RIVERDALE, N.Y. –  Manhattan was selected to finish third in the MAAC for the 2009 campaign according to the Baseball America College Preview. Jasper outfielders Kevin Nieto and Mark Onorati, third baseman Chad Salem and lefty pitcher Dan Forman were named to the Preseason All-Conference Team. Canisius was picked to win the league and defending champion Rider was second on the list.

Nieto, a junior from Miami, was named to the 2008 All-MAAC First Team after leading the league in batting average (.386) and triples (6). Nieto also finished the year in the top-5 of the conference with 21 stolen bases (third), .595 slugging percentage (fourth), .467 on-base percentage (fourth) and 47 RBI (fifth). The Jasper co-captain started 42 of 43 appearances in center field and was named to the ECAC Division I All-Star Second Team and American Baseball Coaches Association Northeast Region First Team.

Onorati was selected to the All-MAAC Second Team last season after a breakout rookie campaign. He started all 50 appearances in the outfield, recorded 62 hits, including 14 doubles and seven home runs. Onorati tied for second in the MAAC with 54 runs scored and hit .337 on the season. The Williston Park, N.Y. native had 16 multi-hit games and six multi-RBI contests.

Salem, a 2008 All-MAAC Second Team honoree, led the Jaspers and finished fourth in the MAAC with 51 RBI. Additionally, he blasted a team best 10 home runs which tied for fifth most in the conference. Salem completed his rookie season with a .302 batting average, 44 runs, 12 doubles and a .562 slugging percentage. He was named MAAC Rookie of the Week three times.

Forman was named a Louisville Slugger Freshman All-America and to the All-MAAC Second Team after a standout freshman season. The Queens product ranked second in the league in strikeouts (81) and wins (8), while leading the conference in strikeouts looking (43). He held opponents to a .273 batting average, tossed two complete games and earned a save in 15 appearances.

The Jaspers posted a 31-20-1 overall record last season, and earned the program’s first MAAC Regular Season Championship with a 19-5 league mark. It was the third straight 30-win season for head coach Kevin Leighton in as many years. The Jaspers also earned a bid to the program’s sixth consecutive MAAC Tournament.

Manhattan opens the 2009 season on Feb. 20-22 versus Brigham Young University and host school Oklahoma State in Stillwater, Okla.