By Jen Toland, College Beat Writer
May 13, 2014
Worcester, MA --- Freshman Adam Barry has had a number of important hits during his freshman season at Worcester State, but none bigger than the home run he blasted in the MASCAC championship game last week against Salem State.
The solo shot tied the game and gave the Lancers all the momentum, and WSU went on to win, 5-3, and claim the conference's automatic NCAA Division III Tournament bid.
"I'd say it was the biggest hit of my baseball career up to this point," said Barry, the former Holy Name High star from Auburn.
The Lancers (25-15) are seeded seventh in the double-elimination New England Regional and will face second-seeded Southern Maine in a first-round game at 8 p.m. Wednesday at Whitehouse Field in Harwich.
This is Worcester State's sixth NCAA appearance, and its fifth under coach Dirk Baker.
Barry, who led the Central Mass. Conference with a .492 batting average his senior season with the Naps, earned All-MASCAC second-team honors. The Lancers' starting right fielder and No. 3 hitter, Barry takes a .323 average into the NCAAs. He has hit three home runs with a team-high 28 RBIs.
"He has really shined this year," junior left fielder Jeff Bolio of Oxford said. "Our team owes him a lot because he's done a lot of great things for us this year."
Bolio, who is also among WSU's top hitters with a .327 average and three homers; junior shortstop Dave Ruggiero, who is batting a team-best .392; junior first baseman Cody Osburn, who hit .500 in MASCAC games; and Barry have keyed the Lancers' offensive resurgence over the second half of the season.
"Dirk is great with teaching all this," Bolio said. "He really just kept the faith in us and was so confident in us and it finally started clicking."
As Baker said last week, his team's 7-3 win over Fitchburg State on April 14 was the turning point of the year. Since that game, the Lancers are 13-2. They scored 102 runs in their first 25 games, 111 in those last 15.
"It's about getting the leadoff guy on base every inning," Barry said. "That's what works and we've had success doing that."
Barry went 3-4 in his first collegiate game and began the year with a four-game hitting streak.
"I didn't know what to expect at first," Barry said, "especially because we started off slow. We're confident (going into the NCAAs), especially going in as the underdog because we have nothing to lose."
Southern Maine (31-12) swept a doubleheader from the Lancers, 2-1 and 3-0, on March 20 in Lakeland, Fla.
"We're excited to get back at them again," Bolio said. "The games were competitive, but we weren't happy about getting shut out. We're looking to get some revenge."
The Huskies, ranked ninth in the latest NCBWA/D3Baseball.com poll, earned an at-large NCAA bid after falling to Eastern Connecticut in the Little East Conference final.
Southern Maine advanced to the NCAA championship game last year. This marks the Huskies' 21st NCAA berth since 1987.
Seven regular Southern Maine starters are batting .300 or better for one of New England's most potent offenses.
The Lancers will have gone nine days between games. They spent that time getting rested and ready. The team traveled Tuesday and was scheduled to practice Tuesday night at Cape Cod Community College.
Other games in the New England Regional on Wednesday are No. 4 Endicott vs. No. 5 MIT, 9:30 a.m.; No. 1 Eastern Connecticut vs. No. 8 Mitchell, 1 p.m.; and No. 3 Tufts vs. No. 6 St. Joseph's (Maine), 4:30.
If the Lancers beat Southern Maine, they will face the Tufts-St. Joseph's winner at 8 p.m. Thursday. If WSU loses, it will play the loser of the Tufts-St. Joseph's game at 1 p.m. Thursday.
The regional champion earns a spot in the Division 3 College World Series May 23-27 in Appleton, Wisconsin.
Whitehouse Field is home of the Harwich Mariners of the Cape Cod Baseball League.
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