GORHAM, Maine – Senior
Kyle Douin (Augusta, Maine/Cony), juniors
Gabe Gifford (Bradley, Maine/Old Town),
Mike Anquillare (North Haven, Conn.),
Evan Baschnagel (Garden City, NY), and
Peter Keblinsky (Ellsworth, Maine), sophomore
Caleb Vacchiano (Cornish, Maine/Sacopee Valley) and freshman
Hayden Strout (Charleston, Maine) of the 2026 Little East Conference (LEC) Championship University of Southern Maine Huskies' baseball team each earned a spot on the 2026 ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Division III All-Region (Region 2) Team.
Earning his third Player of the Year honor, Douin is earning ABCA Region 2 Player of the Year honors after also being named the 2026 LEC and D3baseball.com Region 2 Player of the Year. Joining Douin on the All-Region first team are Baschnagel, Gifford and Vacchiano. Keblinsky earned a spot on the all-region second team, while Anquillare and Strout are both third team recipients.
The 2026 ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Division III All-Region teams and Regional Players of the Year have been announced across all 10 regions. Selections were voted on by members of the American Baseball Coaches Association and coordinated by the ABCA NCAA Division III All-America and Coach of the Year Committee. The ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Division III All-America teams will be announced on the evening of Thursday, May 28, following the Opening Ceremony at the 2026 NCAA Division III World Series in Eastlake, Ohio. Only First Team All-Region selections are eligible for All-America honors.
ABCA/Rawlings Gold Glove teams for all divisions will be announced on Wednesday, June 17, while the 2026 ABCA NCAA Division III Region All-Defensive teams will be released on Thursday, June 18.
The ABCA All-America team was first recognized in 1949 and now spans nine divisions: NCAA Divisions I, II and III, NAIA, NJCAA Divisions I, II and III, Pacific Association Division, and high school. ABCA/Rawlings Gold Glove teams were first introduced in 2007.
Now a three-time ABCA All-Region First Team selection (2024, 2025, 2026), Douin delivered another remarkable year, leading the 2026 Little East Conference Champion Huskies both offensively and defensively. Douin is the first Husky to earn ABCA Regional Player of the Year honors since All-American and former National Player of the Year Sam Dexter in 2015. Hitting a career-best .443 in 2026, Douin was 81-for-183 at the plate with 70 runs scored and a team-leading 72 RBI, collecting 16 doubles, four triples and 13 home runs, completing his outstanding career as the program's all-time leader in home runs (38) and RBI (210). Posting 26 multi-hit games, Douin had a season-high five hits on a 5-for-6 effort at the dish with five RBI in a 19-6 win at Keene State in the regular season. Fielding a solid .986 at 1B, Douin had 262 putouts and 15 assists while helping turn 17 double plays.
Now a two-time ABCA All-Region selection for Southern Maine at shortstop, Keblinsky earned second team All-LEC honors after hitting a career-high .398 with 72 hits in 181 at bats, scoring 65 runs and driving in 49. Connecting on 25 extra-base hits for a .564 slugging percentage, Keblinsky's 22 doubles ranked second in Husky single-season records. Recording 16 multi-hit games, Keblinsky had a season-high five hits on a 5-for-5 effort in a 19-8 win over Eastern Connecticut State to help Southern Maine clinch the number one seed and regular season championship. Keblinsky's 5-for-5 effort against the Warriors cemented his spot in USM records as the junior shortstop hit for the cycle in the game, becoming the first Husky to hit for the cycle since Forrest Chadwick did so against Western Connecticut State on April 12, 2014 and just the fourth overall. Defensively, Keblinsky was outstanding with 57 putouts and 107 assists for a .927 percentage while helping turn nine double plays.
The 2026 Little East Conference Pitcher of the Year, Gifford finished an outstanding first year with the Huskies with a 5-2 record in 14 appearances and 10 starts while working a team-leading 64.1 innings. Carrying a 2.94 earned run average and a 132 WHIP, Gifford held his opponents to a paltry .224 battig average and led the Little East Conference in strikeouts with 82. Ranked 25
th overall in NCAA Division III baseball in strikeouts, Gifford is the eighth pitcher in program history to earn LEC Pitcher of the Year honros and his selection to the ABCA All-Region team marks the first time since the 2021 season that USM has a pitcher on the team.
A first-team All-Little East Conference selection as an outfielder, Baschnagel put together a tremendous first season as a Husky, hitting .338 (47-for-139) with 10 doubles and 10 home runs for 40 RBI. The Huskies' lead-offhitter, Baschnagel scored 67 runs and led the Little East Conference and Southern Maine in on-base percentage at .518, drawing 33 walks and being hit-by-a-pitch a team-best 19 times. Recording 14 multi-hit games, Baschnagel reached a season-high three hits four times. During the LEC tourney, Baschnagel hit safely in each of the Huskies four games and had eight RBI. Baschnagel ranked 13
th in NCAA Division III in runs scored, and first in runs per game (1.76).
Earning all-region honors for the first time in his career, Vacchiano finished his first season with USM hitting .314 (54-for-172) with 54 runs scored and 60 RBI while playing second base. Connecting on eight doubles, three triples and seven home runs, Vacchiano held a .517 slugging percentage. Three of the Husky sophomore's home runs were grand slams, including one in the Huskies' 11-5 come-from-behind win over Keene State in the championship game of the 2026 LEC tourney. Vacchiano was named the tourney's Most Outstanding Player.
