BB: SUNYAC

[rob]

Congratulations on a great season to the National Champion SUNY Cortland Red Dragons!!
Thanks also to jdex for all of the updates throughout the season and magicman for the great comments.

[Ralph Turner]

Congratulations, Cortland!  Very happy for you and your program.

[sjfcards]

I am a little late to the party on this, but congrats to the SUNY Cortland baseball team on their national championship! I am from Cortland and I have been following the baseball program for as long as I can remember (my Dad is a huge baseball fan and a Cortland Alum). It is great to see them finally win the whole thing. They have been so good, for so long, and they deserved to finish the season on top.

Even after I have become a Fisher fan, I could not be happier for them.

[magicman]

Plus k to all the posters that came on and congratulated Cortland on their National Championship.

[jdex]

Defending national champ and preseason top-ranked Cortland is scheduled to play 14 games this spring against teams currently in the Collegiate Baseball top 40. The Red Dragons open the season with two games at fourth-ranked Salibury Feb. 20-21, faces 13th-ranked Marietta and 17th-ranked Methodist as part of Methodist's tournament in North Carolina Feb. 26 and plays a pair of contests at 24th-ranked Johns Hopkins March 5-6.

The Red Dragons will also face 29th-ranked Mary Washington on the road March 10 on their way down to Florida, and their Sunshine State schedule will be highlighted by a rematch with second-ranked Wisconsin-La Crosse March 13. Cortland's northern slate includes three SUNYAC games at 31st-ranked Oswego, two non-league tilts with 37th-ranked Ithaca, and a game against 39th-ranked Stevens Institute.

[jdex]

Maryland weather looking good for Saturday/Sunday Cortland liftoff at Salisbury. Has been cold, as in freezing, to twice postpone Sea Gulls opener with Va. Wesleyan. Salisbury/Cortland now debut for both.

RDragons appear to have taken a hit with preseason All-America senior pitcher A. Weingarten not on the '16 roster. Weingarten 9-1 in 60 innings a year ago. Corts list 19 pitchers including A-A candidate S. Lamando whose capable bat could be in the lineup elsewhere as well. Senior outfielder C. Ziemendorf also a preseason A-A.

Pitching additions include former NY high school player of the year Ben Moxley from Oneonta, and D1 senior transfer Tanner Whiteman. The 6-4, 215 latter was the No. 2 starter at Maryland Eastern Shore after playing at Onondaga CC and scholastically at Cazenovia.

Skipper Joe Brown certainly has holes to be filled with the departures of middle infielders A. Simon and M. DeMilio, along with other key links D. Cataldo, V. Bomasuto and A. Smith. DeMilio on the coaching staff.

[jdex]

Cortland debuts with 8-4 win at opening Salisbury. Corts break 3-3 tie with four-run eighth,  Walks ignite the uprising and F. Ricci (4x5) two-strike bunt single and ensuing throwing error produces the go-ahead run. Huge play as it turns out. Passed ball produces fifth run and J. Teague single drives in two more. P. Grasso homers for Sea Gulls in the bottom of the eighth. Back-to-back doubles by Ricci and S. Figueroa in the ninth rounds out the scoring.

Veteran A. Brant hurls final two innings for Cortland in relief of newcomer J. Cooke who tosses two innings succeeding P. Healey one inning stint. S. Lamando starts (4inn, 3h, 2r, 0er, 0bb, 3k). Cooke credited with the mound win.

Cortland 3-2 lead  after five frames. RDragons hitless with five Ks till the fourth when DP thwarts a two-hit inning. Sea Gulls  score pair of unearned runs in the third. Cortland with a three-run, three-hit fifth inning. Two walks and Teague single set the stage for N. Hart two-run single to left. Ricci infield hit and Salisbury miscue puts Corts ahead 3-2. They knock out opposing righty starter Grasso, who goes to shortstop. Salisbury in 3-3 tie in the seventh on two hits and sac bunt.

Cortland bats seven lefties at the start. Salisbury works five pitchers. Grasso absorbs the loss.

Teams square off again Sunday in action forwarded to 11 a.m. start. Cortland No. 1 in preseason polls, Sea Gulls fourth

Cortland     8-9-3
Salisbury    4-7-2

[jdex]

Cortland rolls 27-13 over Salisbury in Sunday action in Carolina. RDragons with 24 hits including four home runs to improve their record to 2-0 at Sea Gulls' expense. Coach J. Brown notches 600th win, all at Cortland in 17 seasons. Brown 600-56-3.

