| John Carroll's surprise win
in the OAC tournament set off a cascade effect in other
regionals. John Carroll athletics photo |
Follow this regional
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By John Skomra
for D3baseball.com
It can be assumed that this was one of the toughest regions to place with the amount of talent in the Mideast this spring. The NCAA did its due diligence considering geography and regional rankings to come up with a diverse regional consisting of a medley of talent congregating at Don Schaly Stadium in Marietta, Ohio.
Two at-large OAC teams as well as automatic qualifiers Adrian, DePauw and Rose-Hulman were all shipped elsewhere making room for two Mid-Atlantic teams and a South team to travel to Marietta. This might be one of the deepest regionals in the tournament.
Looks like John Carroll winning the OAC stuck a dagger to the hearts of Wooster as the Scots are outside looking in. With the Blue Streaks as champions, that led way to three at-large bids for the OAC. Any way you look at it, the Mideast this season was so strong that every team from the Mideast in this tournament has been tested over and over. Even in a weak conference, La Roche tried to make its schedule appealing to the committee, playing Marietta, Heidelberg, Washington & Jefferson, and BW. So the teams coming in – Salisbury, Penn State-Berks, Widener – should expect some talented opposition.
Salisbury comes into the tournament with a 16-game win streak. The Sea Gulls are strong across the board from pitching and defense to hitting and baserunning. However, York (Pa.) was the only other NCAA contender in the Capital Athletic Conference and Salisbury dropped two of three meetings. Marietta and Case are seeded where they belong. Widener comes in winning its conference tournament in three games. John Carroll has been hot of late. Penn State-Berks and Thomas More round out the field with tough roads ahead of them. How tough that is, you'll see below.
Marietta Regional schedule
Wednesday, May 14
Game 1 - No. 4. Widener (31-11) vs. No. 5 La Roche (30-13), 9:30
am
Game 2 - No. 1 Marietta (29-14) vs. No. 8. Penn State Berks
(19-19), 1 pm
Game 3 - No. 3 Salisbury (33-7) vs. No. 6. John Carroll (24-15),
4:30 pm
Game 4 - No. 2 Case Western Reserve (30-7) vs. No. 7 Thomas More
(23-17), 8 pm
Thursday, May 15
Game 5 - Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2, 9:30 am
Game 6 - Loser of Game 3 vs. Loser of Game 4, 1 pm
Game 7 - Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2, 4:30 pm
Game 8 - Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 4, 8 pm
Friday, May 16
Game 9 - Winner of Game 6 vs. Loser of Game 7, 9:30 am
Game 10 - Winner of Game 5 vs.\. Loser of Game 8, 1 pm
Game 11 - Winner of Game 7 vs. Winner of Game 8, 4:30 pm
Game 12 - Winner of game 9 vs. Winner of Game 10, 8 pm
Saturday, May 17
Game 13 - Loser of Game 11 vs. Winner of Game 12, 12 pm
Game 14 - Winner of Game 11 vs. Winner of Game 13, 4 pm
Sunday, May 18
Game 15 - Winner of Game 14 vs Loser of Game 14, 1 pm (if necessary)
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Favorite
It is hard to pick a favorite here as the top teams have some flaws. Marietta has two strong starters but a weak resume after that. Also, the Etta Express has hit better as of late but has consistently struggled on the offensive side all season. Case lacks the pitching it had a season ago and may be a tall order to earn a spot into Appleton. Salisbury, coming in as the three seed, has shown offensive and defensive consistency all season and have the deep arms to win this regional. The South Region has always been strong. The experience of this team shows like a run deep in this tournament is feasible.
Most likely to disappoint
Marietta’s pitching outside its front two is suspect at best. Pitcher Mike Finlan is hurt and may not be ready this week. Hitting seems to never outhit its pitching regularly and this lack of consistency is something to be wary about. Expect a first-round victory for the Pioneers against Penn State-Berks but a deep run in this tournament may be a struggle.
Cinderella
The Blue Streaks have been on an offensive tear the past two weeks and claimed the OAC automatic bid because of it. The starters have been steadily consistent all year but the back end of the pitching staff can be questionable at times. If the Blue Streaks can win its first round matchup, there is a possibility for a rematch to earn a spot in the semifinals with a very familiar Case Western Reserve squad. Also, over the past three weeks, John Carroll has played six games at Don Schaly Stadium. This may be an advantage.
Players to Watch
P Christian Herstine, Marietta (8-1, 1.09, ERA, 82 IP, 73 K)
P Tyler Ferguson, La Roche (10-4, 2.87 ERA, 75.1 IP, 97 K)
P John Fortunato, Case Western Reserve (7-2, 2.04 ERA, 75 IP)
C Chet Lauer, John Carroll (.413 avg., 5 HR, 37 RBI)
3B Andrew Gronski, Case Western Reserve (.456 avg., 6 HR, 41
RBI)
OF Kyle Hayman, Salisbury (.417 avg., 30 RBI, 68 H, 25 SB)
1B Michael Riverso, Widener (.437 avg., 62 H, 42 RBI)
3B Travis Miller, Thomas More (.338, 6 HR, 40 RBI, 11 2B)
The Blue Streaks have been on an offensive tear the past two weeks and claimed the OAC Championship because of it. The starters have been steadily consistent all year but the back end of the pitching staff can be questionable at times. If the Blue Streaks can win its first round matchup, there is a possibility for a rematch to earn a spot in the semifinals with a very familiar Case Western quad. Also, over the past three weeks, John Carroll has played six games at Don Schaly Stadium. This may be a distinct advantage.