MARLBOROUGH, Mass. — Wheaton College (Mass.) baseball player Brayden Lewis (Hopedale, Mass.) was named to the New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference First Team, while Aiden Cardoza (Dartmouth, Mass.) was a Second Team selection, it was announced by the league.
Both players earn All-Conference recognition for the first time.
The Lyons have had multiple All-Conference honorees every year since the conference began sponsoring the sport in 1999.
Lewis becomes the first Wheaton player to earn All-Conference First Team honors as a rookie since Jake Studley '22 was tabbed as a First Teamer in 2019. The left fielder was one of the most dynamic players in the conference with a rare combination of power and speed that has never been seen in Norton before. The Hopedale Jr.-Sr. High School product led the league with 29 stolen bases without being caught and also hit 10 home runs to rank fourth in the NEWMAC to become the first player in school history to hit at least 10 home runs and steal as many as 29 bases in the same season. He took his play up a notch in conference games, leading the circuit with seven homers, while also topping the league in conference games in runs batted in with 21 and runs scored with 22. Lewis was second with 48 total bases, 11th with four doubles and 10th with 23 hits. He owned a 1.138 OPS in league games for the sixth-highest total, while maintaining a .727 slugging mark for the third-highest figure against league foes and also owned a .348 (23-66) batting average in NEWMAC contests. Overall, the rookie knocked in 36 runs to go with 42 runs scored in all games. Lewis posted a .596 slugging mark in all games and batted .329 (48-146) for the Lyons. The Business Management major produced 87 total bases for the balance of the season to rank seventh in the NEWMAC and drew 19 walks to place 20th among league leaders. Lewis was among the most consistent and reliable hitters in the nation, hitting safely in 31of 37 games, including 14 multi-hit efforts and did not go hitless in consecutive games throughout the season. The start to the first year's career was meteoric, following a hitless performance off just one plate appearance in his first collegiate game, he put together a 17-game hitting streak over a span of 29 days from March 7 to April 4, where he batted .359 (23-64) with 21 RBI, including a grand slam for his first career home run against Vassar College on March 12. The corner outfielder knocked in multiple runs on 10 occasions, including a three-game stretch of two runs batted in each game from March 21-24.
Cardoza was among the best control pitchers in the nation, ranking ninth in NCAA Division III with 1.07 walks allowed per nine innings pitched, in addition to placing 24th in the country with a 5.43:1 strikeout to walk ratio. The left-handed starting pitcher posted a 3.37 earned run average to rank fifth among NEWMAC pitchers, while issuing just seven walks in 58 2/3 innings pitched. The junior started 10 games to place second in the league, while standing fourth in innings pitched. Cardoza struck out 38 batters for the 10th-highest total in the conference. The Bishop Stang High School graduate was extremely reliable for Wheaton, allowing two or fewer earned runs in seven of 10 starts, including seven shutout frames on just five hits and no walks to go with five strikeouts to gain the victory over Worcester Polytechnic Institute on April 11. The Business major was outstanding against Babson College in the NEWMAC Tournament, allowing two runs on five hits and no walks, while fanning four batters in seven and two-thirds innings.
For his career, Cardoza has posted a 10-9 record, while striking out 96 batters in 170 innings over 31 appearances – 30 of them starts. He has issued just 33 base on balls and hurled a complete game.
The Lyons finished the season with an overall record of 26-13, including 10-6 in league play to earn the number two seed in the NEWMAC Championship Tournament. Wheaton did not lose consecutive games all season until the final two contests in the conference tournament.
