Piscataway, NJ - The Wagner College baseball team is scheduled to play its final non-conference opponent of the 2017 season as they travel to Piscataway, NJ for the second time this season to take on Big Ten members, Rutgers. 

Scouting The Seahawks: Wagner split their four-game Northeast Conference (NEC) series with LIU Brooklyn, taking the series finale by a 12-0 mark on Sunday afternoon. Senior co-captain Danny Marsh (Monroe Township, NJ/Monroe Township) threw eight shutout innings to go along with a career-high 11 strikeouts.  Every Seahawk starter recorded at least one hit on the afternoon. Freshman 1B Nick D'Amore (Philadelphia, PA/Neumann-Goretti), junior 2B Kyle Brey (Middletown, NJ/Middletown South) and junior SS Sean Mazzio (West Chester, PA/Salesianum School [DE]) led the way with two hits apiece.  D'Amore and junior RF Kyle Cala (Brick, NJ/Brick Memorial) had three RBIs while junior LF Anthony Godino (Thornwood, NY/Pleasantville) and sophomore CF Joe Silvestrone (Manalapan, NJ/Freehold Township) each drove in two RBIs. Mazzio and sophomore 3B Anthony Pecora (Mamaroneck, NY/Mamaroneck) each drove in a run as well. 

We Meet Again:  Tuesday afternoon marks the second time that the Green & White and Scarlet Knights will face off. Rutgers won the February meeting, 9-2, as their projected starter, Christian Campbell pitched seven innings while driving in two runs.  Jawaun Harris and Mike Carter had two hits. For Wagner, the team notched eight hits, two of which coming from D'Amore as he finished 2-for-4 with an RBI. Godino drove in the other Seahawk run while ending the 1-for-3. 

Series History:  The Seahawks and Scarlet Knights are meeting for the 29th time, with Rutgers holding a 22-4-2 edge in the series. The last time the Seahawks won at Bainton Field was back on April 7, 2015, in which they were trailing 4-1 until the top of the eighth inning when the Seahawks erupted for ten runs in the top of the frame to come from behind and defeat Rutgers, 11-4.

Wagner-Rutgers Connection:  The common thread of this afternoon's contest is current Rutgers head coach, Joe Litterio. Litterio, a 1994 graduate of Rutgers, spent 12 years as the head coach of the Seahawks, in which he racked up 240 wins, the most in program history. Litterio guided eight players to Major League contracts, which includes 2009 American League (AL) Rookie of the Year and two-time American League All-Star, Andrew Bailey (currently a member of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim). Litterio was named the 2009 Northeast Conference (NEC) Coach of the Year after leading the program to a school-best 31 wins and the program's first and only regular season championship.

Scouting Rutgers: The Scarlet Knights are 16-25 on the year and 5-7 in the Big Ten. After taking the series opener against No. 17 Michigan on Friday, a 12-5 home victory, Rutgers enters Tuesday's game with Wagner looking to stop a two-game losing skid, dropping the series finale, 8-3, to the Wolverines. Mike Carter is the team's leading hitter, batting .373 and is the only Scarlet Knight hitting above .300 for the year. Jawaun Harris paces the team with seven home runs while Carter is the team's leader in RBIs with 30. On the hill, John O'Reilly leads the team with four wins. Max Herrmann has notched a team-high five saves. Serafino Brito has the most strikeouts on the staff with 37. 
 
Marsh Doubles Up On NEC Pitcher Of The Week Award: For the second time this season, Wagner senior co-captain RHP Danny Marsh (Monroe Township, NJ/Monroe Township) was named Northeast Conference (NEC) Pitcher of the Week, the conference announced on Monday afternoon. Prior to today's announcement, Marsh garnered the weekly honors back on March 27. Additionally, Marsh joins teammate, senior RHP Austin Goeke (Bordentown, NJ/The Hun School) as two-time recipients of the award this season as Goeke was named NEC Pitcher of the Week on April 17 and March 6.  Marsh lowered his league-leading earned-run average by spinning eight shutout innings in a win over local rival, LIU Brooklyn, on Sunday afternoon. Claiming his fifth win of the season in Wagner's 12-0 victory in the series finale over the Blackbirds, the senior right-hander scattered six hits (all singles) and one walk while registering a career-best 11 strikeouts during the 115-pitch outing. During his outing, Marsh fanned at least one batter in every inning.

