2015 SUNYAC annual baseball awards announced
CORTLAND, N.Y. - The State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) is proud to announce the 2015 Baseball All-Conference teams, as well as Player, Pitcher, Rookie, and Coach of the Year awards. Conrad Ziemendorf (Penfield, NY) of Cortland was named the Bob Wallace Player of the Year, Brandon Serio (Bedford Hills, NY) of Cortland, won the Don Axtell Pitcher of the Year award, Jake Williams (Seaford, NY) of New Paltz was awarded the Clark V. Whited Rookie of the Year, and the Walter Nitardy Coach of the Year went to Joe Brown of Cortland.
Conrad Ziemendorf was a key part of the success of the nationally top ranked Red Dragon squad. The junior left-handed hitting outfielder posted a .364 batting average and .497 on-base percentage in 118 at-bats and 37 games played this season. He had 43 hits on the year, knocked in 35 RBI, and scored 40 runs as well, helping Cortland win its fifth straight SUNYAC title.
Brandon Serio (Bedford Hills, NY) took a 7-0 record so far on the season, earning him Pitcher of the Year. The righty-hurler anchored a pitching staff that has Cortland at a 36-3 record, a SUNYAC title, and a #1 national ranking, heading into the NCAA tournament. Serio, the junior from Fox Lane, started 8 games on the year, posting a .214 batting average against in 47.1 innings. He holds a 1.52 era and has 36 strikeouts to only five walks.
New Paltz's Jake Williams takes home the 2015 Clark V. Whited Rookie of the Year award. The freshman from Seaford, New York, posted a .299 batting averageand .346 on-base percentage in 28 games played. He notched 29 hits this season in 97 at bats, scoring 18 runs and slugged .443.
Coach Brown led Cortland to its fifth consecutive and 33rd overall State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) baseball title over the weekend. With the conference championship win, the Red Dragons earned an automatic bid into the NCAA Division III Baseball Tournament, its 23rd consecutive NCAA appearance. Brown has been the head coach at Cortland since 2000.
| 2015 SUNYAC Baseball All-Conference Teams (PDF) | |||||
| First Team | |||||
| No | Name | Position | School | Year | Hometown |
| 44 | Jordan Giller | 1B | Oswego | Jr. | Toronto, Ont. |
| 11 | Connor Griffin | 2B | Cortland | Jr. | Cortland, NY |
| 5 | Eric Hamilton | 3B | Oswego | Jr. | Liverpool, NY |
| 4 | Anthony Simon | SS | Cortland | Sr. | Suffern, NY |
| 12 | Donny Castaldo | OF | Cortland | Sr. | Mount Kisco, NY |
| 30 | Conrad Ziemendorf | OF | Cortland | Jr. | Penfield, NY |
| 4 | Dan Saccocio | OF | Oswego | Sr. | Scotia, NY |
| 33 | Vinny Bomasuto | DH | Cortland | Sr. | Dunkirk, NY |
| 27 | Dan Cecilia | C | Fredonia | Jr. | Utica, NY |
| 45 | Frank Buksa | C | Plattsburgh | Sr. | Plattsburgh, NY |
| 34 | Brandon Serio | P | Cortland | Jr. | Bedford Hills, NY |
| 21 | Brendyn Karinchak | P | Oswego | Sr. | Walden, NY |
| 11 | Mickey Putillo | RP | Oswego | Sr. | Brewster, NY |
| Second Team | |||||
| No. | Name | Position | School | Year | Hometown |
| 44 | Chris Pescetti | 1B | Plattsburgh | Sr. | Saratoga Springs, NY |
| 12 | Brett Sanders | 2B | Brockport | Jr. | Rochester, NY |
| 18 | Matthew Michalski | 3B | Cortland | So. | Buffalo, NY |
| 12 | T.J. Montalbano | SS | Plattsburgh | So. | Dix Hills, NY |
| 2 | Brendan Swayne | OF | Brockport | Sr. | Seaford, NY |
| 34 | Kenny Johnston | OF | Fredonia | Sr. | Buffalo, NY |
| 7 | Myles Kutscher | OF | Oswego | So. | Glen Head, NY |
| 2 | Mike Vargues | DH | Plattsburgh | Sr. | Gansevoort, NY |
| 8 | Zack Lander | P | Brockport | Sr. | Rochester, NY |
| 9 | Alex Weingarten | P | Cortland | Jr. | East Rockaway, NY |
| 27 | Travis Laitar | RP | Cortland | Jr. | Fergus, ON |
| At-Large | |||||
| 21 | Brandon McClain | P | Cortland | Sr. | Coram, NY |
| 16 | Jake Williams | OF | New Paltz | Fr. | Seaford, NY |
| Bob Wallace Player of the Year: Conrad Ziemendorf, Cortland | |||||
| Don Axtell Pitcher of the Year: Brandon Serio, Cortland | |||||
| Clark V. Whited Rookie of the Year: Jake Williams, New Paltz | |||||
| Walter Nitardy Coach of the Year: Joe Brown, Cortland | |||||
