wesleyan Cardinals.
West Cy Young:
P Colby Morris ‘19 (Middlebury) Ross, CA: Yes folks, the time has come. NBN is going to give our editor the credit he deserves. As much as we all love to make fun of Colby, his numbers are far too good to ignore. Morris was absolutely lights out all year long, leading the conference in Complete Games (4), Wins (5), Innings (63 ⅓) and Strikeouts (52). Along with all those feats, Morris was second in the conference with a jaw-dropping 1.71 ERA. Though, what made Morris’ effort so special this season is the way that he turned it on during conference play. In-conference he was 3-1, including 3 complete games, with 23 Ks and an ERA of 0.93. Despite the fact that Midd will be missing out on the playoffs this year after a tough series loss against Amherst, Morris did absolutely everything in his power to give them the opportunity to get there. Midd’s youthful core this season and Morris’ dominance should translate to a very exciting 2019 in Vermont.
East Cy Young:
RJ Hall has been there and done that in his three years at Tufts and is a tough matchup for any team in the playoffs.
P R.J. Hall ‘19 (Tufts) Marietta, GA: The East Cy Young was a particularly difficult award to pick because there were many good candidates, and almost all of them play for Tufts. Hall takes the cake because he proved himself to be the Jumbo’s most relied upon arm and ace throughout the season. Hall has a solid 5-2 record on the year, contributing immensely to Tufts’ 1st place finish in the East. His 47 strikeouts were far and away the most of anyone on the Jumbo’s staff and was 4th in the NESCAC. Hall notched 3 key conference wins over all 3 Maine schools (Colby, Bowdoin and Bates), including a complete game shutout against Bowdoin. Hall is the face of a three-headed monster for Tufts which will look to continue their success all the way to a three-peat of the NESCAC championship this weekend.
Reliever of the Year:
P Jake Shapiro ‘18 (Bates) Sandy, UT: It seemed as if every time Shapiro entered the game for the Bobcats, it was over. In his 14 appearances this season Shapiro maintained a .98 ERA and amassed 6 saves which were 2nd best in the ‘CAC. 5 of Shapiro’s 6 saves came in conference games, tied for the most of any pitcher this season. The reason behind Shapiro’s success was his ability to put hitters away via the strikeout. Shapiro has been punching out batters left and right and it shows in his 12.27 K/9. #2 Bates will face #1 Amherst this Friday in the first round of the NESCAC playoffs and you can be sure that if they have a lead Shapiro will be there man to finish it off.
Breakout Player of the Year:
P Spencer Langdon ‘20 (Tufts) Westlake, TX: After not seeing a single inning of work his Freshman year, Tufts hurler Spencer Langdon broke onto the scene in the NESCAC this year. He lead the NESCAC in ERA with a staggering 1.66 and holds a perfect 4-0 record heading into the playoffs. The majority of Langdon’s success came in NESCAC play in which he went 3-0 and had an even better ERA of 1.35. The Jumbos managed to win every single game that Langdon started this season, helping them to another first place finish in the NESCAC East. Tufts gave Langdon his first career start in their opening series against Trinity, after his impressive preseason relief stints, and never looked back. Langdon cemented his place as the best #3 starter in the conference this season and certainly as a candidate for POY. Tufts will use their hidden gem this weekend in NESCAC playoffs where Langdon will look to go 2/2 on NESCAC ‘ships.
Rookie of the Year:
P Kelvin Sosa ‘21 (Wesleyan) Bronx, NY: Amongst a 2021 class that was full of talent, Sosa proved to be the best. Earning himself the 2-spot in the rotation in just his first season, Sosa took full advantage of the opportunity he was given. His 2.54 ERA was the 5th best in the NESCAC and his 49 Ks were 3rd best. Some of his highlights this season include 6 ⅔ scoreless innings against Midd where he racked up 11 Ks and a 9 inning, complete game shutout against Williams that notched him 7 Ks. Sosa was a key piece in Wesleyan’s playoff run and will be getting his first taste of NESCAC playoffs this year. While Wesleyan’s next test is #1 seed in the East, Tufts, it is almost certain that Sosa will get the ball in game 2 of the playoffs.
