Baseball | 5/15/2018 8:35:00 PM

NCAA ATLANTIC REGIONAL TOURNAMENT PAGE

WEST LAWN, Pa. - The Bloomsburg University baseball team will be competing in the 2018 NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional baseball tournament from Thursday, May 17, to Monday, May 21, at Owls Field at Ted Palka Park located in West Lawn, Pennsylvania. It marks the first time since 1995 - and just the second time in program history - that the Huskies have advanced to a regional tournament. Millersville University will be serving as the host institution.

The first day of the tournament will feature #3 Shepherd against #6 Seton Hill at 11:00 a.m. followed by #2 Millersville and #7 Charleston at 3:00 p.m. The Huskies will then play their first NCAA playoff game in 23 years when they square off against #5 Mercyhurst University at 7:00 p.m. Top-seeded West Chester will play the winner of the Bloomsburg-Mercyhurst contest at 3:00 p.m. on Friday, May 18.

LIVE COVERAGE
All games during the 2018 NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional baseball tournament will have live stats and will be live streamed. The live links can be found below:

LIVE STATS
LIVE VIDEO

RELATED LINKS
#4 Bloomsburg - Roster | Schedule | Statistics

#1 West Chester - Roster | Schedule | Statistics
#2 Millersville - Roster | Schedule | Statistics
#3 Shepherd - Roster | Schedule | Statistics
#5 Mercyhurst - Roster | Schedule | Statistics
#6 Seton Hill- Roster | Schedule | Statistics
#7 Charleston - Roster | Schedule | Statistics

SCOUTING THE HUSKIES
The Huskies (31-18) most recently competed at the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) tournament for just the seventh time in program history and for just the third time since 1997. Bloomsburg earned a 13-7 victory over Slippery Rock on the opening day of the tournament last Wednesday for the program's first postseason win since a 5-3 decision over Shippensburg on May 13, 2011. After a loss to Seton Hill on Thursday, the Huskies knocked off Slippery Rock again on Friday before falling to Millersville on Championship Saturday to end the tournament run.
 
Bloomsburg advances to the regional tournament with the aid of its strong out-of-conference schedule. The Huskies went 2-2 against then-#5 St. Thomas Aquinas and 1-1 against then-#11 Le Moyne during the regular season. Bloomsburg also went 1-0 against West Virginia State, 4-0 against Slippery Rock, and 3-1 against Shippensburg – three teams that were in the hunt for a berth in this year's tournament.
 
Head coach Mike Collins, who is in his 12th season with the Huskies, was named the PSAC East Coach of the Year for the third time in his career after also winning the honor in 2011 and 2014. The 31 victories are the most under Collins and improved his overall record to 270-320-1. He earned his 250th career victory against Shippensburg after a 5-0 shutout in game one of a doubleheader at Danny Litwhiler Field on Friday, March 30. He will bring five All-Conference selections with him to the tournament. Redshirt senior Austin Edgette (Exton, Pa./Downingtown East) and junior Ashton Raines (Wallingford, Pa./Strath Haven) were named to the All-PSAC East First Team while sophomore Cole Swiger (Maple Glen, Pa./Upper Dublin), redshirt junior Shane Woelfel (Mahwah, N.J./Mahwah), and sophomore Chad Cooperman (Allentown, Pa./Salisbury) earned All-PSAC East Second Team accolades.
 
Bloomsburg's 31 victories this season marks the second-highest single-season total in program history, trailing only the 1995 squad that won 37 games. Prior to this season, the 1995 team was the only team to advance to the NCAA playoffs. That season, the Huskies went 37-21 and won the North Atlantic Regional Championship with an 11-7 victory over Mansfield in the regional title game on May 20, 1995, in Erie, Pennsylvania, to earn a trip to the national championships in Montgomery, Alabama. After a loss to Florida Southern to open the national championships, Bloomsburg knocked off Ashland before ending its season with a setback to Valdosta State.

