Roche among four East Region selections

College Baseball Lineup DII All-Star Team

RINDGE, N.H. (June 1, 2012) – Graduate student center fielder James Roche (Arlington, Mass.) of the Franklin Pierce University baseball team has been named to the College Baseball Lineup DII All-Star Team, as announced Friday by College Baseball Lineup. Across the country, 30 players were selected to the second annual edition of the team.

Among the 30 players honored is at least one player from each Division II conference which sponsors baseball, with no more than one student-athlete selected from any one institution. The DII All-Star Team was assembled by college baseball guru Nick Herfordt and the staff of College Baseball Lineup. College Baseball Lineup is one of the premier online news sources for college baseball and one of few outlets to devote full national coverage to the sport at the Division II level. Franklin Pierce has been a fixture in the site's Division II Top-30 Rankings over the last several years.

In his lone year in Rindge after three seasons at fellow Northeast-10 member Bentley, Roche did not miss a beat, batting primarily in the three-spot for the Ravens on his way to a consensus All-America selection, including being named to the First Team by the ABCA. Through May 20, he ranks in the top 50 in the nation in runs scored (57), hits (84), doubles (19), home runs per game (0.29), home runs (17), runs batted in per game (1.05), runs batted in (61), slugging percentage (.661) and total bases (154). Roche ranks in the top 10 in the nation in total bases (3rd), home runs (6th) and hits (10th). Through the NCAA Championship East Regional, he led the Northeast-10 in home runs and runs batted in and ranked in the top five in slugging percentage, runs scored, hits and doubles. While starting every game in center field, he hit .361/.426/.661, worked 26 walks and stole 22 bases in 30 attempts. In addition to the All-America accolades, Roche has already been a consensus All-East Region First Team pick and was named to the All-Northeast-10 First Team, the ABCA/Rawlings East Region Gold Glove First Team and the NEIBA All-Star Team earlier this spring.

The Ravens wrapped up the 2012 campaign at 38-19-1, reaching the 35-win plateau for the seventh straight season. The team finished as a semifinalist in the NCAA Championship East Regional for the second year in a row and made its eighth straight appearance in the NCAA Championship.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics).