STANDISH, ME – The Saint Joseph's College baseball team is ranked 27th with 32 points in the latest American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA)/Collegiate Baseball Newspaper NCAA DIII National Poll.
The Monks kicked off the 2012 campaign with an 8-1 record last week in the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational in Winter Haven, Florida. St. Joe's recorded quality victories over the likes of Endicott College, Framingham State, Curry College, Keene State, and Western New England during the team's annual southern swing.
Saint Joseph's capped the week-long trip with a convincing 9-4 victory over Western New England, the reigning New England Region champions, on Saturday. The Golden Bears were ranked 18th in the country at the time and entered the season as the 11th-best team in the nation, according to the ABCA/Collegiate Baseball Preseason Poll.
The Monks' lone setback came at the hands of perennial New England contender Wheaton College, as the Lyons topped the Royal Blue by a 6-2 score last Tuesday. Wheaton, with 146 points, is currently ranked 11th in the country.
Saint Joseph's is one of three New England region programs ranked in the ABCA/Collegiate Baseball poll, with Wheaton and Eastern Connecticut State – #14 with 121 points – being the others.
St. Joe's will look to build off the strong start this coming weekend when the team travels to Roger Williams University for a nine-inning game on Friday (3:30 PM) and three tilts at New Jersey City University on Saturday (12:00 PM, DH) and Sunday (3:00 PM).
