July 3, 2006

Coming off of its second-straight berth in the Atlantic 10 Championships and fourth 30-win season since 2001, Dayton has started preparations for next season. UD Head Coach Tony Vittorio announced the 2007 schedule on Wednesday and that seniors Michael Massa, Joe McSoley and Kyle Lindsay will serve as team captains next season.

Dayton looks to improve on its 33-24 overall record in 2006 when its 2007 campaign begins with a three-game series on Feb. 10 and 11 at Wofford. The Flyers will begin their season against the Terriers in Spartanburg, SC for the third straight season.

UD opens its home schedule against Youngstown State the following weekend with a three-game series at Time Warner Cable Stadium on Feb. 17 and 18.

After three-game series with High Point, Appalachian State and Oakland as well as mid-week games with Bowling Green and Miami (Ohio), Dayton heads to Florida Gulf Coast University for a challenging tournament that involves Notre Dame, Harvard and New York Tech.

"Our non-conference schedule will allow us to play likeable competition, which should give us a chance to set our lineup heading into A-10 games," Vittorio said. "I am looking forward to the opportunity of playing some home games in the early portion of the season as well as the challenge of playing a high caliber team in Notre Dame."

UD's Atlantic 10 schedule features five road series and four home series in 2007. The Flyers will travel to Xavier, Saint Joseph's, Charlotte, La Salle and Saint Louis. The Flyers will host Temple, Fordham, Massachusetts and George Washington.

Dayton's on the field leadership will be provided by a trio of captains who enter their final seasons in a Flyer uniform.

Michael Massa returns as a team captain for the third consecutive year. Massa was an A-10 First Team All-Conference selection in 2006 at shortstop after leading the conference with a school record eight triples last season. He also ranked second in the A-10 with 22 stolen bases and 59 runs scored. One of the A-10's best leadoff batters, Massa reached base 52 of the 114 times (45.6 percent) of the times he started an inning at the plate and scored 44 of those times. His 20-game hitting streak led Dayton through a 14-6 stretch during the month of April.

Joe McSoley will also be a team captain for the third year in a row in 2007. McSoley played in 46 games and started 45 at third base. He hit .281 with 32 RBI and 28 runs scored last season. McSoley led Dayton in a win over Butler in his hometown with a 3-for-3 day that included a double, home run, two runs scored and two RBI. He also collected the game-winning RBI in UD's 2-0 win over George Washington on the opening day of the A-10 Tournament.

Kyle Lindsay will be a captain for the first time next season after stepping out of the bullpen and into a starting role on the mound in 2006. Last season, he appeared in 22 games and made 10 starts while winning six of seven decisions and holding a 4.75 ERA while striking out 61 batters in 77.2 innings pitched. Lindsay was named the A-10 Pitcher of the Week on March 13 after leading Dayton to wins over Butler and Oakland while also earning a save over the Grizzlies. He struck out 11 Explorers over 7.0 innings in a 1-0 shutout of La Salle. Lindsay also stepped up in the post season when he struck out seven batters over 3.1 combined innings pitched in two relief appearances on the second day of the Atlantic 10 Championships.