Shank Highlights
Six All-NE-10 Picks for FP
Shank earns Pitcher of the Year honors
and is one of three first team All-Conference selections
Shank |
RINDGE, N.H. (May 14, 2002)
- Franklin Pierce University
junior right-hander Chris
Shank (Westminster, Mass./Oakmont Regional) headed
a list of six Ravens to earn All-Northeast-10 Conference
honors. The selections were made by the head coaches of
the Conference’s 12 teams and announced this afternoon by
the NE-10 office.
Shank was named the Northeast-10
Conference’s Pitcher of the Year and also earned a spot
on the All-Conference first team - his first such honors
in his FP
career. The junior right-hander ranks first in
the Conference with 97 strikeouts and a .198 opponent batting
average this spring. The 97 K’s ranks second in FP
history
- nine shy of the school record of 107 set by former FP
lefthander Justin Blood in 2000 - and the opposing batting
average is a school record. Shank posted an 8-2 record this
spring with a 2.64 ERA to go along with the 97 strikeouts
and just 23 walks in 85.1 innings pitched. He ranks second
among Conference leaders in wins and innings pitched and
is third in ERA. Shank also ranks among NCAA Division II
leaders with 10.23 strikeouts per nine innings.
Shank, named NE-10 Pitcher of the
Week three times this year and Player of the Week once,
opened the spring by throwing the first season-opening no-hitter
in program history (second overall) against Framingham State
College on March 9. This season Shank became the all-time
leader at the College in wins (19), complete games (17)
and innings (235.2) to go along with a school-record 3.63
career earned run average. His 224 strikeouts is just 11
shy of the career mark and his 37 career appearances ranks
third all-time.
Shank also posted a .286 batting
average (24-84) with 20 runs scored, three doubles, seven
homeruns and 23 RBIs at the plate.
Joining Shank on the All-NE-10 first
team are senior shortstop Scott Loiseau (Worcester,
Mass./St. Peter Marian) and junior right-hander
Jon White (Medford, Mass./Arlington Catholic).
Loiseau |
Loiseau earned his first career All-Conference
selection with a spot on the first team. He leads the team
with a .360 (64-178) batting average (15th in the NE-10)
to go along with 45 runs scored, ten doubles, two triples,
11 homeruns (T-10th NE-10), 20 multi-hit games and 30 RBIs.
Loiseau’s hit total is good for third all-time and he ranks
third in runs, second in at bats and fifth in homers on
the program’s single season lists.
Loiseau has his named etched all
over the FP
record books. He holds the school’s career
records for games played (169), at bats (693), hits (244),
runs scored (194) and stolen bases (32). Loiseau’s string
of 133 consecutive games played is also a school-record
as is his 21-game hitting streak dating back to last season
that was extended earlier this spring. His 18 career homers
is good for fifth all-time, his eight career triples ranks
second as does his 36 career doubles, while his 104 career
RBIs is tied for second all-time.
White |
White is rewarded with a first team
pick as his first All-Conference selection of his career
after being the most improved player in the Conference this
season. After posting a 4-8 record with a 7.59 ERA and 52
strikeouts in his first two seasons at FPC, White has posted
a 9-3 record to lead the Northeast-10 in wins, becoming
the first pitcher in program history to register nine victories
in a season. He ranks second in the Conference with a 2.56
ERA, fourth with 84 strikeouts and sixth with 81 innings
pitched and a .221 opponent batting average. His school-record
ten pickoffs also leads the League.
In addition to holding the school
record for wins in a season, his ERA is good for first all-time
while also ranking third in innings pitched and fifth in
strikeouts all-time. White’s 13 career wins is good for
second all-time and he ranks third with 136 strikeouts and
his 5.22 career ERA is fourth.
Close |
Junior outfielder Dan Close
(Leominster, Mass./Leominster) was voted to the
All-Conference second team. A first time All-Conference
selection, Close belted a team-leading 12 homeruns (T-5th
in the NE-10) to go along with 52 runs scored (7th), 11
doubles, three triples, 27 RBIs, 12 stolen bases (on 14
attempts) and a .285 (47-165) batting average. The only
player to start all 46 FP
games this season, he also registered
a .606 slugging percentage. Close’s 12 homers ranks third
on the school’s single-season list and he also ranks third
in runs, fifth in steals, fifth in walks, sixth in doubles
and eighth in slugging for a single season. His 23 career
homers is good for second all-time.
Callahan
|
Junior second baseman Mike
Callahan (Worcester, Mass./St. Peter Marian) earned
his first career All-Conference selection with a spot on
the third team. Callahan had a breakout season for the Ravens
with a .340 (52-153) batting average, 34 runs scored, nine
doubles, six homeruns and 34 RBIs. He also posted a .516
slugging percentage and his nine multi-RBI games ranked
second on the team to go along with 14 multi-hit outings.
Blancarte |
Sophomore first baseman Dante
Blancarte (Amesbury, Mass./Amesbury) earned third
team All-Northeast-10 honors for the second-straight season.
Blancarte has posted a .355 (61-172) batting average (17th
NE-10), 38 runs scored, 12 doubles, 12 homers (T-5th) and
45 RBIs. His .634 slugging percentage (10th NE-10) leads
the Ravens and ranks sixth in program history and he has
also totaled a team-best 12 multi-RBI games and 17 multi-hit
games this spring.
FP
(29-17, 22-10) wrapped up the
regular season with the second-best record in the Northeast-10
Conference, establishing new school records for overall
and Conference victories. The Ravens round out the season
this week when they host Westminster (Pa.) College for the
2002 ECAC Division II Championship in a best-of-three series.
The teams will play a doubleheader on Friday at noon with
a single game, if necessary, on Saturday at 1 p.m.