May 19, 2009

2009 Championship Central

Stony Brook, N.Y. - Stony Brook University's baseball team will go after its second straight conference title this week, when it heads to Endicott, N.Y. for the 2009 America East Championship. The third-seeded Seawolves will open their title defense against No. 2 Albany on Thursday at 4 p.m. The tournament will be hosted by top-seeded Binghamton at nearby Union-Endicott High School. Fans can listen to every Seawolves game locally on WUSB 90.1 FM or online at goseawolves.org. Click Here for Live Stats.

Stony Brook won nine of its final 12 games to finish the regular season at 29-21 overall and 14-10 in the America East. The Seawolves enter the tournament with one of the top offenses in the league after leading the America East in batting average (.346), runs scored (199), doubles (56) and home runs (35) during conference play. SBU hit 56 home runs in all during the regular season, its most long balls since the 2001 season.

Junior first baseman Robert Dyer (Selden, N.Y.) finished the regular season tied for the conference-lead with 14 home runs and third in the league with 47 RBI, while senior outfielder Michael Tansey (Valley Stream, N.Y.) led the conference with 18 doubles and ranked fifth with 11 home runs. Sophomore designated hitter Nick Thode (Huntington Station, N.Y.) hit a team-high .373, which ranked fourth in the America East, and has recorded a hit in 16 of the Seawolves last 17 games.

Dyer was at his best during conference play as he led the America East with 10 home runs while ranking second with 31 RBI. Senior Brian Witkowski (Lindenhurst, N.Y.) hit nine home runs during league play in addition to leading the conference with 71 total bases. Sophomore Chad Marshall (Paris, Ontario) had a conference-best 40 hits during America East play for the Seawolves, while Thode, senior Steven Mazzurco (Selden, N.Y.) and Witkowski ranked second, third and fourth, respectively.

The Seawolves pitching staff ranked third in the America East during the regular season and led the conference with 329 strikeouts. Senior Mike Errigo (Bayside, N.Y.) went 2-1 with a 3.53 ERA during conference play, with the ERA mark ranking fourth in the America East. Freshman right handers Nick Tropeano (West Islip, N.Y.) and Tyler Johnson (Chatsworth, Calif.) each recorded five victories in their first season with the Seawolves. Johnson hurled a conference-best two shutouts while Tropeano ranked fourth with four complete games.

SBU split its four-game set with Albany during the regular season. The teams have met just twice in the America East tournament play, with Albany winning the last meeting, 5-2, in 2007. Stony Brook defeated the Great Danes in 2006, 5-3. The Seawolves advanced to the finals in its only other appearance as the No. 3 seed in 2003. The Seawolves are looking to become the first repeat champions since Maine won it in 2005 and 2006. Stony Brook is also making its fourth straight tournament appearance, the longest such active streak in the league.

A victory at this week's tournament will give the Seawolves their third straight 30-win season and their eighth under head coach Matt Senk. SBU's next win will also be a milestone victory for Senk as he will become the first coach in school history and the third in America East history to win 500 games.