2018 NESCAC 1st Team (Does not include award winners above)
C Chase Pratt ‘20 (Wesleyan) Rye, NY
IF Matt Koperniak ‘20 (Trinity) Adams, MA
IF Max Steinhorn ‘18 (Amherst) Washington, DC
IF Tommy O’Hara ‘18 (Tufts) Glenview, IL
IF Matt Zaffino ‘21 (Hamilton) New Canaan, CT
IF Justin Han ‘20 (Middlebury) Vienna, VA
OF Matt Treveloni ‘18 (Colby) Ashland, MA
OF Alex Capitelli ‘20 (Wesleyan) North Caldwell, NJ
With three out of four playoff spots secured, we wait on the Amherst vs Middlebury series to determine the 2018 NESCAC tournament schedule. Both teams were in two very different spots midseason. Midd was underachieving with a weak looking rotation after its ace. The once potent lineup from 2017 was easily contained. Amherst, in contrast, was firing on all cylinders. Clutch offense, defense, and pitching guided Amherst to a conference victory against Little Three rival, Wesleyan. However, these past few weekends haven’t treated Amherst kindly. With Wes clinching a playoff spot, and Midd rising, Amherst needed to perform in these last few games. Losing to Hamilton in a rescheduled game Thursday night didn’t help. As a result, the winner of this series will determine who’s in and who’s out.
Including non-conference games, Midd has won nine in a row. That statistic is absurd considering the entropy of baseball. Midd accomplished what neither Wes nor Amherst could do: sweeping Hamilton. Colby Morris, biggest glow up in the ‘Cac and my editor, leads the Midd staff with a 1.92 ERA. In my opinion, he’s the best pitcher in the league. Going back to my piece a few weeks back that interviewed each pitcher, I asked each of them what they do when they’re not getting any run support. To say that Morris wasn’t getting much run support early on is an understatement. However, like the GOAT of all GOATs says, ‘Do your job.’ Morris was able to keep sharp focus on his task at hand: throwing strikes, getting ground balls, and making outs. In a comparison with another ace in the league, Mike McCaffrey, Morris has logged around ten more innings pitched, while compiling less strikeouts than McCaffrey. Even though strikeouts are the tantalizing statistic among fans, Morris’ pitch count per inning has to be lower than McCaffrey because he’s not always looking for the spot on a back door breaking ball, but shooting the knees to induce a ground ball or double play. Midd’s bats have come alive as well. Freshman standouts from last year, Justin Han and Brooks Carroll, and have picked up the production at the plate with avg’s all over .300– above .350 for Carroll and Han. Hayden Smith has emerged as a stud at 3B for the Panthers too. Amherst should fear what would happen if Midd takes game one. Even though I believe that Amherst is a better all-around team, beating Morris isn’t an easy task for any ball club. That scenario would put Midd in the driver’s seat to take either game two or game three to clinch its second consecutive playoff berth.
Morris and Ferrero are going to duel it out tomorrow in game 1.
Amherst has had a roller coaster season with big wins against Wesleyan, but critical losses to Hamilton. Its road record of 4-4 in overall play in contrast with a 12-2 home record doesn’t exactly give Amherst fans confidence traveling to face a hot Midd team on their diamond. The old saying goes, “the more things change, the more they stay the same.” Amherst has been a force in the conference for years and years. While the faces of Yanni Thanopoulos, Andrew Vandini, Mike Odenwaelder, and Drew Fischer are gone, names such as Harry Roberson and Max Steinhorn remain. Most importantly, Brian Hamm, a Middlebury alum, will continually put together a quality team year in and year out. That’s why I’m not overly concerned about Amherst this weekend. Yes, they’ve put themselves in a tough position by needing to win two out of three against a hot team. Like I’ve said in all my articles, there are teams that always come through in the clutch. Amherst is one of those teams. The Patriots were down by twenty-five midway through the third about Super Bowl LI. At the end of the day, the Patriots are the Patriots and the Falcons are the Falcons. The Falcons were destined to blow it. Amherst has nine guys that are hitting over .300 in overall play. Even though none of them are really the standout hitters that Tufts has, they all compete and grind out quality at bats at an extraordinary level. Even though Morris is better than Ferrero, I give Amherst the edge in overall pitching.
Harry Roberson just became Amherst’s all time hits leader, coming in hot after a slow start to the season.
Given that we had two articles on this pivotal series, we have two different projections from the recent authors. If these tell you anything, it’s that this series is a must watch:
Andrew’s Prediction: Amherst 2 games, Middlebury 1 game
Why he chose them: This series is going to be tight. Obviously, both teams are high level ball clubs who are built to compete on this stage. I believe that both teams will take a game, but in the end, you have to go with the team that’s done it consistently before, and is acclimated with the spotlight and pressure that comes with big games.
Spencer’s Prediction: Middlebury 2 games, Amherst 1 game
Why he chose them: Midd will be able to complete their improbable comeback and return to the playoffs hungry for another shot at a NESCAC ‘ship. With their home crowd and hot streak, they should be bringing it all weekend. Whatever happens, there’s no doubt that this will be the series of the year.
