BIDDEFORD, Maine – In its second year in the league, a Suffolk baseball player was crowned the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Player of the Year as Harry Painter shared the top mark. In addition, seven Rams garnered All-CCC status, the conference office announced Tuesday.
Painter double-dipped in the awards with a share of the player of the year title and a first-team nod. Infielders Garret Roberts and Christian Seariac along with centerfielder Joe Ward earned spots on the second team with catcher Shane Lake and outfielders Marc Birbiglia and Luke Harder grabbing third-team recognition. The seven all-league accolades from the CCC are the most for Suffolk in its short tenure in the league, upstaging last season's six awards.
Painter marks the fifth Ram in program history to win the conference player of the year, first in the CCC era, second under Anthony Del Prete's guidance and first since Brady Chant '18 took home Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) in 2018. As a sophomore, Painter is the youngest CCC Player of the Year since Alex Perry of Salve Regina, who took home the nod as a first-year in 2015. In the Rams' record books, he is the youngest league player of the year in program history and first non-senior to capture the league's top honor since Joe Duca took the inaugural GNAC Player of the Year nod as a junior in 2000. Position wise, the right-handed hitter is the second Suffolk designated hitter to grab a league's top award since Duca did so back in 2000. Painter share the accolade with Caleb Shpur of Endicott. They are the first twosome to split the honor since 2003 when Daryl Murtha of Salve Regina and Curry's Gareth Watts shared the distinction.
A product of Essex, Massachusetts, Painter dominated opposing pitchers. In comparison to conference counterparts, he leads the way with 62 hits, including 12 jacks, behind an impressive slash line of .411/.471/.768. The clean-up hitter, who hit safely in all, but seven six this year, finished the regular-season with 44 RBIs and is one dinger shy of tying Suffolk's home run record held by 2005 GNAC Player of the Year Tamayo Manzanillo. Currently, Painter sits 22nd in the country with 116 total bases and 27th in NCAA Division III in slugging percentage (.768).
Seariac became the first Ram to collect multiple All-CCC nods in their career as the graduate student secured his second straight recognition. Once a utility player, the Framingham, Massachusetts, native, found a home at third base this year and once again proved to be one of the most productive bats not only in Suffolk's line-up by the leagues. The left-handed hitter compiled a stat line of 62 hits, 33 RBI and 42 runs scored, all of which land in the league's top 15, behind a .338 batting average. His patience showed at the dish as well with 31 walks, the fourth-most in the conference.
Second baseman Roberts, a sophomore transfer from UMass Lowell, tallied 37 hits and 21 RBI, batting .327 with 36 runs scored and nine stolen bases en route to his first all-conference accolade.
Fellow transfer Ward, who brought his talents to Boston from George Washington, picked up his first all-league award as well after notching top-10 conference numbers in hits (52), doubles (12), homers (7), RBI (45) and runs (42). The three-hole hitter that hails from Saugus, Massachusetts, compiled a .313 average and .524 slugging percentage.
Outfielders Birbiglia and Harder picked up their first all-conference accolades on the third-team. Birbiglia, a senior from Saint James, New York, tallied 43 hits and 26 RBI, batting .301 with 33 runs scored and eight stolen bases. Harder's career campaign featured a team-high 58 hits, 43 RBI, 16 stolen bases and 33 runs scored. The latter, a junior that calls Liverpool, New York home, had one of the hottest bats in the league with the fourth-best connection rate of .369.
Lake completes the Rams' all-league honorees as the backstop took home a third-team nod, the first in his collegiate career. The senior from West Roxbury, Massachusetts, saved the best for last with career numbers in every offensive category including 22 hits and 12 RBI. Eight of his 22 hits were good for extra bases including his first-ever triples and homers. He is the first catcher to capture an all-conference award from the CCC and first Suffolk catcher to pick up all-league status since Matthew Brenner '17 earned All-GNAC First-Team in 2017.
This group helped Suffolk secure a spot in the CCC postseason for the season time in as many seasons and as many years in the league as the sixth seed with a 6-10 league ledger. Behind this collection of leadership the Rams hosted and won their first-ever CCC playoff game yesterday, a 9-3 play-in game victory over seventh-seed Gordon.
Now, Suffolk sets its sights on the double-elimination portion of the bracket, which gets underway tomorrow, Wednesday, May 11. The Rams will trek to Newport, Rhode Island, to take on top-seed Salve Regina at 3 p.m.
2022 ALL-CCC BASEBALL
Player of the Year - Harry Painter, Suffolk
Player of the Year - Caleb Shpur, Endicott
Pitcher of the Year - Dominic Perachi, Salve Regina
Defensive Player of the Year - Dylan Ketch, Salve Regina
Rookie of the Year - CJ Willis, Western New England
CCC Scholar-Athlete - Max Tarlin, Endicott
Coach of the Year - Bryan Haley, Endicott
Team Sportsmanship - Wentworth
FIRST-TEAM
SP - Nicholas Cannata, Endicott
SP - Justin Garcia, Roger Williams
SP - Dominic Perachi, Salve Regina
RP - Andrew Roman, Salve Regina
C - John Mulready, Endicott
1B - Brandon Jenkins, Roger Williams
2B - Dylan Pacheco, Endicott
3B - Nathaniel Cormier, Nichols
SS - Michael Breen, Salve Regina
OF - DJ Caron, Nichols
OF - Nicolas Notarangelo, Endicott
OF - Caleb Shpur, Endicott
DH - Harry Painter, Suffolk
UTIL - Ben Bonavita, Roger Williams
SECOND-TEAM
SP - Chris Flynn, Roger Williams
SP - Kevin Hummer, Western New England
SP - Patrick Maybach, Salve Regina
RP - Gabe Van Emon, Endicott
C - Dylan Ketch, Salve Regina
1B - CJ Willis, Western New England
2B - Garret Roberts, Suffolk
3B - Christian Seariac, Suffolk
SS - Jonathan McIntyre, Gordon
OF - Tyler Cedeno, Roger Williams
OF - Matt D'Amato, Salve Regina
OF - Christopher Flynn, Roger Williams
OF - Joe Ward, Suffolk
DH - Shane Demers, Gordon
UTIL - Dustin Siqueira, Salve Regina
THIRD-TEAM
SP - Brayden Clark, Salve Regina
SP - Matt Lauria, Western New England
SP - Rian Schwede, Endicott
RP - Connor Hewlette, Roger Williams
RP - Max Tarlin, Endicott
C - Shane Lake, Suffolk
1B - Jake Nardone, Endicott
2B - Johnny Knox, Nichols
3B - Kyle Grabowski, Endicott
SS - Kyle O'Neill, Wentworth
OF - Marc Birbiglia, Suffolk
OF - Brandon Grover, Salve Regina
OF - Luke Harder, Suffolk
OF - Tyler Petrosino, Salve Regina
DH - Nickolas Perkins, Endicott
UTIL - Aaron Cole, Western New England
UTIL - Robbie Wladkowski, Endicott