NJAC Tournament Championship Bracket
NJAC Tournament Central
PITMAN, N.J. – A trip to the finals is on the line when the second-seeded William Paterson baseball team (25-6, 14-4 NJAC) hosts sixth-seeded The College of New Jersey (11-15, 8-10 NJAC) in the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Tournament semifinal round this weekend. The best-of-three series begins with a doubleheader Friday, May 14, at 12:00 p.m. If necessary, a single game will be played Saturday, May 15, at WP at 2:00 p.m.
HOW TO FOLLOW THE GAMES
WHERE
- Jeff Albies Field; Wayne, N.J.
THE FORMAT
- William Paterson will be the home team for Friday's first game, and the Lions will be the home team for Game Two. If a third game is necessary, the Pioneers will be the home team on Saturday.
WHAT'S AT STAKE
- The WP/TCNJ winner will advance to the final round against the winner of the Rowan/Kean semifinal series. The higher seed will host the same best-of-three series format, conducted on Friday and Saturday, May 21 and 22. The winner will receive the NJAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
WP IN THE NJAC TOURNAMENT
- The Pioneers are seeking their 13th conference title (1959, 1982, 1983, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997).
SCOUTING THE No. 20 PIONEERS
- Ranked 20th nationally by D3Baseball.com/National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA), William Paterson is 25-6 overall and 14-4 in league play. The Pioneers have won nine of their last 10 and are 17-3 at home this season.
- WP swept seventh-seeded Rutgers-Camden (9-18, 7-11) in the NJAC Tournament quarterfinals, 6-2 and 16-3, May 7.
- Senior outfielder Frankie Deane (Dumont, N.J./Dumont) (31-30 GP-GS, .403, 8 2B, 2 3B, 1 HR, 26 RBI, 35 R), senior catcher Dylan Habeeb (Wayne, N.J./Wayne Hills) (31-31 GP-GS, .343, 11 2B, 3 3B, 6 HR, 35 RBI, 33 R) and junior utility player Steve Yelin (River Edge, N.J./River Dell Regional) (31-31 GP-GS, .386, 16 2B, 1 3B, 4 HR, 40 RBI, 40 R) garnered spots on the All-NJAC First Team.
- Junior third baseman Chris Liriano (Bergenfield, N.J./Bergenfield) (27-26 GP-GS, .294, 5 2B, 4 3B, 1 HR, 21 RBI, 24 R) and sophomore starting pitcher Darmany Rivas (Bloomfield, N.J./Bloomfield) (9-7 GP-GS, 7-0, 2.33 ERA, 2 SV, 49 K, 46.1 IP, .194 OPP AVG) were voted to the All-NJAC Second Team.
- Junior outfielder Adrian Alarcon (Belleville, N.J./Belleville) (23-22 GP-GS, .333, 4 2B, 2 3B, 21 RBI, 19 R), senior shortstop Matt Ferrara (Paramus, N.J./Paramus) (31-31 GP-GS, .361, 12 2B, 3 3B, 3 HR, 43 RBI, 36 R) and senior first baseman Carson Weis (River Vale, N.J./Pascack Valley Regional) (31-30 GP-GS, .317, 7 2B, 3 3B, 26 RBI, 28 R) were honorable-mention all-conference selections.
- Seniors Jack DeFouw (Scotch Plains, N.J./Scotch Plains-Fanwood) (9-9 GP-GS, 6-1, 2.78 ERA, 41 K, 55.0 IP) and Jason Palmeri (Glen Rock, N.J./Glen Rock) (8-8 GP-GS, 4-3, 5.98 ERA, 31 K, 40.2 IP) have anchored the starting rotation with Rivas, and junior Matt Lawler (Linwood, N.J./Mainland Regional) (12-1 GP-GS, 3-0, 4.58 ERA, 1 SV, 25 K, 35.1 IP) has seen the most action out of the bullpen.
SCOUTING THE LIONS
- Sixth-seeded The College of New Jersey is 11-15 overall and 8-10 in league play, advancing after a 12-7, 8-15, 7-3 quarterfinal series upset at third-seeded Ramapo (13-10, 11-7 NJAC) May 7-9.
- Freshman designated hitter Ryan Goodall (23-17 GP-GS, .449, 5 2B, 3 3B, 6 HR, 26 RBI, 22 R) was the NJAC Rookie and Player of the Year.
- Sophomore Ben Amon (8-6 GP-GS, 1-2, 4.06 ERA, 1 SV, 33 K, 37.2 IP), senior Joseph Felipe (5-4 GP-GS, 1-1, 5.74 ERA, 23 K, 26.2 IP) and freshman Jordan Gray (5-4 GP-GS, 1-1, 3.70 ERA, 16 K, 24.1 IP) pace the starting rotation, and senior David Stec (11-0 GP-GS, 1-1, 3.80 ERA, 2 SV, 23 K, 23.2 IP) leads the bullpen.
MEETINGS THIS SEASON
- William Paterson swept a regular-season doubleheader at TCNJ April 24, 6-4 and 11-10 (11 innings).
FOLLOW THE PIONEERS
