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Staten Island, NY - The Wagner Seahawks (7-12; 3-1) return to action this weekend with four big games against perennial Northeast Conference (NEC) power and 2012 preseason favorite Monmouth (11-7; 3-1). The teams will play four games starting on Friday at 1:00 pm. Seahawks fans can receive live updates through the Wagner Twitter Page, which can be accessed by clicking on the above link.

Wagner Baseball Capsule:
Roster / Schedule / Notes

Monmouth Baseball Capsule:
Roster / Schedule

Schedule and Probable Starters
3/23 - Monmouth - 1:00 pm
Sr. RHP Ryan Van Spronsen (3-0) / Monmouth: Jr. RHP Pat Light (3-1)
3/23      Monmouth - 4:00 pm (approximate)
So. RHP Ryan Casey (1-1) / Monmouth: Jr. LHP Dan Smith (3-2)
3/24    Monmouth - 1:00 pm  
Jr. RHP Dakota Dvorak (0-4) / Monmouth: So. LHP Andrew McGee (2-2)
3/24    Monmouth - 3:30 pm (approximate)
Fr. RHP Dan Watson (1-1) / Monmouth: So. LHP Stephen Frey (2-1)

Series Breakdown
The series has been switched to two doubleheaders slated for this weekend. Game one will be a nine-inning affair and start on Friday, March 23 at 1:00 pm before being followed by a seven-inning game. On Saturday, March 24 the first game will be a seven-inning contest and start at 1:00 pm before being followed by a nine-inning game.

Picture Me Rollin
Wagner has won four of its last five games thanks to an offense thanks to outscoring the opposition by a 33-17 count during that time, while the pitching staff has posted a 3.51 ERA. Additionally, five of the Seahawks' starting nine is hitting at least .333 during that time.

Last Weekend
The Green & White won the series after taking three-of-four from Quinnipiac. With the impressive performance Wagner improves to 16-4 against the Bobcats since 2008, while outscoring QU 112-61 during that time. Additionally, the Seahawks also improved to 11-1, all-time, vs. Quinnipiac at Richmond County Bank Ballpark.

Van Spronsen Keeps Dominating
In the opener against the Bobcats, Van Spronsen continued his outstanding start to the season with his second career complete-game shutout, while giving the Green & White its eighth-straight NEC-opening victory and the 10th in the last 11 years. Additionally, Van Spronsen has also now not allowed an earned run against Quinnipiac over 19.2 career innings of work. The Canadian native leads the team in wins (3), ERA (1.45), innings (31.0 ip), strikeouts (18) and opposing average (.226).

Over the Last Two Games ...
Van Spronsen is 2-0 with two complete games, 14 strikeouts and a miniscule 0.50 ERA over 18.0 dominating innings of one-run ball.

Van Spronsen, Light Set To Match Up
Van Spronsen will take the ball in the opener against Monmouth in a match-up of two of, if not, the best pitchers in the league. Opposing Van Spronsen will be junior RHP Pat Light, who has been pegged as a probable Second Round pick in the upcoming Major League Baseball Draft by Baseball America. Light (3-1), like Van Spronsen (3-0), has been dominant in the early going and leads the Hawks in wins (3), ERA (3.71), innings (34.0), strikeouts (27) and  opposing average (.254).

The Pair ...
Have captured each of the last two NEC Pitcher of the Week citations. Last week, Light struck out 13 Fairleigh Dickinson Knight batters, which are the most since the 2010 season, over 9.0 innings en route to his first career NEC weekly accolade. Van Spronsen earned his first career citation one week earlier, striking out nine while hurling over 9.0 inning in a win over JU (3/10).

However ...
Van Spronsen has struggled against Monmouth over his three-year career in posting a 10.29 ERA over 14.0 innings. Light, meanwhile, hasn't had much success against Wagner, posting a 0-1 record with a 4.36 ERA while allowing 14 hits and five walks over 10.1 career innings.

More Quinnipiac Notes ...
By winning three-of-four against the Bobcats, the Seahawks improved to 23-7 over its last eight conference-opening weekends and have not lost a series during that time.

Last Eight
With Van Spronsen winning the opener by a 1-0 score, Wagner has now won eight-straight conference openers by a combined score of 61-20. Additionally, the Seahawks are 5-0 all-time in NEC-openers at Richmond County Bank Ballpark since moving to the stadium in 2008, while outscoring the opposition by a 42-15 margin during that time.

