Stonehill picked sixth in preseason East Region poll

Michael White

EASTON, Mass. (February 1, 2012) – Stonehill College senior outfielder/pitcher Michael White (Lisbon, N.H./Lisbon Regional) has been selected to the preseason All-America Second Team as an utility player by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA), while the Skyhawks have been picked sixth overall in the NCBWA's preseason East Region poll.

White has also been named to the NCBWA's preseason All-East Region First Team, again as an utility player, by the regional committee, which also selected the preseason East Regional rankings. Southern Connecticut State University, who won the Northeast-10 (NE-10) regular season title and also made the deepest run in the Division II College World Series of any conference team last season, is ranked first in the East Region poll receiving nine number one votes for 90 points. The Owls also appear on the NCBWA National Top 25 poll tied at sixth with the University of Tampa (Fla.). Franklin Pierce University ranks second (81 points) while reigning NE-10 champion Adelphi University is tied for third with UMass Lowell (64 points). Wilmington (Del.) University stands in at fifth place (53 points) with Dowling (N.Y.) and Stonehill tied for sixth place after receiving 29 points each.

White earned a pair of regional honors last season including second team accolades from both Daktronics and the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA). White was also selected to play in the 37^th annual New England Intercollegiate Baseball Association (NEIBA) All-Star Game, earned NE-10 All-Conference First Team accolades and was named to the Tino Martinez Award "Watch List" by College Baseball Lineup (cblineup.com).

White started all 48 games for Stonehill last spring, batting .331 (59-for-178) with 34 runs scored, nine doubles, three triples, three home runs, 26 RBI and a team-best 24 stolen bases on 26 attempts. White slugged .466 and posted a .405 on-base percentage while committing just one error in 86 chances (.988) in the field. He also made nine appearances (eight starts) on the mound and was 3-3 with a 2.60 earned run average, 50 strikeouts and just 11 walks in 52.0 innings, holding opposing batters to a .211 batting average.

On the mound in 2011, White struck out 50 batters and compiled a 2.60 ERA.

White hit .368 (32-87) with runners on base, including .383 (23-60) with runners in scoring position, converted 70.6-percent (12-of-17) of his chances with a runner on third and less than two outs and reached base on 37.8% (14- 37) of his opportunities when leading off an inning. He posted a team-best 19-game hitting streak during the season, finished with 15 multiple hit games and four multi-RBI outings. In 25 NE-10 games, White hit .326 (31-95) with 18 runs scored, six doubles, two triples, a home run, 17 RBI and eight stolen bases.

White has started 88 of the 97 games he has played over his three year career at Stonehill. He is a .317 (105-for-331) career hitter with 47 runs scored, 14 doubles, three triples, four home runs, 46 RBI and 37 stolen bases. In 25 career appearances (19 starts) on the mound, White has posted a 9-6 record and a 2.89 earned run average with one save, 110 strikeouts and just 26 walks over 140.1 innings. He earned All-Tournament team honors at the 2010 NCAA II East Regional in New Haven, Conn.

Stonehill posted a 30-18 record overall in 2011 and a 13-12 mark in NE-10 play. In the first round of the NE-10 Championships, the Skyhawks fell to Franklin Pierce University, 3-2, clipping Stonehill's chance to repeat as conference championships after winning the title in 2010. The Skyhawks finished the 2011 season ranked eighth in the final NCBWA East Regional poll and fourth in the final NEIBA Division II rankings.

Stonehill is set to open its 2012 season on Friday, February 24, at the Ripken Experience Northeast Challenge in Myrtle Beach, S.C., at 10 a.m. with a doubleheader slated against Felician College. The Skyhawks first home game is scheduled for Thursday, March 29 versus Assumption College at 3:30 p.m.

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