While everybody is looking towards the playoffs, there is still one series and one playoff spot on the line. Middlebury and Amherst are playing for their playoff lives with everything on the line this weekend. Read more to find out what you need to know before Saturday’s doubleheader:
Location: Forbes Field – Middlebury, VT
While Middlebury has only played 5 of their 28 games at home this season, they’ve certainly had success when playing on their own diamond. On the season Midd sits at 4-1 in all home contests, thanks to their current 4 game win streak at home. On the other side of the equation, Amherst has only had 7 away games this year and they are 4-3 in those contests, most notably beating Wesleyan 2 games out of 3 on the road. Overall I’d give the Panthers a slight advantage being on their home turf, but Amherst has clearly shown that they can get it done on the road, so home field advantage will not be enough to take them down.
Probable Starters:
Game 1: Colby Morris ‘19 (Middlebury) 4-4, 1.92 ERA vs Andrew Ferrero ‘19 (Amherst) 3-1, 2.19 ERA
Colby Morris ’19Andrew Ferrero ’19
Game 2: Robert Erickson ‘18 (Middlebury) 3-2, 3.19 ERA vs Sam Schneider ‘18 (Amherst) 3-2, 3.22 ERA
Rob Erickson ’18Sam Schneider ’18
Game 3: George Goldstein ‘21 (Middlebury) 2-0, 1.02 ERA vs Davis Brown ‘19 (Amherst) 5-2, 3.80 ERA
George Goldstein ’21Davis Brown ’19
Game 1 of this series features two of the top pitchers in the conference this year in Morris and Ferrero. Both are Juniors, Bay Area natives (despite the fact that Morris lists himself as from Del Mar, which is fake news) (Editor’s Note: It is not fake news) and are enjoying the best years of their careers thus far. Game 1 should be a tight, low-scoring contest and will come down to which one of these aces can go the distance for their team. I would give Morris the advantage over Ferrero because he has been able to go CG in 2 of his 3 NESCAC games so far and has maintained a stellar 1.23 ERA in conference this year. Before Amherst’s loss against Hamilton I would have said that the game two matchup should be very close as well. But after giving up 6 earned in 3+ innings Davis Brown will likely have his start pushed to Sunday. That leaves the task up to Sam Schneider ’18 who will be making his last NESCAC start. Schneider got bounced after one inning against Hamilton and put up quality starts in his other two outings and is by no means a lock for success. On the other hand, Erickson has been able to hold all NESCAC West opponents to 3 runs or less per start so far this year. If both teams maintain their same rotation as last week then game 2 should be lopsidedly in favor of Middlebury. Game 3 looks to be an absolute wildcard as it pits Freshman George Goldstein, who only has one career start, against either Brown or an Amherst bullpen arm. Goldstein’s only career start came last week against Hamilton where he was able to go 5 strong, scoreless innings to get the final win of the series sweep for the Panthers. Despite Goldstein’s stellar numbers, because he didn’t go more than five innings in his start, he leaves a lot up to the Middlebury bullpen. This
Key Players:
Middlebury
Hayden Smith ‘20: .382/.452/.461, 21 RBI, 6 XBH
Justin Han ‘20: .367/.528/.456, 18 RBI, 27 BB, 20SB
Max Steinhorn ‘18: .391/.458/.461, 16 RBI, 6 XBH, 14 SB
Harry Roberson ‘18: .316/.421/.429, 11 2B, 24 RBI, 16 BB
Numbers-wise, Amherst’s offense is clearly superior to Midd’s. Lead by a trio of Seniors, Amherst currently has the best team batting average in the conference at .304 while Midd sits in 6th at .267. One thing that both of these teams do especially well is run the bases. Midd leads the conference by a significant margin with their 72 bags swiped while Amherst is 3rd with their 53 stolen bases. Interestingly, when it comes to away games for the Mammoths, their team average is less than 10 points lower than it is for home games, showing that they are not intimidated on the road. Luckily for Middlebury, their team average goes up nearly 80 points when they are on their home field, which may provide some of the offense that Midd has seemed to be lacking all season. Overall, I think that Amherst has a clear offensive advantage over Middlebury and Midd will need to use the leverage of their home field advantage, as well as their current 9 game win streak, in their favor in order to be able to match the Mammoth’s outstanding plate presence.
Midd has something going right now after two straight sweeps. Photo courtesy of David Goldstein.
Series History (Since 2007)
Overall:
Amherst: 25-9
Middlebury 9-25
Home:
Amherst: 11-4
Middlebury: 5-10
Away:
Amherst: 10-5
Middlebury 4-11
Neutral:
Amherst: 4-0
Middlebury 0-4
It’s fairly clear to see that over the past decade or so Amherst has dominated their matchup against Midd. Both the home and away numbers are very similar for both teams, showing that home field advantage has not played all too much of a role in their past meetings. Although last year Midd was able to take 2 of 3 games from the Mammoths in Massachusetts and Middlebury made a much further playoff run than Amherst, so perhaps we are seeing a cultural shift happening in Vermont that is trending in the right direction. Despite the fact that history would choose Amherst over Midd by a long shot, with the recent momentum Midd has gained as well as their success last season against Amherst, this series will certainly be much tighter than it has been in years past.
