No. 15 Arcadia was one of seven teams to record 40 or more wins and was just one win from making the field of eight in Cedar Rapids in 2022. Arcadia athletics photo

By Mark Fraenkel
for D3baseball.com

The top conference in Region 4 is the NJAC as three of the top four teams come from this powerhouse conference. Montclair State, No. 11 Rowan and William Paterson will all compete for the conference title. Rowan has made it out of the regional round in both of the last two years and is favorite to get to the super-regional round again. The NCAA likes to spread teams from a single conference around to different regionals so MSU or WPU could easily find themselves playing Rowan in an all-NJAC super-regional.

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No. 15 Arcadia has become the favorite in a conference that for years have reliably sent Misericordia to the regional round. The Knights stopped a string of ten straight tournament appearances for the Cougars and are expected to continue to be the new kids on the block. Stevens made the regional round in 2022 as well and we could see the MAC Freedom sending multiple winners to the playoffs from now on. The United East will send their champion but none of previous schools representing the conference have made it out of the regional round.

New Faces

Kyle Lindsay will be making his second straight debut as head coach. In 2022, he was the first year head coach for Delaware Valley and in 2023 he will be guiding the Ursinus Bears. Delaware Valley athletics photo

Kyle Fleming, Delaware Valley: With Kyle Lindsay’s move to Ursinus, Fleming was promoted at Delaware Valley. A graduate of Army, Fleming began his career as a graduate assistant with the Black Bears while he was serving in the Air Defense Artillery branch, He interned with the Washington Nationals and was a video scout for the Toronto Blue Jays. The Louisa, Virginia alumnus was also an associate scout with the Nationals and the Atlanta Braves. "I'm thoroughly excited to be selected to lead the Delaware Valley baseball program," said Fleming.  "We plan on building on the progress and strides we made last year as a team under Coach Lindsay and look to develop into a perennial winning program."

Matt LaBranche, John Jay: In August, John Jay announced that LaBranche would serve as the next head coach. The Springfield College alum has previously served as head coach at Eastern Connecticut State and Western New England University. "I am thrilled for the opportunity to become a member of the John Jay community," LaBranche stated. "It is a special place, with a special mission, in a special city. I look forward to getting to know the team and working with them to elevate the Bloodhound baseball program to new heights."

Joe DiMento, Penn State Abington: Penn State Abington has handed the reigns over to DiMento. The former undrafted free agent with the Toronto Blue Jays spent the last four seasons on the coaching staff in Abington. The Rutgers-Camden alum also coached at his alma mater where he was an assistant coach, catching coordinator, and hitting coach. "This is the dream, this really is," said DiMento. "A few years back this was exactly that, just a dream. To be able to finally live that dream with this team and these young men, it means the world to me. We've been able to accomplish a lot as a team since I've been here, but I'll tell you one thing, the job isn't done. Not until we bring a national championship to Penn State Abington!"

Kyle Lindsay, Ursinus: Ursinus hired Lindsay as their next head coach. In 2022, Lindsay was the head coach at Delaware Valley. He also has coaching experience at Misericordia and Arcadia. "I would like to thank the entire hiring committee for providing me the opportunity to lead the Ursinus baseball program," Lindsay said.  "It is evident that the leadership group within the Athletic department takes great pride in being a member of Ursinus College, and more importantly providing their student-athletes with the best overall experience possible. I am beyond excited to join the UC family and begin working with our student-athletes on and off the field. I want to help them set and achieve their goals, their aspirations for baseball, but more importantly life."

Key Games

Stevens vs. William Paterson, February 18-19th: On February 18th Stevens and William Paterson will open a three-game home-and-home series. On Saturday, the Pioneers will host Stevens for a doubleheader before traveling to Hoboken, New Jersey the following day. Both squads earned regional playoff bids and these early games will be key wins if either team fails to secure their conference's bid.

