Allaire and Epps Named to NEIBA All-New England First Team

Senior Sean Allaire and junior Pat Epps, fresh off their Northeast Conference title on Sunday, were named to the New England Intercollegiate Baseball Association All-New England baseball team this week. Allaire was named at shortstop and Epps earned the nod in the outfield. Both players and their teammates are preparing for this week's NCAA Regional, being played in nearby Norwich, CT. Central will face Florida State in the first game of the regional on Friday at 2 p.m. at Dodd Stadium in Norwich.

NCAA NORWICH REGIONAL CENTRAL

Allaire was named the 2010 NEC Player of the Year this season, and leads the team with a .432 average this season. He had three hits and an RBI in the championship game victory over Sacred Heart on Sunday. His season has been nothing short of spectacular. He has 98 hits, just two shy of the school record, to go along with a school-record 22 doubles, six triples, 13 home runs and 72 RBI. His RBI total is second only to Epps, who had 73, which is a new school record.

Epps was named the 2010 NEC Tournament Most Valuable Player on Sunday, after batting .556 with 10 hits in 18 at-bats. He also walked five times and posted an on-base percentage of .652, while slugging .944 in the five games. He drove in seven runs. On the season he is second on the team in hitting at .425 with 91 hits, 14 doubles, a school-record 18 home runs and a school-record 73 RBI. He is just seven points behind Allaire in batting this season, and his 91 hits and the third-highest single season total in school history. His on-base percentage of .510 leads the team, as do his 33 walks on the season. Epps and Allaire are tied for the team lead with 65 runs scored on the season.

Epps and Allaire have been the cornerstones of a solid offensive year for the Blue Devils. In all, five players are batting at least .374 and all five have 70 or more hits in the 54 games this season. The Blue Devils are hitting .345 as a team, which would be a new school-record if it stands, and have scored a school-record 464 runs while hitting a school-record 70 home runs on the season. Three players have hit 10 or more home runs, including Epps, Allaire and senior Tommy Meade (10).

The Blue Devils continue their season this weekend in the Norwich Regional of the 2010 NCAA Baseball Tournament. They face Florida State on Friday at 2 p.m. They will then play on Saturday against either Connecticut or Oregon.