OSWEGO, N.Y. - A year removed from nearly qualifying for the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Tournament, second-year coach Scott Landers is much more comfortable with his Oswego State baseball team this time around.
 
“We've changed the culture.  We've changed everything in terms of what we want to do now.  Last year was just a feeling out process,” Landers said.  “Now it's my way and (the players) understand that.  Everyone's on board and they're ready to go.”
 
Oswego State comes off a .500 season in 2012 where it finished 20-20 overall, including a fifth-place finish in the SUNYAC standings (8-10).  The Lakers ended the season by upsetting nationally third-ranked Keystone College 10-2, ending the Giants' 22-game winning streak.
 
Entering 2013, the Lakers bring in 17 newcomers and lose six players from the 2012 season.  The bulk of the starters return giving the Lakers added depth.
 
“We had to get more depth, which I think we've done.  We brought in quantity, but we also brought in quality guys in that quantity,” Landers said.  “I think it's made us more competitive.  All in all, I think our overall depth is much, much better at every position.”
 
While the Lakers will miss some key contributors from a season ago, they return a majority of the lineup who filled the stat sheet led by the outfield.
 
The outfield returns all three starters, including 2012 SUNYAC Rookie of the Year and Second Team All-SUNYAC sophomore John Rauseo (Mattituck, NY) in left field.  Rauseo tied for second in runs batted in (21), total bases (53), and runs scored (26), and finished second in stolen bases (8) and third in batting average (.343) last year.  Joining Rauseo in the outfield is two-year starter Scott Buniak (Jr., Clifton Park, NY), who led the team in runs scored (27) and steals (14), and finished tied for second in total bases (53), in center field and senior team captain Ed Charles (Auburn, NY) in right field.
 
Others competing for time in the outfield are senior Dylan Parmenter (Bennington, VT) and junior transfers Dan Karleski (Syracuse, NY), Michael Mascari (Syracuse, NY) and Justin Burns (Cortland, NY).
 
Another strength for Oswego State entering 2013 is its pitching depth.  The Lakers bring back six of their top eight arms in ERA from last season and bring in some notable transfers to help bolster a strong returning core.
 
Second Team All-SUNYAC selection and two-year captain Jon Stevens (Sr., Chittenango, NY) returns to anchor the pitching staff, coming off a season where he finished fourth among league pitchers in ERA (1.95) and led the Lakers in strikeouts, innings pitched, and tied for wins.  Returners that could potentially join Stevens in the rotation include senior Dan Erne (Rochester, NY), juniors Adam Bishop (Camillus, NY), Thor Miller (Miller Place, NY) and New Paltz-transfer James McKenna (Bohemia, NY).  Erne and Miller proved to be innings-eaters for the Lakers, compiling 97 innings between them.  All together, Stevens, Bishop, Erne, and Miller combined for 30 of the Lakers' 39 starts and 189 of 309 total innings on the season.
 
Landers likes the pitching tools that he has going into the 2013 campaign, but says that no one has earned their roles yet.
 
“We've got our four top starters back.  What they did last year doesn't mean anything… ultimately it's this year that they have to perform,” Landers said.
 
Other Lakers fighting for innings on the mound this year will be senior Chris Nyman (Clifton Park, NY), juniors Pat Brown (Liverpool, NY), Nick Wheeler (Syracuse, NY), Ryan Donovan (Utica, NY), and Tim Smith (Auburn, NY), sophomores Dylan Kohlman (Vestal, NY), and freshmen Cody LaFlamme (East Bridge, NY), Josh Martin (Little Falls, NY), Miles Kelly (Clifton Park, NY), Stephan Ziccardi (Oakdale, NY) and Jordan Giller (Toronto, Ont.).  Nyman and Kohlman were the only players who saw limited action in a Laker jersey a year ago.
 
Although Landers is confident in the Lakers' ability to drive in runs this season, he believes there is a liability in the field.
 
“The question mark for our team will be defense as we go forward.  We've upgraded to the point where we're going to hit.  Offense is our greatest strength right now,” Landers said.  “Pitching and defense wins games.  Our question mark now is defense because we have to catch balls that we just did not do last year.  We have to help those pitchers out.”
 
Senior catcher Alex Jurczynski (Schenectady, NY) returns after a 2012 season where he garnered Second-Team All-SUNYAC honors alongside Rauseo and Stevens.  Jurczynski finished the season throwing out 17 base runners and second on the team in total hits (36) and batting average (.353) while also becoming the battery that has continued to develop chemistry with the pitching staff.  Senior Andrew Lazzaro (Oswego, NY), Parmenter, and sophomore Kyle Liner (Cooperstown, NY) could also see time behind the plate throughout the course of the year.
 
Captain Mike Stark (Sr., Rochester, NY), Tyler Baker (Jr., Hannibal, NY), and Brian Hamilton (So., Liverpool, NY) return in the middle and on the left side of the infield after capturing most of the playing time in 2012.  Stark drew a team-high 25 walks and was the team leader in starts (40) a season ago and has increased his hits and RBI total as well as his slugging percentage each season since joining the Lakers.  Baker appeared in 33 games while starting 32 (23 at shortstop, nine at second base) a season ago.  Hamilton also started 32 games at third base while giving the team added power by tying for second on the team in doubles (6).  Junior transfer Mike McMullen (Syracuse, NY) is pushing to take over a starting job in the middle infield after hitting .393 in 183 at-bats at Onondaga Community College last season.  Others who could see action in the infield are Smith and freshman Matt Capobianco (Kings Park, NY).
 
With most of the starters returning in the infield, there is still a gap at first base.  The frontrunner to take the job is senior Lazzaro, who saw action in 26 games last year, 13 at first base.  Lazzaro is a career .304 hitter in 204 at-bats since joining the Lakers in 2010.  Players who could also see time at first base include juniors Tom Curry (Pulaski, NY) and Forrester Wight (Watertown, NY) and Giller. 
 
Oswego State has not qualified for the SUNYAC postseason tournament since 2001.  As far as expectations, the Lakers remain optimistic that the future is now.
 
“SUNYACs should be the norm.  That's not an accomplishment.  You should be one of the top four teams in your league every year,” Landers said.  “Our goals are much loftier than the SUNYAC Tournament.  Reaching the NCAA Tournament is among those goals.  We fell short last year, but we can still set loftier expectations this year.  It's not about getting into the SUNYACs, it's about winning the SUNYACs.”
 
The Lakers travel to Camden, N.J., to get their season under way as they take on Rutgers-Camden in a doubleheader on March 2 starting at 1 p.m.  Oswego State will play three more games in New York State before heading south to play eight games on Spring Break running from March 16-23.  SUNYAC play will kick off March 22 with a doubleheader against Brockport in Florida starting at 12 p.m.

2013 Roster
2013 Schedule
2012 Statistics