The Catholic University baseball team will officially make its first-ever appearance in the Super Regionals of the NCAA Division III Baseball Championship this weekend at Ithaca.
The Cardinals (32-13) and Bombers will play a best-of-three games series at Ithaca's Freeman Field beginning on Friday, May 27 at noon. Game two will be on Saturday, May 28 at 11 a.m. and if necessary, a third and deciding game will take place 45 minutes following the conclusion of game two.
Game Day Information
Tickets for this weekend's Super Regional are $8 for adults and $5 for students/seniors/children and can only be purchased on site. Cash or credit will be accepted. Parking is free and fans can park in Lot F directly across the street from Freeman Field and Butterfield Stadium. Click here for a campus map.
Fans attending this weekend's regional should be aware that graduation ceremonies for Cornell University will be this weekend so expect delays if staying or eating in the area.
Live stats and live video for all three games will be available. You can also follow along on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Super Regional Preview
There are just 16 teams remaining in the NCAA tournament which began with 60. A total of 380 teams played baseball in Division III this season. This marks the second season in which the Super Regional format has been used in Division III baseball.
This is the only Super Regional featuring two unranked teams vying for a trip to the Division III College World Series.
This weekend will also be the first-ever meeting between the Cardinals and Bombers. Catholic's first season dates back to 1896 while Ithaca began playing baseball in 1931.
The Cardinals are making their fourth appearance in the NCAA Division III Baseball Championship after appearances in 2011, 2015, 2018 and 2022. They had never posted multiple NCAA postseason wins in the same season until this year.
Six of the seven baseball-playing teams in the Landmark Conference have advanced to the NCAA Division III Baseball Championship, but none have ever made it to the Division III College World Series. In 2016, Susquehanna fell just short, losing to No. 1 SUNY Cortland in the championship game of the New York Regional.
The Bombers (33-12) are making their 49th NCAA appearance and have won 128 games during that time, including two national championships in 1980 and 1988. They have also been the national runner-up three times. The team won a regional title in 2013 and finished third that year.
Scouting Catholic (Schedule | Roster | Statistics)
Winners of a school record 32 games this season, the Cardinals reached the Super Regionals after posting wins in three out of four games in the Winchester Regional, including two against No. 14 Shenandoah. The team has won eight out of its last 11 dating back to a 7-3 win over rival Scranton on April 24.
The Cardinals have set five Landmark Conference single-season record this year in runs (394), RBIs (341), home runs (54), walks (254) and strikeouts (438). They rank 11th in Division III in walks and 19th in home runs.
Individually, senior Peter Giombetti has set new league records with 14 home runs and 118 total bases while junior Tucker Alch is the conference record holder in wins (10), innings pitched (86.1) and strikeouts (114).
Giombetti was named Landmark Conference Player of the Year and leads the team in home runs, batting average (.376), RBIs (54), extra-base hits (32) and slugging percentage (.792). He ranks 13th in the nation in slugging percentage and 17th in home runs.
Alch was chosen as the Landmark Conference Pitcher of the Year and is one of just three players with at least 100 strikeouts in a season in league history. He is also one of three with at least 10 wins and one only two with both. He currently ranks sixth in Division III in both wins and strikeouts and is 15th in strikeout-to-walk ratio (9.50).
Meanwhile, freshman Dante Pozzi was selected as the Landmark Conference Rookie of the Year. He was one of just two freshmen to earn all-conference honors this season, joining freshman Matthew Fisher. Pozzi has appeared in and started 44 of the team's 45 games while hitting .292 and leading the team in runs scored with 49. He also ranks 11th in Division III with 40 walks.
Pozzi was named Most Outstanding Player of the Winchester Regional after hitting .444 with a team-high eight hits, including a double, home run, five RBIs and five runs.
Joining Pozzi and Alch on the all-tournament team was junior Ben Nardi. An All-Landmark Conference Second Team selection, he leads the team with 59 hits, one shy of becoming just the eighth player in team history to total 60 in a single-season. Joseph Maca holds the record with 69 in 2006.
Giombetti and senior Matt Tesoriero each have 56 hits this season.
On the mound, senior Jack Zaffiro is likely to start game two while freshman Cody Bosak or sophomore Danny Fitzgerald will get the ball in game three. Zaffiro leads the team in appearances with 15 while ranking second in starts with 12. He is 2-2 with 65 strikeouts in 49.2 innings pitched.
Bosak is 3-2 in 15 appearances and eight starts while totaling 45 strikeouts in 50.2 innings. He was one of six Cardinals named to the all-tournament team in the Winchester Regional. In a 13-10 win over No. 14 Shenandoah, he allowed just seven hits and three runs in a career-high 6.1 innings.
Fitzgerald went six and two-thirds in game three of the Winchester Regional against Shenandoah, scattering six hits and striking out six. Two of his six runs were unearned.
Scouting Ithaca (Schedule | Roster | Statistics)
The Bombers won the Immaculata Regional in three games for the program's first regional title since 2013. The Liberty League champions are riding an eight-game winning streak into the Super Regionals.
Ithaca is led offensively by freshman Connor Pedersen. The Liberty League Rookie of the Year is just the fourth player in team history to record 70 hits in a season. He is one of just two players to appear in and start all 45 of the team's games while ranking second on the team with a .381 batting average. He is just one hit shy of tying the school single-season record of 75.
Senior Buzz Shirley leads the team with a .421 batting average which includes a school-record 21 doubles, a mark that ranks 11th in Division III. He also leads the Bombers with five home runs and 53 RBIs.
Senior Kyle Lambert was named Liberty League Pitcher of the Year after leading the conference in games started, innings pitched and strikeouts. He currently ranks third in program history with 85 strikeouts, just eight away from the record. He is 5-3 with a 3.38 ERA in 14 starts and 88.0 innings this season.
Ithaca boasts a 4.38 ERA as a team. Lambert is the team's ace while sophomore Nate Scott and freshman Colin Leyner are expected to be the team's starters in game two and three, respectively. The trio has combined for a record of 19-6 this season with a 3.63 ERA, 34 starts, 216.0 innings and 189 strikeouts.