Edison, N.J. (Feb. 11, 2020) – Quinnipiac University was picked the preseason favorite and Manhattan College’s Nick Cimillo was named the Preseason Player of the Year, as voted on by the league’s 11 head coaches.
Quinnipiac (30-29, 17-7 MAAC) won its first-ever MAAC Championship in 2019 after defeating No. 3 Fairfield University twice and No. 5 Manhattan en route to the title. The Bobcats return a pair of 2019 All-MAAC First Team selections in Andre Marrero and Ian Ostberg, along with Second Team honoree Colton Bender. The trio also makes this year’s Preseason All-MAAC Team.
Fairfield was voted into second place (101 points), Manhattan in third (99) and Canisius College in fourth (86). Monmouth University (81) rounded out the top five.
Manhattan’s Nick Cimillo headlines the preseason honors as the Preseason Player of the Year. Cimillo was unanimously selected as the 2019 MAAC Rookie of the Year after posting a .350 (78-of-223) average, 78 hits, 12 doubles, seven home runs, 36 RBI, 36 runs and 20 walks in his freshman campaign.
The 2020 MAAC Baseball Championship is set for May 20-23 at Richmond County Bank Ballpark in Staten Island, New York, the home of the championship since 2018. To stay up-to-date with MAAC Baseball, follow @MAACSports on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook and join the conversation using #MAACBaseball.
See below for the full poll and list of preseason honors:
Preseason Coaches’ Poll
Quinnipiac (4) 105
Fairfield (3) 101
Manhattan (3) 99
Canisius 86
Monmouth (1) 81
Marist 73
Siena 48
Rider 44
Iona 40
Niagara 38
Saint Peter’s 11
Preseason Player of the Year
Nick Cimillo Manhattan
Preseason All-MAAC Team
Player Position Year Institution
Colton Bender Catcher Jr. Quinnipiac
Matt Padre Catcher Jr. Manhattan
Peter Battaglia First Base Sr. Niagara
Justin Guerrera Second Base So. Fairfield
Jonathan Barditch Shortstop So. Manhattan
Robbie Armitage Third Base Jr. Marist
Andre Marrero Outfield Sr. Quinnipiac
Dan Ryan Outfield Sr. Fairfield
Nick Cimillo Outfield So. Manhattan
Jake Burlingame Outfield Sr. Canisius
Zach Durfee Outfield Sr. Siena
Stephen Hansen Pitcher Sr. Iona
Tyler Kapuscinski Designated Hitter R. Sr. Marist
Ian Ostberg Utility Jr. Quinnipiac
About the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference:
With 11 institutions strongly bound by the sound principles of quality and integrity in academics and excellence in athletics, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) is in its 39th year of competition during the 2019-20 academic year. Current conference members include: Canisius College, Fairfield University, Iona College, Manhattan College, Marist College, Monmouth University, Niagara University, Quinnipiac University, Rider University, Saint Peter’s University, and Siena College.
