BSB: Lasell earns six spots on All-GNAC Team for 2021

NEWTON, Mass. – Six members of the Lasell University baseball team were recognized on Wednesday as the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) announced its All-Conference Teams for the 2021 season. The All-GNAC Teams are voted on by the conference's head coaches.

Senior first baseman Charlie Danaher (Guilford, Conn./Guilford) and freshman pitcher Darek Lallo (Warwick, R.I./Toll Gate) earned top honors for Lasell with selection to the All-GNAC First Team. Junior designated hitter Matt Motyka (Vernon, Conn./Cheney Tech) was honored with a Second Team selection, sophomore infielder Ross Audet (Swansea, Mass./Swansea) and senior outfielder Harrison Silva (Lowell, Mass./Lowell) were Third Team honorees, and grad student catcher Joe Sullivan (Sandwich, Mass./Sandwich) was named to the All-Defensive Team.

Senior Tyrek Robinson (West Hartford, Conn./William T. Hall) was also recognized as Lasell's representative on the GNAC All-Sportsmanship Team.

The Laser All-Stars were the key players on a Lasell team that wrapped up the regular season with an 8-18 overall record under second-year head coach Billy Uberti, and finished in third place in the GNAC with a 7-5 conference mark.

Charlie Danaher	Darek Lallo	Matt Motyka	Ross Audet	Harrison Silva	Joe Sullivan

Danaher led the Lasers and finished fourth in the GNAC with a .426 batting average (26-for-61) and 10th in slugging (.557), including five doubles, one home run, 11 runs scored and 13 runs batted in. Lasell's starting first baseman, he had seven multi-hit games in his 23 games this spring, including four in a row in mid-April against Dean College and Anna Maria College. He also had four hits in a win over Albertus Magnus College on April 11. Danaher joined the Lasers prior to the 2020 season after transferring from Colby-Sawyer College.

Lallo became the ace of the Laser pitching staff this season, leading the team with seven starts, three wins, 33 innings and 22 strikeouts. He finished third in the GNAC in both innings and wins and was 10th in strikeouts. Lallo won his first career start at Suffolk University and added a complete-game 5-1 victory over Norwich University and a five-inning, one-run performance in a triumph at Dean College. The rookie lefthander was the GNAC Pitcher of the Week back on April 5.

Motyka finished second on the team with a .337 batting average (28-for-83) with nine doubles, seven RBI and 16 runs scored. He tied for fourth in the GNAC in doubles, tied for eighth in hits and ranked 18th in batting average. He had eight multi-hit games this spring, including three hits in three games. Motyka also made eight pitching appearances out of the bullpen, posting a 1.64 earned run average with two saves and 12 strikeouts in 11 innings of work.

Audet finished fourth on the team with a .309 batting average (25-of-81), collecting five doubles, 14 runs scored and 15 runs batted in, third-best on the team. He also swiped eight bases to lead the team and tie for third in the conference. Lasell's starting shortstop after transferring from Becker College, Audet had seven multi-hit games this spring, including three hits in wins over Dean College and Anna Maria College.

Silva finished the season with a .267 batting average (20-for-75), including four doubles, a triple, two home runs, 11 runs scored and 15 runs batted in, tied for third best on the team. He had four multi-hit games, including a 4-for-4 performance in a win at Dean College. An infielder most of his career, Silva moved to the outfield this season. He has a .301 career batting average (55-for-118) in four seasons with 15 extra-base hits.

Sullivan earned All-Defensive Team honors this spring after being named All-GNAC Second Team in 2019. He threw out five potential base-stealers and was charged with just one passed ball all season, while stabilizing a pitching staff that had two freshmen among its top four starters. Sullivan also contributed at the plate, clouting a team-high four home runs this spring (tied for third in the GNAC), including a long-ball in his final game to break the Lasell career home run record (8).

2021 GNAC All-Conference Team

FIRST TEAM
C - Colby Greenhalgh, Johnson & Wales
INF - Matt Warren, Albertus Magnus
INF - Kosta Drosidis, Anna Maria
INF - Raimiel Rodriguez, Johnson & Wales
INF - Charlie Danaher, Lasell
OF - Brian Hadden, Dean
OF - Armani Henderson, Johnson & Wales
OF - Ben Gravel, Saint Joseph's (Me.)
DH - Nick Genatossio, Anna Maria
UTIL - Luke Stephens, Saint Joseph's (Me.)
P - Ryan Depatie, Johnson & Wales
P - Darek Lallo, Lasell

SECOND TEAM
C - Greg Gehring, Anna Maria
INF - James Powers, Anna Maria
INF - Matt Callahan, Dean
INF - Jack Magane, Johnson & Wales
INF - Drew Healey, Saint Joseph's (Maine)
OF - Adam Twitchell, Anna Maria
OF - EJ Leone, Johnson & Wales
OF - Dylan Fournier, Saint Joseph's (Maine)
DH - Matt Motyka, Lasell
UTIL - Jarrod Marifiote, Anna Maria
P - Jack Marzec, Anna Maria
P - Jonathan Marchia, Saint Joseph's (Maine) 

THIRD TEAM
C - Jackson Stanton, Saint Joseph's (Maine)
INF - Brandon Clark, Albertus Magnus
INF - Noah Holland, Anna Maria
INF - Joe Maracic, Johnson & Wales
INF - Ross Audet, Lasell
OF - Jason Shell, Anna Maria
OF - Harrison Silva, Lasell
OF - Hunter Richardson, Saint Joseph's (Maine)
DH - Justen Rodriguez, Albertus Magnus
UTIL - PJ Morales, Norwich
P - Liam Cunningham, Anna Maria
P - Matt Ingraffia, Norwich 

ALL-DEFENSIVE TEAM
C - Joe Sullivan, Lasell
1B - Matt Callahan, Dean
2B - Luke Johnson, Saint Joseph's (Maine)
3B - Hayden Roberge, Norwich
SS - Justin Juliano, Saint Joseph's (Maine)
OF - Adam Twitchell, Anna Maria
OF - Armani Henderson, Johnson & Wales
OF - Hunter Richardson, Saint Joseph's

PLAYER OF THE YEAR - Kosta Drosidis, Anna Maria
PITCHER OF THE YEAR - Ryan Depatie, Johnson & Wales
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR - Luke Stephens, Saint Joseph's (Maine)
COACH OF THE YEAR - Kevin Casey, Johnson & Wales

INSTITUTIONAL SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD - RIvier University

ALL-SPORTSMANSHIP TEAM
Connor Egan, Anna Maria
Brandon Clark, Albertus Magnus
Matt Callahan, Dean
Kevin Manning, Johnson & Wales
Tyrek Robinson, Lasell
CJ Davis, Norwich
Dan White, Rivier
Luke Johnson, Saint Joseph's (Maine)

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