SNHU picked second in poll

By rbrown
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Updated: January 28, 2020

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. – The Southern New Hampshire University baseball team was chosen second in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) East Region Preseason Poll, and graduate student Joshua Goldstein (Haverhill, Mass.), junior Jeffrey Praml (Bridgewater, N.J.) and senior Wesley Tobin (Portsmouth, N.H.) claimed spots on the NCBWA Preseason All-East Region Team.

NCBWA EAST REGION PRESEASON POLL RELEASE | NCBWA PRESEASON ALL-EAST REGION TEAM RELEASE

SNHU earned one of the nine possible first-place votes to total 82 points, while the defending East Region Champion New York Institute of Technology collected the remaining eight first-place votes and 89 points to finish atop the poll. Wilmington (Del.) University (66) edged Adelphi University (65) for third place, with Franklin Pierce University (49), Felician University (45), Pace University (30), Assumption College (24), Dominican (N.Y.) College (11) and Chestnut Hill College (10) rounding out the remainder of the poll.

The Penmen, who were selected to place first in the Northeast Division for the fourth consecutive year when the Northeast-10 Preseason Coaches’ Poll was released last week, finished 40-15 a year ago, capturing its fourth straight NE10 Northeast Division title. The team lost to Franklin Pierce in the NE10 Championship, but hosted an NCAA East Regional pod, winning that to advance to and host the NCAA East Super-Regional in the first year under the new format. The Penmen fell to New York Techn to fall short of their third trip to the World Series in Cary, N.C.

Goldstein, Praml and Tobin were three of 28 players selected to the Preseason All-Region Team. Goldstein, a First Team choice at second base, garnered his second consecutive NE10 Third Team honor last season. The only member of the team to play in all 55 games, Goldstein hit .300 with a pair of home runs, 22 RBI and 41 runs scored, while collecting 15 stolen bases on 20 attempts. He helped bolster a .434 on-base percentage by drawing 23 walks and getting hit by a pitch 21 times. He handled 237 of his 245 chances cleanly and helped turn 24 double plays. Goldstein led the league in hit by pitches, while placing sixth in runs, eighth in OBP and 12^th in steals. Goldstein, who already owned the top spot in the program’s single season record book with 17 HBPs in 2018, has now penciled his name into the top two slots.

Praml joined Goldstein on the First Team in the relief pitcher spot after a stellar 2019. He became the 10^th All-American in the history of the program with NCBWA All-America Third Team and Division II Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA) All-America Honorable Mention nods. Praml also earned NCBWA All-East First Team, American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) East All-Region First Team, D2CCA All-East First Team and Northeast-10 All-Conference First Team honors, after going 5-1 with 10 saves and a 0.98 ERA, while punching out 44, walking only seven and giving up just 17 hits, in 36-and-two-third innings. Praml, who had a 22-and-a-third-inning scoreless streak across 17 appearances from March 3-May 16, led the conference in appearances (25), while ranking second in saves and fourth in batting average against (.140). In SNHU’s single-season record book, Praml tied for first in appearances, placed third in saves and ranked fourth in ERA.

Tobin earned one of the three starting pitcher spots on the Second Team, as he went 8-3 with a 2.67 ERA in his first season as a starter for the Penmen last season. Over 84-and-a-third innings, the big right-hander gave up 69 hits, struck out 99 and walked 21. Tobin, who claimed NE10 All-Conference Second Team honors, led the conference in wins, ranked third in strikeouts and strikeouts per game (10.57), fourth in innings pitched, sixth in hits and 15^th in ERA.

The Penmen kick off the 2020 season with a three-game set at Colorado Mesa University that begins Feb. 14 (2:30 p.m.).