looking at the all american team... steve nickel?? jason simone?? looking at the numbers... nickel had better numbers then almost all the 3rd basemen listed... simone had numbers just as good as the other outfielders. I would like to see how these teams got chosen. Gardner and June also could have easily been chosen as well... I know it is not always about the numbers... but those 4 players were the heart of the Cortland offense. Hopefully these 4 keep up the great work and put up big numbers at the world series, lets go c-state - run the table.

Alright, so I have been sitting back and watching as Truth went on about Plattsburgh... and I have watched as everyone argued with Truth and what not. Well, I 100% agree with Truth. He is absolutely correct about Plattsburgh. Having a good record against no one doesn't mean anything. Yes, he can do whatever he wants to try to promote his team... but what kind of defense will he have when they ask why his team is deserving? Because they had a good record? What about conference play and the conference tournament? Look at what Joe Brown does at Cortland, he tries to schedule the toughest games for his team to prepare them for SUNYAC play. I remember a few years back Cortland was down in Florida and JB tried playing then #1 Otterbein (I think thats how you spell it) but Otterbein did not want to play Cortland. Coach Doorey could very well have done the same. The schedule is never set in stone and just because they are far away from other teams, doesn't mean they can't go out and play someone. If you want to get your team on the national stage then you do what it takes to make that happen. Take a 4 hour trip to play a solid team, show them what you are about and if you prove to be a competitive team then maybe the following year that team will try to schedule you because you are a worthy competetor. Playing St. Michaels and playing the Wisconsin State Chastis jv team isn't going to make you a better or improve your overall ranking when it comes down to fighting for a pool C bid, if you lose your conference tournament - which they obviously did.

i dont think manhattanville will head to auburn. they will most likely go to the kean regional.  i think a pool c from the njac or little east will head to ny, with the other  4 teams being cst brockport farmingdale and rochester/clarkson

A lot of talk about the Cortland staff and not having an overall #1 and I do strongly agree with that. However, what Cortland lacks in having a #1 they make up for by having a ton of solid, very strong, number 2's - all who would be easy number 1's on any other team aside from Oneonta. Travis Ratliff, Adam Brown, Mike Assman, Scott Hartling, Mike Mahay, Kris Gentzke - any one of these could be a number 1 at another school (aside from Oneonta). Matt Tone and Jimmy Dougher were great pitchers that the staff was centered around, however know you have a staff with a bunch of 1a starters. Ratliff and Mahay are 2 great lefties. Brown and Hartling are the power rightys. Assman and Gentzke, are the rightys who mix it up (both still with good velocity, I don't think as hard as Brown or Hartling, I could be wrong though). Oh yeah and Cortland has just an insane lineup. Speed, Power, Contact... Simone has struck out like 3 times or something this season - that is ridiculous. Matt June 5 times. Nickel has 8 home runs, Gardner and Dimino with 5. Both Diminos are double digit in steals, along with Simone. Cortlands bullpen has been alright as well. Hourihan, DeRosa, DeGroat, Southworth have put up good numbers. Also, Mahay, Hartling, Gentzke coming out of the pen isn't too bad either.

1. Cortland 9-1, locked a playoff spot. 1 win and they once again host SUNYACS (was there really any question?)
2. Plattsburgh 5-3, Cortland (2), Oswego (2)
3. Brockport 4-5, Fredonia (2), New Paltz (1)
4t. New Paltz 3-4, Oneonta (2), Fredonia (2), Brockport (1)
4t. Oneonta 3-4, New Paltz (2), Oswego (2), Fredonia (3-3 tied after 8)
6. Fredonia 2-5 Brockport (2), New Paltz (2), Oneonta (3-3 tied after 8)
7. Oswego 2-6 Plattsburgh (2), Oneonta (2)

Interesting games left. Looks like it could be the same 4 as always... New Paltz could play spoiler though. It will be tough to sweep Oneonta with Filak throwing one of the games... but it isn't impossible. I am pulling for New Paltz, I would love to see what they can do in the playoffs with 3 freshman who all throw well and a stud lefty. It will be a tough road to Wallace Field, but it is a very real possibility.

First off, congrats to Chris Chismar from New Paltz. Unbelievable performence. I don't care at what level you play... 20 strikeouts is unreal. That is just complete domination. With only a few games left in SUNYAC play, the field is still open aside from Cortland locking a playoff spot. I saw the Cortland/New Paltz game this weekend. First time seeing New Paltz play this year and I will tell you what, that team is a much better New Paltz team then previous years. They went with 2 freshman pitchers against Cortland and they both threw real well. Had New Paltz cleaned it up on the defensive aspet of the game then it may be a different outcome. A bunch of big errors really hurt them. Judson didn't seem to have it this Sunday, I didn't see the game but he has been a staple in that rotation and you expect him to bounce right back. The NP line up had a few good sticks. One to point out was Boetcher. He can swing it. Cortland went at him real tough it seemed. Bringing in Southworth (in the 7th) to face him with the bases loaded, 2 outs, was a big spot and a bold statement by Joe Brown as to what he thinks of Boetcher and how much confidence he has in Southworth. Southworth fell behind but came back with a good 3-1 fastball that Boetcher just missed and wound up popping out. He swung it well all day even though the stats don't show it (3/10). He was on every fastball and every offspeed. Cortland just capitalized on every NP mistake, which is what good teams do. Each error by NP cost them dearly. The Cortland starters (Brown and Ratliff) threw well enough to get by, but NP kept the pressure on them. In the end it came down to defense and bullpen. Cortland with the clear edge. Nickel and Simone just absolutely rip, enough said.

