St. Cloud, MN – The St. Cloud Rox announced the signing of four additional players for the 2016 season today. The list includes Ben Petersen of North Dakota State, Nick Gallagher of Iowa, and teammates Mason Mamarella and Chris Martin of Kent State.
Petersen is a 6’2” outfielder in his junior season at North Dakota State University. He has made 30 starts for the Bison, hitting .278 which is the fourth best average on the team. He is currently the team leader in runs batted in with 24 and has a team high three home runs and three triples. He was recently named the Summit League Baseball Player of the Week for the week of April 4-10. A graduate of Totino Grace High School in Fridley, Minn., Peterson was an All-conference player and was named to the 2013 Class AAA MSHBCA All-State Team as a senior.
Gallagher, a 6’3” sophomore right-handed pitcher at the University of Iowa, has pitched in nine games for the Hawkeyes this year, making three starts. He has a 3.41 ERA and leads the team with four wins. He has struck out 32 batters in 37.0 innings this season, while allowing only 34 hits. As a senior at West High School in Iowa City, Iowa, Gallagher was named a first-team All-State pitcher by coaches and a second-team All-State pitcher by media. He was also named to the All-Conference and All-District teams.
Mamarella is a 6’0” redshirt sophomore outfielder at Kent State University. He has started 29 games for the Golden Flashes, hitting .303 with 12 walks and seven stolen bases. He has reached base in 27 of the 36 games in which he has appeared and recently had an eight game hitting streak. Mamarella was named First Team All-District in his junior and senior year at Dover High School in Dover, Ohio.
Martin is a 6’0” sophomore right-handed pitcher also playing at Kent State University. He has appeared in eight games for the Golden Flashes, throwing 13.1 innings out of the bullpen, allowing just two earned runs for an ERA of 1.35. He has struck out 12 batters this season, allowing just eight hits. He recently picked up his first win of the season not allowing a hit in a 2.2 inning relief appearance against Toledo, a game in which Mamarella scored the winning run. Martin was named First Team All-Conference as a high school player at William Mason high school in Mason, Ohio.
In total the Rox now have 24 players under contract for the 2016 season. Field Manager Augie Rodriguez, along with the Rox organization will continue to build the roster for the 2016 season.
The Rox will play their 5th season of Northwoods League baseball in 2016. The home opener at Joe Faber Field is scheduled for Saturday, June 4th at 7:05pm against the Thunder Bay Border Cats. Season and group tickets for the 2016 season are currently on sale. Single game tickets will be available for purchase beginning on Friday, May 6th at noon. For more information regarding this release or game schedule please contact the Rox front office at (320) 240-9798 or visit www.stcloudrox.com
The St. Cloud Rox are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. Preparing for its 23nd season of summer collegiate baseball in 2016, the Northwoods League is the largest summer collegiate baseball league in the world with 18 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires and front office staff, more than 140 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (CWS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM), Lucas Duda (NYM) and Ben Zobrist (CHC). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League Website. For more information, visit www.stcloudrox.com.