Baseball Names Three Captains for 2012
NEW LONDON, Conn. – First-year head coach Travis Beausoleil has named seniors Ethan Graynor, Joseph Patikowski and sophomore Lucas Mariani as captains of the Mitchell College baseball team for the 2012 season.
Graynor, Patikowski and Mariani were all unanimous choices in a vote by their teammates. They will be charged with the task of leading a young team that features 19 newcomers on a 26-man roster.
"I feel the trio represents all that is good in our program," said Beausoleil. "I don't think we could have chosen three better people to represent the team and program as a whole."
Graynor, from Leonia, N.J., returns to action after a year away from the program. He was a New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) All-Conference First Team selection in 2010 after starting every game and batting .317 with a team-high 29 RBI. He also made five relief appearances that season and helped the Mariners to a share of the NECC Championship.
"Ethan has come back to the Mariner program ready to compete," said Beausoleil. "He will be penciled in as our right fielder, and I expect him to lead this team both on the field and off."
Patikowski returns for his final season at Mitchell and is the only three-year letterwinner on the squad. The first baseman from Edison, N.J. has seen limited action in his career but has been a member of teams that have won back-to-back NECC titles. Last season he played in eight games off the bench and scored one run.
"Joe is the type of captain that every program seeks," said Beausoleil. "He is a student ambassador, has a cumulative GPA over 3.5, and comes ready to work day in and day out. We hope he can excel in his senior campaign."
Mariani saw action in five games as a rookie and finished with a pair of hits and two RBI. The outfielder from North Kingstown, R.I. also earned the Mitchell top male scholar athlete award last season with a 4.0 GPA.
"Luke has done a tremendous job encouraging his teammates and getting the most out of them," said Beausoleil. "He embraces the challenges of being a captain and his teammates all respect him for that."
The Mariners begin their season on March 9 in Fort Myers, Fla. for the Gene Cusic Classic. Mitchell will play eight games during the Classic before returning home to start conference play against Newbury College on March 18. Following a 29-game regular season schedule, the Mariners expect to defend their title at the 2012 NECC Championship on May 4-6.
Beausoleil takes over the Mitchell baseball program after serving with the University of Connecticut baseball program. He helped the Huskies to an NCAA Super Regional appearance last season before UConn fell to eventual national champion South Carolina. Connecticut finished with a 45-20-1 overall record, including a 22-5 in BIG EAST play, en route to the program's first-ever BIG EAST regular season title.
