CAA CO-PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Brooks Baldwin | 2B | UNCW

Jr. - Whiteville, N.C./Whiteville

Baldwin helped UNCW to a 4-0 start for the first time since 2016, batting .350 (7-20) with a double, triple, homer, 5 RBI’s, 6 runs and 5 SB’s in wins over St. John’s and Middle Tennessee. The junior hit a walk-off 2-run homer in a 6-4 win over MTSU on Friday and had a 2-run triple in the 8th of Sunday’s 8-4 victory over MTSU.

CAA CO-PLAYER OF THE WEEK

JT Marr | C/1B | Charleston

Jr. - Fort Mill, S.C./Fort Mill

In his CofC debut, Marr batted .583 (7-12) with two doubles, a homer, 3 RBI’s and 2 SB’s in the Cougars’ 3-game sweep of Wagner. The junior went 3-for-4 with an RBI double on Friday, was 2-for-4 with a go-ahead solo homer in Saturday’s 3-1 triumph, and had a 2-for-4 outing with a RBI double on Sunday in Charleston’s 7-5 win.

CAA PITCHER OF THE WEEK

Rojo Prairie | RHP | William & Mary

Sr. - Fairfax, Va./Lake Braddock

In his longest career outing, Prairie didn’t allow a hit while recording the final 11 outs as W&M beat Rhode Island, 10-5, to cap a 3-game sweep. The senior entered a 6-5 game with 2 on and 1 out in the 6th, and escaped the jam. He fanned four over the final three frames and retired the final seven batters to record the save.

CAA ROOKIE OF THE WEEK

Mike Sirota | OF | Northeastern

Fr. - Broad Channel, N.Y./The Gunnery

Sirota batted a team-best .588 (10-17) with two doubles, a homer, five RBI’s and three runs scored in Northeastern’s four games last weekend. The freshman outfielder went 4-for-5 with a three-run homer in a 10-5 victory over Monmouth on Saturday and was 4-for-5 with an RBI double in an 8-1 win over Penn State on Sunday. He had at least one hit in all four games.

CONFERENCE NOTES: 

HOT STARTS FOR COFC, UNCW AND W&M: Charleston, UNCW and William & Mary had great opening weekends as all three went undefeated. The Cougars (3-0) swept their opening series for the third time in five years, taking three from Wagner. The Seahawks got off to a 4-0 start for the first time since 2016 with a pair of victories over St. John’s and Middle Tennessee. The Tribe swept its series with Rhode Island to open 3-0 for the first time since 2019.

DELAWARE KNOCKS OFF #4 NOTRE DAME: Aidan Kane’s walk-off homer in the 9th lifted Delaware to a 5-4 victory over #4 Notre Dame on Sunday, giving head coach Jim Sherman his 800th career win. It was the first time since 2011 that the Blue Hens defeated a Top 10 opponent.

NORTHEASTERN PICKED TO REPEAT AS CAA CHAMPIONS: Northeastern, which won a pair of 10-inning thrillers to capture its first CAA baseball title in 2021, has been picked to repeat as the conference champion this season. The Huskies received six first-place votes and 62 total points in a vote of the league’s head coaches to edge out perennial power UNCW, which got three first-place votes and 59 points. Charleston (48 points) and Elon (43) took the next two spots, followed by James Madison (30), William & Mary (27), Towson (24), Delaware (18) and Hofstra (13).

UNCW’S BALDWIN, NU’S SCHLITTLER TOP PRESEASON ALL-CAA TEAM: UNCW infielder/outfielder Brooks Baldwin and Northeastern pitcher Cam Schlittler were chosen as the CAA Preseason Players of the Year by the league’s head coaches. Baldwin batted .325 with 15 homers and 45 RBI’s in 2021, while Schlittler was 8-1 with a CAA-best 1.88 ERA and struck out 85 over 76.2 innings. Northeastern and Elon each placed five players on the preseason All-CAA team, while Charleston and UNCW each had three. 

THREE CAA PLAYERS EARN PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA HONORS: Three CAA players have received preseason All-America recognition from a number of media outlets. JMU outfielder/pitcher Chase DeLauter (.386, 6 HR, 21 RBI’s) was named a first-team All-American by Baseball America and Perfect Game, a second-team All-American by D1 Baseball and a third-team pick by the NCBWA. Northeastern pitcher Cam Schlittler (8-1, 1.88 ERA) was chosen as a first-team All-American by Perfect Game and a second-team All-American by Collegiate Baseball and the NCBWA. DeLauter and Schlittler are also among 55 players on the preseason watch list for the Golden Spikes Award, which is given to the nation’s top amateur player. UNCW infielder Brooks Baldwin (.325, 15 HR, 45 RBI’s) made the NCBWA All-America third team.

CHARLESTON (3-0, 0-0 CAA): The Cougars outscored Wagner, 30-11, in recording a season-opening three-game sweep. Charleston batted .340 as a team with 18 extra-base hits. JT Marr batted .583 with two doubles, a homer and three RBI’s, while Joseph Merson hit .400 and drove in five. Freshman pitcher Daniel Brooks limited Wagner to two hits and an unearned run over 5.0 innings and struck out six to earn a win in his first collegiate start on Saturday. The Cougars’ pitching staff combined for 28 strikeouts in 27 innings. Charleston visits Clemson on Tuesday before hosting Siena in a three-game weekend series.  

