Baseball tabbed NEC favorites by NEC coaches, Baseball America and Perfect Game
SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Bryant University baseball team has been selected as the Northeast Conference preseason favorite by the NEC coaches, Baseball America and Perfect Game, it was announced on Friday.
The Bulldogs are coming off their best season in program history, one in which they won a program-record 47 games and finished the year with the best winning percentage in the nation. Bryant won its fifth-straight NEC Regular-Season title, won its third NEC Tournament title in four years and earned a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Charlottesville Regional.
Bryant has dominated the NEC since joining the league in 2010. The Bulldogs have won six of the last seven NEC Regular-Season titles, have won three of the last four NEC Tournament titles and have appeared in the NEC Tournament championship round in each of the last four years.
In seven years of NEC play, the Black and Gold are 157-48 (.766) and have not lost a weekend series since the 2013 season.
A veteran-laden team in 2016, the Black and Gold will be one of the youngest in head coach Steve Owens' coaching career this season. Bryant placed an NEC-record 11 players on the all-conference team last year and return four of them this season, including NEC Pitcher of the Year and preseason All-American James Karinchak (Walden, N.Y.) and NEC Rookie of the Year Nick Angelini (Bedford, N.H.).
NEC Preseason Coaches' Poll
Bryant is the NEC coaches' preseason favorite for the fifth-straight year after receiving five first-place votes. Central Connecticut received the final two first-place votes to come in second in the preseason poll.
Sacred Heart was tabbed third and Fairleigh Dickinson, who played Bryant in the NEC title game, is slotted fourth. Wagner, LIU Brooklyn and Mount St. Mary's round out the poll.
Bryant's 28-game NEC schedule opens on Mar. 17 when the Bulldogs visit FDU for a rematch of the 2016 NEC Championship game. It will be the first of two three-game series between the two teams. Bryant will also play a pair of three-game series against Sacred Heart and will play four-game series against Wagner, LIU Brooklyn, Central Connecticut and Mount.
Baseball America
Baseball America tabbed the Bulldogs as the preseason favorite in the NEC for the fifth-straight year. The publication also announced its projected player, pitcher and rookie of the year, as well as its top 10 MLB prospects.
Karinchak was tabbed as BA's projected NEC Pitcher of the Year. A junior, Karinchak led the NEC in wins (12), ERA (2.00), innings (94 2/3) and strikeouts (112) a year ago. He was the 2015 NEC Rookie of the Year and 2016 NEC Pitcher of the Year.
Freshman Jimmy Titus (Stafford, Conn.) was predicted to be the NEC Rookie of the Year. Titus was the back-to-back Gatorade Player of the Year in Connecticut at East Catholic High School and is one of the most highly-touted recruits in program history.
Karinchak, senior Cole Fabio (Mahwah, N.J.) and junior Mickey Gasper (Merrimack, N.H.) were all listed among the top prospects in the NEC. Karinchak was listed as the top prospect in the league, Fabio was fifth and Gasper was seventh. Fabio scored 52 runs and stole a team-high 16 bases, while Gasper hit .392 with seven doubles and 22 RBI in just 79 at-bats.
Perfect Game
Perfect Game has also selected Bryant as the preseason favorite for the fifth-straight season. PG also announced a preseason all-conference team, its predicted players of the year and its top MLB prospects.
Karinchak, Angelini and Titus are projected to sweep the major awards, while five were named to the preseason All-NEC team. Angelini had a stellar rookie season in 2016, hitting .353 with 26 RBI, 47 runs scored, 26 walks and a .466 OBP.
Junior Justin Snyder (Georgetown, Mass.), sophomore Steve Theetge (Syracuse, N.Y.) and Fabio joined Karinchak and Angelini on the All-NEC team. Snyder led the NEC in saves (10) last year, posting a 2.35 ERA and 10.37 strikeouts/9. Theetge had one of the best rookie seasons in program history, going 9-0 with a 2.72 ERA in 72 2/3 innings. The record was the best by a pitcher in NEC history.
Six Bulldogs were listed among the Perfect Game's top prospects for the 2017, 2018 and 2019 drafts. Karinchak, once again, was named the top prospect for the 2017 draft, and was joined by Angelini (No. 5), Gasper (No. 7) and Fabio (No. 8). Theetge was listed as the No. 3 prospect for the 2018 draft and Titus was the top prospect for the 2019 draft.
Bryant opens the 2017 season with a four-game series at New Mexico State beginning on Friday, Feb. 17.