Baseball | 2/22/2022 9:55:00 AM

PITTSFORD, N.Y. – The nationally-ranked St. John Fisher College baseball team will begin its title defense on Wednesday as the Cardinals, who are ranked 23rd in the initial D3baseball.com poll, travel to RPI to begin the 2022 season. 

Despite losing two All-Americans from a season ago including the program's all-time hits leader in Justin Graham and the consensus Division III Player of the Year and a 13th round draft pick by the Atlanta Braves in Adam Zebrowski, the Cardinals, who are coming off an Empire 8 Championship and the program's sixth appearance in the NCAA Division III Championship, return a roster loaded with talent at every position that paced the Empire 8 in 2021 in batting average (.365), runs scored (452), hits (486), doubles (104), home runs (52), RBI (406), slugging percentage (.593), team earned run average (4.12), strikeouts (331) and shutouts with six.

Head coach Brandon Potter will boast one of the deepest lineups in the region with seven All-conference players, five All-Region honorees and the New York Region Rookie of the Year set to don the Cardinal and Gold this season including one of the top leadoff hitters in the country in Noah Campanelli.  The junior infielder returns after having been named First-Team All-Region at the conclusion of his sophomore campaign where he ranked fourth on the team with a .385 batting average after belting 62 hits.  The Rochester native led the team and was among the national leaders with 18 doubles 36 walks and 67 runs scored while his 27 RBI ranked seventh among his teammates.

Flanking Campanelli in the infield is James Murphy who was named the New York Region's Rookie of the Year last season and Second-Team All-Region by D3baseball.com following a standout freshman season.  Over 30 starts last season at the hot corner, Murphy batted .311 with 37 hits, nine doubles, a team-best six triples, three home runs and was one of the Cardinals' top hitters with runner in scoring position after driving in 38 on the year.

Junior Brian Norsen will round out the returning infield for Fisher after the Hamburg native was named First-Team All-Region a season ago at first base.  A monster at the plate, Norsen can put up a crooked number with one swing after ranking second on the team last year with six dingers.  A First-Team All-Conference selection in 2021, Norsen ranked fifth on the team with a .375 batting average to go along with 51 hits including 16 that went for extra bases.  He also crossed home plate 46 times, drew 21 walks and finished the year slugging .588 over 32 games.   

The Cardinals also feature a potent punch in the outfield headlined by Luke Duffy who was named All-Region last season after ranking third on the team with a .386 average at the dish.  Over 38 games played, Duffy, who was named First-Team All-Empire 8, clubbed a career-high 54 hits including nine doubles and three homers.  The Otisville native finished the year with 39 RBI, 29 walks and a .543 slugging percentage.

Joining Duffy in the outfield are Ben Lavery and Patrick Kravitz who combined to produce 38 hits last year.  Kravitz batted .253 over 36 games as the centerfielder accounted for five doubles, 17 RBI and stole seven bases in all while Lavery, who was named a Player to Watch by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper earlier this year, showed flashes of power with three doubles and three home runs in 62 at-bats in 2021.

Rounding out the veterans on the team are Joe Ruggiero and Jack Kelleher who give Potter depth, power and speed off the bench.  Kelleher belted five extra base hits and batted just shy of .300 last year while Ruggiero hit .286 and worked 10 walks before being sidelined with an injury.

While its prowess at the plate is undeniable, perhaps the team's biggest strength comes in its pitching with the Cardinals rolling out a formidable rotation and a strong back end of the bullpen.

Senior Alec Teska, who was named Third-Team All-Region last year, is back after producing a 3.04 earned run average over 47.1 innings of work.  Teska went 3-2 overall and picked up one save as the Cato native ranked third on the team with 47 strikeouts.

Michael Poirier will look to build upon his sophomore season that resulted in a 2-2 record over nine appearances including five starts.  Poirier, who has a dominant fastball and an array of off-sped pitches, tossed 28.0 innings in 2021 and retired 39 batters via strikes.  Now a senior, Kenneth Westbrook is also back in the mix for Potter as the Binghamton native was sidelined last year with an injury.  In 2019, Westbrook was named the Empire 8 Rookie of the Year after going 6-0 on the hill with 37 strikeouts over 46.2 innings.   

The Cardinals' will be bolstered by several key transfers including Russell Dunlap who was named All-Conference at Becker College a season ago after going 3-4 over nearly 41 innings with 31 strikeouts to his credit while Ryan O'Mara is a long right handed pitcher from Division I Niagara who can light up the radar gun.

In the bullpen, Fisher will turn to its workhorse Tim Geissel as the Scotch Plains, N.J. is a former All-Conference reliever for Fisher who pitched to a 3.97 ERA over five appearances during his senior campaign.  Connor McHugh went 2-0 in relief last year with eight strikeouts over 12.0 innings while Logan Persse, Joseph Tronetti, Christian O'Brien and Andrew Inglee all toed the rubber for Fisher a year ago and are expected to have an impact this season.

The Cardinals' pitching staff will be aided heavily by its All-Conference back stop as Michael Beimel will handle the catching duties for Fisher.  Last season's backup, Beimel batted .338 with 24 hits, four doubles, 19 RBI and 21 runs in 18 games.  The St. Marys, Pa. native was named Second-Team All-Conference in 2021 for the second time in his career and owns a .310 career batting average to go along with a .991 career fielding percentage.  

Following their debut against RPI, the Cardinals' 35th season will continue in Wayne, N.J. for a three-game set with William Paterson March 5-6th before flying south to Florida for the annual RussMatt Central Florida Invitational from March 10-13th.

Fisher will make its way back north on March 16th when it heads to Henrietta for a nine-inning tilt with RIT before playing a doubleheader at crosstown rival Rochester on March 19th as the Yellowjackets are coming off an appearance in the NCAA Championship last season.

The Cardinals are set to christen Dugan Yard the following afternoon when they make their home debut against the Yellowjackets on Sunday, March 20th.  Three days later on March 23rd, Fisher will host Alfred State in a neutral site game at Falcon Park and will then travel to 2021 NCAA qualifier York College of Pennsylvania for a doubleheader against the Spartans on Saturday, March 26th.

On March 30th, Fisher will face off against SUNY Brockport at Clark V. Whited Complex before returning home to open its Empire 8 schedule against Houghton College with a twin billing on April 1st.  The teams will play two more games on the Highlanders' home field the following afternoon.

From there, Fisher will step out of conference to tangle with Oswego State at home on April 6th as the Lakers are coming off their sixth straight trip to the national tournament.  Following that battle, the Cardinals will play a home-and-home set with the Pioneers beginning with a doubleheader in Utica on April 9th.  The following afternoon, the venue will shift with Fisher playing host to the Pioneers on April 10th.

Two days later on April 12, Fisher will renew pleasantries with Oswego State in the Port City before meeting with Elmira College in a doubleheader on April 15th at Dugan Yard.  The next day, the two teams will play two more games in Elmira.

RIT will come to campus on Wednesday, April 20th for a non-conference nine-inning bout before the Cardinals play newly formed Russell Sage in a four-game set with two on the road on April 22nd followed by two at home on Sunday, April 24th.

With five games remaining in the regular season, Fisher will host SUNY Brockport on April 26th before it closes out its conference schedule with four games against Keuka College beginning with two in Keuka Park on April 30th followed by two at home on May 1st.

The Empire 8 Championship, which is scheduled to be played over two weekends, will begin on May 6th.  The tournament will feature a best-of-three format in each round with the winner earning the Empire 8's automatic berth into the 2022 Division III Baseball Championship.

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