Weekend Recap

It’s difficult not to get excited for the season opener with the spring performances of Donnie Hissa and Dennis Torres. Hissa and Torres are holding their own for Notre Dame and UMass-Amherst respectively, each with an ERA below 3.00.

Hissa, the 6-foot-8 sophomore from Iron River, Wisconsin, received limited innings early in the season with a wealth of arms in the bullpen. However, his consistency makes it impossible for the Irish staff to overlook him as of late.

In Sunday’s game, with Notre Dame down 3-0 in the top of the sixth, Hissa was handed the ball and threw 3.1 perfect innings, closing out the game against St. Johns University.  He needed just 33 pitches to retire ten batters, four of them on strikes. Hissa did not figure in the decision as Notre Dame failed to overcome the deficit.

Hissa also pitched a perfect inning in relief on Friday against the same St. Johns squad, fanning two of three batters.

Hissa holds a 1-1 record with a 2.41 ERA and has struck out 26 of the 70 batters he has faced. Opponents are batting a mere .214 with only two extra base hits – a double and single.

Unlike Hissa, Torres has been a regular starter since the beginning of the season for the Minutemen. On Friday, the junior from Lawrence, Massachusetts, allowed six hits, two runs, one earned, in eight innings of work in a no-decision.

Despite the strong start, UMass eventually lost the game 6-3 in extra innings. 

As always, Torres took the loss in stride.

“It’s part of the game. It happens,” he said via text.

Torres is 2-3 on the season with a 2.88 ERA. He is second on the team with 36 strikeouts.

Interestingly enough, Torres did not pitch in high school for Central Catholic. He was cut all four years.

Casey Cotter was one of the lone bright spots in a weekend Merrimack College would like to forget. The Warriors were swept by division rival Franklin Pierce in a three-game series.

Cotter, who has been solid at the plate all season, was 4-for-12 in the series with a solo home run. He has thirteen hits in his last ten games and is batting .329 with a pair of home runs on the year.

Cotter’s future teammate, Anthony Peguero, was 3-for-8 on the weekend with a double, two RBI, and three runs scored.

Spencer Marentette resumed his early season form with six hits in his last three games for Oakland University this weekend. The freshman from Kingsville, Ontario, who led the Grizzlies in average for the better part of the season before slumping, raised his average to .286.

Roman with a Pair of HR's

Anyelo Roman  hit a pair of home runs in Dakota State's 16-5 win over Dordt (IA) on Tuesday. Roman was 3-for-4 with 5 RBI and 2 runs scored in the first half of a doubleheader. Roman finished off the day going 1-for-4 with a run in the second game of the twinbill. He is now batting .377 on the season and is ranked fifth in home runs nationally for NAIA D1 baseball.

Midweek Recap

Oakland University's Kyle Bobolts had three hits and three RBI in the Grizzlies 23-7 beat down of Olivet on Wednesday in Michigan. The junior infielder also scored three runs and closed out the game on the mound, striking out two batters in the ninth. Bobolts has six hits and five RBI in his last three games.

Casey Cotter had a pair of singles in Merrimack College's 10-8 walkoff win over UMass-Lowell on Tuesday. Cotter scored the winning run in the bottom of the tenth on teammate Joe Mantoni's 400 foot blast to centerfield that sent the Merrimack bench into a frenzy. Cotter leads Merrimack with a .314 average.

Greg Pezzuto has developed into an everyday starter for Southern New Hampshire University. Pezzuto continues to strike the ball well with sixteen hits in his last ten games. He is batting .340 for the Penmen this season, second on the team, but does not qualify for conference stats given the limited number of appearances.

Weekend Recap

Ryan Coppinger busted out offensively belting out six hits in three games this weekend for Canisius. The outfielder known for his speed, displayed a bit of power with one home run and two RBI. Coppinger boosted his average to .333 for the Golden Griffins.

Greg Pezzuto spent the better part of the season as a pinch hitter for Southern NH University, but has earned a position in the starting lineup thanks to his string of multi-hit games when finally given the opportunity. Pezzuto continues to hit the ball well for the nationally ranked Penmen. In a pair of weekend games, Pezzuto was 4-for-11 with a  double and a pair of RBI.

Pezzuto's teammate, freshman pitcher Lucas Olen (2-1) picked up his first collegiate save this weekend, facing two batters in SNHU's 8-6 win over Stonehill on Saturday.

URI's Kevin Stenhouse was a homerun shy of "the cycle" with the three hit game in Rhode Island's 13-0 win over Saint Bonaventure. Stenhouse scored seven times and had hits and RBI in three weekend games.

Donnie Hissa, a frontline starter for the Mavs this summer, made three brief appearances for the University of Notre Dame, holding opponents scoreless. The six-foot-eight pitcher lowered his ERA to 2.14 and has 19 strikeouts in 12.2 innings. Last season, Hissa led the FCBL with 60 K's.

Saturday Morning Updates

Donnie Hissa (Notre Dame) threw two scoreless innings on Thursday, lowering his ERA to 2.31. Hissa, a sophomore, struck out four and walked one. Batters are hitting a mere .239 against him this season.

Tomas Mark (Northern Oklahoma) had a 2-for-4 performance on Thursday to continue his hot hitting. He is batting .309 with 19 RBI for the aptly named Mavericks this spring.

With four games remaining in Belmont Abbey's season, Nate Cudney continues working innings in relief and as a starter. Cudney pitched 1.2 perfect relief innings for the Crusaders on Friday, facing five batters and striking out one. He is 4-2 on the season with a 3.49 ERA, while striking out 53 batters and walking 16. 

