Baseball's Veilleux Honored by America East

Since the start of conference play on April 9, the young Hartford pitching staff has begun to round into form, pitching to an earned run average nearly a run-and-a-half better than its season mark.

The leader of the staff has been freshman Kevin Veilleux, who has posted a 1-0 record on a 1.11 ERA over 10 appearances, pitching 24.1 innings. On Monday, the America East recognized his outstanding performances by naming Veilleux the league’s Co-Rookie of the Week.

Catcher Fran Whitten of Maine shared the honors with Veilleux.

Veilleux got Hartford off to a good start last week when he tossed a nine-inning complete game shutout at Fairleigh Dickinson on Wednesday, earning a 7-0 victory. The freshman from Manchester, N.H. completely shut down the Knights’ offense, pitching six perfect innings before finally ceding the first hit of the game for FDU in the bottom of the seventh. During those first six perfect innings, Veilleux allowed just three balls to reach the outfield, and struck out three. He finished with five punch outs, allowing just two hits as Fairleigh Dickinson never got a runner past second base.

The win was the first of Veilleux’s young career. After making starts in each of his first four appearances, Veilleux was converted into a relief role. Wednesday marked Veilleux’s first start since March 29 against Connecticut.