BATISTA AND HUNTER RECEIVE WEEKLY ECC RECOGNITION

CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. (Oct. 26, 2009) - Following last week's showings, senior midfielder Jose Batista (Rego Park, N.Y.) and freshman goalkeeper Michael Hunter (Merrick, N.Y.) were dubbed the East Coast Conference Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week, respectively. In the past two contests, Batista notched eight points on three goals and two assists. He also attempted a team-best 10 shots. Meanwhile, Hunter registered a pair of victories in net - one of which was his first-ever collegiate win.

Versus Dowling, Batista passed both assists in a 2-1 victory over the Golden Lions. Two days later, he recorded his second hat trick of the season in a 4-1 rout of University of New Haven. For the year, Batista sports a team-high 26 points on 11 goals and four assists. Two of those markers have also served as game-winners. Among the country, he is ranked 40th in goals per game (0.73) and 52nd in points per contest (1.64). As for the ECC, Batista heads up the league in points per game, and is slotted second in five different categories.

Guarding the net, Hunter posted four strong saves against Dowling, and turned aside a pair versus New Haven. For the campaign, the Merrick native owns a 2-2 record with 16 saves and a 1.59 goals-against average. He is also sporting a .696 save percentage in 395-plus minutes of action.

Head Coach Danny Longo and the Lions return to action this Wednesday when they end off the regular season in Old Westbury, N.Y. at ECC nemesis New York Institute of Technology. Kickoff is scheduled for 3 p.m.