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LANCASTER, PA – The Franklin & Marshal College baseball team is picked to repeat as the Centennial Conference champions in the 2006 CC Coaches Poll. The Diplomats earned 77 points (teams not permitted to vote for themselves) with six first place votes. Haverford College and Johns Hopkins tied for second in the poll with 70 points and two first place votes apiece, while Gettysburg College (54), Ursinus College (50), Muhlenberg College (40), Dickinson College (36), Washington College (26), McDaniel College (25) and Swarthmore College (9) round out the poll. The selection marks the second time F&M has been picked to win the Conference as the Diplomats were selected first in the 1996 poll after winning the program’s first Centennial Conference baseball title in 1995. Franklin & Marshall returns to the field following a 2005 season in which the team recorded a 25-16 mark, 15-3 in the Centennial Conference, while capturing the Centennial Conference regular season and tournament titles and advancing to the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Region Tournament. Leading the pitching staff will be Ted Serro (Sr., Brooklyn, NY/Xavier) who recorded a 6-3 mark with a 1.92 earned run average and 75 strikeouts In 70.1 innings of work while holding opponents to a .182 batting average to earn the 2005 Centennial Conference Pitcher of the Year award. In his final 25 innings of work last season, Serro did not allow a run and recorded 24 strikeouts as he lead the Diplomats to a 3-0 victory over Dickinson College, a 1-0 victory over Johns Hopkins University in the opening game of the Centennial Conference Championships and threw nine innings of shutout baseball in the opening game of the NCAA Division III Mid-Atlantic Regional against #6 nationally ranked Rowan University. A selection to the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Mid-Atlantic All-Region second team, for his performance against Rowan at the NCAA Regional Tournament in Boyertown he was named to the All-Region Tournament team. For his career, Serro is 12-5 with a 2.41 ERA and 131 strikeouts in 134.1 innings with six complete games as he ranks sixth in wins and strikeouts, fourth in saves (four) and ninth in complete games in school history. Another pitcher to watch is Jeremy Knox (Sr., Bronx, NY/Iona Prep) who will serve as a tri-captain of the team this year. A 2005 All-Centennial Conference honorable mention selection, Knox finished the season with a 4-3 record, 3.21 earned run average, 53 strikeouts, 10 walks, a .277 opponents’ batting average and three complete games in 73 innings as he raised his career totals to a 9-6 record with a 3.70 ERA and 95 strikeouts in 138.2 innings as he ranks 10th in innings pitched in school history. Third baseman Gary Kruger (Sr., East Islip, NY/East Islip) and catcher Stephen Frederick (Sr., Downingtown, PA/Downingtown) will serve as captains with Knox. A team captain and All-Centennial Conference honorable mention selection in 2005, Kruger hit .350 (42-for-120) with 34 runs scored, six doubles, two triples, two home runs, 24 RBI, a .487 on-base percentage and was 29-for-32 in stolen bases this year. A two-time All-Centennial Conference selection following first team honors in 2004, he finished 11th in stolen bases (0.76 pg) and 29th in walks (0.79 pg) in the final NCAA statistics as he concluded the 2005 season with 30 walks and 29 stolen bases on 32 attempts in 38 games. The career stolen base leader with 72, Kruger ranks 12th in hits (109), second in triples (ten), fourth in home runs (seven) and 11th in RBI (57) in school history. The Diplomats’ backstop, Frederick was named to the All-Centennial Conference second team last year as he hit .273 (24-for-88) with 16 runs scored, five doubles, 11 RBI, 10 walks, and eight stolen bases on eight attempts. Further, he recorded a 1.000 fielding percentage with 16 assists and no errors in 195 chances. The Diplomats will open the season on March 3 versus Rutgers University-Camden at Campbell Soup Field in Camden, New Jersey. Game time is set for 3:00 p.m.
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