WORCESTER, Mass. – The Assumption College baseball team has been selected to finish sixth in the Northeast Division by the Northeast-10 Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll. The league's 15 coaches made up the voting.
Mike Rocco will lead the Hounds again this year for the sixth straight season. The team finished 17-28-2 in 2018 and played to a slash line of .256/.341/.343 as a team.
The Hounds open their 2019 season on Saturday, February 23, with a doubleheader against Bloomfield. Based out of Bloomfield, N.J., the Bears play out of the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference. They finished their 2018 season with a 17-26-1 record.
Derek Adamson (Chelmsford, Mass. / Chelmsford), Mike Curtis (Wilmington, Mass. / Wilmington High School) and Alex Richardson (Rehoboth, Mass. / Bishop Feehan) will captain this year's squad. A junior, Adamson hit to a slash line of .288/.331/.385 in 2018 along with 27 RBIs, 13 doubles and one triple. A graduate, Curtis has pitched to a career 4.29 ERA and 170 innings in 35 games (24 starts). He appeared in four games in 2018, started all four, and pitched to a 2.86 ERA in 23 2/3 innings while striking out 18. A senior, Richardson played in 18 games in 2018 and scored six runs in 16 at-bats.
The Hounds also return several key players, including eight seniors. Trevor McQuade (Westwood, Mass. / Xaverian) returns for his senior season after hitting two home runs, 19 RBIs and five doubles last year, while fellow senior Hunter Tralli (Berlin, Conn. / Northwest Catholic) also returns after hitting two home runs and with a .914 fielding percentage as in infielder. Senior Mike Keinz (North Branford, Conn. / Notre Dame) returns after pitching 28 1/3 innings in relief last year, pitching to a 3.49 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and striking out 49 batters . The team also welcomes nine freshman to this year's squad.
The complete Northeast-1 Preseason Coaches' Poll can be found here.
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Northeast Division
- Southern N.H. - 111 (13)
- Franklin Pierce - 97 (1)
- Merrimack - 84 (1)
- Bentley - 74
- Stonehill - 57
- Assumption - 50
- Saint Anselm - 37
- Saint Michael's - 22
Southwest Division
- New Haven - 91 (8)
- Le Moyne - 88 (6)
- Adelphi - 69 (1)
- Pace - 58
- Southern Conn. St. - 52
- American International - 29
- Saint Rose - 26