Q&A with Tomas Mark

Photo: Northern OK College

It is hard to believe the season is less than two months away. Players, some we are familiar with and others we know little about, will be making their way to the Seacoast area for another season of Futures Collegiate Baseball League action. One of the new faces, Northern Oklahoma’s Tomas Mark, was kind enough to answer some questions.

Tomas is currently batting .303 with 19 RBI and recently concluded a ten game hitting streak. 

Name: Tomas David Mark Hernandez

Hometown: Brooklyn, NY

Major: Undecided

Childhood Idol: Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez

Proudest moment as a player: Getting a scholarship to play college baseball

Most embarrassing moment as a player: Honestly, don’t think I’ve ever had one, thank god!

Favorite food and/or restaurant: steak and baked potato, favorite restaurant would have to be Texas Roadhouse or Chili’s

What is your dream vacation? I would love to go to Dubai Islands

If you could spend a day with any person, living or dead, who would it be? I’d love to hang out with Robinson Cano

Who has had the greatest influence on your career to date and why? Darrel Tiebout and Ian Younge both helped me through a lot of my struggles in baseball and school when I was younger.

What playing on your iPod? Rick Ross- Stay Schemin’

What are your goals for the summer? Open up some eyes and show people that guys from New York City can play baseball.

Marentette & Peguero Hitting Well

There was limited action due to the Easter holiday on Sunday, but Spencer Marentette and Oakland University were were scheduled for a pair of games against Oral Roberts. Marentette had two hits and two RBI in each game. The freshman infielder was 4-for-7 on the day and raised his average to .306 on the season.

Anthony Peguero had two hits in three at bats in Franklin Pierce's 11-2 thumping of Pace on Saturday. Peguero also had a RBI and run scored in the contest.He has eleven hits in his last eight games and has only struck out twice in his last twent-nine at bats. Peguero is bating .294 on the season with two home runs and sixteen RBI.

Cotter With a Walk-Off

Casey Cotter's one out RBI single to right field in the bottom of the tenth lifted Merrimack College to a 7-6 win over New Haven on Saturday. He was 2-for-4 in both halves of the doubleheader and finished with an RBI and two runs scored. Cotter is now batting .339 on the year and is currently riding a six game hitting streak.

Speaking of streaks, Tomas Mark had hits in both ends of Northern Oklahoma's doubleheader to extend his personal streak to ten games. He is currently third amongst the regulars with a .307 average.

After spending most of the season as a reserve, SNHU outfielder Greg Pezzuto is making a case to remain in the Penmen lineup. Pezzuto was 2-for-4 and 3-for-4 in SNHU's doubleheader against Adelphi yesterday. He has rewarded the coaching staff with eight hits in three consecutive starts this week.

Friday Updates

Greg Pezutto had three hits, two RBI, and scored two runs in Southern New Hampshire's win over Pace in the second half of Friday night's doubleheader. The sophomore from Hastings-on-Hudson, NY has seen limited action this season on a nationally ranked Penmen team that has dominated the early part of the year.

Spencer Marentette was 1-for-3 in Oakland University's 2-0 shutout of Oral Roberts on Friday. Marentette and the Grizzlies will play a two more games against Oral Roberts on Saturday.

Anthony Peguero had a pair of hits on Friday for Franklin Pierce in the first half of a doubleheader against Adelphi. The nightcap featured a no-hitter by Peguero's teammate Ryan Leach of Farmingdale, Maine. Peguero was 0-for-2 with walk in that game.

UMass-Lowell's Matt Novak pitched a 2.1 scoreless innings on Friday. Novak, a sophomore from Hampstead, NH, is carrying a 1.29 ERA in three relief appearances.

Torres Tosses a Gem and Tomas Mark Continues Streak

Dennis Torres

Dennis Torres continues to have a strong season for UMass-Amherst. Torres limited LaSalle to one run in 7.2 innings, enroute to a no-decision in the Minutemen’s 2-1 win on Wednesday.

Torres struck out six batters and walked two. He leads the team with 26 strikeouts and is second with a 2.08 ERA.  

Future Mavericks catcher and first baseman Tomas Mark is quietly putting together a solid season Northern Oklahoma –Tonkawa, also nicknamed Mavericks. Mark has hits in eight straight games including three two-hit performances during the stretch. He is currently batting .290 on the season and leads the team with 18 RBI and 8 extra base hits – all doubles.

Hissa and Willey Earn First Collegiate Wins

Photo: Hissa UND.com

Donnie Hissa (University of Notre Dame) and Doug Willey (Franklin Pierce) each picked up their first collegiate wins on Wednesday.

Hissa (1-1) worked 1.1 innings in relief, struck out three batters and only allowed one hit. The 6-foot-7 sophomore from Iron River, Wisconsin lowered his ERA to 3.84 on the season. Opponents are batting .224 against him, third best on the Irish squad.

Willey, a freshman  from Shelburn, NH, picked up his first collegiate victory in Franklin Pierce's walk off win over nationally ranked Southern New Hampshire. Willey pitched the last two frames, holding SNHU to to a single hit. He struck out four batters and maintained his perfect 0.00 ERA.

Willey's Franklin Pierce teammate and future Maverick Anthony Peguero was 2-for-4 on the afternoon with an RBI.

Weekend Recap

Dennis Torres (2-2) scattered eight hits and allowed a single run in U Mass-Amherst's 2-1 victory over U Albany on Saturday. Torres struck out six batters, walked one, and lowered his ERA to 2.30 in the season.

Belmont Abbey's Nate Cudney pitched a shortened seven inning complete game in the Crusader's 4-2 win over North Greenville on Saturday. Cudney allowed two earned runs on four hits while striking out seven and walking two batters.

Spencer Marentette had hits in all three weekend games for Oakland University. He was 3-for-11 on the weekend with two RBI. Marentette, a freshman for the Grizzlies, is batting .299 on the season.