NJAC Preseason Poll
 
PITMAN, N.J. (February 14, 2017) – The Rutgers University-Newark baseball team was picked to finish eighth in the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Preseason Poll, it was announced Tuesday by the league office.
 
Kean University, Ramapo College and Rowan University were in spots one, two and three, while The College of New Jersey, Rutgers University-Camden, Montclair State University and William Paterson University followed. Stockton University and New Jersey City University rounded things out, and Rowan was the coaches' pick as the 'dark horse'.
 
Rutgers-Newark finished 15-24 overall last year but saw increases in total wins and NJAC wins from the previous year. The Scarlet Raiders were in contention for an NJAC Playoff berth until the final day of the regular season, and ended 2016 with seven league triumphs.
 
The Raiders return one all-conference player in junior Ross Halkias, and they also return most of their starting pitching in addition to getting some players back that missed last year to injury.

In addition to Halkias – who was second on the Raiders in batting average and first in slugging percentage – sophomore Anthony Rosoline will look to build on a freshman season that saw him go 7-1 with a 2.66 earned-run average in 10 starts. Juniors Mike Zibrin and Dominick Fazio are also back to make their claim on spots in the rotation, while junior Brian Boulineau, senior Josh Cote, junior Justin Marks, junior Anthony Perconte, junior Danny Iannaccone, sophomore Ryan Zucker and others will combine with several strong newcomers to form a formidable lineup in support of the pitching staff.
 
Rutgers-Newark opens its 2017 season Friday at the Fayetteville Tournament in Fayetteville, N.C. The Scarlet Raiders will take on Stevenson University in the opener Friday (4 p.m.), Frostburg State University on Saturday (4 p.m.) and Penn State University-Abington Sunday (9 a.m.).
 
Click here for a full preview of the 2017 schedule!
 
Scarlet Raider fans can expect the full 2017 roster and a full season preview posted Thursday afternoon at www.rutgersnewarkathletics.com.