What’s on the Line (Playoff Scenarios)
Amherst: After a devastating loss to Hamilton on Thursday, the Mammoths now need to get a series win on the road in order to secure their playoff spot. Anything less than 2 wins would have Amherst go from the #1 seed to a team that will miss the playoffs entirely. If the Mammoths are able to take 2 games from Midd they will salvage their playoff spot and retain their status as the #1 seed.
Middlebury: Hamilton’s win over Amherst was a godsend for the Panthers as Midd’s comeback from last in the division is nearly complete. All Middlebury needs now is a series win at home to come all the way back from their rocky start. 2 wins or more will see Middlebury make the playoffs as the #2 seed, something that seemed unfathomable just weeks ago.
We have officially reached the homestretch in the NESCAC this season. It was chaotic for the last few weekends, but we finally have some clarity in the playoff picture. While it looked unlikely for large stretches of the season, Tufts ended up where everyone expected them to, at the top of the East Division, while Amherst (pending a 2011 Red Sox-esque collapse against Middlebury) and Wesleyan appear set to cruise in to the postseason as representatives in the West. And lastly, in a crazy wire-to-wire finish, Bates emerged atop the three-way tie for 2nd in the East over fellow 7-5 teams Bowdoin and Trinity. While this is great for the Bobcats, it shows a monumental collapse from the Bantams who needed just one win in a three game set against Bates to clinch the #1 seed in the east, now finding themselves out of the playoff picture. With the NESCAC tournament a few short weeks away, who is heading in in the best shape?
Stock Up
Nolan Collins’ Clutch Gene
With Bates needing to take just one game to make the playoffs, you would think it was going to be smooth sailing in Lewiston this past weekend. The only problem was that Bates needed to take just one game from the hottest (and best) team in the league, the Tufts Jumbos. Coming off of a trouncing of Colby, Tufts’ bats were white hot, and Bates’ plan of attack surely was not to win a shootout against an offense with double their runs scored on the year. Sending their ace LHP Connor Russell ’19 to the mound on Friday was going to be their best chance of winning a game, especially considering that Tufts’ deep pitching staff would have the advantage on the weekend. But Tufts #1 RHP RJ Hall ’19 picked the worst possible time for the Bobcats to decide to turn in arguably his best performance of the year, in the form of a 8 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 13 K performance that earned him NESCAC Pitcher of the Week. Hall, who did not allow a hit after the 2nd inning, was simply lights out in a 5-0 win. Bates was all of a sudden facing the prospect of needing to steal a win of either Brent Greeley ’20 and his Top 5 ERA (2.31) in Game 2 or Spencer Langdon and his league leading ERA of 1.66. But up stepped RHP Nolan Collins ’20, who in the biggest game in recent memory for Bates, pitched a complete game of 7 scoreless innings, striking out 8 against the most potent lineup in the league to clinch a postseason berth for the Bobcats.
Collins knows that things are going well right now for the Bobcats…
Middlebury’s Playoff Chances
While it’s still looking slimmer than slim for the Panthers, their three-game sweep over Hamilton certainly helped. It was the arms that got it done this past weekend, as Hamilton was held to three runs each in all three games. RHP Colby Morris ’19 continues to do everything he can to extend their season, turning in a 9 IP CG, allowing just one earned run and striking out 6, bringing his ERA down to 1.92, second in the league. Midd has one series remaining on their divisional series, against 6-2 Amherst, who have a makeup game against Hamilton before then. A win in that game would mean the Mammoths only need to avoid a series sweep rather than avoid a series loss against Middlebury to make the playoffs, but nothing has been clinched yet. While it is certainly an uphill battle, the Panthers are winners of 9 in a row, the longest active streak in the NESCAC. Don’t count them out.
Andrew Hennings and the Panthers are playing for their playoff lives this weekend. Does anybody else feel the magic?
Wesleyan
Nothing too fancy about this one, but their sweep of rivals Williams has clinched a playoff berth for Wesleyan. It was hard to believe that they were fighting for their playoff lives in the last weekend of their divisional slate, but they were. The Cardinals, who started off hot with a sweep of last season’s NESCAC finalists Middlebury, have managed to fly under people’s radars the rest of the way despite finishing at 8-4. They haven’t put up any eye-popping numbers along the way, but they certainly have what it takes to win the league. LHP Mike McCaffrey ’19 (2-3, 4.63 ERA) hasn’t had the dominant year that many of us thought he would, but his league leading 10.28 K/9 is all the proof you need that he has the stuff to shut down any lineup on any given day. In fact, the Wesleyan rotation of McCaffrey, Sosa, and Olmstead, are 1-2-3 in that category, the only three pitchers with a K/9 over 9. Their only problem is McCaffrey and Olmstead are also tied for the league lead in walks with 36. If they can locate their pitchers, and maybe catch some help from Middlebury to knock Amherst to the 2 seed in the West, thus avoiding Tufts in the opener, Wesleyan could be in great shape.
