Vikings Baseball Team Ships Two To The College Of Saint Rose; Five Others Will Also Continue Careers
Two of Hudson Valley Community College's top baseball players have committed to The College of Saint Rose for 2001. Pitcher/outfielder Sean Connor (Colonie) and outfielder Wes Dedrick (Columbia) will both play for the Golden Knights next season.
"They're quality athletes," Hudson Valley coach Tom Reinisch said. "Sean and Wes know the game well. Plus they're good people. They'll help Saint Rose."
Dedrick and Connor, both Individual Studies majors, helped the Vikings capture a top 20 ranking among all NJCAA Division III teams in the nation this past season. Hudson Valley posted a 29-14 record and advanced to the semifinals of the NJCAA Division III Region III tournament by upsetting No. 3 seed Schenectady County Community College on May 9.
Dedrick, whose Columbia Blue Devils captured a Section 2 title during his senior season, batted .320 with five home runs and 47 runs batted in this year. The six-foot, 215-pounder earned First Team All-Region III status for his efforts.
"Wes has a powerful swing," Reinisch said. "I've never seen a park he can't hit the ball out of."
Connor posted a 5-3 record on the mound this year. The right-hander, who twice led Colonie to the Suburban Council Blue Division title, won 11 games during his two seasons as a Viking. In 1999-2000, he struck out 50 batters in 48 innings pitched, giving him 100 strikeouts in a Hudson Valley uniform. He also batted .333 with two home runs this past season.
"Sean had a strong run at Hudson Valley," Reinisch said. "He came up big for us more than once." Outfielder Aaron Teeter (Cohoes) is transferring to SUNY Utica/Rome. Teeter hit .368 and had six triples this year. Outfielder Jamie Malone (Catholic Central) will play at Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts. Malone, who earned First team All-Region III and Third Team All-American status in 1998-99, hit .326 this year. Infielder Jeff Lackaye (Kingston) will attend SUNY New Paltz this upcoming school year. He batted .281 with eight doubles and four triples this season.
Infielder Matthew Molitor (Christian Brothers Academy) will play for Siena College and catcher Mike Donohue (Lansingburgh) will play for SUNY Brockport.
"These guys all contributed to our program," Reinisch said. "They'll be difficult to replace and we'll miss them. But I'm thrilled that they get to continue playing baseball."
Hudson Valley Community College, located in Troy, offers more than 50 degree and certificate programs in four academic divisions; Business; Engineering and Industrial Technologies; Health Sciences; and Liberal Arts and Sciences. One of 30 community colleges in the State University of New York system, Hudson Valley has an enrollment of more than 9,000 students each year, and is known as a leader in distance learning initiatives and worker retraining.