OFFENSE
Offensively, the Huskies come into the tournament with a .317 team batting average. Bloomsburg leads the PSAC with a .426 on-base percentage and ranks fourth in the conference with a .483 slugging percentage. Austin Edgette (Exton, Pa./Downingtown East) has at least one hit in 40 of his 45 games played this season and currently leads the team with a .449 batting average (71-of-158). Edgette also leads the team, or is tied for the team lead, in hits (71), triples (2), home runs (7), total bases (111), on-base percentage (.539), slugging percentage (.703), and stolen bases (24). The outfielder is a career .388 hitter which is currently fourth best in the school's record books. His 235 career hits has tied Bloomsburg Hall of Famer, John Stillo's program record he set from 1995 to 1998, and his 55 stolen bases are fifth in program history. He also ranks second all-time in career runs scored with (164), tied for third all-time in career doubles (48), and tied for sixth all-time in career runs batted in (126).

Shane Woelfel (Mahwah, N.J./Mahwah) is second on the team with a .413 average (43-of-104). He is second on the team in on-base percentage (.484) and slugging percentage (.596). Woelfel is a career .339 hitter and has scored 75 times in 111 career games. He has six career home runs and has driven in 48 career runs and needs one hit for 100 in his career. Cole Swiger (Maple Glen, Pa./Upper Dublin) has posted a .347 average (61-of-176) which has him third on the team. He leads the team in doubles (18) and runs scored (49) and ranks second in hits (61), total bases (93), and stolen bases (12). He is also tied for the team lead in walks (29) and has been hit by a pitch a team-high 13 times for a .466 on-base percentage out of the leadoff spot. Chad Cooperman (Allentown, Pa./Salisbury) and Nate Krizan (Montoursville, Pa./Loyalsock Township) also have averages above .300 on the season. Cooperman is hitting .327 (34-of-104) with one home run and 22 RBI while Krizan comes in with a .303 (44-of-145) average on the season. The sophomore has three home runs and 29 RBI. Keep and eye on freshmen Kyle OFier (Pittston, Pa./Pittston Area) and Ben Newbert (Bala Cynwyd, Pa./Harriton) who are both tied for second on the team with six home runs and have combined for 72 RBI. All nine usual Bloomsburg starters have scored at least 22 runs and driven in at least 22 runs on the season.

PITCHING
On the mound, the Huskies have a 5.94 team earned run average. The staff is allowing opponents to hit .282 on the year and has struck out 318 batters on the year. Cooperman leads Huskies' starters with a 3.78 ERA in ten starts while posting a 2-3 record. He has struck out 57 batters in 52.1 innings. Nick Stoner (Elizabethtown, Pa./Elizabethtown) is second with a 4.04 ERA in 11 appearances (nine starts). He is 5-1 and has allowed only 31 hits (.197 opponent batting average) in 42.1 innings while striking out 38. Ashton Raines (Wallingford, Pa./Strath Haven) is 7-2 on the season with a 4.73 ERA in 15 appearances (11 starts). He has struck out a team-high 59 batters in a team-high 70.1 innings while walking only 15. JJ Spehrley (Pottsville, Pa./Pottsville Area) and Zach Newmyer (New Cumberland, Pa./Red Land) have have combined to start 13 games this season. Spehrley is 6-3 with a 6.59 ERA while Newmyer is 1-2 with a 7.36 ERA. The duo has combined to strike out 59 batters in 70.1 innings.

Out of the bullpen, Trey Hinkle (Macungie, Pa./Emmaus) has emerged as the leader. He is 6-1 with five saves and a team-best 2.73 ERA in a team-high 20 appearances this season. He has struck out 25 batters in 29.2 innings. Ed Herbener (Freeland, Pa./MMI Preparatory School), Mike Warren (Garnerville, N.Y./St. Joseph Regional), Zach Meyer (Muncy Valley, Pa./Sullivan County), Jeremy Zezza (Exeter, Pa./Wyoming Area), James Reardon IV (Springfield, Pa./Springfield), Brett Alaimo (Lancaster, Pa./Manheim Township), and Mark Bobko (Metuchen, N.J./St. Joseph Metuchen) have also been called upon this season and could play important roles at the tournament.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS

#1 West Chester (31-15, 20-8 PSAC East)
2018 Series: West Chester 3-1 against Bloomsburg
All-Time Series: West Chester leads Bloomsburg, 65-32
Offense: .327
Pitching: 4.81
Players To Watch: Jared Melone (.480, 10 HR, 68 RBI), Nick Ward (.368, 13 HR, 48 RBI), Shane Dressler (.365, 6 HR, 51 RBI)
Pitchers To Watch: Mike Cipolla (6-2, 4.48 ERA), Zach Rice (7-3, 4.64 ERA), Jon Fisher (5-2, 3.32 ERA), Andrew Scarpelli (1-1, 2 SV, 2.92 ERA)