Stock Down
The POY Race
When you have a guy leading the league in hitting at .432, tied for 3rd in RBI with 35, and also leading the league in home runs with 7, like Tufts senior OF Malcolm Nachmanoff is, it’s pretty tough to argue for anybody else as a legitimate Player of the Year candidate. The Stony Brook transfer has absolutely mashed all year for Tufts, in a year where it was thought that the duo of Tommy O’Hara and Nick Falkson would be the top 2 candidates for the award, with Falkson looking to repeat. While the three of them are arguably the top 3 hitters in the league right now, as they own the top 3 spots on the HR and RBI charts, it is impossible to discount the timeliness of Nachmanoff’s streak, a midseason surge that injected life into a Jumbos lineup that didn’t get off to the start that many expected it to, while Falkson was struggling to hit for average as well. NESCAC awards tend to go to the best player on the best team, so while the stat sheet stuffing is great, look no further than this past basketball’s season, where Williams’ James Heskett stole the POY from Middlebury’s Jack Daly, who had put up ridiculous numbers all year but lost in the NESCAC quarterfinals, on the back of the Ephs’ surge to the NESCAC championship. But Nachmanoff has been so good that I don’t even know how you could give it someone else regardless of who wins the league.
Look Good, Feel Good, Play Good?: NESCAC Baseball Uniform Power Rankings
I guess power rankings are kind of my thing now because here’s another one for you. Everyone knows baseball is 50% how you look, and that’s something that scouts take into account. The NESCAC has had numerous players selected in the draft and it isn’t all due to their playing performance – aesthetics are important. With this in mind, we thought it would be important to see who has the best uniform scheme in the league. I went through all the options and selected (in my opinion) the best uniform combo from each team, and ranked each team’s best 1-10. I apologize for not being able to find better pictures anywhere of some team’s jerseys (mainly Colby and Hamilton), but some schools just don’t make it easy.
10. Williams
The Ephs have a good color scheme to work with and quality hats, so they definitely have a sweet uniform right? Wrong. None of their uniforms are anything special, and their stirrups don’t even have stripes! This black top is simple, and I’ll admit I like the font choice. It doesn’t match the hats, but I like what they have there. Other than that, nothing too exciting here. I’m sure they’re comfortable but Williams is definitely not known for pleasing the eyes with their outfits.
9. Colby
Colby changes it up with some very patriotic lettering, and three stars on each sleeve. It’s kind of a weird look, and I certainly don’t hate it. That said, I really don’t like it that much either. Their hats don’t impress me and I’m glad they at least one-upped Williams by adding the stripes to their socks. I respect what they were trying to do here but I don’t think the execution was quite right. Ninth place.
8. Bowdoin
I really don’t mind Bowdoin’s uniforms at all. The strips on the sleeves go well with the stirrups and it’s a clean, classy look. I don’t love the hats, but they’re by no means a deal-breaker. The problem is it’s tough to put a team high in a jersey ranking when their colors are black and white. I think they have the potential for some nice all gray uniforms like their football team, but they really don’t have a whole lot to work with.
7. Hamilton
Blue is a popular color, and Hamilton makes it work. I actually think these uniforms are really nice. I’m a fan of the Nike top with the color on the shoulders, and the gray complements it nicely. I also like how they snuck some yellow into the stirrups, giving you a slightly different look. The hats are pretty much what you’d expect, but they go well with the uniform and add some blue to a uniform that doesn’t have a ton of color. Nice job here.
6. Bates
The Bobcats sport some quality red uniforms. Quality stirrups with a standard top that features one black and one white stripe on each sleeve. What sets this look apart a bit is the black hat with the red brim and a new “B” logo that Bates recently added. This is a very solid uniform that isn’t particularly flashy or showy, but the color combination looks nice and the contrast provides a nice crisp look.
5. Amherst
Now we get to see some efforts at new look home white uniforms. This is a great Under Armour top that mixes in just the right amount of purple. Their colors can be tricky to pull off, but the sneaky purple in the stirrups and the trim on the jerseys do a fine job for the Mammoths when you throw in the black hat on top of it. This is the way that the all-white uniforms are going for the many teams sponsored by Under Armour and I for one don’t hate it.
4. Middlebury
While Amherst had some solid whites, Middlebury hits us with their own effort at new-look white unis. This look is pretty basic, but the Panthers pull it off perfectly. The medieval font on the hat matches the logo on the jersey to a T (take notes Williams), and the navy stirrups provide just the right amount of additional color. These jerseys are all about class – we all want it, but Midd has it.
