SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The top-seeded Bryant baseball team heads to Vestal, N.Y., this week for the 2024 America East Baseball Championships.

Bryant enters the conference tournament as No. 1 seed and has earned one of two first-round byes along with second-seeded UMBC. The Bulldogs are scheduled to play Thursday, May 23 at 11:00 a.m. against the lowest remaining seed from Wednesday's single-elimination round.     

The Particulars
Dates: May 22-25
Location: Bearcats Baseball Complex (Vestal, N.Y.)
Tournament Page: AmericaEast.com
Live Stats: Sidearm
Video: ESPN+
Game Notes: Bryant
Social Media: Facebook | X | Instagram | #AEBASE  

Tournament Field

No. 1 seed - Bryant
No. 2 seed - UMBC
No. 3 seed - NJIT
No. 4 seed - UMass Lowell
No. 5 seed - UAlbany
No. 6 seed - Binghamton

Bryant vs. The Field

• Bryant went 17-7 during the regular season, posting a 10-2 mark at home and a 7-5 mark on the road. The Bulldogs started the year 13-2 before finishing playing their final three series on the road and going 4-5.
• The Black and Gold won six of its eight AE series, posting series victories over Maine (4-2), UMBC (4-2), UAlbany (3-0), Binghamton (3-0) and UMass Lowell (2-1). Bryant dropped a series to NJIT and UMBC (won the season series).
• Bryant is 6-3 all-time vs No. seed UMBC. The Bulldogs won 2-of-3 in Smithfield last year, swept the Retrievers at Conaty Park in March and dropped 2-of-3 last weekend in Baltimore.
• The Bulldogs are 5-4 in three series vs NJIT. All four of NJIT's victories have come in walk-off fashion as part of doubleheader sweeps.
• Bryant and UMass Lowell have a storied history back to their DII days and met in last year's single-elimination round, a 6-0 victory over UML. The Black and Gold used a late rally to grab a series victory over the River Hawks at Conaty Park this year.
• The Black and Gold swept UAlbany and Binghamton this year. Bryant is 9-0 all-time vs UAlbany, sweeping a non-conference series in 2014 and AE series in 2023 and 2024. The Black and Gold earned 11-6, 17-4 and 11-1 victories this year.
• Against Binghamton, Bryant earned a sweep with 10-2, 10-3 and 7-2 victories. 

Bryant in the conference tournament

• Bryant is 21-14 in conference tournaments at the DI level. The Bulldogs went 21-13 as a member of the NEC before dropping its first playoff game as an AE member last May. 
• The Bulldogs have served as the No. 1 (nine times) or No. 2 seed (once) in all 10 of its postseason appearances (including this year). 
• Bryant has advanced to the championship round seven times, winning championships in 2013, 2014 and 2016. The Bulldogs have lost in the decisive game in 2015, 2019, 2021 and 2022.
• The Black and Gold have gone 3-0 to win the title twice (2014, 2016), while it needed to win four straight elimination games to claim the 2013 title. 

Bulldog Notes and Notables

• Bryant finished the regular season with a 33-19 overall record, going 32-12 over its final 44 games following a 1-7 start to the year. The Bulldogs dropped each of their first two series before winning each of their next seven.
• The Black and Gold played 21 of its first 37 games at home but finished the year with 13 of its final 15 on the road. Bryant played each of its final four weekend series on the road.
• Bryant finished the regular season tied for first in average (.276), first in runs (386), first in doubles (116), first in home runs (73), first in slugging (.479), first in OBP (.391) and first in stolen bases (52).
• As a staff, Bryant posted an overall ERA of 5.35, good enough for second in the league. In America East play, the Bryant staff led the way with a 4.07 ERA and held opponents to a league-low .250 average.
• Carmine Petosa reached safely in all 52 regular-season games and in a program-record 55-straight dating back to last year. 
• Petosa opened the year hitting just .158 (6-38) in his first 14 games but posted a .476 OBP thanks to 19 walks. Over the last 38 games, Petosa is hitting .340 with a .465 OBP. He has 15 doubles and 10 homers in that stretch.
• Gavin Noriega led the America East with 55 RBI and 53 runs scored during the regular season. He hit a program record 17 home runs and ranks first in the league in OBP (.472) and second in OPS (1.162). 
• Zac Zyons brings a 32-game on-base streak into the weekend. He won the America East batting title, finishing the regular season with a .373 average. He hit .417 (first) with six home runs (3rd), 21 RBI (7th) and 30 runs scored (first) in America East play. Overall, Zyons ranks third in OPS at 1.079. 
• Bryant's 73 home runs are second in DI program history, trailing only the 81 the 2019 team hit. In addition to Noriega's 17 and Petosa's 11, Brandyn Durand (11), Daniel Baruch (9) and Zac Zyons (7) have all had big power years.
• On the mound, Austin Wainer (6-2, 4.04) and Luke Delongchamp (5-2, 2.83) have provided the Bulldogs with a great 1-2 punch. They have both pitched better in league play, with Wainer delivering at least 6.0 innings in 7-of-8 league starts. He went 5-1 with a 3.35 ERA and 38 strikeouts in 48.1 innings.
• Delongchamp enters the tournament second in overall ERA and went 4-1 with a 2.16 ERA and 41 strikeouts in 41.2 innings. 
• Both Wainer and Delongchamp lost their first conference decisions this past weekend at UMBC.
• Liam LeVangie has shifted into Bryant's third spot after the injury to Tyler Horvat. LeVangie has posted a 3.46 ERA, 11 strikeouts and just three walks in his four Sunday starts.
• Out of the bullpen, Bryant has relied on Jared Burrows (20 app, 4-3, 5.13), Zach Nichols (20 app, 8-11 SV-OPP), Jack Pletter (15 app, 5.16), Mark Scamardella (19 app, 6.20) and Ryan Bradley (17 app, 6.11).   

Scouting the Field

• UMBC went 25-23 overall and 14-10 in conference play, leading the league with a 5.01 team ERA.
• Luke Johnson is the reigning AE Pitcher of the Year and has 3.35 ERA and 77 strikeouts. Sam Downs leads the league with a 2.31 ERA as he shifted into a relief role midway through the year.
• NJIT is led by Aidan Kidd's league-leading 87 strikeouts and a strong freshmen class that includes Cade Ladehoff (72 hits, 55 RBI, 45 R). The Highlanders are the only team that won the season series from the Bulldogs, earning a pair of walk-off victories on May 4 in New Jersey.  
• UML is tied with Bryant for the league lead with a .276 average and is the only other team with 100+ doubles. UML has a 6.71 team ERA. Carlos Martinez set the single season program record with 25 doubles.
• UAlbany played its best baseball over the last month of the season, going 7-2 over its last three series to clinch a playoff spot. The Great Danes are hitting .244 with a 8.39 team ERA. 
• Binghamton also qualified on the last day of the regular season and is the best fielding team in the league. Binghamton is hitting .270 (3rd) and has a team ERA of 5.69 (3rd). Gabe Driscoll is third in the league in ERA (3.26), second in opp. BA (.221) and fourth in strikeouts (66).