Tiberi, Amburgey earn postseason awards

The New England Collegiate Baseball League released their year-end awards, with a duo of Vermont Mountaineers earning honors. Blake Tiberi from Louisville and Trey Amburgey from St. Petersburg College, both rising sophomores, enjoyed breakout summers for the Mountaineers.

Tiberi picked up Rookie of the Year honors, given to the top freshman in the league. Tiberi hit .372 over 38 games for  Vermont, with his average ranking second in the league. He hit in the No. 2 spot for the Northern Division All-Stars, and was also named to the All-NECBL first team.

“It’s a tremendous feeling to receive this honor,” Tiberi said. “It’s a very surreal feeling to be thought of so highly by the coaches and the league.” After not seeing game action in his first season with the Cardinals, Tiberi lit up parks across New England upon his arrival in Vermont.

He put together the longest hitting streak of the summer in the league, at 14 games, and finished in the top-five in the triple slash categories, posting a .451 on-base percentage and a .504 slugging. He went 0-2 in the All-Star game, but it was one of a few games in which pitchers could contain him. Tiberi drew 16 walks to just 12 strikeouts while adding seven doubles, making the most of the spacious confines of Recreation Field.

It was his play away from Montpelier that carried his average, however, as Tiberi hit a torrid .407 in away games. “My approach really clicked for me,” Tiberi said. “I just tried to stay middle, middle, away at the plate and maintain an aggressive approach early.”

He returns to Louisville for his sophomore season, joining a Cardinals squad that is coming off a 50-17 year and a College World Series appearance. Louisville is moving to the ACC this year, and Tiberi should fight for playing time after an impressive summer. “I’m very anxious to get back at it at school,” the third basemen finished. “I’m looking forward to the challenge that moving to the ACC brings, and I’m really looking forward too it.”

Tiberi was joined on the first team by outfielder Trey Amburgey, a rising sophomore from St. Petersburg College, a Junior College (JUCO) in Florida. Amburgey hit third in the NECBL All-Star game, and ranked 10th in the league with a .327 average. He also drove in 22 runs and swiped 12 bases for Vermont.

“It’s a huge blessing,” Amburgey said of the All-NECBL honor. “Almost 200 players in the league, and I was one of the select few chosen, as a freshman as well. It’s great.”

He drove in three runs in Game 1 of the Northern Division quarterfinals against Laconia, and ranked second on the Mountaineers in RBIs, one behind fellow All-Star Mike Vigliarolo. Opposite of Tiberi, Amburgey enjoyed his time at Recreation Field vs. the road as he hit .429 at home.

“I focused a lot on adjusting my game, especially on the mental side.” Amburgey said. “I had a huge support system around me, always helping me.” He continues his collegiate career at St. Petersburg, looking to build off his big

Mountaineers season. “I feel great going into this season,” the outfielder continued. “My confidence is high and I feel I can compete with the best of them.”

Michigan State rising senior Blaise Salter, a talented first basemen for the champion Newport Gulls, hit .328/.385/.471 and earned MVP and Top Prospect honors. Plymouth’s Thomas Jankins (Quinnipiac) won Top Pitcher, while Pilgrims manager Greg Zackrinson (Stonehill) was named the manager of the year. 2013 Mountaineer Thomas Roulis (Dartmouth) picked up a 2nd-team selection as a member of the Pilgrims.

Mountaineers, Mainers square off in Division Finals

Nick Solak is hitting .444 to start the playoffs.
/Crowley Photos

Sanford fell behind early against Keene in the divisional semifinals, but won back-to-back elimination games- including a 10th inning walkoff single- to advance and square off against Vermont in the division finals.

These teams are very familiar with eachother, having faced off six times- with the Mountaineers posting a record of 5-1. It's is the second time they've faced off in the division finals, with Vermont winning back in 2006. This year's regular seasons series has been hotly contested, with the largest winning margin just four runs. This series should be just as competitive.

This is a matchup of the top pitching staffs in the Northern Division during the regular season - the Mainers (2.70) and Mountaineers (2.89) rank second and third in the league in ERA, only behind Plymouth. This series could come down to a few runs here and their- just like the regular season matchups.

One main reason Vermont has taken five of six against Sanford is the advantage in hitting. Vermont hit .265 as a team in the regular season, with the Mainers were third to last at .225. The Mountaineers are even better when they take on Sanford's pitching, as their team average rises to .272 while the Mainers ERA is at 4.21.

Meanwhile, the Vermont pitching has a 1.84 ERA against Sanford, holding them to just a .201 batting average. Of course, that includes 14 one-run innings from Elliot Ashbeck, who was shutdown by his college coach and hasn't been available throughout the playoffs.

They still have plenty of depth, however. Ryan Davis and Daniel Koger are unavailable to start after both throwing over 100 pitches in the sweep of Laconia, but manager Joe Brown still have plenty of options. Jim McDade and Nick Miceli both have thrown seven shutout innings against the Mainers.

Sanford needed all three games to advance, so manager Aaron Izaryk has less choices out of the bullpen. He won't have All-Star starter Rich Vrana, who threw 101 pitches on Tuesday, but Nick Poore and Christian Lavoie could rest and be available in the second half of the series.

Izaryk could send Ben Wessel to the mound- the righthander threw eight one-run innings against Vermont or fellow righthander Robert Ruse, who's faced the Mountaineers twice. It's all pure speculation, of course, as Sanford hasn't listed a probable pitcher and Vermont was waiting for their opponent.

In terms of the bullpen, both teams have strong pitchers coming out of the pen. Vermont is 21-1 when winning after five innings as their relievers can close it out- including 23-0 when they enter the ninth with a lead. Three different pitchers on the Mountaineers have at least three saves, including five from All-Star closer Jared Gesell.

The Mainers are also strong, 18-4 after five, as their bullpen also features an All-Star closer in Cam Hatch. Hatch has eight saves including one in game two against Keene and also struck out two in a save against Vermont.

In terms of offense, there's no question on who has the advantage. Vermont boasts a lineup that features some of the best hitters in the league, including the 3-4-5 All-Star combination of Trey Amburgey, Blake Tiberi and Mike Vigliarolo. That doesn't even mention recent NECBL Player of the Week and team leader in average Colin Lyman, who hit .379, or Nick Solak who's 4-9 with a home run to start the playoffs as well as many others.

Sanford doesn't have a player over .300 who qualifies for the batting title, and hit just .198 in their three-game series with the Swamp Bats.

In what could be many pitchers duels, Vermont will have an advantage on the offensive side and it could make the difference. If the Mountaineers get an early lead behind one of their many potent bats, Sanford will have a hard time getting back into it. It should be a very good matchup as they battle for a shot at the league championship, meeting the winner of Plymouth-Newport.