CAA Baseball Weekly Awards - Feb. 20
Rob Washburn
CAA BASEBALL WEEKLY REPORT - FEB. 20
RICHMOND, Va. (February 20, 2023) – Northeastern junior catcher/designated hitter
Jimmy Sullivan received CAA baseball Player of the Week honors, while Charleston senior right-hander
Ty Good and Elon sophomore left-hander
Shea Sprague shared CAA Pitcher of the Week accolades. UNCW freshman first baseman
Tanner Thach was chosen as the CAA Rookie of the Week.
CAA Baseball Player of the Week
Jimmy Sullivan, Northeastern – Jr., C/DH – East Hampton, Conn./Choate Rosemary Hall
Sullivan batted .417 (5-13) with a homer, three runs scored and four RBI’s as Northeastern won two-of-three at defending SoCon champ UNCG last weekend. The UMass Lowell transfer went 2-for-4 as the DH in each of the Huskies’ first two games, including Friday’s 11-0 victory. He moved to catcher on Sunday and smacked a three-run homer in a 12-9 series-clinching win.
CAA Baseball Co-Pitcher of the Week
Ty Good, Charleston – Sr., RHP – Rock Hill, S.C./South Pointe
Good allowed just one hit over 5.0 shutout innings and fanned six in Charleston’s 5-2 victory over #14 Virginia Tech last Friday. The senior gave up a single to open the game, but didn’t allow a runner past first base over his final four innings of work. He recorded a strikeout to strand a runner on third in the first and then struck out the side in the second.
CAA Baseball Co-Pitcher of the Week
Shea Sprague, Elon – So., LHP – Hanover, Mass./Boston College HS
Sprague scattered four hits over 6.0 shutout innings and struck out three in Elon’s 2-0 triumph over SEC member Kentucky last Friday. The sophomore lefty gave up just four singles and helped the Phoenix record its first Opening Day shutout since 1992 and first shutout of a current SEC program since 1916. Sprague forced two double plays, had two pickoffs and didn’t allow a runner to reach second base.
CAA Baseball Rookie of the Week
Tanner Thach, UNCW – Fr., 1B – Belvidere, N.C./Perquimans County
Thach excelled in his collegiate debut, batting .500 (5-10) with a homer, five runs scored and six RBI’s in UNCW’s 2-1 weekend. The freshman first baseman belted a three-run homer in his first at-bat and finished 2-for-5 with five RBI’s in a 14-10 win over Ohio last Friday. He was also 2-for-4 with two runs scored in a victory over Navy and added a hit against #19 Virginia.
Conference notes:
SOLID START TO THE SEASON: It was a solid start to the season for CAA baseball teams. League newcomer North Carolina A&T swept a three-game series over Maryland-Eastern Shore, Northeastern won two-of-three over defending SoCon champ UNCG, and UNCW went 2-1 in the Hughes Bros. Challenge, with its only loss to #19 Virginia. Last Friday, Charleston knocked off #14 Virginia Tech, 5-2, and Elon blanked Kentucky, 2-0, for its first shutout win over a current SEC program since 1916.
CHARLESTON (1-2, 0-0 CAA): The Cougars opened the season with a 5-2 victory over #14 Virginia Tech last Friday. Outfielder Khyree Miller belted a grand slam in the 6th that put Charleston ahead to stay. Ty Good held the Hokies to one hit and fanned six over 5.0 shutout innings and William Privette earned his first save by retiring all six batters he faced with four strikeouts. Tyler Sorrentino batted .333 in the series and scored three runs. Trey Pooser limited VT to one earned run and five hits over 5.2 frames on Saturday.
DELAWARE (0-3, 0-0 CAA): The Blue Hens were swept at 4th-ranked Ole Miss last weekend. UD got a strong pitching performance from Joey Silan on Friday, holding the Rebels to one hit over 4.1 shutout innings out of the bullpen and striking out three. Offensively, Bryce Greenly smacked a solo homer and was one of four Blue Hens with two hits in the series. Andrew Amato delivered a two-run double in Sunday’s contest.
ELON (1-2, 0-0 CAA): The Phoenix picked up a season-opening 2-0 victory against SEC member Kentucky last Friday. Lefty Shea Sprague (1-0) gave up just four hits over 6+ innings and Liam Dibagian and Ben Simon retired nine straight batters to end the game. Tanner Holliman hit a solo homer in the UK win and Cole Reynolds also drove in a run. Vandy transfer Kenny Mallory, Jr. had three hits in the series in his Elon debut. Freshman Ryan Sprock got the start on Sunday and allowed one run over 4.0 innings with six strikeouts.
