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Staten Island, NY - Wagner (24-27; 16-12 NEC) will conclude the regular season with four games against reigning NEC Regular Season Champion Bryant (36-15-1; 23-5 NEC). This weekend's series will be the final home appearance for seniors Nick Alfano, Dakota Dvorak, Chase Gray and Jayson Keel.

Schedule
* Thursday, May 16 - Wagner vs. Bryant (3:00 pm)
* Pitching Match-Up: Jr. RHP Ryan Casey (5-5, 4.65 ERA; 81.1 IP / 33 K / 19 BB) vs. Sr. RHP Peter Kelich (7-3, 2.14 ERA; 80.0 IP / 70 K / 15 BB)

* Friday, May 17 - Wagner vs. Bryant (1:00 pm)
* Pitching Match-Up: Jr. LHP Matt Morris (4-3, 1.87 ERA; 43.1 IP / 40 K / 14 BB) vs. Jr. RHP Craig Schlitter (8-3, 2.73 ERA; 66.0 IP / 62 K / 14 BB)

* Friday, May 17 - Wagner vs. Bryant (3:30 pm)
* Pitching Match-Up: Fr. RHP Mike Adams (2-7, 7.18 ERA; 52.2 IP / 32 K / 44 BB) vs. GS LHP John Healy (7-1, 2.69 ERA; 63.2 IP / 60 K / 22 BB)

* Saturday, May 18 - Wagner vs. Bryant (1:00 pm)
* Pitching Match-Up: Fr. LHP Paul Mammino (6-1, 3.22 ERA; 67.0 IP / 39 K / 25 BB) vs. So. RHP Kevin McAvoy (5-2, 3.92 ERA; 66.2 IP / 51 K / 21 BB)

Notes:
Playoffs!
The Seahawks enter this weekend with playoff aspirations for the NEC Tournament in Lakewood, NJ as they currently lead LIU Brooklyn by one game and CCSU by three games in the race for the fourth and final slot.

A Little History Lesson
The last time the NEC Tournament was played in Lakewood in 2006, Wagner qualified by sweeping its final regular season series against preseason favorite Monmouth. Bryant was tabbed by the league's coaches to win this year's title and needs just one victory to clinch its second regular season title and the third in the last four years.

Last Year Against Bryant
The Bulldogs took three-of-four from the Seahawks thanks to posting a miniscule 0.84 ERA. The Green & White's staff was equally impressive in registering a 2.79 ERA as the teams combined to score a grand total of just 15 runs. Junior Chris Smith hit .375 (3-for-8) with a double and a RBI while Alfano batted .333 (4-for-12) with a run. Bryant's Carl Anderson hit .417 (5-for-12) while Kevin Brown chipped in with a .300 average (3-for-10) while adding three doubles and a pair of RBI.

Did You Know???
That the team's combined 15 runs represented just one less than the total of 16 scored in the teams' previous match-up in 2011 at Richmond County Bank Ballpark.

For His Career ...
Alfano is hitting .444 (8-for-18) against Bulldog pitching with four runs, two doubles, a home run and two RBI.

Two Plays, Two Records
Junior Ian Miller broke 2010 graduate Damian Csakai's school record for stolen bases with number 42 when he swiped second base in the third inning of Wagner's series opener with LIU Brooklyn. On the next pitch, Miller broke Kyle Messineo's six-year NEC record with his 43rd swipe of the year when he took third. On the play, the Keystone State native scored when the ball went into left field.

Miller Tied For National Lead
Miller would go on to add two more steals in the second game of Friday's doubleheader with the Blackbirds and is currently tied with Campbell's Ben McQuown for the national lead with 45 steals.

With One More Steal ...
Wagner would match FDU's NEC record of 113 steals set in 1988. Miller along with Keel (17, t-5th NEC) and Smith (16, 7th NEC) all rank among the top-10 in stolen bases in the NEC.

Fast Fact
Bryant boasts four players among the league leaders in stolen bases in Brown (20, 4th NEC), Anderson (17, t-5th NEC), Jordan Mountford (15, 8th NEC) and John Mullen (14, t-9th NEC). All told, this weekend's series will feature seven of the top 10 thieves in the league.

Leading The Way
Besides leading the league with 45 stolen bases, Miller also paces the circuit with 75 hits (30th NCAA) and is tied for first with 44 runs while hitting a team-best .344 (8th NEC).

