Click Here For PDF Release
Bridgewater, NJ – Delaware State has made its mark on Northeast Conference (NEC) baseball in just its second season as an associate member.
The Hornets claimed two of the league’s major awards as sophomore second baseman
Evan Bouldin (Middletown, DE/Appoquinimink) garnered NEC Player of the Year honors and sophomore southpaw
Kieran Etwaru (Wellington, FL/Palm Beach Central) was named NEC Pitcher of the Year.
For the second straight year, Merrimack took home the NEC Rookie of the Year award as third baseman
Dawson Bryce (Taunton, MA/Taunton) earned the distinction.
Sacred Heart’s
Pat Egan became the first Pioneer head coach in 19 years to be named NEC Coach of the Year as he led SHU to its first-ever NEC regular season title in just his second year at the helm.
These major awards, along with the All-NEC first and second teams, were announced the day before the 2024 NEC Baseball Championship, to take place at Heritage Financial Park in Wappingers Falls, NY. The major award winners and All-Conference selections were voted on by the league’s head coaches.
Bouldin impressed all over the field this season. In the batter’s box, he landed among the best in the NEC in several statistical categories. His .378 batting average and 79 hits both ranked second in the conference. In 209 plate appearances, the Middletown, DE native scored 50 runs and added 16 doubles, which landed him at sixth and tied for third in the league, respectively. He slugged .555 and notched a .430 on-base percentage for a .985 OPS. On the mound, Bouldin totaled three saves for the Hornets. Bouldin is the third Delaware State player to earn a Player of the Year award and the first as a member of the NEC. Previous Hornets earned MEAC Player of the Year honors in 1999 (Mark Circo) and 2022 (Trey Paige).
Etwaru went a perfect 7-0 on the mound with six of his wins coming against NEC opponents. The sophomore finished the regular season with the third-best ERA (3.49) and the fourth-best opponent batting average (.233) in the league. In 69.2 innings of work, Etwaru struck out 72 batters with 58 of them coming in league play. He registered a 1.306 WHIP on the season to become the first Hornet to win a Pitcher of the Year award as a NEC associate member. Delaware State had two previous MEAC Pitcher of the Year winners in Dan Perkins (2009) and Garrett Lawson (2019). The Wellington, FL native was selected as NEC Pitcher of the Week on February 20.
Bryce made it known all year that he was going to be a difference maker for the Warriors in his first season. The six-time NEC Rookie of the Week was one of the best players in the conference as he finished in the top-five of eight different statistical categories. In 234 at-bats, Bryce led the league in runs scored (64), hits (85) and finished tied for first in doubles (17). The Taunton, MA native ranked third in slugging percentage (.637), RBIs (55) and home runs (15), while placing fifth with a .363 batting average and 1.055 OPS. Bryce, who was one of three freshmen who earned second team All-NEC honors, was named the NEC Player of the Week on March 26.
In his second year with the Pioneers, Egan helped make history in Fairfield, CT as SHU claimed its first NEC regular season crown. Egan led the Pioneers to a 33-21 overall record and a 25-8 conference mark. SHU enters the NEC Championship as the top seed in pursuit of the program’s fourth conference postseason title and first since 2015. Egan became just the second Pioneer head coach to win NEC Coach of the Year honors as Nick Giaquinto - who led the Pios to three conference championships - earned the distinction in 2005. With this award, Egan also became the second coach to win a NEC major award as a player as well as a coach. He earned NEC Pitcher of the Year honors in 2004 during his playing days with Quinnipiac.
AWARD WINNER HIGHLIGHTS
Merrimack had a league-high five players make All-NEC honors followed by Delaware State, LIU and Sacred Heart with four apiece. FDU and Wagner each placed three on the two All-Conference teams, while Central Connecticut claimed two spots and Norfolk State earned one.
FDU, LIU, Merrimack and SHU each had one repeat honoree.
The Warriors landed a NEC-high four first team nods, including graduate first baseman
Braydon Dolbashian (Johnston, RI/Bishop Hendricken), senior outfielder
Christian Gemelli (Carlisle, MA/Concord Carlisle), sophomore catcher
Matthew Chatelle (Stoneham, MA/Austin Prep) and sophomore designated hitter
Frankie Ferrentino (East Longmeadow, MA/Suffield Academy (CT).
Dolbashian led the league in slugging percentage (.707) and OPS (1.129), while his 17 homers were second. Gemelli ranked top-five in OPS (1.088), OBP (.456), BA (.368), runs scored (53) and hits (77). Ferrentino, the 2023 NEC Rookie of the Year and second team selection, finished at the top of the league in home runs (18) and ranked second in RBIs (62). Chatelle swatted 11 homers and posted a .996 fielding percentage from behind the plate, which was third in the conference. NEC Rookie of the Year award winner Bryce was the lone Warrior named to the All-NEC second team.
Joining Evan Bouldin and Etwaru on the first team for Delaware State was senior shortstop
Jancarlos Colon (Santa Isabel, PR/Highland). Colon registered a .359 batting average, .455 OBP, 49 runs, three triples and 21 stolen bases to land in the top-10 in the conference in each category. Senior first baseman
Krew Bouldin (Middletown, DE/Appoquinimink) was a slugger for the Hornets, finishing with a 1.013 OPS (eighth in NEC), .452 OBP (seventh) and 52 RBIs (fifth), as he received a second team nod. He was a two-time NEC Player of the Week this season.
