Final 2009 Maryland college baseball rankings

May 27, 11:24 PMNavy Midshipmen ExaminerTom Flynn

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Navy finishes third in the top five in 2009 (Photo / T Flynn)

With the curtain drawn on the Maryland college baseball season, a final ranking of the performance of the 2009 teams is in order.  There were no big surprises (see Examiner.com's preseason ranking of the 2009 teams), but by ranking the teams and establishing a perceived pecking order, it paves the way for considering in-state rivalries in the years to come.  Most area fans would have a rooting interest at a Maryland vs.Towson contest rather than Towson vs. Georgia State, even if they're not conference foes.  College baseball is built around regional rivalries and in a compact state like Maryland, fans can easily take in many of them.  

The 2009 final rankings are nearly as much a rankings of the respective baseball conferences in which the teams play as they are of the teams themselves.  With some year-to-year variation the ranking of the ACC, CAA, Patriot, NEC, and America East from 1 to 5 will often hold true.  Certainly the ACC will lead that pack consistently.

So without further preamble, here are the final records and rankings of Maryland's top five baseball teams in 2009:

1) Maryland (27-27)

Most years a Terps' squad will make a strong bid for the top team in Maryland. This year they made the choice that much easier by posting a .500 mark overall and winning all 8 of their games against in-state foes.  The average margin of victory in those games was over 7.5 runs.  Their closest in-state games came against Navy (W 7-4) and Towson (W 10-7). 

2) Towson (28-25)

Towson finished a disappointing eighth in the CAA this year, but above them are two NCAA tourney invitees, George Mason and Georgia State, and a host of solid regional teams.   Shortstop Gary Helmick was named first team all-CAA and led the CAA in the regular season with a .430 batting mark. 

3) Navy (20-26-1)

Winning twenty games, it would be hard to term this a rebuilding year for Navy, but with so many young players populating the lineup it was certainly a critical year of development for the club.  Their four man rotation for much of the season was manned by four underclassmen (Zach Sipe, Wes Olson, TJ Kerins, and Sam Long) and sophomore righty Luke Roberts was named All-Patriot, posting a 1.00 ERA in 16 relief appearances.

4) Mt. St. Mary's (23-25) 
 

Sophomore Shane Eyler was named the NEC's Player of the Year, the first time a Mountaineer has ever garnered the award.  The Mount failed to repeat as NEC champions, but posted an improved record over 2008 (21 wins).   

5) UMBC (9-35) 
 

Senior second baseman Brad Brainer was one of the few bright spots for a Retrievers club that struggled to one of its most disappointing seasons in recent years.  The team will strive to return to the 15-20 game win mark or better in 2010.

Best of the Rest (Division I unless otherwise denoted):

UMES (14-42)
Johns Hopkins DIII (28-16)
Coppin State (0-29)
Salisbury DIII (38-8)
Columbia Union DII (25-20) (USCAA National Championship Runners-Up)
St. Mary's College DIII (15-22)
Frostburg State DIII (25-16)
Stevenson DIII (18-26-1)
Washington College DIII (16-18)
McDaniel DIII (15-15)
Anne Arundel (JUCO) (34-15)