HADLEY, Mass. – Colby's Cole Palmeri was named the NESCAC Player of the Year while Middlebury's Justin Lessing was selected as the NESCAC Pitcher of the Year. Also earning individual awards were Tufts' Malcolm Whitfield, the NESCAC Defensive Player of the Year, and teammate Malachi Pena, the NESCAC Rookie of the Year.  Middlebury head coach Mike Leonard was voted the NESCAC Coach of the Year by his peers.
 
Palmeri, the NESCAC Defensive Player of the Year in 2022, is the first Colby player to earn the NESCAC Player of the Year honor. Palmeri ranks third in the NESCAC in hitting with a .416 average and leads the league in slugging percentage (.876), on-base percentage (.521), OPS (1.397), and home runs (11). Palmeri led the Mules to the top seed in the NESCAC East Division and the most wins since 2001 (29). Colby was an at-large selection to the NCAA Tournament and will be making its first appearance in the championship field in program history.
 
Lessing is the third straight Panther to collect the NESCAC Pitcher of the Year accolade and fourth overall. Lessing leads the NESCAC with a 1.88 ERA and 71 strikeouts while limiting opponents to a league-low .183 batting average. In 10 appearances, Lessing owns a 5-0 record on the mound in 52.2 innings of work. Lessing and the Panthers were an automatic qualifier to the NCAA Division III Baseball Championship after Middlebury claimed its third NESCAC title in program history.
 
Whitfield is the second consecutive Jumbo to garner NESCAC Defensive Player of the Year honors and the fifth Tufts player overall. The catcher/outfielder ranked third on the Tufts team in hitting (.327) with 37 hits, 29 runs scored, and 19 RBI. Whitfield did not make an error in 234 chances and caught eight baserunners stealing this season. Whitfield helped the Jumbos finish as the 2024 NESCAC Runners-Up.

Pena is the fifth Jumbo to be named NESCAC Rookie of the Year and first since 2019. The newcomer finished second on the team in hitting with a .349 average on 51 hits, including five homers. Pena, who started 38 of the 40 games he played in, drove in a team-best 43 RBI and scored 17 times this season. Pena helped the Jumbos earn the second seed in the NESCAC East Division and advance to the NESCAC Championship series.
 
Leonard was voted as the NESCAC Coach of the Year by his peers for the second time in three seasons, also earning the honor in 2022. Leonard guided the Panthers to their second NESCAC title in three years and third overall. Middlebury's 30 wins are the second-most in program history, trailing the 31 victories the Panthers collected in 2022. Middlebury earned the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament and will make its fourth appearance in the championship.

2024 NESCAC Baseball Awards
Player of the Year: Cole Palmeri, Colby
Pitcher of the Year: Justin Lessing, Middlebury
Defensive Player of the Year: Malcolm Whitfield, Tufts
Rookie of the Year: Malachi Pena, Tufts
Coach of the Year: Mike Leonard, Middlebury

All-NESCAC First Team
Pos - Name	School	Yr.	Hometown	Previous Honors
C - Cole Palmeri	Colby	Sr.	Hamilton, N.J.	2023 1st Team, 2022 DPOY, 2022 2nd Team
IF - Chris Borter	Middlebury	Sr.	Fairfield, Conn.
IF - William Frain	Trinity	Sr.	South Hamilton, Mass.
IF - Ernie Little	Wesleyan	So.	Melrose, Mass.	2023 ROY, 2023 1st Team
IF - Brady O'Brien	Colby	Sr.	North Andover, Mass.	2023 2nd Team, 2022 1st Team, 2021 2nd Team
IF - Beau Root	Middlebury	Sr.	Washington Depot, Conn.
IF - Patrick Shrake	Colby	Fy.	Chicago, Ill.
OF - Kyle McCausland	Middlebury	Jr.	Wellesley, Mass.	2023 POY, 2023 1st Team
OF - Malachi Pena	Tufts	Fy.	Albuquerque, N.M.
OF - Jackson Sattinger	Hamilton	Sr.	Port Washington, N.Y.	2023 2nd Team
DH - Mitchell Schroeder	Middlebury	Sr.	Brookline, Mass.	2022 1st Team
P - Jack Eshleman	Hamilton	Jr.	Collegeville, Pa.
P - Justin Lessing	Middlebury	Jr.	Westport, Conn.
P - Silas Reed	Tufts	Sr.	Brookline, Mass.
P/UT - Jack Sampedro	Amherst	Jr.	Miami, Fla.	2023 1st Team
All-NESCAC Second Team
Pos - Name	School	Yr.	Hometown	Previous Honors
C - Henry Juan	Williams	Jr.	Big Flats, N.Y.	2023 2nd Team
IF - Jack Brennan	Bates	Sr.	West Hartford, Conn.
IF - Ryan Grace	Colby	Jr.	Concord, Mass.	2023 2nd Team
IF - Jack McDermott	Amherst	Jr.	Yardley, Pa.	2023 2nd Team
IF - Sean Meth	Trinity	Sr.	Port Washington, N.Y.	2023 2nd Team, 2021 1st Team
IF - Kevin Murray	Bowdoin	Jr.	Stony Point, N.Y.	2023 2nd Team
IF - Aidan Stern	Trinity	Fy.	South Salem, N.Y.
OF - Marcus Forrester	Colby	Sr,	Marshfield, Mass.
OF - Charlie LaFreniere	Amherst	Fy.	Norwalk, Conn.
OF - Dylan Schnitzer	Trinity	So.	Huntington, N.Y.
DH - Lukas Tsai	Bowdoin	So.	Fair Lawn, N.J.
P - Gavin Brown	Tufts	Gr.	Plano, Texas
P - Matthew Scibilio	Colby	Sr.	Scituate, Mass.
P - Matt Spada	Wesleyan	So.	Westport, Conn.
P - Derek Woods	Colby	So.	Rye, N.Y.