Pitcher Perfect
The Green & White's 1-0 win over Quinnipiac in Friday's opener was also the first by that score since a 1-0 victory over CCSU on March 27, 2011 in an extra-inning affair that went 9.0 innings. It was also Wagner's first 1-0 win in a scheduled  9.0-inning game since at least 1999.

DID YOU KNOW?
That the Seahawks' first 13 games were against teams that qualified for the NCAA Tournament or won their conference championship.

Casey, Watson Impressive
Casey and freshman Watson joined Van Spronsen in collecting victories over Quinnipiac in games two and four, respectively. Casey struck out struck out five while not walking a batter over 7.0 innings of one-run ball in Wagner's 7-1 win, while Watson also allowed just one run over 6.0 solid innings in the Seahawks' series-clinching 10-1 victory.

Casey, Watson and Pavia All Pick Up First Wins
The aforementioned victories as well as sophomore RHP Nick Pavia's win at Lafayette are the first career victories for all three pitchers.

Richmond County Bank Ballpark
On the Strength of last weekend's series victory over Quinnipiac, Wagner has now posted a 61-29 (41-21 NEC) record at Richmond County Bank Ballpark. Additionally, with his game-four win Watson and his brother Matt, who is the school's leader in career victories (19), are a combined 10-1 at the Stadium.

No Free Passes
Casey has not allowed a walk over his last two starts, both of which resulted in Green & White wins. On the year, he has issued just two free passes over 19.1 innings of work.

Offensive Explosion
In Wagner's 10-1 win over Quinnipiac on Sunday, March 18 all nine Seahawk starters hit safely for the first time this season as the Green & White rapped out a season-best 12 hits. However, in the most recent game the Wagner bats bettered that performance with a season-best 13 runs on 13 hits in a 13-9 victory over Lafayette (3/21).

Seahawks Take Series From Jacksonville
Buoyed by a total-team effort, the Seahawks won 2-of-3 against preseason Top-40 selection Jacksonville (3/9-3/11), as the Green & White claimed its first pre-NEC series victory since taking 2-of-3 from Maine in 2009.

Van Spronsen In The News
Van Spronsen led Wagner to a 4-1 victory over JU (3/10), striking out nine while hurling his first career 9.0-inning complete game. Van Spronsen's performance earned the Canadian native praise from Eric Sorenson in his College Baseball Today blog, which encompasses all of NCAA Division I baseball.

Long Time Coming
Van Spronsen's NEC accolade was the first by a Wagner pitcher since Matt Watson won the award just over two years ago on March 1, 2010.

Wagner Named Northeast Region Team Of The Week By College Baseball Insider
On the heels of its series win at Jacksonville the Seahawks garnered Northeast Region Team of the Week accolades by College Baseball Insider.

Yard Work
Sophomore Chris Smith hit his first career home run and the second of the year by a Wagner player at Virginia Tech (3/14).

Yard Work (x2)
With the Seahawks hitless over the first three frames in Sunday's series finale against Quinnipiac (3/18), and in dire need of a spark sophomore Ian Miller crushed the first pitch of the fourth inning deep over the right field wall for his first collegiate home run. The solo shot sparked a four-run frame en route to 10 Seahawk runs over the next five frames.

Brown Returns
After missing six-straight games due to injury, senior Eddie Brown returned last weekend and has been on a tear over the last five games. The Seton Hall transfer is batting a blistering .389 (7-for-18) with four RBI and three runs while providing a solid glove in the field.

Murph Mashing
Graduate student Bill Murphy extended his hitting streak to a team-best 11 with his 2-for-3 performance in the win at Lafayette (3/21). The Rutgers transfer is now hitting a team-best .366 (15-for-41) and has reached base in all 13 of his starts en route to a .460 OBP.

Weekend Notes
This weekend's games have several additional storylines due to the fact that head coach Jim Carone and assistant coach Chris Collazo played for Monmouth head coach Dean Ehehalt, who is now in his 19th year with the Hawks.

Carone ...
Lettered for four years for the Hawks from 2000-2003 and was the 2002 Northeast Conference Pitcher of the Year and helped his MU teams go 11-4 against Wagner.

Collazo ...
Lettered for four years at Monmouth from 2006-2009 and was the 2009 Northeast Conference (NEC) Tournament Most Outstanding Performer. He helped the Hawks to the 2007 and 2009 NCAA Regionals, but was just 8-8 as a player against the Seahawks.

