NEW LONDON — The Colby-Sawyer College baseball team has been chosen to finish fifth in the North Atlantic Conference (NAC) standings in 2018, according to a vote conducted by the league’s coaches.
Castleton was voted as the favorite to win a fifth-straight NAC title after receiving 46 points, including four first place votes, while 2017 runner-up, New England College, was selected second just two points behind Castleton after claiming the remaining three first-place votes and 44 total points.
Husson was tabbed third after claiming 34 points, Lyndon took fourth totaling 25 points, while Colby-Sawyer finished just two points behind the Hornets in fifth. Thomas was voted sixth with 14 points and UMaine-Farmington respectively rounded out the poll in seventh with 10 points.
Throughout the next three weeks all seven NAC baseball teams will have started the season off with non-conference competition. The top four teams in the 2018 NAC regular-season standings will qualify for the conference tournament, which gets underway Friday, May 4, and will continue through Sunday, May 6.
Colby-Sawyer (19-19, 11-13 NAC) baseball team will be led by Jim Broughton for the 24th consecutive season. The Chargers return both of their All-NAC honorees from last season in seniors Dougie Avellino (Woodstock, Vt.) and Brendan Thurber (Ashland, Mass.). Avellino, a two-time NAC First Team honoree, led the team with a .365 batting average, 46 hits, 23 runs, 26 RBI, two triples, and 18 stolen bases.
Thurber provided the homerun ball for the team with three, while hitting .308. He was tied for second on the team with 18 RBI. The pitching staff welcomes back senior Chris Hood (Manchester, N.H.) who led Colby-Sawyer with a 1.51 ERA, while junior Ryan Glendye (Litchfield, N.H.) will be the workhorse again after logging a team best 51.1 innings last season.
Colby-Sawyer opens the season with 10 games in Florida beginning on March 10 and will host Lyndon on March 30 to start the conference schedule.
Preseason Coaches’ Poll
1. Castleton 46 (4)
2. New England College 44 (3)
3. Husson 34
4. Lyndon 25
5. Colby-Sawyer 23
6. Thomas 14
7. UMaine-Farmington 10
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