Six Mariners Earn NECC Baseball Accolades
ATTLEBORO, Mass. – A total of six Mitchell College baseball players were honored by the New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) on Tuesday in the league's annual end-of-the-year awards.
Right-hander Tyler Shamas was named both NECC Pitcher and Rookie of the Year and was one of three Mitchell freshmen who earned all-conference first team honors. Classmates Neftali Arroyo and Nova Crespo joined Shamas on the first team, while sophomore Drew Doyle and junior Marc Dorsi earned spots on the all-conference second team. Freshman Al Jordan Johnson received all-conference honorable mention status to round out the honorees. All awards were determined by a vote of the conference's head coaches.
Mitchell was one of two schools to have six players recognized. Shamas, Arroyo and Crespo were also the only freshmen in the league named to the first team.
Shamas becomes the third Mitchell player to be named Pitcher of the Year, joining Jeremy Chapman (2010) and John Apostolo (2011), and the first to be tabbed Rookie of the Year for the sport of baseball since the conference's inception in 2009. He is also the fifth Mitchell student-athlete to be named a rookie of the year this season, joining Maxx Crowley (men's lacrosse), Zachary Simmons (men's tennis), Devonta Mosley (men's basketball) and Amanda Garcia (women's volleyball).
Shamas was one of two conference pitchers to go 6-0 in NECC play, recording a win against every conference team. The freshman led the league in strikeouts (30) and complete games (3) and ranked second in ERA (1.42). He also picked up a win and a save in the NECC Championship and was named to the all-tournament team.
Arroyo, an outfielder, played in all 18 league games and led the NECC with a .434 batting average. He also led the conference in runs scored (20) and on-base percentage (.537) and ranked among the top-five leaders in total hits (23), doubles (7), triples (2), homers (2), RBI (17), walks (10) and slugging (.755). He was a two-time NECC Rookie of the Week selection during the season and was named to the all-tournament team following the NECC Championship.
Crespo made 17 starts behind the plate for the Mariners in his debut season. He led the NECC in both home runs (3) and slugging (.795) and ranked among the top 10 in the conference in batting average (.410), on-base percentage (.477), doubles (6) and RBI (13). Crespo, a two-time NECC Rookie of the Week selection during the regular season, becomes the second Mitchell catcher to earn first team status.
Doyle turned in an impressive sophomore campaign, batting .344 with a league-best 18 RBI over 18 NECC contests. His nine doubles led all conference players and he ranked second in runs (20), fourth in triples (2) and fifth in slugging (.547). He was also flawless in the outfield and didn't commit an error in 21 total chances. Doyle earned conference honors for the second time in his career, as he was an honorable mention selection as a freshman last year.
Dorsi made an impact in his first season with the Mariners. The junior shortstop played in all 18 conference games and batted .362 with 12 RBI and 17 runs scored. His nine stolen bases were the third-most in the league, and he also ranked among the NECC leaders in runs, doubles (6), RBI, walks (12), slugging (.500) and on-base percentage (.451).
Johnson turned in a strong season as one of the top arms in Mitchell's rotation. He made six starts in conference play and notched a 5-1 record with a 2.78 ERA. He struck out 11 over 35.2 innings of work and went the distance in two contests, including a one-hit shutout against Elms on April 13. Johnson also picked up a win in Mitchell's first game at the NECC Championship.
The Mariners (23-14-1 overall) finished the season tied for first place in the NECC standings with a conference mark of 15-3. As the second seed in the NECC Championship, Mitchell battled to the title round before succumbing to Daniel Webster.
Mitchell will continue its season at the 2013 ECAC Division III New England Championship. The Mariners were one of seven teams selected for the regional tournament, which begins with first round play on Wednesday, May 8. Sixth-seeded Mitchell will play at third-seeded MIT at 3 p.m.
2013 New England Collegiate Conference Baseball Awards
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Kyle Brigham, Daniel Webster (So, 3B - Hudson, N.H.)
PITCHER OF THE YEAR
Tyler Shamas, Mitchell (Fr, P - Westbrook, Conn.)
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
Tyler Shamas, Mitchell (Fr, P - Westbrook, Conn.)
COACH OF THE YEAR
J.P. Pyne, Daniel Webster
TEAM SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD
Lesley University
FIRST TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE
Neftali Arroyo, Mitchell (Fr, OF - New Haven, Conn.)
Erick Bourdeau, Daniel Webster (So, 1B/OF - Alton Bay. N.H.)
Kyle Brigham, Daniel Webster (So, 3B - Hudson, N.H.)
Greg Dubela, Daniel Webster (Sr, P - Stratham, N.H.)
Josh Chasse, Daniel Webster (Sr, OF - Haverhill, Mass.)
Nova Crespo, Mitchell (Fr, C - New London, Conn.)
Rich Lizotte, Daniel Webster (Sr, SS - West Warwick, R.I.)
Tom Natoli, Becker (Sr, DH - Suffern, N.Y.)
Michael Perillo, Newbury (So, 2B/OF - Mansfield, Mass.)
Tyler Shamas, Mitchell (Fr, P - Westbrook, Conn.)
Todd Tompkins, Becker (Sr, OF/C - West Haven, Conn.)
SECOND TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE
Syed Ali, Daniel Webster (Sr, P - Dracut, Mass.)
Marc Dorsi, Mitchell (Jr, SS - West Haven, Conn.)
Drew Doyle, Mitchell (So, OF - Mystic, Conn.)
Chris Flanders, Becker (Jr, 1B - Londonderry, N.H.)
John Gosnell, Lesley (So, DH - Toronto, Canada)
Taylor Kapulka, Becker (Jr, C - Worcester, Mass.)
Curtis Lebeau, Elms (Jr, RHP - Auburn, Mass.)
Daniel McCormack, Elms (Fr, OF - Shelton, Conn.)
Tyler Plourd, Lesley (Jr, OF - Canton, Conn.)
Ryan Zahornasky, Newbury (Fr, 3B/P - Shelton, Conn.)
HONORABLE MENTION
Corey Armstrong, Southern Vt. (Sr, RHP/1B - Bennington, Vt.)
Zachary Dreher, Elms (Jr, C/INF - Naugatuck, Conn.)
Al Jordan Johnson, Mitchell (Fr, P - Lancaster, Calif.)
Ryan Genua, Lesley (Jr, P/OF - Prospect, Conn.)
Robert Parson, Lesley (So, OF - Commack, N.Y.)
