Baseball

#AEBASE Week 6: UMBC Sweep Highlights Conference-Opening Weekend

BOSTON – The UMBC offense came alive to secure a sweep over Binghamton last weekend while Bryant took two of three from defending champion Maine.
 
The Retrievers won both ends of a doubleheader against Binghamton, winning 2-0 and 11-9, and then secured an 11-8 victory on Sunday to earn the sweep. The Bulldogs took down Maine in a pair of walk-offs on Friday, winning 5-4 in eight innings to begin the series and then 5-4 in ten innings to close the day. Maine came back to win 1-0 on Sunday to avoid a sweep.
 
Elsewhere, UAlbany and UMass split a doubleheader on Friday and NJIT captured two of three against Fairfield in non-conference action.
 
All seven teams are scheduled to play again on Tuesday, including the Highlanders playing at Rutgers. UMBC, meanwhile, is currently riding a seven-game win streak and hosts Coppin State. This weekend, Bryant welcomes UMBC in a battle for first place while UMass Lowell travels down to NJIT. UAlbany hosts Maine, while Binghamton plays at Middle Tennessee State.
   
The preseason poll was announced on January 24.
 
Fans will once again be able to watch the majority of the #AEBASE this season. Select games will air on The AE on ESPN while others will air on AmericaEast.TV. Those games will be available on computers, OTT devices and the brand new America East app, which is available on all IOS and Android devices and can be found by searching ‘America East Conference’ in app stores.

Follow the @AmericaEast on X to stay up-to-date on America East baseball news all season long and use #AEWLAX to join the conversation.
 
#AEBASE Weekly Award Winners – March 26
Player & Rookie of the Week
Danny Wyatt, UMBC – Fr., Catcher, Oxford, Pa.
  • Batted .545 and slugged 1.091 with 12 hits, 12 RBI, 11 runs and six doubles in a 5-0 week for UMBC. 
  • Went 9-for-14 with nine runs and seven RBI in a three-game sweep over Binghamton.
  • This is Wyatt’s first career #AEBASE Player or Rookie of the Week honor.
 
Pitcher of the Week
Luke Johnson, UMBC  – Sr., Pitcher, Lewes, Del.
  • Tossed a seven-inning complete-game two-hit shutout with one walk and 9K in a 2-0 victory against Binghamton.
  • Allowed just one runner to reach third and retired the final 14 batters of the game in order.
  • This is Johnson’s first #AEBASE Pitcher of the Week honor this season.
 
2024 #AEBASE Weekly Award Winners
Feb. 20 –P layer of the Week: Carlos Martinez, UMass Lowell; Pitcher of the Week: James Capellupo, UMass Lowell; Rookie of the Week: Sean O’Leary, UMass Lowell
Feb. 27 – Player of the Week: Mike Gunning, Binghamton; Pitcher of the Week: Sam Downs, UMBC; Rookie of the Week: John Vitucci, UAlbany
Mar. 5 – Player of the Week: Luke Longo, NJIT; Pitcher of the Week: Sam Downs, UMBC; Rookie of the Week: Case Ladehoff, NJIT 
Mar. 12 - Player of the Week: Austin Francis, NJIT; Pitcher of the Week: Austin Wainer, Bryant; Rookie of the Week: Cole Campbell, NJIT
Mar. 19 - Player of the Week: Anthony Swenda, UMBC; Pitcher of the Week: Jayden Shertel, UMBC; Rookie of the Week: Jason Kreiger, Maine
Mar. 26 – Mar. 19 - Player of the Week: Danny Wyatt, UMBC; Pitcher of the Week: Luke Johnson, UMBC; Rookie of the Week: Danny Wyatt, UMBC
  
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Founded in 1979, the America East Conference is an elite NCAA Division I athletic conference that fosters an environment for student-athletes to become champions. Comprised of academically renowned, like-minded member institutions located in the Northeast region of the United States, America East is committed to broad-based excellence and progressive in its approach to supporting its more than 3,500 student-athletes across 18 sponsored sports. For more information, visit www.AmericaEast.com and follow the America East Conference its social media channels, @AmericaEast. 
 
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