Senior Sean Allaire Named Northeast Conference Baseball Player of the Year; Five Blue Devils Make First Team
Senior Sean Allaire was named the Northeast Conference baseball player of the year, it was announced on Wednesday night at the annual pre-tournament barbecue. Allaire becomes the third Blue Devil to earn the honor, joining former standouts Tim D'Aquila (2003) and Keith Stegnauer (2004). He led the league in hitting with a .456 average, and as of Monday morning was third in the country in in that category. The Blue Devils placed five players on the All-Conference First Team, including Allaire, junior Pat Epps, seniors Richie Tri and Tommy Meade and sophomore Mitch Wells.
Senior Sean Allaire was named the
Northeast Conference baseball player of the year, it was announced
on Wednesday night at the annual pre-tournament barbecue. Allaire
becomes the third Blue Devil to earn the honor, joining former
standouts Tim D'Aquila (2003) and
Keith Stegnauer (2004). He led the league in hitting with a .456
average, and as of Monday morning was third in the country in in
that category. The Blue Devils placed five players on the
All-Conference First Team, including Allaire, junior Pat Epps,
seniors Richie Tri and Tommy
Meade and sophomore Mitch Wells.
CCSU's NEC Tournament
Preview
Allaire put together one of the best single-season performances in
school history in 2010. In addition to being named the player of
the year, he was named First Team All-Conference as a utility
player. Allaire played shortstop, third base, catcher and in the
outfield during the season, qualifying him for the utility
position.
His .456 batting average led the league, and is just one point off
the school record of .457 set by Mike Scirotino in 1990. His 93
hits are the second-highest single season total in school history
(100, Keith Stegbauer in 2004) and he set a new single season RBI
record with 70 so far in 2010. He also set a new school mark with
22 doubles this season. He has an amazing 30 multi-hit games this
season in 49 total games played. Allaire was a Second Team
All-Conference selection last season.
Epps was also named to the First Team in the outfield. If not for
Allaire, Epps would have been a favorite to win player of the year
honors in the NEC. He hit .413 with 81 hits, a school-record 17
home runs and 66 runs batted in. He also became the all-time
leader at CCSU in home runs with 24 in his career. He led the team
with 60 runs scored. Epps is on the First Team for the second time
in the last two seasons. He was a Second Team selection as a
freshman.
Tri is the second member of the Blue Devils to make the First Team
in the outfield. He earns All-Conference honors for the third time
in his career. He was named to the Second Team in 2009 and 2006.
He is hitting .404 entering the tournament with 15 doubles, six
home runs and 38 runs batted in. After hitting .246 in his first
two seasons, Tri is hitting .376 over the last two seasons with 124
hits, 12 home runs and 84 RBI.
Wells (.390) and Meade (.379)
are fourth and fifth on the team in hitting this season. Wells was
the First Team third baseman and Meade earned the First Team nod at
first base.
Central posts five of the top seven hitters in the NEC this
season. Allaire is first, Epps second, Tri is fourth and Wells and
Meade are sixth and seventh respecitvely in the league. Central
leads the NEC with its .353 average, 34 points higher than second
place Bryant who hit .319.
Wells has 76 hits, third on the team, along with eight home runs
and 43 RBI. He is second on the team, behind Allaire, with 29
multi-hit games this season. Allaire leads the way with 30. This
is his first All-Conference selection.
Meade, who has also starred on the mound for the Blue Devils this
season, is hitting .379 with 72 hits, nine home runs and 51 RBI in
his final season with the Blue Devils. On the mound Meade is 3-1
with a 6.95 ERA this season. He has made eight starts and pitched
44.0 innings, the third-highest total on the team. His 24
strikeouts are third on the team. This is his first All-Conference
selection.
The Blue Devils begin their quest for the NEC title on Thursday
beginning at 3:30 p.m. Fans can follow the action live by logging
on to www.NortheastConference.tv for live streaming audio and
video.