By Paul Casey Gotham
From one regional contender to another, that is what lies ahead for a pair of Tribune diamond men.
Ralph Alloco (Rochester, NY/McQuaid) and Nate Harris (Pittsford, NY/McQuaid) will trade the Black and Gold of Monroe Community College for the Red and Blue of the University of Dayton when they leave East Henrietta Road and head west for I-75.
With that Alloco and Harris leave behind a team which came within an eyelash of a Region III Division II title and head to a school that won the Atlantic 10 and advanced to the Division One Regionals.
“It’s definitely a good feeling,” Harris said. “It’s good to go some place that always has a chance for the regionals.”
Harris worked 50 innings in 10 appearances including eight starts for the Tribunes. His 3-5 record is not an accurate representation of his effort on the mound. The right-hander compiled an ERA of 2.35 while holding opposing batters to .236 at the plate.
“He was one of our hardest workers. No doubt about it,” commented Tribune head coach, Mike Kelly. “He pitched very, very well. We didn’t score any runs for him. He would throw one bad pitch and lose.”
Alloco led Monroe with 43 hits. He drove in 23 while hitting.309. At the same time he anchored the defense at shortstop.
“He was our most feared hitter,” Kelly said of Alloco. “He led the team. He took charge.”
“I loved MCC from the second I walked through the door,” Alloco said recently by telephone. ” I loved playing for Coach Kelly, Coach (Dave) Brust and Coach (Tony) Fuller. I knew about the tradition of winning, and that’s why I went there. Now I want to try and win an A-10 championship. All I want to do is win baseball games.”
The Flyers finished 31-30 this season after losing to Texas A&M and TCU in the College Station Regional. UD has won 63 games over the past two seasons.
“He came to Monroe and got what he wanted,” Kelly said of Alloco’s scholarship from Dayton. “He dedicated himself in the classroom and the weight room. He’ll be more protected in that lineup.”
Dayton graduates ten seniors including three pitchers.
Harris will get his chance to contribute right away.
“He’ll be pitching for a conference champion,” Kelly added. “That’s pretty special.”
Kelly went on to discuss the efforts of both former players in the classroom.
“They are complete student-athletes. Good off the field. Good in the classroom, and good on the field. They earned their reward.”
Harris will play with the Geneva Twins of the New York Collegiate Baseball League this summer. He allowed one run in two innings in his first appearance, Sunday.
Alloco helped the Geneva Red Wings advance to the first round of the NYCBL last season. He had 18 hits including three doubles with 10 walks and 10 RBI. He will play with the Newark Pilots of the Perfect Game League this summer.
Winners of 22 Region III titles, the Tribunes fell 8-4 to Mercyhurst NE in the 2012 finals.
Former Flyers Craig Stammen (Washington Nationals) and Jerry Blevins (Oakland A’s) currently play in Major League Baseball.
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