Four Griffs Named Preseason All-MAAC, Baseball Picked First

Four Canisius College baseball players, led by Preseason Player of the Year Kevin Mahoney, were named to the 2009 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Preseason Team, the league announced on Thursday. The Canisius College baseball team was unanimously selected as the preseason favorite in the poll conducted of the league's nine coaches.

Other Golden Griffins named Preseason All-MAAC were second baseman Kevin Mailloux, centerfielder Branson Joseph and pitcher Shane Davis.

Mahoney, the program's all-time leader in five offensive categories, hit .369 with 12 home runs, 51 runs scored, 52 RBIs and a .665 slugging percentage as a junior. The four-year starter at third base earned all-MAAC First-Team honors following the 2008 season as well as ECAC Division I Second-Team honors and Rawlings NCAA Northeast Region First-Team honors. During the summer, Mahoney was named the Rawlings Coastal Plains Offensive Player of the Year while posting a .324 batting average with 13 home runs, 47 runs scored and 46 RBI for the Forest City Owls.

Mailloux, who is one of two Griffs on the Wallace Watch list (given to the nation's top collegiate baseball player), led the team in batting average (.377), runs scored (56), hits (77), RBI (53) and tied with Mahoney for the team lead in home runs (12). In his first year on the field for the Griffs, Mailloux was named a Third-Team All-American by the NBCA and to the Rawlings NCAA Northeast Region First Team and all-MAAC First Team.

Joseph, a four-year starter in center field, had the best season of his career as a junior by setting career highs in batting average (.312), runs scored (49), hits (62), home runs (11), RBI (43), slugging percentage (.518) and stolen bases (14) while not committing an error in 94 chances. Joseph earned all-MAAC Second-Team honors following the season.

Davis became the first player in league history to be named the MAAC Rookie of the Year and MAAC Pitcher of the Year in the same season. The 6-foot lefty was named a Third-Team All-American by three organizations and Freshman All-American by five organizations. Davis was 12-1 with a 2.42 ERA while throwing 10 complete games in 13 starts. The redshirt sophomore was named to the Wallace Watch List and is currently third ? and first among Canadians at U.S. colleges ? on the Canadian Baseball Network's list of top Canadians eligible for the 2009 Major League Baseball Draft.

Canisius earned 81 points in the coaches poll and was a unanimous choice to repeat as the MAAC regular-season champions. Rider was second (66 points) followed by Manhattan (58) in third while Marist and Siena (53) tied for fourth. Fairfield, Niagara, Saint Peter's and Iona rounded out the poll.

Canisius returns 21 letterwinners, including seven position players, its top three starting pitchers and closer, from the 2008 team that set a school record with a 41-13 overall record.

The Golden Griffins start the 2009 season on Feb. 20, with a four-game series at Gardner-Webb.

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Players Mentioned

#32 Shane Davis: P; 6' 0"; Redshirt Sophomore

#2 Branson Joseph: OF; 6' 0"; Senior

#4 Kevin Mahoney: 3B; 6' 0"; Senior

#12 Kevin Mailloux: 2B; 6' 0"; Redshirt Senior

Players Mentioned

#32 Shane Davis
: 6' 0"; Redshirt Sophomore
: P

#2 Branson Joseph
: 6' 0"; Senior
: OF

#4 Kevin Mahoney
: 6' 0"; Senior
: 3B

#12 Kevin Mailloux
: 6' 0"; Redshirt Senior
: 2B