Seahawks Over The Last Ten Games: Wagner is 6-4 over its last ten games, in which the team has compiled a .292 batting average while outscoring their opponents, 56-42. During this ten-game span, the Seahawks connected for seven home runs and drove in 54 runs while slugging a collecting .416.  Sophomore C/INF Phil Capra (North Salem, NY/North Salem) is hitting .487 (19-for-39) with seven runs scored, a home run and a team-high 13 RBIs over his last ten games. Capra has posted a total OPS (on-base + slugging) of 1.184. Three other Seahawks are all hitting above .300 over their last ten, which includes junior INF Kyle Brey (Middletown, NJ/Middletown South), who is batting .387, sophomore INF Anthony Pecora (Mamaroneck, NY/Mamaroneck) is hitting .343 with eight runs scored and eight RBIs. Lastly, junior OF Anthony Godino (Thornwood, NY/Pleasantville) is hitting a .323 clip with two home runs and eight RBIs. 
 

Seahawks In Professional Baseball....
Andrew Bailey (Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, American League):

• Currently on the 10-day disabled list as of April 12, 2017 with right shoulder inflammation.
• Bailey improved to 2-0 this year after taking the victory in the Angels' wild 10-9 win over the Seattle Mariners (Read Staten Island Advance's Jim Waggoner's recap of the contest)
• The former Seahawk earned his first win of the season on April 4 when he came in for Bud Norris and retired the Oakland A's in order in the bottom of the eighth. 
• In 12 games last season, Bailey went 0-0 with a 2.38 ERA while recording six saves, to bring his career total to 95.
• In 11.1 innings for LAA, Bailey struck out eight batters and walked just two while giving up just three earned runs. 

Mike Adams (Rockland Boulders | Can-Am League | Independent League): 

• In his first professional season playing for the Rockland Boulders, Adams went 5-6 with a 5.86 ERA in 16 games for the 2015 Can-Am Regular Season champions. 
• For the year, Adams hurled 66.0 innings, striking out 30 batters while walking 37. 
• In Rockland's playoff run, the former Seahawk right-hander pitched in four games, striking out five batters in five innings of work. 

Nick Dini (Lexington Legends | Class A | South Atlantic League | Parent Club: Kansas City Royals):

• The former 2015 NEC Player of the Year is batting .219 (7-for-32) with seven runs scored and 4 RBIs in nine games for the Legends.
• In his most recent game, Dini connected on his first home run of the season, a second inning two-run shot off of Hagerstown Suns (Class-A Affiliate of the Washington Nationals) starter, James Bourque, in the Legends 12-2 victory on April 27. 
• Last season, Dini posted a .316 batting average with 4 home runs in his first season, Dini saw time with four clubs within the Kansas City Royals organization in his second professional season, finishing out the year where he started back at the Idaho Falls Chukars.
• For 2016, Dini batted a combined .319 with nine RBIs and three stolen bases. 

Nolan Long (Great Falls Loons | Class A | Midwest League | Parent Club: Los Angeles Dodgers): 

• Assigned to Dodgers Ext. Spring Training on April 15, 2017. 
• Long is 0-1 with a 15.00 ERA in three games out of the pen for the Loons. In just three innings, Long has walked six batters while striking out three. 
• The towering 6-10 right-hander finished his second professional season splitting time between the Great Lakes Loons and the Ogden Raptors as he compiled a 6-11 record, with a 5.65 ERA in 27 games.
• As a member of the Loons, Long made 13 starts en route to a 4-8 record as he threw 64.1 innings, striking out 62 batters while walking 35, a 1.77:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio. 
• The former two-sport athlete on Grymes Hill, had eight games of at least five strikeouts, which included a season-best nine punchouts against the Dayton Dragons (Cincinnati Reds Class A affiliate) back on July 11. 

