GORHAM, Maine – Securing the number two seed in the Little East Conference tournament with a win over Castleton on Saturday, the nationally ranked No. 20 University of Southern Maine baseball team is set to host one pod of the LEC tournament beginning this Thursday, May 13. This year's tournament will be played in two pods at the sites of the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds. USM will act as host to Rhode Island College and Castleton for the first five games of the tournament in one pod, which will take place on May 13, 15, and if necessary, May 17. 

The History: This year's tournament will mark the Huskies' 24th consecutive trip to the LEC postseason and the 18th appearance as a No.1 or No. 2 seed. The Huskies have claimed five LEC tournament championships, the most recent of which came during the 2015 season. In the 2019 LEC tournament, the No. 1 seed Huskies lost to the No. 2 seed and eventual tournament champions, UMass-Boston. 

The Team: Heading into the tournament, the Huskies are 27-8 on the season and 12-4 in the LEC. Paced by the efforts of LEC home run and RBI leader Cam Seymour (Saco, Maine/Thornton Academy) the Huskies' offense has scored ten or more runs in 13 games this season. Sophomore Tom Vesosky (Colchester, V.T./Colchester) and senior Andrew Hillier (Bangor, Maine/Bangor) lead the team with .367 and .366 batting averages, respectively. Hillier also has a team-best 17 doubles and three triples. Senior Andrew Olszak (Danvers, Mass./Danvers) and sophomore Arlo Pike (Buxton, Maine/Bonny Eagle) are also batting over .300 for the Huskies this season.

Senior Ben Lambert (Saco, Maine/Thornton Academy) posted a 5-1 record and 2.60 ERA on the mound during the regular season and led the team and conference with an impressive 68 strikeouts. Freshman Bryce Afthim (Windham, Maine/Windham) has also put together an impressive year for the Huskies posting an 8-0 record and holding opponents to a .241 batting average. Both Lambert, Afthim, and junior James Sinclair (Portland, Maine/Deering) rank in the top ten in the conference for ERA. 

The Matchup: Southern Maine will play the winner of Rhode Island College and Castleton in their first game of the double elimination tournament. During the regular season, the Huskies went 2-2 with Rhode Island College picking up 14-0 and 13-1 wins and dropping 10-0 and 4-1 losses. Closing out their season against Castleton, Southern Maine went 4-0 with 9-3, 9-0, 8-1, and 9-5 wins over the Spartans. Rhode Island College went 4-0 against Castleton during the regular season.

Rhode Island College Players to Watch: Connecting for a team-best 13 doubles and a .381 batting average, senior Ray Zincone has paced the Anchormen's offensive efforts this season. Zincone's conference batting average of .376 is good enough for ninth in the LEC. Freshmen Cameron Santerre and Cal Parrillo have also made an impact for the Anchormen this year batting .345 and .343 with 11 and 28 RBI, respectively. Senior Tyler Shemick leads the Anchormen on the mound with a 4-1 record, 2.72 ERA, and 41 strikeouts. Against the Huskies, Shemick earned a win, pitching seven shut-out innings and scattering just three hits.

Castleton Players to Watch: Leading the Spartans with a team-best .319 batting average is junior Evan Keegan. Keegan tallied three home runs and 18 RBI over the course of 116 at bats during the regular season. Also dominant this year for Castleon are sophomore Adam Newton, who is batting .306, and junior Reece de Castro, who leads the team with nine doubles. On the mound for the Spartans, junior Matthew Deen has a 6.75 ERA, 44 strikeouts, and has held opposing batters to a .256 batting average. Against the Huskies this season, Deen surrendered eight runs on nine hits. 

Tournament Schedule (Double Elimination):

May 13
Game 1: No. 3 RIC vs. No. 6 Castleton, 1:00 pm
Game 2: Winner Game 1 vs. No. 2 Southern Maine, 4:00pm

May 15
Game 3: Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser 1:00pm
Game 4: Game 2 Winner vs. Game 3 Winner 4:00pm

May 17:
Game 5: If necessary 1:00pm