Lafayette Wins First Patriot League Title

Leopards down Army to head to NCAA Tournament for first time since `90

May 13, 2007

By Tracy Nelson

Special to CSTV.com

EASTON, Pa. - It's fitting that Lafayette graduates nine seniors in less than a week. On a perfect Sunday afternoon for baseball, those nine veterans laid claim to Lafayette's first ever Patriot League baseball title, going through Army in two games in the best-of-three championship series. The win gives Lafayette its first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 1990. Seniors Dave Drechsel, James Conrad and Matt Kamine were named to the All-Tournament Team, while rightfielder Mike Raible collected Most Valuable Player hardware.

This senior class, along with 2007 Patriot League Coach of the Year Joe Kinney, led Lafayette to a program record 32 wins. With one of the largest senior classes in recent history, all nine of them walked towards home plate to accept the Patriot League Championship cup, as the Leopards won 7-3 to eliminate the Black Knights at Hilton Rahn Field at Class of 1978 Stadium.

From the start of the season, the nine seniors established their role, whether it was Kamine, as the team's top starting pitcher, to a complete outfield in Kevin Leasure (left) Conrad (center) and Raible (right).

The Leopards jumped on Army early in the first game on Saturday scoring five runs in the first two innings in an 8-3 triumph. With Army lefty reliever Matt Fouch struggling through his first three batters, Raible stepped to the plate and sent his first home run of the year over the fence in left field. The two-run dinger gave Lafayette a comfortable 8-2 lead, as Kamine continued to dominate the Black Knights through four scoreless innings. Raible made the most of his time at the plate, going 3-for-7 with a home run, triple and five RBI over the Leopards' two wins.

Kamine proved to be the rock of Saturday's game, especially early-on. The Leopards committed three fielding errors in the first inning alone, but Kamine was able to work out of the jam without a run crossing the plate. The southpaw went six innings, allowing nine hits and three earned runs. He is second on the team with an ERA of 2.70 heading into the NCAA Regional, which is set to be played on the weekend of June 1-3. Kinney traded senior-for-senior in the sixth, calling on closer John Fugett. He did not allow a single hit, while striking out one in his three innings of work. Fugett has made 19 appearances this season and recorded his fourth save on Saturday.

 Junior right hander Kevin Reese finished the job as the Sunday starter, going 8.1 innings and allowing just three runs on nine hits with five strikeouts. He walked just one of the 35 batters that he faced.

While Kamine will leave Lafayette known for his arm, Conrad's legs have got to be his legacy. The speedy center fielder stole three bases on Sunday, making him Lafayette's all-time stolen base leader. He also ranks first on the single-season list with 45 this year alone, a number good enough to place him among the nation's best after entering the weekend ranked third in the country. Conrad, who will also leave Lafayette with the single-season runs scored record (62), went 5-for-10 on the weekend with an RBI and run scored.

Drechsel has done the dirty work behind the plate for Lafayette over the better part of the last three years, but the senior captain also gives Kinney strength in the middle of the order. Drechsel went 3-for-5 with an RBI and run scored in Sunday's deciding game, but did his best work behind the plate. He threw out three would-be base stealers and picked off another in the team games against Army.

A two-time First Team All-Patriot League Selection (2006, 07), Leasure knocked in the Leopards fifth run of the game on Saturday. His 45 RBI on the season lead the team and rank second in the Patriot League.

If there has been a key to Lafayette's success all season, it's easy to point to the pitching staff. While the Leopards will lose the entire starting outfield to graduation, the team will also say goodbye to four of the top seven pitchers, including lefty starters Kamine and Ted Gjeldum. With an ERA of 3.28 over 11 starts and 68.2 innings pitched, Gjeldum is one of four Lafayette pitchers with a 3.5 ERA or better.

Fugett and Brian Cope have combined for 28 appearances in relief. Cope did start three games this season, including the Liberty Bell Classic Championship in which he steered Lafayette to a 7-3 win over Lehigh to take home the tournament title on April 10 at Citizens Bank Park.

There is no question that the Class of 2007 is leaving big shoes to fill with graduation. However, it's likely that on Sunday afternoon nobody was looking further in the future than June 1-3 and the NCAA Regional. Instead, they lived a moment four years in the making.