Cortland beats up on Keuka today. At one point they were down 2-0... crazy. Brockport SWEEPS Oneonta. Oneonta doesn't pitch Filak?! Filak hasn't thrown in 2 weeks . . . anyone with any information on him?? Weather didn't really cooperate this weekend but hopefully next weekend will be better.

Ask the Old Westbury coach... 'monumental' win for a program that has not had much success.... someone lost the key to the lights after Cortland tied the game up on Nickels home run.

On a side note... Late in the 1st game Anderson Gardner pulled up short scoring on a single, it looked like a pulled hamstring or even a lower leg injury. He was not catching, but rather DHing... interesting thta he wasn't catching and hasn't been catching and now this injury which kept him out of game 2.

Cortland wins 2 today against Mount St. Vincent. In game 1 Hartling had 1 bad inning. Looked to have a kid rung up looking for the 3rd out on a 3-2 pitch and from there it was a snow ball effect. A few hits and a home run led to 5 runs. Hartling finished the inning with a strike out. Steve Nickel and Adam Dimino both hit home runs. Dimino hit one of the farthest balls I have ever seen hit - clearing the light towers and over the road in left. He added a few stolen bases. Mike Mahay came in for Hartling and struggled, followed by a short outing by Gentzke who also struggled. Finally, Ed Southworth came in for an extended outing (4 outs I believe). He threw better then the other 3 but he even struggled a bit with control. In all a very sloppy game for the pitching staff. Game 2 was the complete opposite. Mike Assman (as I said in a previous post that I felt he would bounce back) threw an absolute gem. He looked sharp, he pumped the zone, and his curve was filthy. He must have had 8-10 strike outs in a complete game effort and only a handful of hits. Kris Gentzke launched a ball opposite field for a 3 run home run and Jason Simone hit an RBI triple that wound up being the game winning run (prior to the Gentzke home run). Steve Nickel played solid defense at 3rd all day with a ton of assists and a few nice plays.

Cortland came out as the overall winner of the Coldwell Banker Tournament of Champions in North Carolina. After a first weekend of games, I think Cortland played well. Obviously it is tough to come out and just play with everything clicking after being inside for a month. From what the box scores show it seems that Cortland has a good core of solid arms. Although Assman did not pitch well, he has been a solid contributor in the rotation for the past 2 years. I expect to see him bounce back after a rough first outing. Something I did notice in that game vs. Emory is that both teams walked a lot. Emory walked 8 and Cortland 14. Perhaps there is a bit more to it than both teams being a bit wild. I am not going to make excuses for the Cortland Staff, and although I was not at the games, I would imagine that both teams were being squeezed a bit. Emory obviously made the most of there base runners and got some key hits. Cortland next takes the field in a week and a half down in Long Island. They have a 3 game set against Old Westbury, Mount St. Vincent, and Farmingdale. Hopefully the fields are playable.  A few posts before this one from a Wesleyan fan/parent said that Hartling was impressive. I wonder if he will get a shot to start in Long Island. Hopefully these 10 days off they can get the few kinks worked out and looking like the Cortland teams from years past.

After a miserable performance by the Cortland St. staff yesterday - 14 hits and 14 walks - they came back today with an excellent game. Ithaca transfer Adam Brown threw 4 2/3 innings of scoreless baseball. He walked 1, allowed 2 hits, and struck out 3. Mike Mahay was roughed up a bit in his 1 2/3 innings of work - 5 hits 2 runs 3 strike outs and 1 walk. Brockport transfer Kris Gentzke followed Mahay with a solid 1 2/3 outing, allowed 3 hits with 1 walk. Ed Southworth finished it up with 1 inning, 2 strike outs, 1 walk and 1 hbp. The offense had a productive day, led by Steve Nickel, Matt June and Alex Coffee.  June went yard and Coffee had 3 RBI. Nickel added 2 extra base hits. Aside from Mahays rough outing, the only other negative note was 2 errors by Cortland shortstop Damon Arnold.

