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Week #2: Matt Dacey, 1B, Richmond

By: Dutchmen Front Office

Dacey hit .353 and helped power the Dutchmen to a 5-1 record last week, thanks in large part to his heroics in the clutch. Trailing defending champion Amsterdam in the 8th inning, Dacey ripped an RBI double to right to tie up a game Albany would eventually win in extra innings. The very next day, Dacey struck again in the 8th, this time with a pinch hit, 2-run single that proved to be the game winner.

A graduate of powerhouse Don Bosco (NJ) Prep, Dacey’s tremendous senior year (.418, 10 HR, 38 RBI) helped his high school team reach the state championship game. “Even though we lost,” he admitted, “Just being able to get to that game was incredible!”

One of Dacey’s coaches at Don Bosco was former Yankee relief ace Mike Stanton. “I learned a lot from Coach Stanton,” Dacey recalled. “I’d never had a coach with so much pro experience. He’d be pitching BP and when we got a few good swings in, next thing you know, he’d spin off a slider…It was crazy trying to hit off him!”

A native of Wyckoff, NJ, Dacey spent his freshman year at Michigan, but will be attending Richmond next year. In the mean time, he is leading the Dutchmen in home runs, and has been a positive influence both on and off the field.

“I got to work with the Pine Bush Little League,” Dacey stated. “I loved doing that! I can remember being in Little League and wanting to be like the older players, and now to get to be one of the guys those kids look up to, it‘s great!”

“I’m having a real good time in Albany. It’s a great group of guys. This team has some of the best chemistry of any team I’ve been on.”

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