Dini, Smith Go Deep
Sophomore Nick Dini and Smith each drilled two home runs against LIU Brooklyn last weekend and are both tied for the team lead with four.

The Rainmaker
Thanks to his two home runs, Dini hit a team-best .400 (6-for-15) while adding two doubles en route to driving in five runs and scoring three more last weekend at LIU Brooklyn. Dini now leads the NEC with 43 RBI while also ranking fourth with 65 hits, fifth with 94 total bases, sixth with 13 doubles and eighth with four home runs while checking in with a .320 average.

Dini Domination
Dini has hit safely in nine-straight games and in 20-of-21 en route to posting a team-best .405 average (34-for-84) during that time with a team-high 21 runs, three home runs, 26 RBI and a .607 slugging percentage. Additionally, the Garden State native is also batting .500 (18-for-36) with runners in scoring position.

Keeling It At The Plate & In The Field
Keel is hitting a team-best .423 (11-for-26) with five RBI and three doubles in the month of May, but it was his arm that was on display in Wagner's 3-1 game-two victory at LIU Brooklyn. With the score tied at 1-1 in the bottom of the fourth inning with two outs and a runner on second, Tito Marrero hit a shot to left field. On the play, Keel threw a perfect strike to nail Chris Untereiner at the plate for the final out of the frame while preserving the 1-1 deadlock. The Seahawks would go on to win the game after Smith crushed a tiebreaking two-run homer in the top of the fifth.

During NEC Play
Keel leads Wagner and ranks sixth in the conference with a .380 average.

Morris Dominates (Again)
To say that junior Matt Morris has been dominating for the Seahawks this season is an understatement. The hard-throwing lefty has allowed one earned run or less in each of his last 10 appearances, including eight starts, after striking out six while limiting LIU Brooklyn to just one run in a complete game 7.0-inning effort. On the year, Morris is 4-3 with 40 strikeouts and a  1.87 ERA in just 43.1 innings of work while limiting opposing hitters to a .227 average.

During League Play
Morris is 3-2 with 34 strikeouts, three complete games and a 1.26 ERA over 35.2 innings of work as opposing hitters are batting a paltry .220.

Third Time's A Charm
Freshman LHP Paul Mammino allowed six earned runs in just 5.1 innings of work in losing at the collegiate level for the first time in the series finale against the Blackbirds. Mammino had allowed five earned runs or more while not getting past the sixth inning in two previous starts this year. His next two starts following those starts produced a 2-0 record with 13 strikeouts and a 0.00 ERA over 16.0 dominating innings of five-hit ball. On the year, Mammino is 6-1 while ranking seventh in the NEC with his aforementioned six victories and is also ninth in innings (67.0) and 10th in ERA (3.22) while limiting opposing hitters to a .241 average (10th NEC).

The Best Around
Mammino's four career NEC Rookie of the Week citation is the most by any Green & White player in school history.

Smith Snaps Out Of Slump
Smith drilled a solo home run in game one of Friday's doubleheader in Brooklyn, before adding a tiebreaking game-winning two-run homer in the nightcap. He finished up 3-for-6 with two home runs, three RBI and three runs while snapping a 1-for-15 slump. Smith is second in the NEC with 32 walks while ranking eighth with four home runs and ninth with a team-best .429 OBP.

Streak Snapped
Gray's 24-game streak of reaching base safely was snapped in Sunday's opener at LIU Brooklyn. In his impressive streak, which spanned from April 3 - May 10, the Seton Hall transfer hit .333 (26-for-78) while hitting safely in 17-straight games and posting a .433 OBP.

Gordon Heading Up
Sophomore Jason Gordon has hit safely in each of his last five games while batting .333 (6-for-18) with three RBI and two runs during that time. Previously, the Maryland native was hitting just .194 (13-for-67).

With One More Win ...
Wagner would match its school record for NEC wins (17), set in 2009 and 2010.

Magic Number 3
The Seahawks are 16-6 when scoring at least three runs in a game during conference play.

Magic Number 3 (Take Two)
Bryant is an incredible 23-0 when scoring at least three runs in a game during NEC play and has limited opposing offenses to three runs or less in 22 of its 28 NEC games, going 21-1 during that time.

Close Games
Wagner is 11-6 in NEC games decided by three runs or less, including going 5-3 in one-run outings.

Something's Gotta Give
The Bulldogs are 6-1 in the second and fourth games of their seven NEC series' while the Seahawks are 5-2 in games two and four.

Pretty Impressive
Bryant's starting pitching has not allowed more than three earned runs in a league game this year and in 56 straight dating back to last season.