Ian Miller (Arkansas Travelers | Double A | Texas League | Parent Club: Seattle Mariners):

• The former 2013 NEC First Teamer is batting .359 (33-for-92) in 22 games. 
• Miller has six doubles, a triple, a home run and eight RBIs on the season while going 10-of-11 on stolen base attempts. 
• Over his last ten games, Miller is sporting a .372 batting average (16-for-43) with nine runs scored, a home run and three RBIs. 
• On April 26, Miller finished a season-best, 4-of-6 at the plate with a run scored, and his first home run of the season despite Arkansas falling 6-5, in extra innings.
• Miller's solo shot came in the top of the seventh as he led off the frame. 
• Eleven times this season, Miller has produced a multi-hit game
• Last season, Miller finished his fourth professional season with the Jackson Generals of the Southern League. In 114 games, Miller batted .269 with 28 RBIs, eight doubles, seven triples and 45 walks. Miller finished second in the league with 49 stolen bases and was caught just five times while posting an on-base percentage of .331.

Ben Ruta (Staten Island Yankees | Class A Short Season | New York-Penn League | Parent Club: New York Yankees): 

• In his first professional season, Ruta began the 2016 season with the Pulaski Yankees of the Appalachian League.
• In 13 games, Ruta batted .283 with a home run and eight RBIs while slugging .413.
• He was promoted to the Staten Island Yankees on July 14, becoming the first Seahawk to play for Staten Island, whose home games are played at Richmond County Bank Ballpark where the Green & White play their home games. 
• In his first game back in St. George, Ruta went 1-for-4 with a RBI.
• On August 4 against the Williamsport Crosscutters, Ruta belted his first home run as a member of the SI Yankees while driving in two runs and going 2-for-4 in the contest, a 5-3 victory for the Yankees. 

2017  Wagner Baseball Team Leaders

Category
Batting Average	Phil Capra .379	Anthony Godino .319	Kyle Cala .277	Sean Mazzio .274	Freddy Sabido .255
Slugging Pct.	Capra .530	Godino .483	Mazzio .459	Cala .423	Sabido .382
On-Base Pct.	Capra .451	Godino .428	Cala .338	Mazzio .331	Joe Silvestrone .326
Runs	Godino 28	Mazzio 24	Cala 22	Capra 20	Anthony Pecora 16
Hits	Capra 50	Cala 38	Mazzio 37	Godino 37	Silvestrone 29
RBIs	Capra 28	Cala 23	Mazzio 22	Godino 17	Pecora 16
Doubles	Godino 9	Capra 7	Mazzio 6	Silvestrone 6	Two tied at 4
Triples	Six tied at 2
Home Runs	Mazzio 5	Cala 4	Capra 3	Three tied at 2
Walks	Godino 17	Capra 15	Silvestrone 13	Pecora 13	Two tied at 11
Stolen Bases	Godino 14	Silvestrone 8	Cala 6	Capra 4	Three tied at 3
ERA	Danny Marsh 1.10	Austin Goeke 1.57	Chris Mormile 4.81
Wins	Marsh 5	Goeke 4	Five tied at 1
Innings Pitched	Goeke 57.1	Marsh 57.1	Mormile 39.1
Strikeouts	Goeke 61	Marsh 50	Mormile 39	Neil Abbatiello 32	Ethan Pritchett 16

Next Up For Wagner: The Seahawks will play all conference games for the remainder of the season as they will stay in the Garden State and take on Fairleigh Dickinson, in a three-game set, beginning on Friday, May 5.