As the unseasonably mild winter continues to envelop Cape Cod, the warm weather serves as a reminder that the start of the Massachusetts Maritime baseball season is a little more than three weeks away.  And as first year Head Coach Mike Kelley prepares for his inaugural campaign this spring, the Hall of Fame mentor has tabbed a talented quartet of Buccaneers to serve as captains for the upcoming 2016 slate.

Seniors Kyle Kennedy (Woodbury, Conn./Nonnewaug), Kevin Kwedor (Marshfield, Mass./Marshfield), Alex Rozak (Plymouth, Mass./Plymouth North) and Everett Walsh (Marstons Mills, Mass./Barnstable) will provide leadership for the defending Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference regular season champions, as Kennedy, Kwedor and Rozak have been staples of Massachusetts Maritime’s pitching staff throughout their careers and Walsh has proven to be a versatile clutch performer in the outfield.

Kennedy is a two-time all-MASCAC selection and has served as a starter, reliever and closer for the Buccaneers during his career.  Last spring, he posted three wins and four saves with a 2.20 earned run average in 15 total appearances, amassing 32 strikeouts in 45 innings of work along the way.  Kennedy also excelled off the field in earning Capital One Division III Academic All-District honors as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America, as he holds a 3.684 cumulative grade point average as a Facilities Engineering major at the Academy.

Kwedor earned all-MASCAC honors in 2015 after notching a team-best six wins in 10 starts to go with a 3.69 ERA, as he fanned 49 in 46 innings of action.  In 2014, Kwedor threw the first perfect game (and 25^th in NCAA Division III history) in the program’s 43-year varsity history in a 4-0 triumph over MCLA, and he has posted eight wins and averaged nearly a strikeout per inning during his first two seasons in a Buccaneer uniform.

Rozak posted four wins in six decisions a year ago for Massachusetts Maritime, as he struck out 18 in 27 innings of work and has posted five victories in 14 career appearances over the last two seasons.  A leader in the campus community, Rozak is serving as the Academy’s Regimental Commander during the current academic year, as he also holds a 3.538 GPA as an Energy System Engineering major.  Rozak and Kwedor are also both active members of the Buccaneer Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.

Walsh ranked second on last year’s squad with a .306 batting average, as he collected 26 hits in 85 at-bats while driving in nine runs in 27 contests played.  He also recorded a .355 on-base percentage and stole three bases, and during the course of his career sports a .284 batting average with five doubles, three triples and 26 RBI in 81 games.  Walsh has also earned spots on both the Massachusetts Maritime Athletic Director’s Honor Roll and MASCAC Spring All-Academic Team throughout his career.

“Kyle, Kevin, Alex and Everett have not only set high expectations for themselves, they have met and exceeded them, and that example is the same one they will set for their teammates,” Kelley, a 1999 Massachusetts Maritime graduate and a 2009 Buccaneer Athletic Hall of Fame inductee, says of his captains.  “They have played a large part in the success that our program has had over the past three seasons, but they also know that there are many more goals we want to accomplish, and I have full confidence that they will help us achieve them.”

Massachusetts Maritime begins the 2016 season on Saturday, February 27^th when the Buccaneers take on Immaculata (Pa.) during their annual spring visit to Fort Pierce, Fla. beginning at 7:00 p.m. EST.