Starting in left field over the last two seasons, Anquillare is earning all-region honors for the first time after picking up his second LEC All-Conference nod (2025, 2026). Hitting a career-best .354 in 2026, Anquillare was 57-for-161 at the plate with 43 runs scored and 52 RBI, connecting on six doubles, two triples and eight home runs, connecting on his career-best eighth home run in the NCAA Regional Tournament. Tying the Huskies' single-game record for home runs in a game (3) and RBI in a game (9), Anquillare was 4-for-6 at the plate in a lopsided 23-5 (7 inning) conference win at Plymouth State.
The 2026 LEC Rookie of the Year, Strout had a fantastic first season with Southern Maine. The 11th player to earn Little East Rookie of the Year honors, Strout is the first Southern Maine pitcher to do so. Making 11 appearances and eight starts, Strout posted a 7-1 record with a 2.86 earned run average in 56.2 innings. Amassing 31 strikeouts, Strout held his opponents to a .218 batting average. Pitching Southern Maine to a 14-6 win over UMass Dartmouth to advance to the championship game of the 2026 LEC Tournament, Strout fired seven strong innings allowing five earned runs on seven hits. In the 2026 NCAA Regional Tournament, Strout fired 8.2 innings of five-hit baseball, allowing four unearned runs, en route to a 14-4 win over Babson, advancing the Huskies to the championship game.
Southern Maine ended the season with a record of 32-12, the program's most wins since the 2021 team went 34-11. The 2026 Little East Conference Regular Season and Tournament Champions, the Huskies reached the NCAA Tournament for the 27th time in program history and the first time since 2021.
| 2026 ABCA/Rawlings NCAA Div. III All-Region Teams: Region II |
| NCAA Div. III Region II All-Region First Team |
| Pos. |
Player |
Cl. |
School |
State |
| C |
Hank Penders |
Sr. |
Eastern Connecticut State |
CT |
| 1B |
Kyle Douin |
Gr. |
Southern Maine |
ME |
| 2B |
Caleb Vacchiano |
So. |
Southern Maine |
ME |
| 3B |
Tyler Kornacki |
Jr. |
Western New England |
MA |
| SS |
Elliot Miles |
Jr. |
UMass Boston |
MA |
| OF |
Brenden Walsh |
Jr. |
Endicott |
MA |
| OF |
Nate Kaczynski |
So. |
Mass. Maritime |
MA |
| OF |
Evan Baschnagel |
Jr. |
Southern Maine |
ME |
| OF |
Kevin Doyle |
Jr. |
Worcester State |
MA |
| DH |
Brandon Gaer |
Jr. |
UMass Boston |
MA |
| UT |
Nolan Currier |
Jr. |
Salem State |
MA |
| P |
Brady Stuart |
Sr. |
Endicott |
MA |
| P |
David Floyd |
Sr. |
Keene State |
NH |
| P |
Gabe Gifford |
Jr. |
Southern Maine |
ME |
| P |
Cameron Fisher |
Jr. |
UMass Boston |
MA |
| |
| NCAA Div. III Region II All-Region Second Team |
| Pos. |
Player |
Cl. |
School |
State |
| C |
Evan Cali |
Sr. |
Keene State |
NH |
| 1B |
Danny Tambascia |
So. |
Brandeis |
MA |
| 1B |
Ian Moser |
Jr. |
Eastern Connecticut State |
CT |
| 2B |
Trevor Snow |
So. |
Keene State |
NH |
| 3B |
Ben Kuja |
So. |
Brandeis |
MA |
| SS |
TJ Liponis |
Sr. |
Endicott |
MA |
| SS |
Peter Keblinsky |
Jr. |
Southern Maine |
ME |
| OF |
Rylan Secovich |
Jr. |
Bridgewater State |
MA |
| OF |
Jack Obert |
Sr. |
Johnson & Wales |
RI |
| OF |
Ryan Keating |
So. |
Nichols |
MA |
| OF |
Sam Palmer |
Sr. |
Westfield State |
MA |
| DH |
Lucas Rogers |
Jr. |
Keene State |
NH |
| P |
Owen Sullivan |
Jr. |
Anna Maria |
MA |
| P |
Ben Gill |
So. |
Endicott |
MA |
| P |
Matt Pappalardo |
Jr. |
Endicott |
MA |
| P |
Michael Featherstone |
Sr. |
Hartford |
CT |
| |
| NCAA Div. III Region II All-Region Third Team |
| Pos. |
Player |
Cl. |
School |
State |
| C |
Cam Beltramini |
So. |
Bridgewater State |
MA |
| 1B |
Jonathan Chatfield |
Sr. |
Keene State |
NH |
| 3B |
Ryan Flaherty |
Sr. |
Bridgewater State |
MA |
| 3B |
Jeremy Mangiameli |
Sr. |
Hartford |
CT |
| SS |
Joseph Abt |
Sr. |
Fitchburg State |
MA |
| SS |
Tyler Waterbury |
Fr. |
Western New England |
MA |
| OF |
Derek Finlay |
So. |
Keene State |
NH |
| OF |
Jake Duffy |
Gr. |
Mass. Maritime |
MA |
| OF |
Mike Anquillare |
Sr. |
Southern Maine |
ME |
| OF |
Ryan Montini |
Sr. |
Western New England |
MA |
| P |
Anthony Bubba |
Jr. |
Hartford |
CT |
| P |
Julian Rondon |
Jr. |
Hartford |
CT |
| P |
Max Randazzo |
Jr. |
Johnson & Wales |
RI |
| P |
Hayden Strout |
Fr. |
Southern Maine |
ME |
| P |
Andre Phaneuf |
So. |
Westfield State |
MA |
| |
| Region Position Player of the Year: Kyle Douin, Southern Maine |
| Region Pitcher of the Year: Brady Stuart, Endicott |
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