Boston College Athletics
Baseball Picked Third In BIG EAST Preseason Poll
December 05, 2002 | Baseball
Dec. 5, 2002
PROVIDENCE, R.I. - Coming off one of the best seasons in program history, the Boston College baseball team was chosen third by the league coaches in the BIG EAST Preseason Poll, while sophomore pitcher Chris Lambert (Manchester, N.H./Manchester Memorial) earned BIG EAST Preseason Pitcher of the Year honors, the conference office announced.
Lambert and three other players - senior Vinny Scavone (Seffner, Fla./St. Peter-Marian [Mass.]) and sophomores Drew Locke (Weymouth, Mass./Boston College High) and Jason Delaney (Hanson, Mass./Boston College High) - were also named to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. Of the 15 players selected to the squad, Lambert was the only unanimous pick.
Boston College received 80 points and one first-place vote in the poll. The Eagles return 19 lettermen from a team that went 30-25 last year. The 30 wins represent the second-highest total ever for a BC club.
Notre Dame, which last year became the first BIG EAST team to qualify for the College World Series, was chosen first in the poll with 98 points and nine first-place votes. Virginia Tech was second with 85 points and one first-place vote.
Lambert dominated hitters in 2002, going 9-3 with a league-low 2.76 ERA. He struck out 87 batters in 78.1 innings and threw five complete games. Over the summer, Lambert earned all-league accolades in the New England Collegiate Baseball League, and more recently landed a spot on the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Preseason All-America Second Team.
The BIG EAST's second-leading hitter last year, Locke secured one of the four outfield spots on the preseason all-conference team. His .404 batting average in 2002 led the Eagles, as did his .560 slugging percentage and his on base percentage. Locke proved a threat on the basepaths as well, tying for the team lead in steals with 10.
Scavone made the squad as the designated hitter. Last year, he hit .287 with 10 home runs and 42 runs batted in. His 40 runs were tied for second most on the club, while his 100 total bases ranked fourth.
Delaney's .348 average was third on the team last season, as were his 63 hits and .417 OBP. He also scored 32 runs and rapped out 15 doubles as Boston College's starting third baseman.
The Eagles open the season Friday, Feb. 21 at 10 a.m. against North Carolina State at the Charleston Crabhouse Challenge.
Team (1st Place Votes) Pts. 2002 Record 1. Notre Dame (9) 98 50-18 (18-8 BIG EAST) 2. Virginia Tech (1) 85 33-26 (18-8) 3. Boston College (1) 80 30-25 (15-11) 4. Rutgers 75 35-22 (15-11) 5. St. John's 58 29-23 (14-12) 6. Seton Hall 55 25-28 (11-15) 7. Connecticut 44 28-22 (13-12) 8. Pittsburgh 42 36-16-1 (14-11) 9. Villanova 29 30-23 (12-13) 10. West Virginia 27 24-26 (9-16) 11. Georgetown 12 9-47 (2-24)PRESEASON PLAYER OF THE YEAR Steve Sollmann, Notre Dame, Jr., 2B, 5-10, 190, Cincinnati, Ohio/St. Xavier
PRESEASON PITCHER OF THE YEAR Chris Lambert, Boston College, So., RHP, 6-0, 195, Manchester, N.H./Manchester Memorial
Preseason All-BIG EAST Team Key 2002 Statistics (All Games Played) P - Chris Lambert, Boston College, So.** 9-3, 2.76 ERA, 78.1 IP, 87 SO, 5 CG, .216 Opp. Avg. P - Grant Johnson, Notre Dame, So. 9-5, 3.46 ERA, 101.1 IP, 86 SO, 1 CG P - James Russell, Villanova, Sr. 1-3, 2.33 ERA, 27 IP, 15 Saves, 35 SO, 8 BB C - Jed English, Virginia Tech, Sr. .312, 37 R, 60 H, 14 2B, 3 HR, 31 RBI IF - Jason Delaney, Boston College, So. .348, 32 R, 63 H, 15 2B, 27 RBI, .417 OBP IF - Steve Sollmann, Notre Dame, Jr. .362, 53 R, 77 H, 4 3B, 47 RBI, .420 OBP IF - Spencer Harris, Virginia Tech, Sr. .292, 39 R, 12 2B, 3 3B, 5 HR, 40 RBI, 10 SB IF - Marc Tugwell, Virginia Tech, Sr. .342, 50 R, 79 H, 14 2B, 3 3B, 5 HR, 47 RBI, 12 SB IF - Tim McCabe, West Virginia, Sr. .305, 37 R, 8 2B, 10 HR, 32 RBI, .520 Slug% OF - Drew Locke, Boston College, So. .404, 34 R, 16 2B, 24 RBI, .455 OBP, .560 Slug% OF - Jeff Frazier, Rutgers, So. .356, 45 R, 13 HR, 54 RBI, .439 OBP, .596 Slug% OF - Casey Grimm, Seton Hall, Sr. .363, 25 R, 6 HR, 38 RBI, .490 OBP, .548 Slug% OF - Chris Graziano, Villanova, Sr. .270, 38 R, 9 2B, 4 3B, 20 RBI, 38 SB DH - Vinny Scavone, Boston College, Sr. .287, 40 R, 10 2B, 10 HR, 42 RBI, .495 Slug% U - Peter Soteropoulos, Connecticut, So. .374, 43 R, 71 H, 46 RBI, .463 OBP, .500 Slug%
** - unanimous selection A tie created additional infield and outfield positions.
