Baseball Heads To Sunshine State For 12-Game Spring Break Slate, Chieftains Picked Sixth In Northeast-10 Pre-Season Poll

March 3, 2005

The 2005 Stonehill College baseball team welcomes back a solid core of returnees who helped lead the Chieftains to 28 victories, the second highest total in school history, and an impressive seventh-straight 20-plus win season a year ago. Head Coach Patrick Boen believes that this season’s key to success lies in a veteran pitching staff that led Stonehill to the nation’s fourth-best ERA (2.97) in 2004. With quality depth and plenty of experience returning this spring, Boen turns to senior co-captains Tim Flynn (Clifton Park, N.Y./Albany Academy) and Craig Audette (Raynham, Mass./Bridgewater-Raynham) for leadership on the diamond. According to Boen, “It’s always nice when you have leaders who are also your hardest workers and better players.”

Here is a look at how the Chieftains will fare by position in 2005:

PITCHING. Stonehill is one of few teams in college baseball to boast three lefties in a five-man rotation. Senior LHP Billy McLane (Plymouth, N.H./Plymouth) is a first-team all-Northeast-10 lefty, who was 6-2 with a 2.22 ERA in nine starts last spring. Senior LHP Matt Mitchell (West Roxbury, Mass./Boston Latin) and junior LHP Dean Chiusano (Clifton Park, N.Y./Shenendehowa) are also crafty southpaws with the ability to get big outs for the Chieftains. Mitchell put up three wins on a 2.75 ERA, while Chiusano picked up a pair of wins in 30 innings of work. Another top hurler will be junior RHP Billy Sittig (West Roxbury, Mass./Catholic Memorial) whose high-powered fastball led him to three wins and a team-leading 70 strikeouts. Sophomore Nick SantaBarbara (Middleton, Mass./Masconomet) rounds out the Chieftain rotation, after a great freshman year that saw him post a 3-1 record with a 1.71 ERA.

Junior Brian Nelson (Greenville, R.I./LaSalle) will be the Chieftain closer this spring after an all-Northeast-10 sophomore season in which he posted three wins and four saves and earned a spot on the New England all-star squad. Junior Joe Breen (Swampscott, Mass./Swampscott) will again be an extremely valuable reliever for the Chieftains, as he has the ability to work in short and long relief situations. Sophomore Chris Hermann (Chelmsford, Mass./Chelmsford) joins the team this year and will also provide Stonehill with valuable innings, while freshmen Mat Lindenmayer (Penfield, N.Y./Penfield) and Andy Hillier (Hanover, Mass./Hanover) also look to contribute this spring.

CATCHER. Sophomore Tom Aldrich (New Canaan, Conn./Trinity Catholic) takes over behind the plate this spring while freshman Matt Orr (Wilton, Conn./Wilton) will also log valuable innings.

INFIELD. Sophomore Matt Vaughn (Bow, N.H./Bow) will anchor the Chieftain middle infield at shortstop with his strength and quickness. Junior Sean Lawrence (New Rochelle, N.Y./Fordham Prep) is a solid-hitting first-baseman who hit .254 last year, while Audette is a speedy, leadoff hitter who stole 10 bases last spring and will play second. Sophomore Adam Pardo (Hanover, Mass./Hanover) batted .417 in fourteen games last fall and will compete with fellow sophomore Blake Marston (Concord, N.H./Derryfield School) for the job at third base. Marston will also serve as the Chieftains’ utility infielder. Stonehill will also utilize junior T.J. Piscatelli (Norfolk, Mass./Xaverian) at both first base and left field, while Aldrich is another speedy second baseman and freshman Ryan Halloran (Tyngsboro, Mass./Tyngsboro) will see time at short.

OUTFIELD. Flynn, who is considered one of the Northeast-10’s top defensive outfielders, will play centerfield again after an all-conference junior season that saw him bat bat .337 last year and steal 19 bases in 20 attempts. Junior Coley Lyons (West Roxbury, Mass./Catholic Memorial), who served as Stonehill’s utility player last year, has earned himself a spot in left field this spring, while sophomore Max Vigliotti (Stamford, Conn./Cheshire Academy) batted .315 in 54 at bats last spring to claim the right field job. Freshmen Dustin Crossman (Bridgewater, Mass./Bridgewater-Raynham) and David Fradette (Goffstown, N.H./Goffstown) will both seek to earn playing time in the Chieftain outfield.

SCHEDULE. Stonehill will open its 2005 campaign with five regional games in Fort Meyers, Fla., before beginning its 30-game league schedule. Included in the conference schedule are match-ups with nationally ranked Bryant, and perennial conference powers Southern Connecticut, UMass Lowell, Saint Anselm, Franklin Pierce and Saint Rose. Due to construction on campus this spring, the Chieftains’ home games will be spread throughout the northeast, including games at Campanelli Stadium in Brockton, Mass., home of the Can-Am League’s Brockton Rox.