Amherst College Athletics

56 seasons of baseball have been played on the Northampton campus steeped in tradition, thanks to three baseball icons. Longtime athletic director Bill Bearse guided the Spartans from 1973-80, compiling a 118-52 record, winning the Eastern Pennsylvania Collegiate Conference (EPCC) tournament in 1979. John Sweeney took the reigns of the program in 1995 and compiled a staggering 433 wins by the time he retired in 2007. The program has won 21 EPCC championships and five Pennsylvania Collegiate Athletic Association (PCAA) state titles.  Baseball entered a new era in 2009 as the Spartans joined the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) and Region XIX under Head Coach Adrian Yaguez. 

A name familiar to baseball fans in the Lehigh Valley, Coach Yaguez just completed his 16th season as the Head Coach of the Spartans.  Yaguez, who also serves as the Associate Director of Athletics, has guided the Spartans to 13 playoff appearances, 11 Region XIX Final Fours, 7 EPAC conference championships, 3 Region XIX runner-up finishes, 2 NJCAA World Series appearances and a Region XIX Championship (2018) during his tenure.

2024 was historic for the Spartans as they earned their first ever national #1 ranking and set a program record for wins with 47.  Coach Yaguez earned his 400th career victory and the Spartans finished as the Region 19 runner-up.  Pitcher Austin Beard earned Region 19 Pitcher of the Year honors, as 10 Spartans received All-Region accolades. 

The 2023 Spartans were nationally-ranked all season, finishing 11th in the country with an overall mark of 32-15.  Northampton advanced to the Region 19 Final Four where they knocked off 2nd seeded Middlesex College and advanced to the semi-finals before falling to Brookdale Community College.  Shane Fillman was named First Team All-Region, while Jeff Sabater was a repeat selection on the Second Team.  Sabater finished his career as the program's all time leader in hits with 144.

2022 saw athletics return to a sense of normalcy after the pandemic, as the Spartans advanced to their 9th Region 19 Final Four, finished 34-12 overall and were nationally-ranked throughout the season.  Ryan Santangelo and Jeff Sabater both earned Second Team All-Region honors. 

2021 saw Yaguez win his 300th career game as the Spartans returned to the diamond, despite the challenges of the COVID pandemic.  The Spartans were nationally-ranked throughout the season, finishing with a 16-9 overall record and a 6-0 mark in Region 19.  Marcus Nales and Jordan King both were named Honorable Mention All-Region. 

The 2020 season ended after 10 games for the Spartans, as they finished 4-6 overall, but still ranked in the top-10 of various national polls.  The Spartans had just completed their last game in Myrtle Beach when they were informed that the 2020 season was over due to the pandemic. 

The 2019 squad set a program record for wins (37) and led the NJCAA in homeruns, with 73 round-trippers in 47 games.  The Spartans ascended as high as #2 in the national poll, which was also a program-best mark. After rejoining the EPAC, the Spartans claimed the conference championship and earned the #2 seed for the Region XIX Tournament, where they advanced to their 8th Final Four in 11 seasons under Yaguez.   The Spartans placed three players on the NJCAA All-American team, as Noah Weber, CJ Peechatka and Tommy Dunleavy each earned First Team accolades.  Dunleavy was named Region XIX Player of the Year, while CJ Gantz earned EPAC Player of the Year honors. The Spartans placed six players on the All-Region team, as well as six on the All-Conference team.  Yaguez was honored for his efforts with the EPAC Coach of the Year Award. 

The 2018 team, which was ranked as high as #3 in the country early in the season, actually fell to 6-7 at one point, before winning 29 of their final 37 games, capturing the program's first-ever Region XIX Championship and advancing to their 2nd consecutive NJCAA World Series. The Spartans finished 35-15 overall and were the #3 seed for the Region XIX tournament, where they knocked off Bergen in the first round, before topping RCGC (#1 in the country), Cumberland (#2 in the country) and Brookdale twice in the Final Four to claim the title at Kean University. 

Yaguez earned NJCAA District Coach of the Year and ABCA/Diamond Regional Coach of the Year honors, while sophomore Tyler Melko and freshman CJ Peechatka were both named to First Team All Region.  Sophomore shortstop Christian Del Toro earned Third Team accolades.  Freshman Tommy Dunleavy was named to the NJCAA All-Tournament Team, while Melko was named a NJCAA First Team All-American. 

During the 2017 season, Yaguez guided Northampton to its first-ever NJCAA World Series appearance, where the Spartans went 1-2, finishing 5th in the country. Following the 2017 season, two-time EPAC Player of the Year and All Region selection Angel Lopez was drafted in the 13th round by the Cleveland Indians, becoming Northampton's first MLB draft pick.  Lopez was also named NJCAA All-American, a Rawlings Gold Glove recipient and was honored by Spalding as the NJCAA Defensive Player of the Year.  Lopez became Northampton's second Rawlings Gold Glove Award winner under Yaguez, following Keith Sacarakis (2009).

Yaguez, a five-time conference coach of the year, stands at 338-181 (65%) for his career.

A HISTORY OF SUCCESS ... A FUTURE OF EXCELLENCE ... NORTHAMPTON BASEBALL