Joe Pennucci is entering his sixth year as head coach for ETSU baseball, and he knows this season is full of opportunity for the Bucs. Through his first five years, he has a 128-95 record while most recently going 30-21 during last year’s campaign.
Previous to ETSU, he helped coach and served as Stony Brook’s recruiting coordinator. Over his 12 seasons spent there, the team was able to appear in multiple NCAA Regionals, which included a trip to the College World Series in 2012.
The Southern Conference looks to be competitive from top to bottom and Pennucci is ready for the challenge.
“I think it’s just about moving the needle in our conference. There’s not much separation from two and five in our league; it’s usually a game or so. We feel like this group understands that it’s time to move the needle and get to the next step,” said Pennucci.
Every team wants to win at home, and Pennucci’s team was able to do just that with an impressive 22-6 record inside Thomas Stadium during last year’s season.
“Anytime that you are at home, it’s a good environment. We get good support at home; it’s a great place to play and we’ve had some good success,” shared Pennucci.
This year’s team has no shortage of talent, and reigning SoCon Freshman of the Year Tommy Barth (Brecksville, Ohio) is no exception. Barth led the squad in batting, on-base percentage, walks hits and triples. Pennucci expects him to continue this success in this year’s season.
“Tommy goes about his business the right way. He works hard every day, plays the game hard, plays the game the right way. His success is not a surprise, just because of the work and energy and attitude that he puts toward it, matched up with some ability makes him a pretty special player,” said Pennucci.
ETSU baseball will have their season opener on Feb. 17 at home inside Thomas Stadium against Toledo. First-pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m.
