Well, we waited long enough to kick off the Power Rankings season. But, there really was no choice since LIU didn’t open up until this past week. Now that everyone is in action, it’s only right for the first edition. We will just stick to Division-I schools, since Queens hasn’t started so I can’t really analyze them yet and none of the Division-III schools have begun.
Without further ado, here’s how the local schools stack up.
1.Fordham (Record: 7-1, Trending UP)
The Rams won two of three from Farleigh-Dickinson this weekend, and the loss was a 16-inning marathon that happened to be the second longest game in school history! On Friday, they combined to throw a 1-hit shutout in a 9-0 win with Matt Mikulski showing why he’s one of the top southpaws around. There’s not too much to take away from the 16-inning loss, besides Garrett Crowley was outstanding in relief, striking out nine over six innings to keep the game tied. They did not get much going offensively, their two runs scored on a wild pitch and a sac fly and they left 18 men on base. They bounced back yesterday with a 6-2 win, Jake Guercio continued his hot hitting, with a game-tying RBI single and also a two-run single later in the game. E.Y. Brooks started and was terrific, but did not factor in the decision. Alex Henderson threw two shutout innings to get the win in relief. They are sitting pretty at 7-1, BUT, they will have a great challenge this week as they host Stony Brook on Wednesday and square off with St. John’s in a four-game set this weekend. So far, Guercio has led their offense with a .476 AVG, Nick Labella has driven in the most runs (7), but the real calling card is their team 2.05 ERA. They have struck out 82 batters over 79 innings.
2. St. John’s (Record: 7-3, Trending DOWN)
It’s hard to knock them after starting out 7-0, but it was certainly not a good weekend against Western Carolina. They were outscored in the three-game series 40-7 including allowing 21 runs on Saturday. They will look to get back on track this weekend against Fordham, although there is still 3 weeks until Big East play kicks off on April 9. They are hitting a very solid .287 as a team – led by David Williams at .333. They are averaging 7 runs per game although that is skewed by their series against SHU. Nick Mondak and Ian Murphy have led the rotation – specifically Mondak who has a 2.12 ERA.
3. Hofstra (Record: 6-5, Trending UP)
It was a great weekend for the Pride who bounced back by winning three of four against SHU – including a 27 run onslaught Saturday afternoon. I was in attendance on Friday, it was a very impressive victory as they came back after falling behind 5-0 in the second inning. Great job by Mark Faello to escape a bases loaded jam and stop the bleeding. He allowed the offense to come back which they did in the latter innings, Santino Rosso hit the game-tying home run and they also took advantage of some defensive miscues from SHU. I really like the backend of the bullpen with Chris Mott and John Mikolaicyk, who can help shorten games. Mikolaicyk has turned some heads with his 95 MPH fastball and vicious 80 MPH curve. Also, can anyone stop Austin Gauthier? We knew he was good, but he’s leading the team with 16 hits and 19 walks! That’s a Bonds-esque .603 OBP. Ryan Morash has been red-hot, and Rob Weissheier and Brian Goulard have come on lately. They will need that production to continue. They will host Rhode Island in a four-game set this weekend.
4. Stony Brook (Record: 4-5, Trending UP)
The Seawolves won two of three on the road this weekend so that is certainly a plus after they had dropped four in a row. They will travel to the Bronx to face Fordham on Wednesday and host Maine this weekend. So far, they just haven’t hit as evidenced by the team .230 AVG and averaging 3.7 runs per game. Johnny Decker, Evan Fox, John LaRocca and Chris Hamilton are all above .286, so they have gotten production from half the lineup essentially. The pitching staff has not been the culprit. They have allowed just 3.00 runs per game. Sam Turcotte (1.56 ERA) and Brian Herrmann (2.12 ERA) have led the way. That is the value of a senior-laden pitching staff. Once Milch finds his groove the rotation will truly be formidable. Remember California guys usually thrive once it warms up. Kyle Johnson has also emerged as a legit bullpen piece – he deserves credit for waiting his chance and succeeding in his third year.
5. LIU (Record: 1-0, Trending UP)
No fault of their own but it’s hard to have them above any team when they played one game and it was against a 1-3 team. With that said, EJ Exposito is a monster and deserves recognition for going out on Opening Day an crushing two HR – including a grand slam – and driving in 6 runs. He is back at LIU where he was originally committed before de-committing when LIU Post announced they would be merging with LIU Brooklyn. He was off to a phenomenal start at New York Tech before they dropped their NCAA Division-II affiliation. Exposito is a Divsion-I player, pro-prospect, so he’s where he belongs. They will host Farleigh-Dickinson again on Wednesday, I’m hoping to be there.