The WPU Pioneers will have one of the toughest spring schedule when they play at the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational. William Paterson athletics photo

Montclair State at the Aberdeen Tournament, February 24-26th: In a trip to Aberdeen, Maryland in late February, Montclair State will play three opponents from Region 5 - McDaniel, Swarthmore, and Scranton. Montclair State has been a rising program the last couple years and getting some tough competition in early will serve them well when the NJAC season begins.

Arcadia vs. Ithaca, February 25th: Arcadia will face the Ithaca College Bombers on February 25th in Stevenson, Maryland. Arcadia will be starting a string of ten games against 2022 playoff teams and will want to start with a win.

Arcadia vs. Stevens, March 11-12th: In Punta Gorda, Florida the Ducks and the Knights will match up three different times. This series could very well play a huge role in the seeding of MAC Freedom tournament.

William Paterson spring trip, March 11-18th: In their annual spring trip, William Paterson will play some great programs from across the Division III Baseball landscape (UMass Boston, Salve Regina, St. Scholastica, Oswego State, Benedictine, Roger Williams, and UW- La Crosse). Playing in Sanford, Auburndale, and Davenport, the Florida trip will be very telling about the quality of Mike Lauterhahn's team.

Misericordia at Stevens, April 6th: The Cougars hit the road for two games against Stevens with a third time less than one week later in Bristol, Connecticut. Misericodia ended their playoff streak and saw Arcadia and Stevens advance to the playoffs in 2022 and sto prove they are a dominate team in the MACF.

Misericordia vs. Arcadia, April 28-29th: The first game will be at Tambur Field in Dallas, Pennsylvania, before Arcadia hosts a doubleheader on Saturday in Glenside, Pennsylvania. A top seed in the upcoming conference tournament will be up for grabs.

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Conference Previews 

Joseph Cocozza had a very productive 2022 rookie campaign and helped the Bearcats win back-to-back CUNYAC Championships. Baruch athletics photo

City University of New York Athletic Conference: The CUNYAC has been won by Baruch (16-9) for the last two years and Jose Torres's team will try to make it three straight. In 2022, the offense was led by three freshmen with Brian Hwang (.356, 12 RBI), Joseph Cocozza (.326, 2 HR, 29 RBI, 11 SB) and Michael Paray (.326, 10 RBI) leading the team. The freshman theme extended to the pitching staff with Nathaniel Demchakk (3-0, 2.32 ERA, 43 K) and David Perez (3-2, 8.38 ERA, 31 K) getting significant starts. They join the ace of the staff in Matthew Lawler (6-1, 2.10 ERA, 50 K). The Bearcats will open the season in Fort Myers, Florida playing Hiram College, Muskingum, Haverford, and Skidmore.    

CCNY (8-25) went 5-7 in conference play last year. The Beavers will open the new campaign with a tough test in the Stevens Ducks. Lehman (8-17) fell to Baruch in the CUNYAC championship last year. Like CCNY, the Lightning will also begin the 2023 season with Stevens. John Jay (6-31) struggled last year. Going 4-8 in the conference, the Bloodhounds will begin anew in Florida with games against Calvin, Moravian, Houghton, Dubuque, and Chatham. Good news for the Bloodhounds is their new coach has a proven record of winning so don't expect John Jay to stay in the CUNYAC cellar.

FAVORITE: Baruch

MAC Freedom: Arcadia and Stevens will both be competing in the MAC Freedom again in 2023. While Arcadia (40-9) won the conference in 2022, Stevens also played in a regional last season. Arcadia will open the season by hosting Ursinus at Skip Wilson Field in Ambler, Pennsylvania. Arcadia won the MAC Freedom in 2022 with a 19-2 record in the conference. With second baseman Alex Madera, Bryan Torresani’s team will once again be a force in the conference. Madera hit .464 and had 31 RBIs in 48 games last season. Hunter Sibley (8-2, 1 save, 3.97 ERA, 69 K), Hunter Curley (4-3, 3.92 ERA, 43 K) and Nick Fossile (6-1, 3.23 ERA, 46 K) will toe the rubber in the Knights starting rotation. Expect the MAC Freedom to go through Skip Wilson Field.

