Empire 8 Announces 2009 Baseball All-Conference Team
May 12, 2009
ROCHESTER, NY – Sophomore catcher Leo Fusilli of St. John Fisher College was chosen as Empire 8 Player of the Year and senior Pete MacDaniel of Ithaca College was selected as Empire 8 Pitcher of the Year as the all-conference team was announced. Teagen Barresi of the Cardinals was named the Empire 8 Rookie of the Year. George Valesente received Coach of the Year honors for leading Ithaca to its ninth consecutive conference title.
Fusilli hit .455 (55-for-121) with 27 runs scored, 12 doubles, and 38 runs batted in. He hit .510 with runners in scoring position, .459 against right-handed pitching, and .435 against left-handed pitching. Fusilli leads the league in slugging percentage (.661) and hits (55), and is second in batting average and on-base percentage (.507).
MacDaniel enters NCAA play with an 8-0 mark and a 2.22 earned run average. He has thrown five complete games, allowing only 55 hits and 12 walks, while striking out 50 in 69 innings of work. MacDaniel paces the conference in earned run average and shared the lead in victories, while his .217 opposing batting average ranks second.
Five other Ithaca players joined MacDaniel on the first team, including repeat selection David Ahonen, the 2008 Empire 8 Rookie of the Year. The third baseman is hitting .393 with 25 runs scored and 32 RBI. Senior second baseman Dylan Perez is batting .381 with 27 runs scored and 30 RBI, while sophomore outfielder Matt Streich also garnered first team honors and enters the postseason batting .335 with team-highs of 14 doubles and 33 RBI.
Junior Tom Fishback of the Bombers was named to the first team and shares the conference lead with Pete MacDaniel with eight victories. He is 8-4 and a 2.77 earned run average. Freshman reliever Tucker Healy is 3-0 with a 2.75 earned run average and a conference-best five saves. He has held opponents to a league-low .172 batting average.
Teagen Barresi of St. John Fisher earned Rookie of the Year accolades and second-team all-conference honors, hitting .384 and leading the conference with 44 runs scored. He also ranks second in RBI with 39.
Sophomore outfielder Phil Pettinella and freshman Steve Karnyski of the Cardinals received first-team all-conference recognition. Pettinella, the Most Valuable Player of the ECAC Upstate Championship, leads the conference with 14 doubles and five triples, hitting .345 with 39 runs scored and 31 RBI. Karnyski hit .364 with 37 runs scored and 39 RBI.
Junior outfielder Geoff Dornes and senior shortstop Jeremy Tosh of Rochester Institute of Technology were named to the all-conference first team for the third consecutive year. Dornes, a two-time Empire 8 Player of the Year, hit .366 with 33 runs scored and 20 RBI. Tosh batted .363 with 25 runs scored and a conference-best 41 RBI.
Sophomore designated hitter Ken Meerendonk of Stevens Institute of Technology was named to the all-conference first team. He led the Ducks with a .347 batting average, 33 runs scored, and 33 RBI.
One member of each team was named that institution’s representative on the 2009 Baseball Sportsman of the Year Team. Empire 8 emphasizes that "Competing with Honor and Integrity" is an essential component of a student-athlete’s experience in conjunction with an institution’s educational mission. These honorees have distinguished themselves and consistently exhibit the critical traits as outstanding sportsmen.
2009 Empire 8 Baseball Awards
Player of the Year: Leo Fusilli, St. John Fisher College
Pitcher of the Year: Pete MacDaniel, Ithaca College
Rookie of the Year: Teagen Barresi, St. John Fisher College
Coach of the Year: George Valesente, Ithaca College