By By Nick Pipitone

Going into a pivotal series with James Madison University (JMU) in early May, the Pride baseball team knew it had to take at least two out of three if it wanted any realistic shot of making it to the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) tournament. Much to the club’s chagrin, it lost two of three and placed itself in a rather tight spot. After the series loss to JMU, the Pride’s playoff aspirations looked dim.

“We had nothing to lose,” Pride head coach Chris Dotolo said. “We just said let’s go out there and take one game at a time and see what happens.”

Facing daunting odds and a seemingly impossible scenario, the Pride went out the next weekend and pulled off a remarkable three-game sweep of Old Dominion University (ODU), the first sweep for the Pride in the CAA. The Pride then watched JMU lose five out of its next six and William & Mary drop two of its next three. Just like that, the Pride clinched its first berth in the conference tournament and, in a lot of ways, turned a huge corner in rebuilding the program.

“After the JMU series, we knew we had to sweep ODU to make the tournament,” junior third baseman Ricky Caputo said. “That was the only shot we had left, so that was our goal going into it. The ODU series really showed that we were a battling team. We had a really good club this season with just a few bad breaks here and there and I think by making the tournament, we at least proved that somewhat.”

At the tournament in Wilmington, N.C., the Pride as not able to garner a win, dropping games in back-to-back days against top-seeded University of North Carolina-Wilmington, 9-6, and then University of Delaware, 13-2, the following day. However, for a program that has been near the bottom of the conference standings since joining the CAA, just being able to compete was indicative enough of the club’s turnaround.

In the 2005 season, the Pride finished 24-32 overall and 10-14 in the conference, its best record since 1999 when the team was still in the America East Conference. Dotolo’s squad made significant progress in the CAA compared to last season when it finished a dismal 3-21. In addition, this year’s 10 conference wins matched the amount the Pride had won the past three seasons combined.

Thanks to Dotolo’s small-ball philosophy and a highly improved pitching staff, the Pride played probably the best baseball yet under its fourth-year head coach. Overall, the Pride broke nine team records this season, including hits, runs and RBIs, while falling one bag short of the single season stolen base mark of 102, the record Dotolo coveted most.

Senior centerfielder and team captain Josh Stewart most embodied the ideal Dotolo player, a quick leadoff hitter with the ability to get on base in just about every at-bat. The three-year starter finished the year batting at a team-high clip of .347 while also leading the club with an outstanding .447 on-base percentage and 25 stolen bases. The senior broke the single-season hits, doubles and runs record this year, along with finishing fourth in stolen bases.

The revamped pitching staff was another major bright spot for the Pride and a big improvement from past teams. Led by sophomore transfer Will DeVito, the top three starters-also including junior David Huth and sophomore Ryan Dunn-were able to compile nine combined wins. DeVito, the staff ace, finished at 5-5 with an earned run average (ERA) of 5.96 in 13 starts. Throughout the season, the transfer from Dowling College pitched a single-season record 93.2 innings while sharing the team-high in strikeouts with Huth. Closer Jeff Denlea also proved to be a reliable arm for the Pride, finishing with a conference-leading seven saves and a team-low 3.98 ERA. With DeVito starting games every Sunday and Denlea coming out of the bullpen in closing situations, the Pride displayed a confidence and trust in its pitchers, which was integral to its success.

But now that the Pride has finally made it to the conference tournament and has began to chip away at its once-shaky reputation in the CAA, will there be even more expectations for the club and Dotolo?

“I think there’s been a little pressure alleviated from the program,” Dotolo said. “But at the same time, I think there may be even more pressure now because people are going to expect us to make the tournament every year.”

After completing its first 10-win season in the CAA and only its seventh 20-win season in the entire history of the program, the Pride is no longer looking to gain respect anymore in the conference. Instead, it is looking to compete for the CAA championship, something that now doesn’t seem so unrealistic. With its entire starting lineup returning (except for Stewart) and a wealth of experience gained from its trip to Wilmington, the Pride looks poised for another run in 2006.

“Next year, I think we can go down there and win a few games and put ourselves in a position to actually win [the CAA championship],” Caputo said. “I don’t think making the tournament should be a question for the Pride anymore-it should just be a give-in.”