EAST STROUDSBURG - East Stroudsburg University claimed three of the four spots on the first team infield - redshirt senior first baseman Dylan Tamecki, redshirt senior second baseman Jay Young and redshirt senior shortstop Conner Crookham - and senior pitcher/outfielder Ian Allen was named to the second team as a utility player on the NCBWA preseason All-Atlantic Region baseball team, released Friday.

ESU, which was 38-18 last year to set a school record for wins, is listed No. 5 in the preseason Atlantic Region poll. The Warriors reached the NCAA Division II Tournament for the third time in six seasons, and the PSAC Tournament for the fifth time in seven years, under 10th-year head coach John Kochmansky.

Young, Crookham and Allen are the top three returners from an offense that led DII in on-base percentage (.445), ranked fifth in batting average (.347), 10th in slugging percentage (.524) and 14th in runs per game (8.6) among 254 DII schools during the 2016 season.

All three were among ESU's five NCBWA All-Region selections last year. The Warriors had six total All-Region selections when combining the NCBWA, ABCA (coaches) and D2CCA (sports information directors) postseason teams.

Tamecki (Dillsburg, Pa./Northern) missed all but eight games after being named to the NCBWA preseason All-Region second team last spring. He hit .407 with a .462 on-base percentage and .622 slugging percentage, 16 doubles, seven home runs, 54 RBI and 45 runs in 50 games in 2015, his first at ESU, earning first team All-PSAC and second team ABCA All-Region mention.

Young (Pen Argyl, Pa./Pen Argyl) is the returning NCBWA and D2CCA All-Region first team selection at second base, hitting .394 with a .446 on-base percentage and .447 slugging percentage in 2016. He had nine doubles, 43 RBI and 41 runs while going 8-for-8 on stolen bases.

He enters his senior year with a .375 career batting average, .435 on-base percentage, 148 hits, 92 RBI and 95 runs in 122 games, including 108 starts. He hit .396 as a redshirt sophomore in 2015, including 13 extra-base hits, 40 RBI and 39 runs. He has 67 hits in each of the last two seasons.

Crookham (Hatboro, Pa./Hatboro-Horsham) was named to the ABCA and NCBWA All-Region second team and All-PSAC East first team at shortstop in 2016, his second year at ESU. He hit .357 with a .448 on-base percentage and .669 slugging percentage, 27 extra-base hits including 10 home runs, 54 RBI and 46 runs. He ranked sixth in the PSAC in slugging percentage, tied for 8th in RBI and tied for 9th in home runs.

He has a career line of .384/.457/.700 with 40 extra-base hits (16 home runs), 77 RBI and 72 runs in 74 games. He hit .438/.477/.763 in 24 games in an injury-shortened season in 2015.

Allen (East Aurora, N.Y./East Aurora), a three-year starter, was named second team NCBWA All-Region and first team All-PSAC East as a utility selection last spring. He was previously named to the NCBWA preseason All-America third team entering the year, and was second team All-PSAC East as an outfielder as a sophomore in 2015.

Allen hit .308 with a .436 on-base percentage and .449 slugging percentage in 2016, posting 10 doubles, six triples, two home runs, 32 RBI, 53 runs and a 36-for-40 mark on stolen bases. He reached base 109 times in 56 games on 61 hits, 43 walks and five times hit by pitch. On the mound, Allen was 2-0 with a 5.47 ERA in five starts, pitching once in the postseason following an early season injury that limited him to 26.1 innings (32 strikeouts, 4 walks).

Allen set an ESU single-season record for stolen bases (36), leading the PSAC and ranking 6th in DII. He also ranked 2nd in the PSAC in triples and 3rd in walks (43).

In his three years as an offensive starter, he has a career line of .311/.428/.469 with 137 hits (22 doubles, 9 triples, 10 HR), 87 RBI, 116 runs, 86 walks, 11 HBP and a school-record 67 stolen bases in 141 games (136 starts). He hit .357 with a .599 slugging percentage (19 extra-base hits, including 8 home runs), 47 RBI, 50 runs and 23 stolen bases as a sophomore.

On the mound, he was 5-2 with a 4.20 ERA, 56 strikeouts and 16 walks in 49.1 innings as a sophomore in 2015, completing four of his nine starts, including no-hitter at Virginia State.

He has a career pitching mark of 9-2 in 18 starts, posting a 4.60 ERA, 101 strikeouts and 23 walks in 90.0 innings on the mound.

Joining Young, Crookham and Allen among ESU's six All-Region selections in 2016 were outfielder Robert Bennie (consensus 1st team; Player of the Year by ABCA, NCBWA), starting pitcher Matt Festa (consensus 1st team) and third baseman Drew Hercik (D2CCA 1st team, ABCA 2nd team).

Festa (ABCA 2nd team, NCBWA 3rd team) and Bennie (ABCA 2nd team, D2CCA 3rd team) were both named All-America.

Festa was selected in the seventh round of the MLB Draft by the Seattle Mariners, becoming the highest draft pick in school history, and Bennie was selected in the 24th round by the Oakland Athletics. ESU's six MLB Draft picks in the last eight years (since 2009) are tied for second-most in the 16-member PSAC.


Preseason Atlantic Region Top 10
1. Millersville (53-7) (10 first-place votes) - 125 points
2. Mercyhurst (43-14) (3) - 116
3. West Chester (37-14) - 90
4. Shepherd (39-15) - 85
5. East Stroudsburg (38-18) - 81
6. Seton Hill (40-18) - 77
7. Winston-Salem State (31-22) - 47
8. WV State (32-15) - 35
9. Gannon (31-17) - 30
10. West Liberty (29-25) - 15

Also receiving votes: Pitt-Johnstown, Chowan, Shippensburg, Notre Dame (Ohio)


NCBWA Preseason All-Atlantic Region 1st Team
SP - Perry DellaValle, Seton Hill
SP - Matthew Minnick, Mercyhurst
SP - Cordell Shannon, Millersville
RP - Josh McClain, West Chester

C - Mitch Stoltzfus, Millersville
1B - Dylan Tamecki, East Stroudsburg
2B - Jay Young, East Stroudsburg
SS - Conner Crookham, East Stroudsburg
3B - Tanner Klein, Mansfield
OF - Austin Edgette, Bloomsburg
OF - Chas McCormick, Millersville
OF - J.J. Sarty, Shepherd
DH - Daniel Heleine, Shepherd
UTIL - David Summerfield, Millersville

2nd Team
SP - Andrew Gernert, West Chester
SP - Tyler Hall, WV State
SP - Greg Stagani, West Liberty
RP - Nico DiPaolo, Gannon
RP - Mike Mock, Millersville

C - Tyler Walters, Slippery Rock
C - Nate Cardy, Gannon
1B - Trevor Wiersma, Concord
2B - Randy Norris, Winston-Salem State
2B - Nick Spangler, Shippensburg
SS - Chad Frazier, Concord
3B - Ryan McMillen, Shippensburg
OF - Jacob Carney, Shepherd
OF - Chris Gonzalez, Mercyhurst
OF - Jimmy Latona, Mercyhurst
OF - Austin Norman, Fairmont State
DH - Michael Adams, West Liberty
DH - Daniel Elliott, Mercyhurst
UTIL - Ian Allen, East Stroudsburg