The NCAA announced the fields for the Division III baseball and softball regionals on Monday afternoon. Husson softball will host in Bangor, while Husson baseball heads to the Eastern Connecticut State Regional and Colby College baseball earns an at-large bid and will travel to the SUNY Cortland Regional in New York.
The Husson University softball team (35-4) is on a 30-game win streak, coming off their sixth straight North Atlantic Conference Championship on Saturday over SUNY Poly 4-3. The Eagles will host a regional at O’Keefe Field in Bangor for the second time in four seasons. They have been led by senior Julia Gregiore with a .390 batting average (77 at bats) with two homeruns and 19 runs batted in. Junior Tori Exel (.347 in 124 AB with two homers and 34 RBI), and freshman Camryn King out of Nokomis High School (.338 in 65 AB with 13 RBI) have also contibuted to the Husson success. Graduate student Katie Raymond (22 RBI) and junior Kiara McLeod (15 RBI) have also chipped in offensively. Senior third baseman Kenzie Dore in 62 at bats has a .548 batting average with 34 hits that includes eight doubles, two triples, eight homeruns, and 42 RBI. Dore (Brewer High School) earned the NAC Tournament MVP by hitting four homeruns, a triple, walking three times, scoring four runs, and knocking in 12 runs in 10 plate appearances. The Eagles also have quite a tandem in the circle led by two Maine natives Danielle Masterson and Ana Lang. The freshman Lang (Searsport High School) is 18-2 on the season with a 1.18 earned run average, giving up just 18 earned runs in 107.0 innings. She also has 168 strikeouts in those 107.0 frames thrown, and opponents are hitting .197 off her. The sophomore Masterson (Hampden Academy) is 12-1 with an ERA of 1.58, allowing 21 earned runs in 93.1 innings. She also adds 113 strikeouts, and her opponents are hitting just .192. Husson is joined in the regional by Framingham State, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), and Williams College. The Rams from Framingham State (24-18) is the Eagles first round opponent on Thursday at 12 p.m. They are the champions out of the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC). The RPI Engineers (34-5-1) are an at-large team and runners-up of the Liberty League, while the Williams College Ephs (23-11) are the champions out of the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC).
Husson softball third baseman Kenzie Dore gets in position to play some defense during a North Atlantic Conference Tournament game on Friday, May 10 in Bangor. The Eagles will host an NCAA Regional later this week at O’Keefe Field. Photo by Chris Lessner
Husson baseball (23-10) will compete in the regional hosted by Eastern Connecticut State. The Eagles also ran through their NAC Tournament with a perfect 3-0 record, defeating SUNY Cobleskill 9-1 on Saturday in New York for their fifth straight conference title. Senior Jackson Curtis (Ellsworth High School) is the offensive leader with a .386 batting average, 10 homeruns, and 35 runs batted in. Freshman Matt Holmes (Bangor High) is hitting .354, with six homeruns, and 22 RBI. Senior Akira Warren (.339/one homer/24 RBI) and sophomore Cam Rendell (.338/one homer/16 RBI) have also chipped in. Juniors Matt Wallingford and Connor Abood, and senior Alex Smith lead the team in wins on the mound. Wallingford (1.50 earned run average) and Abood (5.30 ERA) both are 5-2 on the season, while Smith is 4-1 with a 2.93 ERA. Senior Ryan Robb has three saves. The first round opponent for Husson on Friday at 11 a.m. is the #1 team in the country Endicott College (41-2). The Gulls have won 18 in a row and defeated Western New England 9-1 in the Commonwealth Coast Conference Championship game. The hosts Eastern Connecticut State (29-13) got an at-large bid, and were the runners-up of the Little East Conference Tournament. The Warriors first round opponent is the SUNY New Palz Hawks (30-14), who are the champions of the State University New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC).
Husson baseball utility man Cam Rendell waits on a pitch in a NAC contest earlier this season against Thomas College in Bangor. The Eagles are headed to the Eastern Connecticut State NCAA Regional later this week, and will face the top team in the country Endicott in their opening game. Photo by Chris Lessner
The Colby College baseball team received an at-large bid and will head to the SUNY Cortland Regional in New York. The Mules (29-10) were knocked out of the NESCAC Tournament by Tufts University on Saturday. Colby has six players who are hitting .333 or better, led by senior Cole Palmeri who is at .416 with 11 homeruns and 38 runs batted in. Junior Ryan Grace leads the team with 42 RBI. Sophomore Derek Woods is 6-1 on the mound with a 2.25 earned run average, while sophomore Thomas Rioux is 5-0 with a 3.83 ERA. The Mules will face Salve Regina in their first round game on Friday. The Seahawks (33-8) earned the at-large as well, as they fell in the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Championship game to Babson. The hosts from SUNY Cortland (30-12-1) were the third team in the field to get that at-large bid. The Red Dragons lost to SUNY New Palz in the SUNYAC Championship. The final competitor in the regional is Washington & Jefferson College (32-12). They are the champion from the Presidents Athletic Conference (PAC).
Colby College pitcher Derek Woods gets ready to fire a pitch in a NESCAC quarterfinal game against Wesleyan on Saturday, May 4 in Waterville. The Mules earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament, and will travel to the SUNY Cortland Regional in New York later this week. Photo by Chris Lessner
Written by Chris Lessner
