Six Trinity Baseball Players And Head Coach Earn Post-Season Honors
Hartford, Conn., June 23, 2009 - Trinity College senior RHP Jeremiah Bayer (Greenfield, Mass.) was selected as the 2009 National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Division III Pitcher of the Year and the D3Baseball.com National Pitcher of the Year, while Bayer and senior co-captain C Sean Killeen (Greenfield, Mass.) were each selected to the D3Baseball.com All-American First Team, the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Division III All-American First Team, the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division III All-New England Team, and for the New England Intercollegiate Baseball Association (NEIBA Senior All-Star Game on June 4 in Brockton, Mass. Bayer was also chosen as the NCBWA and the NEIBA Division III Pitcher of the Year, and joined Killeen and junior 1B Kent Graham (Longmeadow, Mass.) on the All-NEIBA First Team. Bayer was selected as the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Pitcher of the Year, Killeen was named as the both the NCBWA New England Player of the Year and the NESCAC Player of the Year, and Graham was honored as the NESCAC Defensive Player of the Year. Bantam skipper Bill Decker (Simsbury, Conn.) was chosen as the NESCAC and the ECAC Division III New England Coach of the Year, while senior co-captain 2B Ryan Piacentini (Portland, Maine) graced the All-NESCAC First Team, and junior OF Matthew Sullivan (North Reading, Mass.) earned a spot on the All-NESCAC Second Team. In addition, junior OF Jack Abbott (Longmeadow, Mass.) represented the Bantams on the NESCAC All-Sportsmanship Team. The 2008 NCAA Champion Trinity baseball squad waged a valiant defense of its national title, posting its third consecutive 30-win season at 33-7 and advancing to the program's fourth NCAA Division III World Series. The Bantams captured a fourth NCAA Division III Regional Championship crown, breezed through the NESCAC East Division with a 12-0 mark for the second year in a row, and won a third NESCAC Championship crown. Trinity was ranked No. 6 in the Final NCBWA/D3Baseball.com National Poll.
Bayer, a two-time All-New England, All-American, and All-NESCAC honoree, went 12-1 (2nd in nation in wins, College record for wins) with a 0.85 ERA (1st in nation) and one save, five complete games, two shutouts, 94 strikeouts against 24 walks, and 64 hits allowed in 14 games (11 starts) and 95.1 innings pitched. He was selected as the NESCAC Pitcher of the Week twice and the NCAA Regional Tournament MVP. Bayer was selected in the 30th round of the Major League Baseball (MLB) Amateur Draft by the Boston Red Sox. A transfer prior to his junior season from Division I Vermont, Bayer totaled a 21-1 record (College record for winning percentage) and a 1.07 ERA (College record) in his two-year career as a Bantam with 165 strikeouts, 41 walks, 119 hits allowed, six complete games, and two shutouts in 31 appearances (20 starts) and 176.1 innings pitched. Bayer is a graduate of Deerfield Academy. He majors in political science at Trinity and is the son of Cindy and Fred Bayer.
Killeen, a two-time All-New England selection, a three-time All-NESCAC selection, and the 2006 NESCAC Rookie of the Year, started all 40 games behind the plate for the Bantams, leading the team in batting average (.448), hits (64 in 143 at-bats, 2nd in NESCAC), doubles (18, tied College record), triples (3), homers (11), runs (57, 20th in nation, tied College record), walks (35, 23rd in nation, College record), on-base percentage (.565, 12th in nation), total bases (121) and slugging percentage (.846, 9th in nation). Killeen, who was chosen as the NESCAC Player of the Week once and repeated on the NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team, added 53 RBI (2nd on team) and threw out 14 out of 32 potential basestealers. In his unprecedented career behind the plate for the Bantams that included a College-record 159 games played and 156 starts, Killeen posted the sixth-highest batting average in College history at .392 (220-for-561, new College records for hits and at-bats) with 181 runs (College record), 51 doubles (tied College record), 11 triples (College record), 28 home runs, 377 total bases (College record), 158 RBI (College record), 98 walks (new College record), and 11 stolen bases in 14 attempts. He threw out 38 out of 129 potential basestealers in four seasons. Killeen, who signed a free agent contract with the Boston Red Sox immediately following the MLB Amateur Draft, is an alum of Greenfield High School. Killeen graduated from Trinity in May with a bachelor's degree in economics. He is the son of Jody and Jim Killeen.
Graham, a three-time All-New England and All-NESCAC selection and the 2007 NESCAC Rookie of the Year, started 39 games at 1B and batted .409 (2nd on team, 8th in NESCAC) with 61 hits (2nd on team) in 149 at-bats, 14 doubles (2nd on team), 10 homers (2nd on team), 44 runs (T2nd on team), a team-high 54 RBI, and six steals in as many attempts. He recorded 309 put-outs, 29 assists, and 26 double plays recorded while committing just five errors for a .985 fielding percentage. Graham was selected as the NESCAC Player of the week once and graced the NCAA All-Tournament squad. A graduate of Longmeadow High School, Graham is majoring in American studies at Trinity. He is the son of Barbara Loh and Donald Graham. Piacentini, an All-NESCAC and All-New England selection in 2008, started 39 games at 2B, and batted .362 with 51 hits in 141 at-bats, eight doubles, seven homers (3rd on team), 41 runs, 49 RBI (3rd on team), 27 walks (2nd on team), and a team-high eight HBP's. Piacentini was selected for the NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team. In his fine career, Piacentini batted .331 (160-for-484) with 127 runs, 32 doubles, 14 home runs, 108 RBI, 65 walks, and 13 steals in 18 tries. An alum of Deering High School, Piacentini graduated from Trinity in May with a degree in economics. He is the son of Maryann and Rick Piacentini. Sullivan played in 34 games with 31 starts in CF, and batted .372 (T3rd on team) with 45 hits in 121 at-bats, 12 doubles, two triples, four homers, 39 runs, 15 RBI, and seven stolen bases in nine attempts. A graduate of St. John's Prep High School, Sullivan is majoring in economics at Trinity. He is the son of Janice and Harold Sullivan. Abbott started every game in the outfield and batted .352 with 57 hits (3rd on team) in a team-high 162 at-bats, six doubles, one triple, 44 runs (T2nd on team), 27 RBI, and a team-high 12 stolen bases in 16 attempts. A graduate of Longmeadow High School, Abbott is majoring in American studies at Trinity. He is the son of Manny and John Abbott.
Completing his 19th year as head baseball coach at Trinity, Decker has led the team to 18 winning seasons, a 455-194 record, which makes him the College's all-time winningest baseball coach, eight NCAA tournament bids, seven NESCAC Tournament bids, four ECAC Tournament appearances, four NESCAC titles, four NCAA World Series appearances, and an NCAA National Championship title in 2008. A four-time NESCAC Coach of the Year, Decker was honored by the Connecticut American Legion Baseball Program as the Connecticut College Coach of the Year in both 2007 and 2008. He is a 1985 graduate of Ithaca College.
Click here for NCBWA award information
Click here for ABCA All-American information
Click here for NEIBA Senior All-Star Team information
Click here for NEIBA Senior All-Star Game information
Click here for D3Baseball.com All-American information
Click here for all-NEIBA information
Click here for All-ECAC information