Well Cortland is off to a good start. Past 2 years they have lost the season opener. The pitching was solid. Looks like Ratliff is the #1 this year. He had a good line, 6 K's 1 hit in 3 1/3 innings. He worked out of a bases loaded jam in the 3rd. Hartling, a junior college transfer, threw just as well - 3 K's 2 hits in 4 2/3. The only tight spot was in his final inning of work, 2 errors placed a runner on 3rd base, followed by a walk, before striking out his final batter. Ed Southworth looks like he will take over in the closing spot, walked 1 but struck out 2 in his lone inning of work. Cortlands bats didn't explode, but they kept the pressure on NC-Wesleyan by putting a runner on base in all but 1 inning. Adam Dimino, Steve Nickel, Matt June, and Damon Arnold all had 2 hits for Cortland. The only interesting thing I noticed was the absence of Kevin Jackson in the line up. He was the 3 hitter last year. I had heard he was injured but he did pinch hit later in the game. Maybe he hasn't swung that much leading up to the first series of games. Cortland faces a solid Emory team that, in years past, have been in the national rankings. That game will be at 11:00am, hopefully with live stats.

Gentzke is a solid arm to have either in the rotation or in the bullpen for Cortland. He put up solid numbers as a sophomore and especially with all the talk about Cortland having pitching staff issues. I am not saying Gentzke is the solution by any means, but what I am trying to get at is that he is a another peice of the puzzle for Cortland. There are other pitchers that were brought in as well. A left handed transfer from a 'division 1' school, a junior college right handed transfer, Adam Brown from Ithaca. All together, I don't see Cortland having that much of an issue with there staff as we make it seem. There are always years that see players step up, pitchers coming out of no where to light up the gun and post big numbers. I believe we will see a few players like this from Cortland. Now if we can only get some names to go with all these transfers...

Filak did get hit around by Cortland, I don't see him shutting down that huge line up. If I were Oneonta, I would save Filak and throw him against Oswego rather than Cortland (they play Cortland on Sat 4/17 and Oswego on Sun 4/18).

As for the other teams I don't see them being very competitive. Each team has a few legit ball players but not much support to go with that. The final 2 spots for the SUNYAC tournament seem to be up for grabs, I think this may be the year that we see a New Paltz or Fredonia in the SUNYAC Tournament.

I think it is time to start the daily messaging back up for the SUNYAC baseball section. As always it looks as if Cortland will be the front runner to begin the season. Oneonta has some potential led by Dave Filak and his low 90's gas. As someone said earlier, Brockport always plays tough against Cortland. What about the other Schools? Fredonia has had some good talent in recent years, Plattsburgh is always competitive, and New Paltz has some hidden talent.

Cortland obviously lost the most in pitching with Tone, Blanco, Pottrikus. Avery is gone from the outfield, but they have the meat of the lineup coming back with Jackson, Gardner, Simone, and Nickel. Will they have a shortstop who doesnt have as many errors as games started at SS? As for the staff, Ratliff, Assman, Mahay are back. Transfer Adam Brown (Ithaca), and Kris Gentzke (Brockport). Ive heard of a junior college pitcher that transfered as well as an infielder (shortstop?). Also, to add more to that line up is the return of the Dimino brothers. Side note: those two are absolute FREAK athletes.

Brockport lost Gentzke to Cortland but has Zaccardo, Zimmerman, and Mccormick back. Williams, Joy are back on the bump... aside from that I don't know what else Brockport has. I have heard that they have a few junior college transfers coming in, a few potential future cortland transfers (just a joke!). I am not sure if Brockport will be able to compete as strongly as they have in years past, however, that seems to be the thing with brockport every year and they still surprise all of us with a great year. Somehow.

Oneonta has Dave Filak who was formerly a catcher. I will go out and say he is the first D-3 player taken in the draft this year. Filak will light up the gun again and is the obvious front runner for SUNYAC pitcher of the year. I am real anxious to see if he will pick up where he left off in the SUNYAC or if he will struggle a bit as he did in the NYCBL. They lost Judes, Brady, Myers but have Caputo, Linder, Randall, Hitt and Herzenberg, Anderson, Carter on the mound. They will be real competitive.

Plattsburgh has seemed to lose the most, Kowaloski, Campbell, Kelley... returning with Bouyea, Burns, Shaughnessy, Cauchon at the plate and OLeary and Tracy on the bump. They lost the only real power threat in Curcio and it is tough to know what they have. I'm not sure what Coach Doorey has coming in but I would imagine a decent freshman and a few transfers or maybe a junior college role player or two or five.

Fredonia lost their top 2 players, Basile and Carlson but aside from those 2 they have the core of the lineup and the majority of the staff returning. They look to be competitive and should pose a legit threat in the SUNYAC. I don't know what else to say about Fredonia, they went from dwellers to contenders. I think this is the year they make a run at something, I am just not sure what that something is.

New Paltz lost the core of there team in Shanks, Donohue, and Terlecky. They return with Merola, Marash, Paulicelli,  Boetcher, and Chelius (and Boetcher) on the mound. I don't see them being too competitve and I am not sure what they have brought in. New Paltz is a tough school to get into and makes it tough to throw a competitive team out there each year. Any hope they have seems to be in the hands of those mentioned to have the best years of there lives honestly. Boetcher and Merola are the 2 key bats they have and the pitching staff I don't know much about. I did hear something about a potential lefty handed pitcher they have coming in.

If anyone knows of any transfers or anything to any of the schools i'd like to hear it, get the hot stove burning. Season is only weeks away!