Weather caused many more cancellations this week (what else is new?). But there was still plenty of games that will factor into this week’s Power Rankings.
In this edition, we are going to do things slightly different considering the difficulty in differentiating teams with less than 10 games under their belt. I will separate teams into five tiers based on their current record, momentum and likelihood of turning their seasons around.
Tier 1- The Elite
- St. Johns (Record: 14-2, Stock UP)
Another great week for the Johnnies, winning both of their games. They are hitting .323 as a team with a 2.62 ERA. John Valente is batting .486 and is headed towards an All-American season.
Tier 2- Trending Up
2. Adelphi (Record: 8-6, Stock UP)
Great offensive week down in Florida despite the 5-0 loss to Lynn yesterday. They have gotten great offensive seasons from Eric Hassell, Brett Malm and Zack Levinson. Aside from his loss yesterday, the pitching staff has been led by T.J.Santiago who now has a 0.92 ERA and 23 Ks through 19.0 IP.
3. Fordham (Record: 6-9, Stock UP)
They swept Sacred Heart this weekend and it’s exactly what they needed. Jimmy Murphy (14 Ks) and Reiss Knehr (11 Ks) both fired gems in the DH on Friday. They finished off the sweep with a smooth 8-1 win. They look to have turned a corner.
4. Old Westbury (Record: 6-5, Stock UP)
What an offensive week for the Panthers. They put up 24 runs on Tuesday, eight on Thursday and 11 on Friday. They have seven games this week and can really create some momentum now.
Tier 3- Treading Water
5. LIU Post (Record: 8-7, Stock DOWN)
They were shutout twice today, including being no-hit by Sam Walsh. They split yesterday’s DH, both very close games. Their 10-day layoff definitely was not what they wanted, as it halted their momentum. Fortunately, the combination of Jake DeCarli and Noah Lorenzo has been very strong and they have enough offense to get hot again.
6. St. Joseph’s (Record: 3-2, Stock EVEN)
They lost on a walk-off and won on a walk-off today. Their victory included a five-run rally in the seventh inning with Dan Campanelli providing the exclamation point with the RBI single. They are hitting .321 as a team, led by Paul Britt (9-for-16) and Matt Burnett (6-for-16). They have a busy week coming up in Florida, they will be looking to come back home on a hot streak.
7. Queens (Record: 5-4, Stock EVEN)
They did not play this week due to the weather.
Tier 4
8. Nassau CC (Record: 3-3, Stock UP)
It was a good week for them. Jimmy Murphy and Joe Minucci both threw two-hitters. The offense was led by Nick Marino, Elijah Tavarez, Mike Siklas and Mike Perez.
9. Maritime (Record: 5-6, Stock EVEN)
We covered the DH today. Tyler Stuart had a no-hitter until the sixth inning with a 5-0 lead and they promptly allowed eight runs and were defeated 8-6. They responded nicely with a win behind Travis Bruinsma in the second game. With their pitching depth, they should surprise a lot of people this year.
10. Stony Brook (Record: 5-12, Stock DOWN)
They went 1-3 this week on the west coast. They played some high-quality of talent, fortunately, they were able to win today thanks to a gem by Brian Herrmann. The freshman has been outstanding this year (2.25 ERA over 24.0 IP). They have been led offensively by Toby Handley, Casey Baker and Michael Wilson but have been struggling outside of that trio.
11. Suffolk CC (Record 2-3, Stock EVEN)
They did not play this week due to the weather
12. Farmingdale (Record: 3-6, Stock DOWN)
Chris Reilly has really been swinging a hot bat (9-for-18) to start the season as well as freshman Justin Norcini (7-for-14). Matt Seelinger has continued to be a strikeout machine (16 Ks through 9.1 IP).
Tier 5-Crossroads
13. Molloy (Record: 3-11, Stock DOWN)
I believe that they will rebound because they have too much talent to continue at this rate. They will get hot very soon but it is very surprising that they are off to this start. Aside from Elijah Leerdam, the offense has not gotten going as they are hitting just .241 as a team. They have also struggled with run prevention outside of Ron Bauer‘s 3.38 ERA.
14. NYIT (2-13, Stock DOWN)
This will be a crucial week for the Bears as they look to chip away at .500.
