Boston College 2012-13 Year in Review, Part VI: Men’s Non-Revenue Sports
By Joe Micik
Of the men’s sports at Boston College, the ones that get the most attention by far are football, basketball, and hockey. If you count club sports, then you can also add men’s lacrosse, a favorite of the blogosphere.
Aside from those, there are dozens of other Eagle teams of both genders (and some are co-ed, as a matter of fact). The sixth part of our wrap on the 2012-13 Boston College Eagles sports year takes us to the men’s non-revenue teams, some of which were notable in a good way – and some in a bad way.
Sailing, one of our other elite programs, will be featured in a subsequent article.
Baseball
Boston College baseball had arguably its worst season in program history in 2013, entering the final game of the season at 12-39 (4-24). With a Saturday loss in the finale, the Eagles would have their first-ever 40-loss season, which would be the first in the Atlantic Coast Conference since 2006.
The team’s batting average is one of the lowest in the nation, entering the season’s final game at just .209. Boston College has been outscored 313 to 169, a combination of ineffective offense and a 5.41 team ERA, and the team OPS is a meek .581, which demonstrates a lack of power and ability to get on base.
Hunter Gordon was the team’s best pitcher with a sub-3 ERA, while Matt Paré led the Eagles with a .266 batting average. It remains to be seen if coach Mike Gambino will be asked to go after three seasons.
Men’s Cross Country
BCXC ended its year long ago, but it was one worthy of note. The Eagles managed two second-place finishes, a 12th-place finish (out of 34) at the NCAA regionals, and a fourth-place finish (out of 14) at the IC4A Championship in New York City.
In late February, seven cross country Eagles, including two men, were named to the All-ACC Cross Country Academic Teams; those athletes were Anthony Bellitti and Tyler King.
Men’s Fencing
At the New England Intercollegiate Fencing Championships in late February, the women came very close to winning the event, while the men placed in fourth.
I’m not sure how to interpret all this, so see for yourself how they did.
Men’s Golf
Every year when breaking down the individual non-revenue sports, golf seems to be having a tough time, and such was the case again in 2012-13. This season, they were at least able to place second at the Hartford Hawks Invitational, but beyond that, they were unable to get above sixth place.
The Eagles came in 11th place in the ACC championship in April.
Men’s Skiing
Skiing results are as hard to come by as ever, but from what information exists about their 2013 season, it was a good one. Amongst the highlights of their season were strong performances at the UVM Carnival, the St. Lawrence Carnival, and the St. Anselm Carnival.
Men’s Soccer
Boston College football was a serious issue for long stretches of 2012, but fútbol was another matter. The men found themselves having another strong season, going 8-5-4 overall (3-2-3 ACC), tying for fourth place in the conference. BC flamed out in the first round of the ACC Tournament against Clemson, losing on penalty kicks, but they were still able to qualify for the 2012 NCAA Tournament.
In the big dance in November, the Eagles fell in a 1-0 loss to Northeastern.
Following the season, a number of accolades rolled in for this group. Kyle Bekker was taken third in the 2012 Major League Soccer SuperDraft and will play in his home region for Toronto FC. Bekker’s other honors included the NSCAA All-South Atlantic First Team, the All-ACC First Team, and being selected for the TopDrawerSoccer.com Team of the Season.
Also, Charlie Rugg was selected #19 overall in the MLS SuperDraft, going to the Los Angeles Galaxy. Derrick Boateng was ranked #17 on a list of Top 100 freshmen by TopDrawerSoccer.com. Chris Ager and Ryan Dunn were both named to the All-ACC Academic Team for men’s soccer.
Men’s Swimming
All indications were that Boston College men’s swimming wasn’t half bad in 2012-13, though not without a few peaks and valleys. In total, the Eagles racked up thirteen wins. Although they placed eighth out of nine teams in the ACC championship, the team broke twelve program records.
Men’s Tennis
Another tough year for Boston College men’s tennis as the Eagles ended up in last place in the ACC with a 5-16 (0-10) record. They ended the season on a twelve-event losing streak, going 4-77 (not a typo) in matches in that timeframe.
Men’s Track & Field
Events are still ongoing for this team, the most recent developments of which are as follows:
• The men finished fifth (out of 36) at at the New England Track & Field Championships earlier in May
• Tyler King set the third-fastest mark in program history in the 3000m steeplechase
• One member of the men’s track team, King, has qualified for the NCAA East Regional after this steeplechase performance – the race will be run next week