Baseball
Wednesday, May 25, 2022
No. 5 Rider Broncs (25-24, 12-10 MAAC) vs. No. 4 Monmouth Hawks (24-25, 12-10 MAAC)
Location: Pomona, NY (Clover Stadium)
First Pitch: 3:00 PM
Watch Live: ESPN+
Tournament Central: MAACSports.com
Tournament Program: Program
Live Stats: GoBroncs.com
Twitter: @RiderUBaseball
 
 
What You Need To Know
 
- Rider was picked to finish fifth in the MAAC Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Broncs are slotted into the 2022 MAAC Tournament exactly where the coaches predicted, earning the five seed in the double-elimination tournament.
 
- The Broncs entered the 2021 MAAC Tournament as the three-seed before going 5-0 in the MAAC Tournament to earn the program's third MAAC Championship.
 
- Rider advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the third time under head coach Dr. Barry Davis, a feat also accomplished in 2008 and 2010. Davis has accumulated 987 career victories between his time at Gloucester County College (Rowan College of South Jersey), Georgia Southwestern University, and Rider.
 
- Rider returns six offensive starters from a season ago. Among the returners are Jake Barbiere (Randolph, NJ/Randolph), who led the team with a .314 average last year, MAAC All-Rookie Catcher Brian Skettini (Midland Park, NJ/Ridgewood), and MAAC Tournament MVP Jordan Erbe (Toms River, NJ/Toms River South).
 
- The Broncs have taken full advantage of the long ball this season, hitting 46 home runs. The 46 home runs are more than the Broncs' output from the last two seasons combined. Brendan O'Donnell (Malvern, PA/Great Valley) has 16 home runs this season, second most in the MAAC, including homers in four straight games during the spring trip to help earn MAAC Player of the Week honors on March 22. O'Donnell was selected to the All-MAAC Second Team by the league's coaches ahead of the tournament. O'Donnell also led Rider in runs (38) and RBIs (50).
 
- Socrates Bardatsos (Ridgefield, NJ/St. Joseph's Regional) leads the Broncs with a .315 average this year. He enters the MAAC Tournament on a nine-game hitting streak. John Volpe (Sea Girt, NJ/Wall) and Jack Winsett (Voorhees, NJ/Eastern Regional) each had 12-game hitting streaks during the season, longest on the team.
 
- Six has been the magic number this season for the Broncs. Rider is 20-1 when scoring six or more runs and is 4-23 when held to five or fewer.
 
- Rider's bullpen has made sure to hold leads. The Broncs are 20-0 this season when leading after six innings. Cal Stalzer (West Des Moines, IA/Valley[George Washington/Kirkwood C.C.]) leads the MAAC, and ranks 45^th nationally, with eight saves this season.
 
- The Broncs rotation this season has been anchored by Joe Papeo (Matawan, NJ/Old Bridge), Frank Doelling (Riverside, NJ/Riverside[Rowan College at Burlington County]), and Vincent Vitacco (Staten Island, NY/Monsignor Farrell). Papeo leads Rider with five wins on the season. Doelling leads the Broncs with 63 strikeouts in 65.1 innings.
 
- Monmouth, the four seed, is led by MAAC Pitcher of the Year Trey Dombroski. Dombroski led the MAAC during the regular season with a 2.63 ERA, striking out 110 batters with just 12 walks. Offensively, the Hawks are led by Second-Team All-MAAC first baseman James Harmstead. Harmstead led the MAAC with 18 home runs this season.