3. Trinity
I really like what Trinity has going on here. This is an awesome alternate uniform with a fantastic scheme. Too much yellow is never a good thing, but the trim on these unis along with the stirrup stripes offers just the right amount of secondary color. The fact that their hat reps the logo as opposed to a letter is a big time move and it looks really legit with “Bantams” written across the chest. Trinity’s athletic department continues to come up clutch, providing their athletes with the most cutting edge apparel available.
2. Wesleyan
I know a lot of people may have thought that Wesleyan’s pinstripes would make it on the list, but I absolutely love their throwback look. The gray is simple, and the piping and font choice add just the right amount of flare. The multi-colored stirrups along with the classy black hats contrast the gray nicely, and I really like the red flaps on the pockets. These uniforms are awesome and when you throw in their pinstripes and an alternate top, the Cardinals have a pretty legit arsenal of different looks.
1. Tufts
I’m not quite sure where to begin with these. Nice stirrups, a clean uniform, and a solid multi-colored hat tend to look good together. But these are different. These bad boys are all baby blue and I’ll be honest they’re downright scary. The Jumbos are 108-7* all time when wearing the baby blues, so their confidence when wearing these things must be through the roof. This jersey is a complete nightmare for opposing teams, and it’s the perfect outfit for the villains who have dominated the NESCAC for the last several years.
Conference Tournament Weekend Preview and Predictions
The NESCAC Tournament is finally here. Weeks of grueling conference play filtered out the weak, leaving the top eight teams to battle for the right to be crowned champion and earn an automatic trip to the NCAA Tournament. Will the traditional powers of Amherst, Tufts and Wesleyan continue their dominance and roll to the semifinals, or will a lower seed play spoiler?
Usually there’s a matchup or two in conference tournaments where one team is significantly favored over the other; however, each of these bouts features teams in which their previous regular season encounters were decided by no more than three goals. While this doesn’t necessarily mean every game will be close, it makes the matchups more enticing and increases the opportunity for upsets to occur.
Before dissecting the quarterfinal matchups, here’s how some of the playoff seeds were secured:
Here are the matchups for Saturday.
Jockeying for the top two spots: Wesleyan finished tied with Amherst and Tufts atop the conference at 9-1. All three share the same record against the top eight opponents in the NESCAC, so by rule the top overall seed was selected via a suspenseful name drawing from a hat. Amherst was awarded the second seed due to their head-to-head victory over the Jumbos.
Movement in the Middle: Conn College snagged the fifth seed due to their head-to-head victory over Middlebury. The Panthers jumped up a spot to sixth with a huge victory over Williams, while Bowdoin’s loss to Wesleyan dropped the Polar Bears to seventh.
Bobcats Snag the Last Spot: In what came down to a winner-take-all matchup between rivals Bates and Colby, the Bobcats left Waterville victorious and secured their fourth straight trip to the conference tournament.
#1 Wesleyan (12-2, 9-1) vs. #8 Bates (8-7, 4-6)
Regular Season Outcome: Wesleyan defeated Bates 13-11
Wesleyan will be the deserving favorite in this matchup, but this isn’t your typical 1 vs. 8 seed. The Bobcats were ranked in the top 15 in many pre-season polls, and while it’s fair to say they haven’t lived up to expectations, there’s no denying this team has the talent to upset the Cardinals. In their regular season matchup, the Bobcats jumped out to a four-goal lead, but their offense sputtered (two goals in the entire second half) and Wesleyan battled back to win 13-11. If the Bobcat duo of Clarke Jones ’18 and Matt Chlastawa ’20 can outperform Wesleyan’s Harry Stanton ’18 and Ronan Jacoby ’21, Bates has a very good chance to spring the upset; however, Wesleyan’s gritty defense has the capability to slow down even the most potent of players, and I see the Cardinals edging the Bobcats in a back-and-forth affair.
Prediction: Wesleyan 14-12
#2 Amherst (13-2, 9-1) vs. #7 Bowdoin (8-6, 4-6)
Regular Season Outcome: Amherst defeated Bowdoin 16-15
These teams seem to be heading in opposite directions; Amherst has rattled off five wins in a row since their 12-11 loss to Wesleyan, out-gunning the opposition with 108 goals in that span. On the other hand, Bowdoin limped towards the finish with four consecutive losses, most recently at the hands of Tufts. The Polar Bears’ defense limited the ‘CAC’s second-leading scorer Evan Wolf (’19) to just a single goal in their last matchup, but leading scorer Jon Coffey ’20 (3 goals) and Colin Minicus ’20 (6 goals) picked up the slack. Bowdoin’s defense is solid, but they lack the offensive firepower to keep up with the Mammoths.
