NCBWA PRESEASON NATIONAL AND REGIONAL POLLS
MANCHESTER, N.H. – The Southern New Hampshire University baseball team was voted third in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Division II East Region poll released late Wednesday, and is also receiving votes in the national top 25 poll. In addition, senior outfielder Brendan O'Brien (East Bridgewater, Mass.) and senior starting pitcher Derrick Sylvester (Franklin, N.H.) were selected preseason Second Team All-Region by the organization.
The Penmen received one first place vote and finished behind Franklin Pierce University, which grabbed five first place votes, and Wilmington (Del.) University, which picked up the other three first place nods. St. Thomas Aquinas College, University of New Haven, Pace University, Merrimack College, Southern Connecticut State University, Dominican (N.Y.) College and Bentley University round out the top 10. The NCBWA East Region poll and All-Region teams are selected by athletics communications professionals at schools in the East Region.
O'Brien, the center fielder and leadoff hitter for Southern New Hampshire last season, earned Northeast-10 Third Team All-Conference honors as he batted .286 with 20 runs batted in, while finishing 40-43 in stolen base attempts. In the field, O'Brien made just two errors in 106 chances. His 40 stolen bases a season ago were a single-season program record, and he enters the 2014 campaign as the all-time leader in stolen bases with 72, while his 148 hits place him 10th all-time.
Sylvester was overlooked for postseason honors in 2013 despite going 6-2 with a 1.34 earned run average and fanning 71 batters in 73.2 innings of work. The 6-6 righthander, who was named a Capital One Academic All-American, ranked sixth in Division II in ERA a season ago, and fanned a career-best 12 batters in a win over Felician late in the 2013 campaign.
Southern New Hampshire, which is ranked No. 27 in the Collegiate Baseball News preseason poll, is coming off a 35-19 2013 campaign that saw the Penmen qualify for and host the NCAA East Regional for the second straight season. SNHU qualified for the NE-10 Championship for the first time last season. The Penmen open the season on Thursday, February 20 against Caldwell College in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
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2014 National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association
East Region Preseason Poll
1. Franklin Pierce – 37-19 (5)
2. Wilmington (Del.) – 41-14 (3)
3. So. New Hampshire – 35-19 (1)
4. St. Thomas Aquinas – 39-14
5. New Haven – 34-16
6. Pace – 33-17
7. Merrimack – 30-19
8. Southern Connecticut – 20-21-1
9. Dominican (N.Y.) – 28-23
10. Bentley – 27-22
Also Receiving Votes: Stonehill (23-22), Felician (21-32), Adelphi (23-25-1), Dowling (22-21-1)
