The St. Thomas Aquinas College baseball team finished an outstanding regular season with an overall record of 33-16 after splitting a twin-bill with Queens College, losing the opener, 11-1, and rebounding in the nightcap for a 12-1 win. STAC will host the East Coast Conference Tournament beginning Thursday at Provident Bank Park. The Spartans finished with a 18-6 conference mark, while Queens fell to 13-27 overall, 7-17 in ECC action.
Fresh off their regular-season clincher a day earlier, the Spartans couldn't get untracked in game one as Queens starter Jared Mancini allowed just one run in a masterful six-hitter. Warren Kelly and Nick LoBello had three hits each as the Knights broke the game open with a nine-run fourth inning. Joe Ferrara allowed just one run in three innings in the start, but took the hard-luck loss for STAC.
Game two was a reversal of fortune as the Spartans posted three in the first and never looked back. This time it was Nick May, Ken Frawley and Joe DePool who combined to allow one run on six hits, while Frank Salerno had three of his own - including a home run to lead off the game - in the Spartans' 15 hit attack. May improved to 4-1 with the win, while Kyle Contino drew the loss for Queens.
The Spartans will now begin their second-season quest for the East Coast Conference title and a bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament when the ECC Tourney comes to Ramapo. In a change from the original schedule, Thursday's action will kick off with #1 STAC hosting #4 Bridgeport in the 1:00 start, followed at 4:00 by #2 Dowling taking on #3 CW Post. Action continues at PBP on Friday with games at 9:00, 12:00 and 3:00, and the final shifts to St. John's University in Queens on Saturday when the ECC championship plaque will be awarded.
East Coast Conference Final Standings
| School | W | L | Pct | GB |
| (1)St. Thomas Aquinas | 18 | 6 | .750 | --- |
| (2)Dowling |
17 | 7 | .708 | 1.0 |
| (3)CW Post |
16 | 8 | .667 | 2.0 |
| (4)Bridgeport | 12 | 12 | .500 | 6.0 |
| Molloy |
10 | 14 | .417 | 8.0 |
| Queens |
7 | 17 | .292 | 11.0 |
| Mercy | 4 | 20 | .167 | 14.0 |
(#) = ECC Tournament seed
East Coast Conference Tournament Schedule (subject to change)
Thursday, May 10, at Provident Bank Park (note change from original)
Game 1 - #4 Bridgeport vs #1 St. Thomas Aquinas, 1:00
Game 2 - #3 CW Post vs #2 Dowling, 4:00
Friday, May 11, at Provident Bank Park
Game 3 - Loser Game 1 vs Loser Game 2 (loser eliminiated), 9:00 am
Game 4 - Winner Game 1 vs Winner Game 2, 12:00 pm
Game 5 - Winner Game 2 vs Loser Game 4 (loser eliminated) 3:00 pm
Saturday, May 12, at St. John's University
Game 6 - Winner Game 4 vs Winner Game 5, 12:00 pm
Game 7 - (if necessary) 3:00 pm