The Rotation
The Bulldogs boast an impressive rotation of reigning NEC Pitcher of the Year Peter Kelich (7-3, 2.14 ERA), Craig Schlitter (8-3, 2.73 ERA), John Healy (7-1, 2.69 ERA) and Kevin McAvoy (5-2, 3.92 ERA).

Offensively ...
Bryant is led by Brown, who is batting .369 with 16 doubles, two triples, five home runs, 40 RBI and 20 stolen bases while reaching base at a .504 clip. The 2010 NEC Rookie of the Year is hitting .375 (15-for-40) with 11 runs, seven extra base hits and eight RBI over his career against the Green & White. However, in his only previous trip to Staten Island he went 2-for-13 (.154) at the plate.

Both Teams ...
Are hitting .286 and like to run as Wagner leads the NEC with 112 steals with Bryant second with 87.

Top Rookies Square Off
This weekend's series also features three players in Mammino and Bryant's AJ Zarozny and Robby Rinn that have combined to win each of the last four NEC Rookie of the Week awards. The threesome along with freshman Ben Ruta have also combined to win 10 of the league's 14 rookie citations

Casey Killing It
Junior RHP Ryan Casey has turned it up a notch on the mound over his last seven starts, going 5-2 while posting a 3.44 ERA with four complete games over 52.1 innings of work. Casey has lowered his ERA by over two runs during that time to its current 4.65 mark in 81.1 innings (3rd NEC) of work.

Complete Game Casey
Casey (5-5) is also fourth in the NEC with four complete games and recently matched 2006 graduate Andrew Bailey for 10th in the school annals with his ninth career complete games.

Flynn Heating Up
Junior Shaun Flynn has been on fire over his last 15 games to the tune of a .396 (21-for-53) mark while raising his average 48 points to its current mark of .284. Flynn has also done an outstanding job of getting on base as is evident by his 24 walks (4th NEC), which has led to an impressive .369 OBP.

Steal City
Wagner has 427 stolen bases over the last four years while leading the conference each year and this season has been no different. The Seahawks are again at the top of the league rankings with 112 stolen bases (9th NCAA) in 51 games. At its current rate of 2.2 steals per game (eighth NCAA), Wagner would finish with 121 steals while bettering FDU's NEC record of 113 set in 2008. All told, since the start of the 2009 campaign the Seahawks are 470-for-592 on stolen base attempts.

Closing It Out
Sophomore RHP Anthony Battaglia has solidified the bullpen for the second-straight season and is currently third in the NEC with six saves and fifth with 21 appearances.

Captain Clutch
Gordon is hitting a blistering .393 (11-for-28) with runners in scoring position, compared to just .140 (8-for-57) in all other at-bats. During conference play, those splits are .533 (8-for-15) and .200 (6-for-30).

At The Ballpark
Wagner holds an all-time record of 84-44 (.656) at R.C.B.B. since the program began calling the stadium home for the 2008 campaign. Additionally, the Seahawks are 57-32 (.640) during NEC games and 24-12 (.667) in non-conference match-ups.

NEC Weekly Awards
Mammino has captured four NEC Rookie of the Week citations and one NEC Pitcher of the Week accolade. Joining Mammino with a Pitcher of the Week award was Morris while Ruta also collected a Rookie of the Week citation. Rounding out the winners was Miller, who earned NEC Player of the Week plaudits on Monday.

Bailey Honored
Andrew Bailey was honored by the American League as its Co-Player of the Week for the period of April 15-21 after going 1-0 with three saves and eight strikeouts, against just one walk, over 5.0 innings. Bailey has a 1.46 ERA in with 20 strikeouts over 12.1 innings.

NEC In The Major Leagues
Bailey (Red Sox), former CCSU pitcher Evan Scribner (A's) and former Monmouth hurler Brad Brach (Padres) are all in the Major Leagues.

2013 NEC Poll
Bryant was tabbed first with CCSU second, Monmouth third, Sacred Heart fourth, LIU Brooklyn fifth, Wagner sixth, FDU seventh, Quinnipiac eighth and the Mount ninth.

Up Next
The 2013 NEC Tournament will begin on Thursday, May 23 at 12:00 pm with game two slated for 3:30 pm.

Follow Wagner Athletics on Twitter (@wagnerathletics) for all the latest news and updates on the athletic department and @WagBaseball for news and updates on the baseball program.

Photography by Dave Saffran