2008 NESCAC Baseball Players of the Week

May 12, 2008
Player of the Week
Ryan Piacentini, Trinity
(Junior, 2B - Portland, Maine)
Piacentini had three multi-hit games as the Bantams remained undefeated on their way to claiming the 2008 NESCAC Baseball Championship. Piacentini batted a tournament-best .583 (7-for-12) and had an on-base percentage of .706 with two doubles, two home runs, five walks, five runs scored, seven RBIs, and a perfect 2-for-2 in stolen bases.

Pitcher of the Week
Jeremiah Bayer, Trinity
(Sophomore, RHP - Greenfield, Mass.)
Bayer pitched the undefeated Bantams past Tufts in game four of the 2008 NESCAC Baseball Championship on Saturday afternoon. Bayer, who has not allowed an earned run in his last three starts, struck out nine batters while scattering six hits and allowing one walk over seven innings pitched. He improved his record on the season to 7-0 in the 5-1 win.

May 5, 2008
Player of the Week
Al Mathews, Williams
(Sophomore, RF - North Hampton, N.H.)
Mathews had an impressive showing during a 3-0 week for the Ephs, hitting .636 (7-for-11) with an on-base percentage of .714. Mathews scored two runs and drove in five others, walked three times, and hit two doubles. Against MIT on Saturday, Mathews went 3-for-4 and drove in two runs in a 5-4 Williams win.

Pitcher of the Week
Jason Protano, Tufts
(Senior, RHP - Milford, Mass.)
Protano saved both games of a Tufts doubleheader sweep at Babson on Sunday. He allowed one hit and no runs while striking out two batters in a combined 1.2 innings. During game two, Protano came on in the 9th with runners at second and third with one out and finished off the Beavers for a 2-1 victory.

April 28, 2008
Co-Players of the Week
Erich Enns, Middlebury
(Sophomore, OF - Lansdale, Pa.)
Enns hit .500 (9-for-18) for the Panthers over five games, cranking five home runs and driving in 14 runs. He also scored nine runs and stole three bases. His three homers and eight RBIs in game two against Hamilton were a school record, as he batted .636 against the Continentals.

Kent Graham, Trinity
(Sophomore, 1B - Longmeadow, Mass.)
Graham batted .571 (12-for-21) during a 5-0 week for the Bantams, posting a .609 on-base percentage while scoring nine runs, collecting three RBIs, and recording two stolen bases. Graham als had a double and a home run for a slugging percentage of .762 and a fielding percentage of .961.

Pitcher of the Week
Jeremiah Bayer, Trinity
(Sophomore, RHP - Greenfield, Mass.)
Bayer improved to 6-0 on the season with a 2-0 week on the mound for the Bantams. Over 12.2 IP, Bayer allowed seven hits and no earned runs while striking out 14 batters and giving up only three walks. Bayer got the victory in relief on Saturday at Amherst, pitching 5.2 innings in a 7-5 11-inning win.

April 21, 2008
Player of the Week
James DiCosmo, Williams
(Senior, 2B - Fair Lawn, N.J.)
DiCosmo helped the Ephs to a 4-0 week on the diamond, which included a crucial three-game sweep of Hamilton. DiCosmo batted .688 from the lead-off spot for Williams, with an on-base percentage of .762, nine runs scored, three RBIs, five walks, two doubles, a triple, and four stolen bases.

Pitcher of the Week
Jeff Keenan, Amherst
(Freshman, RHP - West Hartford, Conn.)
Keenan had a win and a save against Middlebury last week to help the Lord Jeffs earn a spot in the 2008 NESCAC Baseball Championship. Over his two appearances totalling 6.2 IP, Keenan gave up six hits while striking out six and allowing a walk. His ERA for the week was 1.35.

April 14, 2008
Player of the Week
Mark Shimrock, Middlebury
(Junior, 1B - Lansdale, Pa.)
During a 4-0 week for the Panthers, Shimrock led his team from the dish with a .538 average, a .647 on-base percentage, and 1.077 slugging percentage. Shimrock had a pair of doubles, a triple and a home run while driving in six runs and scoring five. He also handled 31 chances in the field flawlessly.

Pitcher of the Week
Tim Kiely, Trinity
(Senior, RHP - Swampscott, Mass.)
Kiely improved to 6-0 over the weekend, as he allowed two runs - the first in 25 IP - and seven hits with no walks and 10 strikeouts during a 14-2 victory over Colby. Kiely has not surrendered a walk in 41.2 IP this season. The Bantams continued their best start in school history, improving to 23-0.

April 7, 2008
Player of the Week
Ryan Piacentini, Trinity
(Junior, 2B - Portland, Maine)
Piacentini went 7-for-13 (.538) over four games last week, with two doubles and a home run. He also scored six runs, had four RBIs, stole two bases, had two walks and recorded an on-base percentage of .667. In the field, Piacentini committed no errors for the Bantams. Trinity is off to its best start ever at 19-0.

Pitcher of the Week
Pat O’Donnell, Tufts
(Freshman, RHP - Worcester, Mass.)
O’Donnell pitched the Jumbos to victory on Sunday at Williams, allowing one unearned run through nine innings for a 2-1 win. He surrendered two hits and two walks while striking out seven batters. The outing improved O’Donnell’s record to 3-0 this season, while lowering his ERA to 0.95.

March 31, 2008
Player of the Week
Kyle McKay, Colby
(Junior, Catcher - Bedford, N.H.)
McKay batted .560 and was errorless behind the plate in helping the Mules start the season with an 8-2 record in Arizona last week. McKay had 14 hits in eight games, including four doubles, and walked four times while being hit by four pitches. He also threw out four runners attempting to steal.

Pitcher of the Week
Jeremiah Bayer, Trinity
(Sophomore, RHP - Greenfield, Mass.)
Bayer pitched 10 scoreless innings for the Bantams last week, striking out 16 batters while allowing only two hits. Against Springfield on Tuesday, Bayer fanned 12 while surrendering one hit through eight innings of work as Trinity went on to win 1-0 in extra innings. He earned the save in Trinity’s 4-2 win over Bowdoin on Sunday, striking out four while allowing one hit. 

March 24, 2008
Player of the Week
Kent Graham, Trinity
(Sophomore, 1B - Longmeadow, Mass.)
Graham batted .459 (17-for-37) with four doubles, three triples, a home run, 13 runs scored, and 19 RBIs as the Bantams posted their best-ever start to the season with 11 wins in Florida last week. Graham had eight RBIs in a 14-7 win over Babson on Wednesday, a new program record. He also had an on-base percentage of .703.

Pitcher of the Week
Jeff Keenan, Amherst
(Freshman, RHP - West Hartford, Conn.)
In two starts for the Lord Jeffs last week, Keenan posted a 1-0 record with a 0.90 ERA over 10.0 innings pitched. He allowed one earned run on six hits, holding opponents to a .162 batting average and one extra-base hit, while striking out nine and walking four.