Date: Thursday, May 17, 2001

BASEBALL'S CALLAHAN, LEE LAND MAJOR POST-SEASON AWARDS

MEDFORD – Junior RF Dan Callahan (Medfield, MA/Medfield) and sophomore P Jon Lee (Manhasset Hills, NY/Herricks) of the Tufts University baseball team were rewarded for outstanding seasons with a number of post-season awards in recent days.

Callahan was named the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Player of the Year, a New England Division III First Team all-star, a Verizon Northeast Region Academic all-star, and the team's Most Valuable Player. Lee was named the NESCAC Pitcher of the Year, a New England Division III First Team all-star, and the team's Pitcher of the Year.

A 6'4" lefty, Callahan led Tufts with a .420 batting average, 60 hits, 38 runs scored, 41 runs batted in, and five home runs. He also stole 12 bases and had six outfield assists. The 41 RBI are a new team record and he missed the single-season hits mark by just one. He was the NESCAC Player of the Week twice during the season and had 17 multiple-hit games. He went 4 for 4 with four runs scored and four RBI in a 17-3 win over Massachusetts Maritime Academy on April 4. In an important three-game weekend series at conference rival Trinity April 13-14, he went 12 for 17 (.706) with seven runs scored and six RBI. He is a international relations major with a grade point average over 3.5.

Lee, a New England Third Team all-star as a freshman last season, was the staff ace with a 7-1 record, 2.09 earned run average and 61 strike outs in 77.2 innings. In 12 starts, he posted five complete games and two shutouts while allowing just a .214 opponents' batting average. He beat NESCAC rivals Bates, Wesleyan, Trinity, Bowdoin and Amherst during the season and threw a one-hitter against local rival Babson on May 6. He struck out 13 with no walks in a 4-3 win over Bates on April 1. He allowed just two home runs and 16 walks while facing 321 batters during the course of the season.

A few other Jumbos earned conference and team awards. Sophomore shortstop Brian Shapiro (Swampscott, MA/Swampscott) was named to the All-NESCAC Second Team after hitting .308 with

27 RBI and 12 stolen bases while starting all 35 games. Senior C Joe Surprenant (Tewksbury, MA/Tewksbury) and senior IF Kevin Marotta (Rockfall, CT/Xavier) earned the team's Elias award for dedication and commitment. Callahan, junior P Steve Lapham (Newburyport, MA/Newburyport) and sophomore CF Evan Zupancic (Lake Oswego, OR/Lakeridge) were named tri-captains for the 2002 season.

Head Coach John Casey's team finished with a 21-13-1 record. They advanced to the final day of the NESCAC Tournament, losing the conference championship and automatic NCAA Tournament berth to Williams College.

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