Coach McNamara and five AMCATS honored by inaugural WABA selections

PAXTON, Mass. (05.17.11) – Head Coach Dave McNamara was named Worcester Area Coach of the Year, while senior Andy Fallon (Worcester, Mass.) and junior Jeff Scafidi (Worcester, Mass.) were named First Team Worcester Area Baseball All-Stars on Tuesday afternoon. In addition, senior Brendon Tivnan (Worcester, Mass.), sophomore Mike Guarnieri (Wallingford, Mass.), and senior Zach Rafferty (Worcester, Mass.) were each selected to the WABA All-Stars Second Team.

This is the inaugural season for the WABA All-Stars which represent all 10 Worcester area colleges.

Coach McNamara earned Coach of the Year recognition after leading the AMCATS to a program record 26 wins this season, advancing to the semifinal round of the TCCC Championship, before being crowned 2011 ECAC Division III New England Baseball Co-Champions this weekend. This was the first ECAC title for not only the program, but the College as a whole. McNamara has done a fabulous job since inheriting a club that was 0-28 in 2006. He turned the club into a playoff contender after three seasons and now boasts two consecutive TCCC Championship berths, two-straight ECAC Championship appearances, and has broken the program record for wins in a season for two years running.

Fallon enjoyed a terrific senior season, leading Anna Maria with 39 runs scored, 13 doubles, 29 walks, and a .473 on-base percentage, while also ranking second on the club with a .346 batting average. Andy also set the program record for career stolen bases and compiled a .951 fielding percentage at second base.

Scafidi excelled both at the plate and on the mound for Anna Maria this year. At the dish, he led the AMCATS with a .356 batting average, 77 total bases, and a .527 slugging percentage, while also tying for the team lead with 52 hits. On the mound, he finished with a 5-2 mark, compiling an impressive 3.09 ERA over 58.1 innings. He tossed two complete games on the year, and saved perhaps his best start for last, throwing eight innings of one-run ball versus Coast Guard to earn a 2-1 victory during the ECAC Championship Semifinals.

Tivnan went 5-2 this year, working as both a starter and a reliever. He threw an impressive four complete games on the year, and was named The Commonwealth Coast Conference Pitcher of the Week twice, while also capturing one Eastern College Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Week Award. He set the Anna Maria program record by pitching 23 consecutive innings without surrendering an earned run.

Guarnieri showed no signs of a sophomore slump this year, as the second-year outfielder led the club with 39 runs batted in and 13 stolen bases, while also tying for the team lead with 52 hits. In addition, he finished among the top three on the team in average (.338), runs scored (31), doubles (12), total bases (66), slugging percentage (.429), and on-base percentage (.387).

Rafferty earned four wins this season for AMC while setting the program's single season record for strikeouts (75) and the career record for batting average against (.209). As of May 8^th, he ranked third in the nation with a 12.73 strikeouts per nine innings rate. He came in to close out Anna Maria's historic victory over Coast Guard in the ECAC Championship Semifinals, entering a 2-0 ballgame with the bases loaded before retiring the side on a grounder to short and two punch-out's.

Photo Courtesy of David Sheridan for AMC Sports Information