August 20, 2010

This summer two members of the Babson College baseball team were selected to play in two highly prestigious collegiate summer baseball leagues. Rising senior Billy Besinger (Milton, Mass.) saw time with three different teams in the famous Cape Cod League this summer, including the Bourne Braves, Chatham Anglers, and most recently the Falmouth Commodores, while fifth-year senior pitcher David Ahern (Bedford, Mass.) spent the summer playing for the Sanford Mainers located in Sanford, Maine, as part of the New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL).
 
Besinger played in 19 games this summer with the Cape Cod League, hitting .255 during the regular season, including a .286 clip in 11 games for Falmouth. For the season, he amassed 13 hits and three RBIs, with three of those hits coming in an 11-3 win over the Hyannis Harbor Hawks. In the 2010 spring season, Besinger hit .336 for the Beavers, starting 34 of a possible 35 games and tallying 45 hits with 11 doubles and three homeruns. Through his first three seasons at Babson, Besinger owns a magnificent .364 career average with 122 hits, 63 runs scored, and 69 runs driven in.

This has been the funnest and most enjoyable summer of baseball I have ever had," Besinger said. "Growing up as a kid my father used to take me and my brothers to a lot of the Harwich Mariners games and now getting the opportunity to play in the league has really been a dream come true. Having the chance to play for three out of the ten teams was something I never expected and will never forget."

"Playing in front of a huge crowd and against and with some of the best players in the country each night has been an awesome experience as well," Besinger continues. "The experiences, contacts, memories, and the friends I made will last with me for a long, long time."

Meanwhile, Ahern appeared in 16 games on the mound for Sanford of the NECBL, pitching 21 2/3 innings with a brilliant 1.66 ERA. He allowed just 21 hits and three walks while striking out 11. Ahern also made seven plate appearances, recording two hits, including a double. A career .349 hitter with 65 runs and 59 RBIs at the collegiate level, Ahern hit .343 with a team high 46 hits, 11 doubles, three triples and two homeruns while playing in all 35 games for the Beavers this past spring. He was also 14-16 in stolen base attempts., Coming off an injury that cost him the entire 2009 season, Ahern was limited to just 4 1/3 innings on the mound in 2010, although he still boasts a 3-2 record and a 3.68 ERA in 30 career appearances.
 
As two of Babson’s four team captains, Besinger and Ahern will be core members of a Beaver baseball squad that will be seeking its second NEWMAC Championship in three years this coming spring. Babson posted a record of 20-14-1 and finished second in the regular season conference standings last year.