Special thanks to Metamorphosis Landscape Design for sponsoring this year’s series
by Tucker Terranova
The St. Joseph’s Golden Eagles enter the 2025 season with high expectations and a target on their backs. After dominating the Skyline Conference in 2024 with an 18-2 regular-season record, they capped off their campaign by sweeping Farmingdale State in the championship, securing their third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance.
Despite their conference dominance, the Golden Eagles seek to advance in the NCAA Tournament for the first time—a challenge that remains a focal point in 2025. While many programs would be satisfied with three straight conference titles, St. Joseph’s is determined to take the next step.
Head Coach Tom Caputo, who has quickly built an impressive resume with two Skyline Championships, two ECAC Coach of the Year awards, and a D3Baseball.com Coach of the Region honor in just two seasons, believes past shortcomings will serve as motivation for his team this season.
“After making the NCAA Regionals the last three years and not advancing, I’m hoping our guys are hungry to take that next step,” Caputo told Axcess Baseball in an interview. “We know where we need to be better to advance. However, we need to stay focused and continuously prepare to have another strong regular season in hopes of making the Skyline Tournament.”
The Golden Eagles return the core of last year’s roster, including all six of their D3Baseball.com All-Region selections. Bringing back an experienced group of upperclassmen is often a formula for success in college athletics, and Caputo understands the significance of veteran leadership.
“This group has accomplished a lot as a team and has countless individual accolades,” Caputo said. “However, it doesn’t matter most times about the names on the roster or what you’re perceived to accomplish. What matters most is putting in good work every day, staying healthy, and making sure everybody understands what the goal is.”
Caputo highlighted Dante Morabito (Patchogue Medford), Mike Difillipo (Connetquot), John Lynch (Holy Trinity), Jack Kelly (Lindenhurst), James Maggio (Rocky Point), AJ Joya (Central Islip), and Pete Manger (Lindenhurst) as key players to watch this season.
Joya provided outstanding production on offense – batting .415 with a stellar 1.160 OPS over 130 at bats while driving in 36 runs.
Lynch, Kelly, and Manger—all All-Region selections—will be expected to step up this spring. In 2024, Lynch posted a .333/.462/.601 slash line while leading the team with six home runs and 38 RBIs. Kelly and Manger anchored the Golden Eagles’ rotation, each finishing with an ERA in the 3s.
The team also welcomes five transfers to bolster the roster.
- Dom LoFroscia
- Tyler Cooney
- John Moeller
- Lucas Quinlan
- Owen Shortell
With sky-high expectations, Caputo knows his team cannot dwell on past success. “Even if everything lines up, baseball is very unpredictable, and you never know what it has in store for you.”
The Golden Eagles’ title defense begins February 23 with a non-conference showdown at Montclair State.