Last Year
MU won all four meetings between the teams in West Long Branch by a combined score of 33-16. Junior Nick Alfano (.667),  senior Tommy Higgins (.333) and Brown (.313) led the offense for Wagner. Among the returners from last year's team for Hawks, senior Ed Martin hit .467 while classmate Owen Stewart (.333) and senior Josh Boyd (.308) batted above .300 against the Seahawks.

Series History
Since the 2006 season, Monmouth holds a slim 13-12 advantage in the series. However, at home Wagner is 7-4 during that time.

Scouting Monmouth
MU is led on offense by senior Jamie Rosenkranz, who has notched two NEC Player of the Week citations while batting a team-best .368. Additionally, he paces the team in runs (19), hits (28) and OBP (.422). All-time, Rosenkranz is a career .349 (15-for-43) hitter against Seahawk pitching with 11 runs, six RBI and five doubles. Martin checks in next at .318 with junior Danny Avella (.314) rounding out the .300-hitters for the Hawks. The CBA graduate is also the team's top power threat, clouting three home runs and 19 RBI.

Avella's Brother ...
Vinny Avella is Wagner's all-time home run and RBI leader, with 50 and 161, respectively. Additionally, the elder Avella, who played for the Seahawks from 2007-2010 is the NEC's all-time leader in both categories.

Road Warriors
The Green & White traveled approximately 15,500 miles in their season-opening 14-game road trip.

Trial By Fire
Eight of the 13 pitchers used by Carone this season are freshmen with just two remaining from the team's last postseason appearance in 2010. The eight freshmen have accounted 51.7 percent (79.2/154) of Wagner's innings and 52.1 percent (38/73) of the strikeouts.

Follow On Twitter
For those looking for updates or wanting to chime in on this weekend's action may do so using the twitter hash tag (#WAGMU)

NEC In The Major Leagues
Joining Wagner alum Andrew Bailey in the Major Leagues from the Northeast Conference last season were former Central Connecticut State hurler Evan Scribner and former Monmouth pitcher Brad Brach as both saw time with the San Diego Padres out of the bullpen. Scribner is now with the Oakland A's organization while Brach is still with San Diego.

Did You Know?
Bailey and Carone squared off during the 2003 season and it was Bailey that got the better of Carone, leading Wagner to an 8-3 victory over Monmouth on April 23, 2003. The Red Sox reliever struck out six over 5.2 innings of one-run ball while the Seahawk coach was tagged for four earned runs over four frames.

Tough Schedule
Wagner will play 13 of its 57 games against teams that are projected to qualify for the NCAA Baseball Tournament as forecasted by Baseball America. On the docket are games at Charlotte (4x), at Jacksonville (3x), at Georgia Tech (1x), Monmouth (4x) and St. John's (1x). Additionally, the Seahawks will take on defending WAC Co-Champion Hawaii (5x), Virginia Tech, Rutgers, Seton Hall and reigning A-East Champion Maine.

Lucas Earns Contract With Toronto
RHP Jon Lucas became the eighth former Seahawk student-athlete since 2006 to ink a contract with an affiliated team when he signed with the Toronto Blue Jays. However, the team's 2011 Team MVP garnered All-Conference accolades as a DH.

Professional Update
2006 graduate Andrew Bailey was traded to the Boston Red Sox in the offseason by the Oakland A's and is expected to serve as the team's closer. 2008 graduate Joe Testa finished last season with the Potomac Nationals and is expected to start the year in Double A Harrisburg while 2011 graduate Jon Lucas is slated to begin with either the Short Season Vancouver Canadians or the Low A Lansing Lugnuts. Former Washington National farmhand Kyle Morrison and former Philadelphia Phillie farmhand Andy Wells are also attempting to break camp with affiliated teams.

Interesting
The Seahawks will square off with six of Baseball America's Top-100 prospects this season: Jacksonville OF/1B Adam Brett Walker (#31), Monmouth RHP Pat Light (#58), St. John's OF Jeremy Baltz (#74), Georgia Tech OF Brandon Thomas (#77), Georgia Tech RHP Buck Farmer (#92) and St. John's RHP Kyle Hanson (#94).

Up Next
Wagner heads to Rutgers for a midweek affair on Wednesday, March 28 at 3:00 pm.