HOFSTRA (0-4, 0-0 CAA): The Pride dropped four games at Florida Gulf Coast last weekend. Outfielder Brian Morrell recorded a hit in all four games and Nick Marrero batted a team-best .571 with a hit in all three games he played in. Zach Bailey homered and drove in four at FGCU and Will Kennedy also went deep in the series. Ryan Morash saw his 16-game hitting streak dating back to last season come to an end in Sunday’s finale.
MONMOUTH (0-0, 0-0 CAA): The Hawks were swept in a three-game series at Florida Atlantic last weekend. Infielder Austin Denlinger batted a team-best .500 (7-14) and recorded multiple hits in all three games. Ben Winstead homered in the final two games of the series, while Monmouth also got long balls from Phil Stahl and Harry Padden. The Hawks’ pitching staff got solid relief efforts from Dante Ciaramella, who gave up one hit over 3.0 innings, and Nick Tamburro, who surrendered one hit in 3.1 frames.
NORTH CAROLINA A&T (3-0, 0-0 CAA): The Aggies opened the season with a three-game weekend sweep of Maryland-Eastern Shore. A&T batted .345 as a team. Anthony Hitchings led the way with a .500 average from the leadoff spot, including a pair of 3-hit games. Cort Maynard batted .462 and scored six runs. Canyon Brown hit .444 with a homer and a team-high five RBI’s, highlighted by a walk-off RBI double in the 10th on Sunday that gave A&T a 5-4 win. Daniel Carter (1-0) gave up just two runs over 5.0 innings and fanned nine.
UNCW (2-1, 0-0 CAA): The Seahawks went 2-1 in the Hughes Bros. Challenge, beating Ohio (14-10) and Navy (8-0), before falling to #19 Virginia (7-0). Freshman Tanner Thach hit a three-run homer in his first collegiate at-bat against OU and batted .500 with five runs scored and six RBI’s for the weekend. Trevor Marsh hit .385 with a double, triple and homer over the three games. Jacob Shafer fired 7.0 shutout innings vs. Navy, allowing only five singles and tying his career-high with eight strikeouts.
NORTHEASTERN (2-1, 0-0 CAA): The Huskies took two-of-three from defending SoCon champ UNCG. NU hit .333 in the series, with newcomer Jimmy Sullivan batting .417 with four RBI’s. Danny Crossen (.400, 2 2B) and Mike Sirota (.375, 4 RBI’s) returned to action after dealing with injuries last season, and freshman Carmelo Musacchia batted .385 in three starts at shortstop. Four pitchers, led by ace Wyatt Scotti (1-0), combined on a 4-hit shutout in Friday’s opener. Freshman Charlie Walker threw 3.0 scoreless innings at UNCG.
STONY BROOK (0-3, 0-0 CAA): The Seawolves dropped all three games on their West Coast trip to Cal State Northridge. Matt Brown-Eiring recorded a hit in each game and batted .400 with a double and four runs scored. Shane Paradine homered and drove in three and Derek Yalon also contributed three RBI’s. Making his first start since last February, Nick DeGennaro allowed three hits and two earned runs over 5.0 innings and struck out three on Sunday. SBU also got 3.0 scoreless innings from Brandon Lashley on Saturday.
TOWSON (0-4, 0-0 CAA): The Tigers suffered three losses to USC Upstate and lost a narrow 4-3 decision to Southern Illinois to start the season. Catcher John Cristino got off to a hot start, batting .313 with a CAA-best three homers and five RBI’s. He went deep twice and drove in all three runs against SIU. Casey Bishop recorded a hit in all four games and batted a team-best .333. Nate Nabholz didn’t allow a hit and fanned five in 3.0 innings of work against USC Upstate on Saturday, while Shayne Clowar threw 3.0 scoreless frames vs. SIU.
WILLIAM & MARY (1-2, 0-0 CAA): The Tribe battled well at Mercer, winning 6-2 on Saturday but suffering a pair of one-run losses. W&M’s three starting pitchers - Carter Lovasz, Nate Knowles and Tom Mayer - combined to allow only one earned run over 9.0 innings with 11 strikeouts. Cory Wall and Rojo Prarie each recorded six strikeouts in three shutout frames from the bullpen. Offensively, Ben Williamson and Nick Lottchea each batted .417 at Mercer, while Cole Ragone homered twice and drove in four.