On February 12th, Stevens (29-16) will commence their 2023 season by playing host to CCNY at Dobbelaar Baseball Field. An at-large playoff spot was earned by Kristaps Aldins’ team but was eliminated by Catholic and St. Joseph's (L.I.) in the Winchester regional. The squad has momentum coming into the 2023 season with balance on both sides of the ball. With more starting pitchers than hitters returning, the pitching may be slightly ahead of the offense. The best pitchers are  starter Justin Doyle (4-1, 4.36 ERA, 40 K) and reliever Anthony Pron (8-4, 1 save, 4.87 ERA, 57 K) who uniquely, led the team in innings last year and pitched the end of the game in all of the biggest contests as a "hybrid closer" type of role. The offense will be buoyed by Michael Reyes (.347, 4 HR, 18 RBI), a two year starter for the Ducks.

Misericordia (28-17) was eliminated by Arcadia in the conference tournament last year. Two-way player Connor Maryniak (.327, 6 HR, 29 RBI, 0-4, 3 saves, 4.82 ERA, 31 K) will be back in Dallas, Pennsylvania. The Reading, Pennsylvania native made only four errors last season for a team that went 15-6 in the MAC Freedom. With almost all of a talented pitching staff returning, they will have to improve significantly for the Cougars to get back to the top of the conference standings.

Wilkes (24-14) ended the 2022 season with eight consecutive wins. Kevin Gryboski will try to keep the momentum going into the new season when they host Cobleskill to open the season on February 25th. FDU-Florham (22-19) went 8-13 in the conference last year. They'll open the 2023 season with St. Elizabeth and Drew on February 24th at Vincent J. and Lenda F. Naimoli Ballpark in the Madison Avenue Challenge.

DeSales (20-20) last won their conference championship in 2008, but they’ll be competitive this season. They welcome back Dillon Drew (.313, 22 RBI), Joe Grigas IV (.268, 20 RBI), Gabe Diaz (.265, 14 RBI), Colin Trembley (.250, 17 RBI), Billy Scanlon (.414, 32 RBI), Patrick Kusters (.286, 17 RBI), Gavin Zavorski (.264, 12 RBI) in the lineup. King's (11-22) saw a lot of growth in their squad in 2022 after the altered 2021 season. Many of the sophomores and juniors gained valuable experience. Among this group are the Monarchs' best hitters - Zach Day (.379, 2 HR, 26 RBI) and Chase Yochem (.357, 18 RBI). New additions from last year's first years and transfers helped greatly in 2022 and are expected to be large contributors in 2023.

FAVORITE: Arcadia

Montclair State finished third in the NJAC in 2021, second in 2022 and is set to make a run at the top spot in 2023. Montclair State athletics photo

New Jersey Athletic Conference: The 2022 season saw Rowan (33-10) continue its stretch of dominance in the last two seasons, going 62-16 with a 33-3 record in the NJAC. They won the Annville regional in 2022 with a win over Mitchell and two wins over Washington & Jefferson. Mike Dickson's team would fall to the eventual national champions, Eastern Connecticut State in the super regionals. Rowan is poised to make another deep run in the postseason. Right fielder Ryan Murphy is in contention for conference player of the year. The Reading, Pennsylvania native hit .380 in 43 games last year. Key transfers, like left-handed pitcher Zach Grace from Wake Forest, and pitcher Nick Hammer from James Madison, will help the Profs compete in the new season.

First baseman Peter Cosentino at Montclair State (31-13) will be a player to watch all season long. After being eliminated by Ramapo in the NJAC tournament last year, the Red Hawks still made a regional in 2022. Playing in the Ripken Experience in Aberdeen, Maryland will be a great test for Dave Lorber's team. Montclair State will have a solid offense core in 2023 led by Jorden Jurkiewicz (.399, 11 HR, 52 RBI, 17 SB) and Peter Cosentino (.383, 10 HR, 52 RBI). Patrick Cuccurullo (7-3, 2.79 ERA, 95 K) will get ace status for the Redhawks.