DELAWARE (1-2, 0-0 CAA): The Blue Hens stunned 4th-ranked Notre Dame, 5-4, on Sunday, as Aidan Kane smacked a walk-off homer in the bottom of the 9th. Kane finished 2-for-4 with three RBI’s in the game and batted .375 for the weekend. Reliever Zach Klapak didn’t allow a hit over the final 3.0 innings to earn the win vs. UND. JJ Freeman hit .455 on opening weekend and Joseph Carpenter batted .400 with a homer and three RBI’s. Chris Ludman threw 7.0 innings and gave up just six hits in the opener vs. Stetson. The Blue Hens are back in Florida this weekend to play a 3-game series at Florida Atlantic.

ELON (1-2, 0-0 CAA): The Phoenix beat Fairfield, 7-4, on Sunday to take the final game of their weekend series. Brian Edgington blanked the Stags through the first five innings and earned the win after allowing four hits over 6.0 frames. Willie Havens was 3-for-4 with a homer in the victory and batted .400 for the series. Connor Offshack homered twice and added a double in seven at-bats vs. Fairfield. Trevor Kirk struck out seven over 4.2 innings on Saturday. The Phoenix travel to nationally ranked North Carolina on Tuesday before welcoming Longwood for a three-game series starting Friday.

HOFSTRA (0-0, 0-0 CAA): The Pride opens the 2022 season on Friday when it travels to Houston Baptist for a three-game series. Hofstra begins its first season under new head coach Frank Catalanotto, who played 14 seasons in Major League Baseball and guided New York Tech to a Division II College World Series appearance in 2020. Outfielder Will Kennedy (.284, 2 HR, 15 RBI’s) is the Pride’s top returnee offensively.

JAMES MADISON (0-3, 0-0 CAA): The Dukes dropped three games at 11th-ranked Florida State last weekend. JMU jumped out to a 1-0 lead in Friday’s opener on Travis Reifsnider’s solo homer. He finished the game 2-for-4. Justin Showalter turned in a solid start, limiting the Seminoles to three earned runs over 5.0 innings. Nick Zona was JMU’s top offensive performer, batting .444 (4-9) in the series, while Trevon Dabney hit .333 and drew three walks. Donovan Burke gave up just one earned run and fanned four over 4.0 frames on Saturday. JMU hosts George Mason and welcomes Fairleigh Dickinson for a 3-game series.

UNCW (4-0, 0-0 CAA): The Seahawks posted a pair of victories over Middle Tennessee and St. John’s to start 4-0 for the first time since 2016. UNCW batted .299 as a team with Brooks Baldwin batting .350 with five RBI’s and five stolen bases. Dillon Lifrieri homered twice and drove in seven, while Taber Mongero doubled twice and had six RBI’s. UNCW was 12-for-13 in SB’s for the weekend. Ethan Chenault struck out a career-high 10 in 5.0 innings vs. MTSU on Sunday. Carter Holjes and Cyle Phelan each threw 3.1 shutout innings out of the bullpen. UNCW hosts Ball State, Rutgers and Illinois this weekend.

NORTHEASTERN (2-2, 0-0 CAA): The Huskies split four games in Cary, N.C., picking up wins over Monmouth and Big Ten foe Penn State. Wyatt Scotti held PSU to one run over 6.0 innings and Dennis Colleran struck out five and didn’t allow a hit over the final 3.0 frames in an 8-1 triumph. Freshman Mike Sirota was 4-for-5 vs. PSU and batted a team-best .588 (10-17) with five RBI’s over the four games. Justin Bosland hit .417 (5-12) with a double, triple and four runs scored for the weekend. Eric Yost had a good start vs. Monmouth, giving up one run over 5.0 innings. NU meets Minnesota, Marshall and Merrimack this week.

TOWSON (0-4, 0-0 CAA): The Tigers suffered four losses at 25th-ranked Miami (Fla.) last weekend. Towson led 7-5 in the sixth in Friday’s opener before dropping a 10-8 decision. Jordan Peyton was 2-for-4 with a homer and three RBI’s on Friday, while Chandler Castleberry was 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI’s from the leadoff spot. He hit a team-best .333 for the series. Burke Camper hit .300 with a solo homer against the Canes. The Tigers have another big weekend ahead with two games vs. Southern and two against host LSU in Baton Rouge.

WILLIAM & MARY (3-0, 0-0 CAA): The Tribe swept a three-game series from Rhode Island in its first games under coach Mike McRae. W&M batted .340 as a team, had 13 extra base hits and scored 35 runs. David Hogarth hit .615 (8-13) with six RBI’s, Ben Williamson batted .400 and scored six times and Matt Thomas hit .385 with a homer and five RBI’s. Jack Cone belted a grand slam in Friday’s win and threw 3.0 shutout innings on Saturday. Carter Lovasz tossed 4.0 shutout innings and fanned five, while Rojo Prairie had an 11-out save to complete the sweep on Saturday. W&M faces Richmond, Maine and Penn State this week.