Baseball Second Seed in 2012 ECAC New England Baseball Championship

Framingham, Mass. – The Framingham State University baseball team has been selected to participate in the 2012 Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division III New England Baseball Championship as the second seed.  The Rams will face third seed Anna Maria College at Endicott College on Saturday afternoon.      

The Rams are making their second ECAC Tournament appearance in three seasons as they advanced to the tournament's semifinals in 2010.  The Rams and the Amcats met earlier this year in the season opener for both teams with the Amcats sweeping a doubleheader at the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational.

The Rams won a school record 26 games this season under fifth year head coach Brian Blumsack as they went 26-16 overall and 10-4 in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC).  The Rams were the third seed in the MASCAC post season baseball tournament and were eliminated in the semifinals.

The team is led offensively by first team All-MASCAC selection, junior outfielder Will Crofton (Hopkinton, Mass.) who is batting .361 with 11 doubles and 31 RBI.  Senior designated hitter and second team all-conference selection Pedro Acevedo (Fall River, Mass.) follows at .349 with 13 doubles, three homeruns and 31 RBI.  On the hill, the Rams are led by first team selection sophomore Matt DiCato (Winthrop, Mass.), who sports a 7-2 record on the mound with a 2.11 ERA.  DiCato has struck out 46 batters in 55 1/3 innings this spring.  Also having a strong spring on the mound for the Rams is senior Ryan Stoller (Milton, Mass.) who has a 4-4 record with a 3.10 ERA.

The Amcats compiled a 23-17 record in 2012 including an 11-5 mark in the GNAC and were eliminated in the semifinal round of their conference tournament.  Anna Maria is led by utility player Jeff Scafidi (Worcester, Mass.) who was named the 2012 GNAC Player of the Year.  Scafidi splits his time between the outfield and the mound.  He batted .409 this season with 11 doubles, three triples, four homeruns and 32 RBI, while going 5-1 on the hill with a 3.38 ERA.

Rounding out the tournament field are top seed Endicott College (27-16) who will meet fourth seed Newbury College (23-21) in the first semifinal on Saturday morning at 10 a.m.  The Framingham/Anna Maria game will follow 30 minutes after the first semifinal.  The tournament will conclude with the winners of the two semifinals meeting for the Championship on Saturday afternoon 30 minutes after the conclusion of the second semifinal game.