Prediction: Amherst 19-13
Tufts handled Midd just fine in the regular season, thanks to a big streak of goals.
#3 Tufts (13-1, 9-1) vs. #6 Middlebury (9-6, 5-5)
Regular Season Outcome: Tufts defeated Middlebury 13-10
Tufts and Middlebury played this past Saturday, where the Jumbos overcame a slow start to defeat the Panthers by three. Although the result was not what the Panther faithful would have liked to see, their team did pick up a huge victory over Williams during the week and ended the year winning six of their final seven games. The key for Tufts is to shut down Henry Riehl ’18 and force his teammates to beat them. Riehl had half of Middlebury’s goals against Tufts, and he can give opposing defenses fits (just ask the Ephs, who this past Saturday allowed four goals and three assists to the senior). In the end, however, the Jumbos are too talented to let the Panthers come into Medford and snatch a victory. Andrew Seitzer ’18 and co. will break down the Middlebury defense, setting up a rematch with the Mammoths.
Prediction: Tufts 17-10
#4 Williams (6-4, 8-7) vs. #5 Connecticut College (10-5, 5-5)
Regular Season Outcome: Williams defeated Conn College 11-9
The Ephs had a forgettable performance against Middlebury in which they allowed a season-high 20 goals. Fortunately for Williams, Conn doesn’t boast an electric offensive unit. The Camels perform best when they slow the game down and let their zone-defense stifle the opposition. They did so in their previous encounter with Williams, keeping it a one-goal game after three periods. Williams may have the better offensive unit, but the Camels boast the best face-off specialist in the NESCAC in Ben Parens ’18. Expect a tight contest in which neither team can impose their will over the other; I praised the Ephs in my last article, but I’ll take the mini-upset here and say the Camels defense will dictate the tempo and steal a road win.
What. A. Weekend. It was the craziest two days of NESCAC baseball we’ve seen in recent memory, turning the standings and what we thought was a fairly clear playoff picture upside down. Just as I had crowned Trinity the prohibitive favorite and 1 seed-elect in the East Divison, they were swept by Bates in 3 games decided by 4 runs total. Instead of planning their NESCAC championship weekend travel plans, the Bantams will now be glued to their laptops and grainy NSN streams looking for some help from both Tufts and Bates, who play each other this weekend (more on that to come). In the West, Williams has managed to give themselves a fighting chance to make the playoffs thanks to some help from archrival Amherst. Going into the stretch run of the regular season, who’s rounding into form at the right time?
Stock Up
Bates
No one had a bigger weekend than the Bates Bobcats. Heading into Hartford tied for 2nd at 3-3, but with their remaining 6 divisional games against the two teams above them in the standings, Bates realistically needed to win all 3 games to have a chance to make the playoffs, and that is exactly what they did. They didn’t get their best from ace P Connor Russell ’18 in Game 1 but eked out a win, and rallied down from 2 runs down with 2 outs in the final inning to win 5-2 in game 2, before jumping out early with 3 in the first inning and a clutch performance from P Justin Foley (5 IP, 2 R) to pull out the sweep. All of a sudden Bates sits at 6-3, tied for first in the division with Tufts, who they play this weekend. If they win just one of those 3 games, they are headed to the postseason.
Tufts’ Bats
Was this a statement weekend from the class of the league or what? The Jumbos absolutely clobbered Colby in a 3 game sweep in which they racked up a total of 56 runs. 56! They’re tandem of senior IFs Tommy O’Hara and Nick Falkson has all of a sudden turned into a terrifying trio with the addition of senior OF Malcolm Nachmanoff whose monster week (4 HR, 8 RBI) earned him NESCAC POTW honors. Overall, the three veterans combined for 7 HRs and 24 RBI against Colby, which also brought them to 6-3 and tied for first in the league. The Bates sweep of Trinity actually might have hurt the Bos’ chances of making the playoffs, as their head-to-head record (1-2) against Trinity means that they need to take 2 of 3 against Bates to be in (Check out the playoff scenario breakdown to read more on this: https://nothingbutnescac.com/?p=6063), but the way they’re playing, this should be expected. Their other three-headed monster, the one toeing the rubber of Hall, Greeley, and Langdon, continued to cruise, save for a 3 run Colby 9th that turned a potential CG, 4 ER for Hall into something a little messier, but they look like the best team in the league right now, and their championship DNA should see off Bates.
Nick Falkson is just one of three big bats for the Jumbos…watch out, NESCAC pitchers.
