Former Irvine Valley standout outfielder Dante Faicchio had a special season at NCAA Division I Wagner University in Staten Island, NY.
Faicchio was one of two Seahawks this season to start in all 51 games and finished the 2022 season with a .285 batting average, which ranked second on the club.
He was named first team all-Northeast Conference at the end of the year.
The outfielder spent the bulk of the season patrolling right field, starting in 37 games. At the plate, he finished the year with 12 home runs, 52 RBI, while slugging a team-best .549 and posted a total OPS of .916.
Faicchio tied for second in the conference in RBI with Central Connecticut's Dan Covino while tying for third in home runs with Bryant's Alex Lane. He also tallied the second most bases in the conference with 106 while finishing fourth in doubles with 15.
The 12 home runs by Faicchio this season moved him into a tie for third on the Wagner single-season home run list, joining former Seahawk sluggers Phil Capra (2018) and Joe Murphy (1984). Additionally, his 52 RBI were good for fourth on the Seahawk single-season list.
Three games into his Seahawk tenure, Faicchio recorded his first multi-home run game in the series finale at Charleston back on Feb. 20. In the Apr. 1 road tilt against conference rival, Mount St. Mary's, Faicchio pelted his second multi-home run game, sending two long balls out of the stadium in Wagner's 16-6 triumph over the Mount.
In all, Faicchio produced 15 multi-hit games, which was tied for the second most on the team this season while recording 18 multi-RBI games, as he drove in a career-high four on three occasions, the last coming on the road at Bryant on May 19.
In conference-only games, Faicchio finished with a .647 slugging percentage, good for second in the league while also finishing second in RBIs (34), home runs (tied with 8), and total bases (66).
Faicchio played spent the shortened COVID 2020 and 2021 seasons at Irvine Valley.
The former Laguna Beach High standout was named first team all-Orange Empire Conference after the 2021 campaign
The Lasers finished tied for fourth in the conference with a record of 9-9. The team ended with a record of 12-14-2 overall.
Faicchio was a force at the plate for IVC. He hit .345 (30 for 87) with a home run, 19 RBI, 19 runs, seven doubles, two triples and six stolen bases.
His big game of the year was a 5 for 5 effort at the plate with a walk, a double, a triple, four runs scored and six RBI in IVC's 17-5 victory at Fullerton.
Faicchio led the Lasers with a .506 slugging percentage and had a .924 OPS.
He also recorded a .418 on-base percentage and stole six bases.
In the shortened 2020 season, Faicchio appeared in 20 games and batted .376 (32 of 85) with three home runs and 30 RBI. He produced a 1.049 OPS with a .588 slugging percentage.
Faicchio had three games where he drove in four RBI, the last coming in a 20-15 win at Mt. SAC.