LIU’s four All-Conference picks were split evenly between the two squads. Redshirt senior outfielder
Jake Mastillo (Moscow, PA/North Pocono (Lock Haven)), a second team selection a year ago, and senior righthanded pitcher
Garrett Yawn (Moorpark, CA/Moorpark (Moorpark College) were voted to the first team, while junior shortstop
Benjamin Fierenzi (Melbourne, Victoria, Australia/De La Salle College (AZ Western)) and junior catcher
Jack Power (Northampton, MA/Northampton) landed on the second team.
Mastillo led the NEC in RBIs (63) and ranked in the top-10 in both homers (14) and doubles (13). Yawn went 5-3 on the mound while tossing the second-most strikeouts (92) in the league. Fierenzi hit .381 in league play and his 129 assists were sixth in the NEC, while Power recorded a .399 OBP, slugged .577 and belted 10 homers against conference rivals.
Junior outfielder
Zack Kovalchik (Archbald, PA/Valley View) was the lone player from regular season champ Sacred Heart to garner first team honors. He drove in 45 runs and finished in the NEC top-10 in hits (66), doubles (13) and stolen bases (16).
The Pioneers’ three remaining nods came out of their pitching rotation as senior righthander
Jake Babuschak (Jobstown, NJ/Northern Burlington), freshman righty
Elijah Foster (Plainfield, NJ/Seton Hall Prep) and graduate closer
Jake McDowell (Brookfield, CT/East Catholic) all received second team nods. Now a two-time second team All-NEC pick, Babuschak won a league-best eight games on the mound, while ranking seventh in ERA (4.24), opposing BA (.251) and strikeouts (74). Foster went 5-1 and led the conference in hits allowed (41), doubles allowed (two) and tied for the top spot in opposing BA (.203). As a relief pitcher, McDowell posted a stellar 0.33 ERA and 0.89 WHIP vs. conference teams, and his four saves tied for fifth in the conference.
Making his third appearance on the All-NEC first team, senior third baseman
Hunter D’Amato (Coral Springs, FL/American Heritage School) led FDU to a second straight NEC Tournament appearance. He proved to be one of the league’s top hitters as his .362 BA, .450 OBP, 76 hits, 50 RBIs, 15 doubles, and 27 stolen bases placed him in the NEC top-10 for each category. Junior southpaw
Patrick Gardner (Staten Island, NY/Monsignor Farrell (College of Staten Island)) joined D’Amato on the first team. Gardner finished the regular season with a 7-2 mark. He led the NEC in opposing BA (.203) and was second in ERA (3.30) and wins (seven). His 87 strikeouts ranked third in the league.
Graduate outfielder
Justin Sierra (Bronx, NY/Monsignor Scanlon) earned a second team distinction for the Knights. He led the league in stolen bases (44) and finished top-10 in hits (67) and runs scored (48).
Wagner’s three All-Conference players were highlighted by two pitchers and a freshman. Graduate relief pitcher
Alec Burnett (Columbus, IN/Columbus East (Indianapolis)) garnered first team honors. His seven saves tied for second in the league, and all came in conference play, where he recorded a 1.99 ERA. Sophomore right-handed pitcher
Ryan Bilka (Latham, NY/Christian Brothers Academy) and freshman designated hitter
Diego Tavarez (Spotswood, NJ/Ranney) were both named to the second team. Bilka led the NEC in ERA (2.86) and runs allowed (23), while Tavarez batted .288, walked 30 times and recorded a healthy .434 OBP.
CCSU claimed two spots on the All-NEC second team through the likes of junior second baseman
Brady Short (Hurley, NY/Kingston) and junior outfielder
Gianno Merlonghi (Monroe, CT/Masuk). Short recorded the top batting average (.388) and OBP (.473) in the league along with the sixth-most hits (69). Merlonghi tied for second with a .378 BA and was named NEC Player of the Week on April 23.
In its second season as an associate member, Norfolk State earned its first-ever All-NEC selection. Sophomore outfielder
Justin Journette (Richmond, VA/Hermitage) was voted to the second team after recording a .619 slugging percentage, 1.010 OPS and 15 homers to rank in the NEC top-10 for each category. On March 19, Journette was selected NEC Player of the Week.
About The Northeast Conference
Now in its 42nd season, the Northeast Conference is an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association consisting of nine institutions of higher learning located throughout six states. Media coverage of the NEC extends to a number of the largest markets in the United States including New York (#1), Boston (#9), Hartford/New Haven (#33) and Providence (#53). Founded in 1981 as the basketball-only ECAC Metro Conference, the NEC has grown to sponsor 24 championship sports for men and women and now enjoys automatic access to 15 different NCAA Championships. NEC member institutions include Central Connecticut, Fairleigh Dickinson, LIU, Merrimack, Sacred Heart, St. Francis Brooklyn, Saint Francis U, Stonehill and Wagner. For more information on the NEC, visit the league’s official website official website (www.northeastconference.org) and digital network (www.necfrontrow.com), or follow the league on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, all @NECsports.