EAST STROUDSBURG - The East Stroudsburg University baseball program inducted the third class of its "Bat Club" on Saturday, October 17.

Four Warriors - pitcher Mike Balent (1982-85), outfielder Kyle Sheaffer (2005-08), pitcher Christian Saveri (2007-10) and pitcher/first baseman Brian Ernst (2010-13) - join eight previous inductees.

The first class of pitcher/shortstop Joel Bennett, outfielder J.D. Stern, second baseman Jacob DeBoer and pitcher Jeremy Gigliotti was recognized in 2013. Pitcher/infielder/outfielder Tim Bishop, shortstop Brett Reynolds, outfielder Josh Butler and third baseman Mark Angelo were honored in 2014.


Information on the Bat Club honorees is below:

Mike Balent - PSAC North Pitcher of the Year, NCAA North Atlantic All-Region third team and Academic All-America selection in 1985 … posted 19 career wins, still tied for the school record … 17 complete games (ranks tied for 3rd at ESU) … threw 202.0 innings … 39 games (32 starts) with 139 strikeouts over his final 3 seasons … as a senior in 1985, helped pitch ESU to the PSAC championship game and the first NCAA Division II Tournament appearance in program history … went 7-1 with 5.18 ERA, 41 strikeouts, 20 walks in 57.3 innings over 12 games (10 starts) … threw 4 complete games … had four wins vs. PSAC opponents in the regular season, and beat Shippensburg 5-4 in an elimination game in the PSAC Tournament … in 1984, went 5-4 with 3.24 ERA, one save, 43 strikeouts, 27 walks in 58.3 innings (11 games, 8 starts - 7 complete games) … in 1983, went 3-3 with 3.00 ERA, 38 strikeouts, 27 walks in 51.3 innings (10 games, 8 starts - 2 complete games).

Kyle Sheaffer - 4-year starter who helped the Warriors reach the 2007 PSAC Tournament for the first time since 1985 … finished his career ranked in ESU's career top 10 in 10 offensive categories … hit over .300 in each of his last 3 years … left ESU ranked 4th in career hits (193), total bases (271) and RBI (99) … 5th in extra-base hits (50), 6th in doubles (32) and t-9th in home runs (10) … ranked 7th in runs (117), 5th in games played (172), t-4th in stolen bases (43) and 3rd in stolen base percentage (.827) upon graduation … still ranks 7th at ESU in career hits and total bases, and 9th in RBI … hit .376 with 20 extra-base hits, 31 RBI, 39 runs and 19 stolen bases as a sophomore in 2006 … hit .360 with 11 extra-base hits, 30 RBI, 38 runs and was 10-for-11 on stolen bases on 2007 PSAC Tournament team.

Christian Saveri - Left-handed pitcher who was named PSAC East Pitcher of the Year in 2010 … two-time All-PSAC East, named to the 1st team in 2010 and the 2nd team as a reliever in 2009 … ABCA, Daktronics and NCBWA All-Region 2nd team in 2010 … helped Warriors reach PSAC Tournament in 2007 and 2010 … as a senior, threw 69.1 innings with 65 strikeouts, 14 walks and a 3.37 ERA … pitched in 13 games (10 starts) and had 2 saves vs. PSAC East opponents … 4-5 record with 3 complete games … holds school record for career appearances (65) and season appearances (22 in 2009) … ranks 2nd in strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.6) … 8th in strikeouts (161) and t-4th in saves (9) … threw 175.2 career innings with a 3.94 ERA … had 5-6 record with 4 saves, 57 strikeouts, 9 walks and 3.24 ERA in 50.0 innings (22 games, 3 starts) in 2009.

Brian Ernst - 2013 PSAC Tournament MVP, pitching the Warriors to their first PSAC title since 1971 with 8.0 innings (0 earned runs) on two days rest in 7-1 win vs. West Chester … only player in PSAC history with 200 career strikeouts (201) and 200 career hits (201) … 3-time All-PSAC East utility, earning 2nd team in 2010, 1st team in 2012 and 2nd team in 2013 … 2-time All-Region, recognized in 2012 and 2013 … DII MVP semifinalist as a senior … ESU top 10 in nearly every pitching and hitting category … holds school record for strikeouts per 9 innings in a career (10.5) and season (11.9 in 2013 - ranked 1st in PSAC, 7th in DII) … .241 career batting average against (2nd) … 201 strikeouts (3rd) … had 16-7 record with 4.07 ERA in 172.2 innings (37 games, 35 starts) in 3 seasons on the mound … career .331 hitter with .423 on-base percentage and .457 slugging percentage … ranks 5th at ESU in career hits (201), t-2nd in doubles (44), t-5th in extra-base hits (56), 6th in total bases (278), t-4th in walks (88), 5th in RBI (114), 12th in runs (115), t-5th in career games (182) … hit 9 career home runs … set multiple freshman records in 2010 … hit .354 with .448 on-base percentage on 2011 NCAA DII Tournament team that finished 3rd in Atlantic Region … as a junior, went 5-2 (4.37 ERA, 47.1 IP, 58 strikeouts) and hit .346/.422/.484 with 37 RBI and 26 runs … as a senior, went 5-2 with 2.70 ERA in 66.2 innings (12 starts), posting 88 strikeouts, 2nd-most in school history, and .202 opponents batting average … hit .313/.409/.367 with 10 RBI and 29 runs.