After going 12-6 in conference play, Kean (31-13) fell to William Paterson in the NJAC tournament last year. The Cougars will open the new season with Widener, Drew, and St. Joseph's (L.I.). William Paterson (31-15) has 14 new players on the roster including Tyler Ruban, Matt Lemieux, Jude Zern, Mike Novak, and Will Pitt. Welcoming the new crop in 2022 is last year's NJAC Player of the Year Dan Carter (.432, 9 HR, 62 RBI) and Colin Lombardo (.401, 8 HR, 43 RBI). The Pioneers will be tested on day one of the new campaigns when they open with Stevens.

TCNJ’s (20-18) catcher, Ryan Goodall (.261, 5 HR, 33 RBI), made history when he was named the NJAC Rookie and Player of the Year in 2021. The Toms River, New Jersey native is the key for Dean Glus’ team to succeed in 2023 because as Goodall goes, the team goes. With a four-game win streak to close the season, Rutgers-Newark (16-18) missed the conference playoffs by .5 game on a tiebreaker. Six starting position players and all pitchers are returning from last year's team. Infielder Robert Gonzalez (.336, 22 RBI, 10 SB) is a player to watch on Conor Kortmann’s team. 

FAVORITE: Rowan

This spring, the Lions are set to face six nationally-ranked  teams and squads receiving votes in the Top 25. Penn State-Harrisburg

United East: Penn State Harrisburg (30-17) won its second consecutive UEC title in 2022.  Eliminated by Denison and William Paterson in the Granville regional, Ryan Bown's team will seek to continue building in the 2023 campaign. Matt Parks (.348, 12 HR, 53 RBI, 16 SB), Dallas Hite (.332, 14 HR, 52 RBI, 20 SB), and Kevin Lehner (.365, 13 HR, 44 RBI) are all top players on the 2023 roster. After a dominating 19-2 conference record last year, the Lions open the new campaign with four games on the road against the Ferrum Panthers.

Penn State-Abington (33-11) is also coming off of a great 2022 season but loses 2022 D3baseball.com Player of the Year Ryan McCarty who had 29 of the Lions' 80 conference leading home runs. The Nittany Lions went 17-4 in conference play. Head coach David Miller made the jump to Manhattan College after the season and PSA will have a new coach to guide them in Joe DiMento. Despite losing right-handed pitcher Sam Zeigler from the 2022 roster, Penn College (21-18) will return outfielder Jake Carles (.407, 3 HR, 28 RBI, 15 SB) and third baseman Cameron Dick (.347, 5 HR, 42 RBI). With a lot of senior leadership, the Wildcats will be able to make a run at the conference championship if the team stays heathy.

Lancaster Bible (18-21) went 13-8 in the UEC last year. Caleb Abney's team was eliminated by Penn State Abington and Penn College in the conference tournament. The Chargers will open the new campaign with a three-game series against Lesley. Led by Erik Amspacher, Penn State-Berks (16-17) will start the 2023 season on the road in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Infielder Chad Evans will be the key to the Nittany Lions’ success. The Collegeville, Pennsylvania native hit .436 with 38 RBIs in 32 games last season. St. Mary's (Md) (12-15) went 8-12 in the UEC last year. Bernie Stratchko's team will have a tough challenge in game one when they open the new season against Catholic at home in St. Mary's City, Maryland.

FAVORITE: Penn State Harrisburg

Independents: The only Region 4 team in the UAA is New York University (19-13). The Violets will have outfielder Ryan Carr once again playing the field. The Saddle River, New Jersey native and Don Bosco Prep alum hit .288 and knocked in 22 RBIs for Doug Kimbler’s team. NYU will open the 2023 season with the United States Merchant Marine Academy on February 22nd at Staten Island University Hospital Community Park.