Baseball 2016 Season Preview

Posted: Mar 02, 2016

BASEBALL 2016 VIDEO SEASON PREVIEW

BEVERLY, Mass. – The Endicott baseball team opens up its 2016 season this Saturday at home against Salem State at 1 p.m. Here's a look at the full schedule and the upcoming season for the Gulls.

RETURNING CAST (2016 ROSTER): Endicott will be led by a senior-laden pitching staff that includes Davarn Nova (Buzzards Bay, Mass.), All-CCC First Team selection JJ Branch (Milford, Mass.), and D3baseball.com Preseason All-American First Team honoree Nick Quattro (Canton, Conn.).

Offensively, the Gulls return All-CCC First Team selection Cam Farnham (Andover, Mass.), and Mike Kochiss (Fairfield, Conn.), who was picked to the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper NCAA Division III Players to Watch list earlier this season along with Branch and Quatrro.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR (2016 Schedule): After opening up its 2016 season against Salem State on March 5 at home (1 PM), Endicott will head to Florida to play seven games on its trip, which will include a matchup against the reigning NCAA Division III champions, Cortland State (3/15).

Endicott will also play Franklin & Marshall (3/13, DH), UMass Dartmouth (3/14), William Paterson (3/17), Rowan (3/18), and Wisconsin-Oshkosh (3/19). All six programs that the Gulls will play during their spring break trip have combined to win seven NCAA national titles, and have also made 99 NCAA Tournament appearances in their illustrious and respective program histories.

Cortland State highlights the group with 13 College World Series visits and 23 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, while Rowan made five straight NCAA Tournament appearances (2010-14) prior to last season.

Throughout the remainder of the regular season schedule, the Gulls will take on all ten teams that landed a spot on the final NCAA New England Regional rankings (in order of finish) – Southern Maine, Wesleyan, Amherst, UMass Boston, Salem State, Worcester State, St. Joseph's (Maine), UMass Dartmouth, MIT, and Wheaton. All ten teams combined for a 247-129 record (.657) in 2015, claimed four conference titles, and earned five NCAA Tournament selections (one at-large bid).

GAMES TO WATCH
Besides the trip to Florida and games against opponents mentioned above – which can be found on the 2016 schedule – here's a look at what else to watch this spring.

March 24 – Worcester State vs. Endicott, 3:30 PM
NOTE: First home game on the schedule after the spring trip

March 30 – Southern Maine vs. Endicott, 3:30 PM
NOTE: Final home game scheduled in March against the Huskies who reached the 2014 College World Series

April 17 – Endicott at Western New England, 12/2:30 PM
NOTE: The Golden Bears finished second in the CCC regular season standings

May 1 – UMass Boston vs. Endicott, 1 PM
NOTE: Final home game scheduled during the regular season

BOLD = Home Games

PRESEASON PLAUDITS: Endicott will enter the 2016 season as the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) preseason favorite. A full release on the CCC preseason poll can be found here - Endicott Picked First In 2016 CCC Baseball Preseason Coaches' Poll.