FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DONALDSON, MAGUIRE NAMED
TO ALL-NESCAC BASEBALL TEAM

LEWISTON, Maine —Bates College senior Ben Donaldson of Lamoine, Maine, and sophomore Rob Maguire of Wayland, Mass., have been named to the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) All-Conference baseball team.

Donaldson, a catcher, was named to the All-NESCAC first team. He set career-highs this season with 33 hits, 19 runs scored, seven doubles and three home runs. Donaldson batted .292 and matched his career-high with 14 RBI. He started all 31 games this season. Donaldson hit safely in 17 contests this season, picking up multiple hits 13 times.

In an April 19 game against in-state rival Colby, Donaldson had just one hit, but it was a fifth-inning grand slam that propelled the Bobcats to a 7-1 win and a three-game sweep of the White Mules. He also had big games April 14 against Amherst and April 17 at Gordon College, hitting a double and a home run in each of those contests.

In his career, Donaldson played in all of the Bobcats' 119 games and started 116 of them, setting school records in both categories. For his career, Donaldson was a .288 hitter with 49 RBI and six home runs.

Maguire, a center fielder named to the second team, was one of the Bobcats' top offensive threats this season hitting out of the leadoff slot. He led the team with a .360 batting average (40-111) and two triples. Maguire's team-leading 40 hits were the second-highest single-season total in Bates history. He tied for tops on the squad with five home runs, was second with 28 runs scored and third with 20 RBI and seven doubles. Maguire also led the team in slugging (.595) and on-base percentage (.451).

Maguire hit safely in 23 of 31 games this season. He had 11 multi-hit games, including a 4-4 performance in the Feb. 20 season-opener in Florida, an 11-7 win over Lyndon State College. He also had a four-RBI performance in 9-1 Bobcat win over Maine-Farmington April 2.

In head coach Craig Vandersea's third year at the helm, Bates finished with a 13-17-1 record, a 10-game improvement over 2001. The wins included victories over Amherst, Trinity and Williams, traditional NESCAC powers. The Bobcats return all but four seniors to the team next season, including Maguire and rookie pitcher Mike Kinsman of Yarmouth, Maine, who finished second in the NESCAC with a 1.79 ERA.

For more information on baseball at Bates, please visit our Web page at http://abacus.bates.edu/sports/baseball.html.