Corts have to overcome 7-0 first inning hole. Post four runs in the second -- three on P. Dondero inside-the-park home run, and forge 11-8 lead with a seven-run fourth inning featuring C. Manderson solo home run and A. Clock three-run roundtripper. C. Ziemendorf homers in the sixth for CSt. Cortland tallies eight runs in the ninth.

C. Griffin 4x6, 2bh, 3bi, 2r for the winners. F. Ricci and C. Ziemendorf with 3 hits apiece.

Eight pitchers in action for Cortland, six steadying the ship after B. Moxley and S. DeBrosky roughed up early. T. Whiteman notches the win. T. Parry finishes. Gulls also strut out eight pitchers. Game has 17 walks

Cortland   27-24-1
Salisbury   13-13-3

[jdex]

Brockport opens with pair of quality wins in New Jersey .......7-5 over Stevens, 5-0 over Kean

[Jack Parkman]

Honest question- Is Cortland that good or Salisbury pitching that bad?  How can someone explain giving up 35 runs in 2 games as the #4 team in the country?

[NYbaseballguy]

I can't answer that question Jack, but, I remember when you got traded to Chicago back in the day.  I knew the Indians would come back and get you guys in the post season...

[jdex]

Here's our guess .......preseason Division 3 polls for the most part based on what teams did last season, and their tradition. Tis pure speculation on their current status until more of a sample.

Salisbury is a prime example. Very young  in '16. Lost a lot. Obviously with pitching questions. Cortland much more experienced. Has pitching questions itself, particularly with top-notch Alex Weingarten not playing. Both teams, and most programs, use these early season games to determine exactly what they have.

For sure, look for plenty of poll movement as we progress.

[Jack Parkman]

I can't answer that question Jack, but, I remember when you got traded to Chicago back in the day.  I knew the Indians would come back and get you guys in the post season...

The ladies sure loved me in Cleveland but they turned on me pretty quick.  Damn that Ricky Vaughn!

[jdex]

Fayetteville NC weather looking favorable (as in sunny low/mid 50s) for Cortland duty in Methodist Invite.
    RDragons on Friday face season opening Marietta OH at 1, and 2-1 Methodist at 4. On Saturday Corts draw Neumann PA at 10, then 3-3 Lynchburg VA at 7
    Marietta and Methodist ranked

Change from original Brockport schedule in Fayetteville NC. Eagles, 2-0 like Cortland, move Friday game vs. Pitt-Greensburg to Saturday at 11 a.m.; on Saturday vs. ranked Frostburg moved back to 5:30; on Sunday vs. Farmingdale at 9 a.m.

Plattsburgh on Saturday vs. St. Joe's LI on the Island for twinbill at noon

Oswego in Norfolk VA on Saturday vs. Virginia Wesleyan at noon, vs. RPI at 3; on Sunday vs. RPI at 9 and vs. Virginia Wesleyan at 3

Time shift for New Paltz on Saturday at Washington MD (Chestertown) at 2 instead of 1; on Sunday in Baltimore vs. Keystone PA at 11, vs. host Johns Hopkins at 2:30

[jdex]

Cortland holds off  Marietta OH 7-4 but not without some ninth inning sweat in sunny Fayetteville NC. Debuting Marietta fills the bases with one out against J. Cooke and lefty P. Healy. Stopper A. Brant entices pair of groundouts as one run scores.
    Corts' S. Lamando hurls first five innings (er, 5h, 1bb, 7k) for the win. J. Cooke toils 3.1 innings. Healy doesn't get an out.
    RDragons post four scores on five hits in the fourth ignited by C. Griffin leadoff double to right. M. Michalski with infield rbi single followed by N. Hart (2x2, 3bi) two-run single to center and C. Ziemendorf two-out rbi single up the middle. Add three runs in the fifth on one hit -- A. Clock (3x4, 2r) run-scoring  base knock to center.
    Marietta dh A. Harvey (3x4) thorn to Cortland. Lefty knocks in three runs with fourth inning single, sixth inning home run to right and eighth inning single.  Marietta uses four pitches. Returning ace C. Herstine (1.98era, 6-5 in 2015) starts and exits on losing end of the decision (4inn, 4r, 4er, 7h, 3bb, 2k).
    Cortland meets invite host Methodist in quick turnover this afternoon.

Marietta     4-11-1
Cortland    7- 9- 0

Earlier in Methodist hosted invite: Neumann PA 9, Lynchburg VA 3