Ravens open National Finals Saturday against Shippensburg

Daktronics All-East Region Teams (PDF)

RINDGE, N.H. (May 22, 2013) – Junior right-hander Trevor Graham (Sebastian, Fla.) of the East Region champion Franklin Pierce University baseball team has been named Daktronics East Region Pitcher of the Year, as announced by Daktronics during this past weekend's NCAA Baseball Championship East Regional. Graham is joined on the All-East Region First Team by senior shortstop Dan Kemp (Sturbridge, Mass.) and junior first baseman Zach Mathieu (Derry, N.H.), while senior right fielder Nick LaCroix (Grafton, Mass.) landed on the All-East Region Second Team.

The Ravens are one of only two teams to collect at least three All-East Region First Team selections. The only East Region institution with more players on the First Team is St. Thomas Aquinas, with four.

The Northeast-10 Conference Pitcher of the Year, Graham has been nothing short of dominant for the Ravens in his first season in Rindge after transferring in from Florida Tech. With a flock of professional scouts on-hand at every start, Graham leads a pitching staff which ranks first in the NCAA (through last weekend's regional tournaments) in both strikeouts per nine innings (9.2) and hits allowed per nine innings (6.91) by ranking among the top 50 pitchers in the nation in ERA (1.76), strikeouts per nine innings (10.03), strikeouts (114), hits allowed per nine innings (5.98), strikeout-to-walk ratio (6.33), WHIP (0.84) and wins (9). The most impressive of those numbers among his peers are strikeouts, WHIP and hits allowed per nine innings, as he ranks among the top five in the country in all three. In addition, through the East Regional, he is in the top 10 in the Northeast-10 in innings pitched (102.1), strikeouts, strikeouts per nine innings, ERA and wins. Overall, in his 102.1 innings, he has allowed 28 runs (20 earned) on 69 hits and 18 walks to post a 9-2 record and hold opponents to a .191 batting average.

Graham was named to the NCBWA All-East Region First Team already this spring, in addition to his selection as Northeast-10 Pitcher of the Year selection. He was also an All-Northeast-10 First Team selection.

Kemp has hit .318/.390/.497 over 151 at-bats through the East Regional, after missing most of March due to injury. It is his second straight season with a batting average over .300, an on-base percentage over .370 and a slugging percentage north of .450. Through the East Regional, his .497 slugging percentage ranks eighth in the Northeast-10. He has scored 33 runs -- tied for third on the team -- in just 40 games, and heads into the National Finals with at least one hit in nine of the last 10 games. Overall, he is 48-for-151 with nine doubles, three triples and four home runs, has driven in 28 runs, has walked 15 times against 24 strikeouts and has stolen 16 bases in 23 attempts (69.6%). Kemp has committed only four errors in 40 games at shortstop.

It is Kemp's first All-East Region selection from Daktronics and he has already been named to the NCBWA All-East Region First Team this spring. At the conclusion of the regular season, he was named to the All-Northeast-10 First Team, the first All-Conference selection of his career.

Mathieu, the 2012 consensus East Region Player of the Year, was unseated by St. Thomas Aquinas senior catcher Mike Russo as Daktronics East Region Player of the Year. While not featuring the same video-game offensive numbers he did a year ago -- though his on-base percentage is higher -- Mathieu has still posted a .342/.456/.544 slash line over 193 at-bats and ranks in the top 10 in the Northeast-10 in batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, home runs (6), runs scored (51), runs batted in (35), doubles (17) and walks (33). Of those categories, batting average and runs batted in are the only ones where he is not ranked in the top five as well. Overall, Mathieu is 66-for-193 with a pair of triples, has driven in 35 runs, struck out only 33 times against those 33 walks and has stolen 19 bases in 23 attempts (82.6%).

It is Mathieu's second straight All-East Region selection from Daktronics, as he was also named to the First Team a year ago. Already this spring, he has been named to the NCBWA All-East Region Second Team and the All-Northeast-10 First Team.

LaCroix is currently hitting .303/.371/.468 while providing Mathieu with protection in the lineup, and ranks in the top 10 in the Northeast-10 in hits (61) and doubles (19), ranking second behind only Saint Anselm senior third baseman Robert Kelly (22) in the latter. Overall, LaCroix is hitting 61-for-201 with one triple and four home runs to go with the doubles. He has scored 33 runs, driven in 34, walked 18 times against 33 strikeouts and stolen 19 bases in 25 attempts (76.0%).

It is LaCroix's second All-East Region selection from Daktronics, as he was named to the Second Team last year as well. He is now a three-time All-Region selection, as he landed on the ABCA's First Team as a freshman. Earlier this spring, he was named to the All-Northeast-10 Second Team, which was the fourth All-Conference selection of his career.

The East Region champion Ravens (36-17) open pursuit of their first national title on Saturday afternoon against Shippensburg, the Atlantic Region champion. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. at USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, N.C.

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).