Bobcats and Sea Gulls represent CAC in playoffs

By Jim Dixon, D3sports.com

Capital Athletic Conference (CAC): In 2011 Salisbury captured the regular season title and Frostburg State was the tournament champions. With the conference's automatic bid, Frostburg State represented the CAC in the Mideast Regional, losing out to the Mideast champion Marietta. Salisbury was awarded an at-large bid and overcame an opening loss to win the regional, finishing 1-2 in the Baseball Championship at Appleton.

CAC regular season champion: Salisbury
CAC tournament champion: Frostburg State
CAA tournament participants: Frostburg State, Salisbury
CAC Player of the Year: Greg Ross, Frostburg State
CAC Coach of the Year: Guy Robertson, Frostburg State
CAC Freshman of the Year: Bill Root, Salisbury

Bill Root is the third Sea Gull to capture the Rookie of the Year award in the last nine years. Salisbury athletic photo

Salisbury (34-14; 13-5): Salisbury finished ranked sixth in the final D3baseball.com Top 25 with their third appearance in the Championship round. Salisbury started the season with two losses but quickly turned it around with a 7-1 start in the conference schedule. Salisbury finished the season with an eight game winning streak that including a win over No. 2 Christopher Newport to close out the season and earn an at-large bid to the NCAA playoffs. At the South Regional, a first round loss to Piedmont stopped the Sea Gull's longest win streak of the season but two wins later, they were in the South Regional Championship.  Needing two wins, Salisbury knocked off Shenandoah for a trip to Appleton, Wis. The Sea Gulls lost their first game 8-0 to the eventual national champion Marietta but rebounded with a 10-3 win over Kean. Keystone, the New York Regional winner, ended the Sea Gull's season with a 7-2 win.

Salisbury picked up a CAC-best seven all-star nods, including first-team honoree and Rookie of the Year Bill Root. Root is the third Sea Gull to capture the Rookie of the Year award in the last nine years. Root batted .379 to lead the Sea Gulls in addition to his 16 extra-base hits and 22 RBI. He also was tops in runs (44), and stolen bases (27).

Brian Green hit .371 and drove in 33 runs for Salisbury in 2011. D3photography.com photo by Larry Radloff

Root was joined on the 2011 All-CAC first team by senior teammates Brian Green (.371, 33 R, 14 2B, 33 RBI), Chris Greiner (10-4, 2.95 ERA, 103 SO) and Dustin Herbert (9-2, 2.08 ERA, 65 SO). Herbert, the 2008 Rookie of the Year, made his third All-CAC team appearance, including his second as a first-team all-star. Herbert also made his way into the program's record books with 32 victories in his career, the most in Salisbury baseball history. Greiner garnered first team South All-Region honors and was named the South Region Pitcher of the Year. Joining Greiner on the regional All-Star team was Herbert and Green, both second team honorees. 

Salisbury’s senior pitchers Drew Baldwin (4-2, 3.14, 10 saves, 47 SO), and Nathan Young (5-2, 2.83, 37 SO) as well as junior catcher Tyler Bennett (.341, 37 R, 6 HR, 36 RBI) all earned second-team All-CAC recognition, the first post-season nods for each.

Frostburg State (28-15; 11-7): In their first year as a member of the CAC, the Bobcats were winners of the CAC tournament. In their championship season, Frostburg State put together winning streaks of seven and six games as they played the 51st toughest schedule in D-III. In the NCAA playoffs, Frostburg State had an early exit with consecutive losses to Franklin and Marietta.

Greg Ross started his professional career in Danville Virginia. Frostburg State athletics photo

Senior pitcher Greg Ross and fourth-year coach Guy Robertson, leaders of the 2011 CAC champion Frostburg State, picked up individual awards to lead the 2011 All-CAC baseball team. Ross, a second team D3baseball.com All-American, was selected as the Player of the Year by the conference coaches while Robertson was honored by his peers as the Coach of the Year. Ross was 11-2 with a 1.49 ERA and a school record 112 strikeouts on the season. Ross was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 18th round of the 2011 Major League Baseball draft. Ross became the first Bobcat player in over 30 years to be drafted in the major leagues and just the third in the history of the baseball program.

