Joe Charron, baseball ‘ Going into the season, the Binghamton baseball team was set at every position, with one noticeable exception in left field. Early in the season, it looked like the position would be split between Ken Jacobi and Mike Papili, as it was last year, but after a hot spring, Charron surpassed both of them and put any notion of a platoon to rest. Make no mistake, Jacobi and Papili did not lose the position: Charron won it. The 5-foot-7 outfielder/pitcher from Schaghticoke, N.Y., leads the America East in home runs with five, and is 19th in batting average at .301. Batting fifth in the lineup, Charron has provided vital protection behind Brendon Hitchcock.

Chris Gaube, cross country ‘ The Vestal native immediately stepped into a role as the future of BU men’s cross country in his first race of the season, finishing first on the team in the Bearcat Invitational. Gaube would go on to have the best finish on the team in three of the final four races of the year, including an 18th place finish at the ECAC cross country championship, helping the Bearcats finish second in the 19-team field. A few weeks earlier, in his first AE championship appearance, Gaube ran 25:53 in the 8,000-meter race to finish in 28th place.

Josh Patterson, wrestling ‘ The third Patterson to wrestle in the green and black, Josh followed his brothers Nate and Mike to BU and made an immediate impact. A former high school state champion at Wayne Central High School, Patterson became the star of a wrestling team that went from zero wins to 10 wins in just a year. To top off his remarkable year, the 174-pounder placed third at the Colonial Athletic Association championship, and earned a wild card bid into the NCAA tournament. The CAA All-Rookie team member bowed out in the first round, but something tells us he’ll have plenty more chances.

Jason Stenta, soccer ‘ On Sept. 3, the men’s soccer team won its first game of the season, a 4-3 victory over Long Island University. In goal that game was a redshirt freshman named Jason Stenta. Stenta went on to start every game for the rest of the season, including the America East and NCAA tournaments. In the America East semifinals the Chenango Valley grad made what was arguably the play of the season, making a leaping save during a shootout to end Boston University’s season and send the Bearcats to the AE championship. Three days later, Stenta shut out Vermont, helping the Bearcats to a 1-0 victory and their second AE title.

Lazar Trifunovic, basketball ‘ Not even in the starting lineup at the beginning of the season, Trifunovic, a freshman from Belgrade, Serbia, was arguably the second most important player on the BU basketball team this season. He finished third in Rookie of the Year voting in a stacked America East rookie class, after finishing third in the conference in rebounding and 19th in scoring. His .494 shooting percentage was also good for fourth in the conference. With a full season under his belt, Trifunovic, already one of the most feared players in the AE, can only get better. Expect the fan favorite to keep the BU Zoo very happy for the next few seasons.