Parity
Between Bates’ sweep of Trinity, Amherst’s series win over Wesleyan, and Williams’ series win over Hamilton, the standings got a whole lot more crowded this weekend. Last week it looked as if 3 of last year’s 4 NESCAC tournament participants were going to return to the postseason, and now only one of those three (Amherst) can be assured that their spot is safe…for now. It sounded crazy to say a week ago that Trinity might not make the playoffs, but it’s now a very realistically, and honestly, a likely scenario. Did anyone have Williams playing into mid-May? Well they might. It’s simple for the Ephs: take 2 out of 3 from Wesleyan and their season continues. It’s great news for this league in a year where it looked as if everything could’ve shaken out by now, but there is a whole lot left to play for heading into this last weekend.
Williams’ Pitching
What a turnaround for this staff, if you could even call it a staff, because they’ve been getting contributions from all over the field. It took the Ephs a while to adjust to the loss of their top 4 arms, but they showed that they’re more than capable this past weekend against Hamilton. Junior LHP Jack Bohen earned NESCAC pitcher of the week honors with his CG, 2 H, 1 R, 10 K outing in a 2-1 win in Game 2, hurling an absolute gem to effectively keep their season alive. And in another absolute must win on Sunday, it was sophomore OF Mike Stamas (yes, outfielder) who threw 3.2 IP in his first career start, allowing just one hit and one run, as well as striking out 6. Coach Barrale then turned it over to the pen for a combined 5.1 IP of scoreless baseball from 4 different arms. It looks as they have a clear 1-2 in Bohen and freshman George Carroll, who have both been quietly stringing together quality outings, improving each time out. It remains unclear as to who the third starter will be (my money is on LHP Charlie Carpenter ’20), but if Mike Stamas bats leadoff and throws a gem to beat Wesleyan and steal their playoff spot on Sunday, then we might have to revise our Top 5 NESCAC moments of 2017-18 (https://nothingbutnescac.com/?p=6034), because that would have to make the list.
Stock Down
Trinity’s Playoff (Playoff!) Chances
Tough to have a rougher week than the Bantams. Bates’ best chance to steal any games off of this red hot squad was going to be riding on the arm of Connor Russell, but if I told you he had a final line of 5.1 IP, 9 H, 7 ER, you would’ve felt pretty good about Trin and their chances to win that game and clinch a playoff berth. But LHP Eric Mohl ’19 couldn’t match him (3.2 IP, 8 H, 6 R), and a bullpen collapse after 26 outs in Game 2 started them down 0-2. The bats didn’t come to town for Game 3, and a 7-2 Trinity team had turned into a 7-5 one before you could blink. This team was white hot going into this weekend, a team that matched up great against a Bates’ team whose strength is their pitching. All of a sudden the Bants need some serious help to make the playoffs, sitting behind Tufts and Bates. But to make matters worse, those two teams, both at 6-3, are playing each other this weekend.
Scheduling
Except the rain did hurt, Charlie Brown.
I do not intend to include bashing the NESCAC in every Stock Report, but this does make two weeks in a row that I have had a gripe with the league, this one coming to light heading into this weekend, with Trinity awaiting their fate in the hands of the Tufts/Bates series. Trinity has played all 12 of its divisional games, while Tufts and Bates have only played 9. I’m not saying that this is unfair to Trinity, as they simply could’ve avoided having their season decided by someone else if they had performed stronger, but as a fan, it certainly takes a lot of the fun and drama out of these final weekends. How great would it be if every team was playing Game 12 on Sunday at 1, frequently refreshing live stats in the stands, in the dugout, and in the bullpen, to see the playoff scenarios changing by the pitch. Middlebury has also only played 6 (50%) of their divisional games up to this point and have back to back conference series coming up. Yeah, they are a long shot to make the playoffs, but they did the same thing last year, so who knows. It’s wild to think that their sweep last weekend of Bowdoin doesn’t factor into NESCAC play at all either, but more excitement is on the way, I guess.
Furthermore, and maybe more importantly, is the way the non-division games are spread out. Trinity could have their season effectively end on Saturday or Sunday, but regardless, they’re due to play three additional doubleheaders against Amherst, Middlebury, and Wesleyan, respectively, games which you’re going to have a hard time convincing me will matter. Could they win the last 8 games on their schedule to finish with a record of 22-13 and have the slightest of chances of catching an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament? You could try to persuade me that they could (not making your conference tournament is usually a negative when it comes to giving out at-large bids), but I doubt it. I don’t want to get rid of those games, because baseball is baseball, and they deserve to play as many games as they can, but stacking up all of the non-league, and to be frank, pointless, games at the end of the season is criminal. While the divisional games are obviously the priority when it comes to managing lineups and your pitching rotation, the league is doing us a disservice by throwing us Amherst-Trinity and Wesleyan-Trinity, two series that have been playoff previews all year, at the end of the season when it is all done and dusted. Spread the out of division games out, or just make all of the league games count the same, although that deserves its own rant for another time.