Joining Ross as a first-team all-star was senior infielder Matt Greene (.348, 26 R, 8 HR, 33 RBI, 9 SB) while second-team recognition was presented to junior infielder Doug Anuszewski (.356, 27 R, 4 HR, 21 RBI), senior pitcher Josh Davis (5-3, 3.51, 2 saves, 47 SO) and junior catcher Garrett Price (.306, 20 RBI, .992 FLD%). Britton Quayle (5-5, 3.94, 5 saves, 60 SO)  earned five saves in the season, moving him into a tie for the both the school's single-season (5 saves) and career record (7 saves).

Mary Washington (27-15; 9-9): Mary Washington started the season 9-0 with a No. 22 ranking in the Top 25. After an opening round loss in the CAC tournament to St. Mary's, the Eagles won three games before falling 9-5 to Frostburg State in the CAC championship game. A 25-14 regional record was not enough to earn an at-large bid.

Mary Washington placed four players on the 2011 All-CAC squad, including first-team seniors Jackson Clement (.385, 36 R, 5 HR, 35 RBI, 12 SB), Eric Rehbein (.370, 34 R, 36 RBI, 5-4, 4.59 ERA, 43 SO), junior Brent Steffey (.393, 9 2B, 27 RBI) and second-team freshman Beattie Southerland (.355, 35 R, 11 2B, 27 RBI). Rehbein was a three-time All-CAC honoree, including two-straight years as a first team award winner.

Parker Talbert became the 14th Mary Washington baseball player to play professional baseball. Mary Washington athletics photo

2001 Mary Washington 2011 graduate Parker Talbert joined the professional ranks when he signed a professional contract to play for the Alpine Cowboys of the independent Pecos League. In 2011 for the Eagles, Talbert went 4-3 with a 2.07 ERA with two complete games with 43 strikeouts in 61 innings.

St. Mary's (Md.) (19-16; 9-9): St. Mary's never strayed far from the .500 mark all season, putting together short winning streaks and never losing more than two games in a row. The key moment in St. Mary's season came in the second round of the CAC Championship Tournament. St. Mary's seemed poised to head into third round action undefeated but the Seahawks lost a 5-0 lead to Frostburg State, falling 5-6. A second 5-6 loss to Salisbury in extra frames, ended the Seahawks season.

St. Mary’s placed two players on the All-CAC second team. Senior Matt Baden (.364, 28 R, 55 RBI, 14 SB) and sophomore Corey Napier (.360, 11 2B, 20 RBI) represent St. Mary’s on the 2011 All-CAC team. Baden made his second conference post-season team appearance after earning second-team recognition in 2008.

Wesley (22-14; 8-10): Wesley started the season 14-2 and going into the final two weekends of conference play was 8-4. After being swept by both Frostburg State and Salisbury, the Wolverines fell to fifth in the standings, drawing Frostburg State in the conference tournament. Wesley rebounded from a loss to the Bobcats to defeat York but was eliminated by Stevenson in the third round of the CAC tournament

Wesley juniors Rob Benedict (.394, 33 R, 16 RBI, 34 SB) and D.J. Keckler (5-3, 1.61 ERA, 1 save, 45 SO) each return to the All-CAC squad as first-team choices. Benedict was a second-team pick last year while Keckler was a second-team honoree and Rookie of the Year in 2009.

Justin Anderson was a second-team CAC selection after being a first team selection in 2010. Stevenson athletics photo

York (Pa.) (11-27; 7-11): If 2010 was Dr. Jekyll, then 2011 was Mr.  Hyde. York was 28-16 in the 2010 regular season and 12-6 in the CAC but the wins and losses were swapped in 2011 as the Spartans had their first losing season in three years. A bright spot for the Spartans is junior Steve Tretter. Tretter (.305, 4 HR, 16 RBI) gained a second-team CAC nod for the first time in his career for his 2011 performance. Paul Saikia, the Spartan's head coach for 24 years moved into another position with the athletic department and will be replaced by 14 year assistant coach, Mike Scappa.

Stevenson (13-26; 6-12): The Mustangs finished their third year in the CAC, missing the CAC tournament for the first time. Stevenson was 4-7 against NCAA playoff teams in 2011, with marquee wins over Johns Hopkins and CAC opponents, Salisbury and Friostburg State. Justin Anderson was a second-team CAC selection after being a first team selection in 2010. Anderson, who was also selected as the team's Most Valuable Player for the second-straight season, finished second on the team with a .322 batting average while ranking second with 21 RBIs. One of only two players to start all 39 of the team's games, he totaled a team-high 46 hits, including three doubles and two home runs.