#2 Millersville (34-18, 19-9 PSAC East)
2018 Series: Millersville 3-1 against Bloomsburg
All-Time Series: Millersville leads Bloomsburg, 105-81
Offense: .286
Pitching: 4.12
Players To Watch: Kaylor Kulina (.387, 0 HR, 17 RBI), Ben Snyder (.321, 5 HR, 38 RBI, 12 SB), Cole Friese (.317, 4 HR, 27 RBI, 19 SB)
Pitchers To Watch: Eli Nabholz (8-3, 2.34 ERA, 76 K), Cordell Shannon (8-2, 2.86 ERA, 65 K), Drew Miller (3-2, 3.20 ERA), Tyler Yankosky (4-2, 4.98 ERA)

#3 Shepherd (38-15, 27-5 MEC)
2018 Series: DNP against Bloomsburg
All-Time Series: Series tied at 10-10
Offense: .333
Pitching: 5.24
Players To Watch: Justin Smith (.439, 12 HR, 41 RBI), Brenton Doyle (.416, 13 HR, 67 RBI, 22 SB), Nick Atkinson (.359, 15 HR, 42 RBI, 19 SB)
Pitchers To Watch: Ryan Potts (11-1, 2.95 ERA, 111 K), Mitchell Johnson (4-2, 4.19 ERA), Justin Smith (7-2, 5.98 ERA, 37 K)

#5 Mercyhurst (32-13, 20-8 PSAC West)
2018 Series: DNP against Bloomsburg
All-Time Series: Mercyhurst leads Bloomsburg, 5-3
Offense: .301
Pitching: 3.88
Players To Watch: Daniel Elliott (.370, 10 HR, 49 RBI), Drew Delsignore (.359, 4 HR, 33 RBI, 10 SB), Matt Schneider (.333, 7 HR, 32 RBI)
Pitchers To Watch: Chris Vallimont (8-2, 2.27 ERA, 119 K), Tyler Garbee (5-0, 2.50 ERA), Russell Lamovec (4-3, 2.98 ERA, 66 K), Adam Jeannette (3-1, 5 SV, 5.93 ERA)

#6 Seton Hill (31-20, 17-11 PSAC West)
2018 Series: Seton Hill 1-0 against Bloomsburg
All-Time Series: Seton Hill leads Bloomsburg, 3-2
Offense: .289
Pitching: 3.62
Players To Watch: Chris Law (.378, 4 HR, 26 RBI), Tom McCarthy (.345, 8 HR, 37 RBI, 16 SB), Mark Colella (.315, 7 HR, 33 RBI)
Pitchers To Watch: Patrick Monteverde (3-2, 3.65 ERA, 69 K), Perry DellaValle (6-6, 3.74 ERA, 98 K), Don McWreath (3-3, 3.96 ERA), Neal McDermott (2-0, 3 SV, 2.89 ERA)

#7 Charleston (34-21, 22-10 MEC)
2018 Series: DNP against Bloomsburg
All-Time Series: Bloomsburg leads Charleston, 3-1
Offense: .316
Pitching: 5.44
Players To Watch: Hayden Cartt (.370, 6 HR, 31 RBI), Colton Bauer (.363, 2 HR, 34 RBI), Colby Johnson (.350, 9 HR, 39 RBI, 29 SB), Gianfranco Morello (.309, 5 HR, 39 RBI, 33 SB)
Pitchers To Watch: Adam Jafine (7-2, 5.08 ERA, 68 K), Anthony Zona (5-2, 3.35 ERA), Austin Henrich (5-3, 3.99 ERA), Jordan Peck (2-0, 3 SV, 3.54 ERA)

The championship has eight regional sites which will host double-elimination tournaments from May 17 to May 21. The committee selected 56 teams, including 23 automatic qualifiers with the winners of the eight regional tournaments advancing to the championship finals. This year's championship will be held at the USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, North Carolina, from May 26 to June 2.