MARIETTA, Ohio — The Marietta College Pioneers swept through the competition last weekend as they blasted through the bracket and defeated Adrian College, 2-0, to claim the Marietta Regional. The win earned the Pioneers the right to move on in the 2023 NCAA Division III Baseball Championship. On Monday (May 22), Marietta received the news that they would be a host site for the Super Regional championship and, shortly afterward, found out they would be facing Misericordia University in the weekend best-of-three series.
Marietta (37-11) will be battling the Cougars (37-13) for the Super Regional championship and to gain the right to travel Cedar Rapids, Iowa, home of this year's NCAA Division III National Championship. This is the second consecutive season that Marietta has qualified for the Super Regionals, their only two appearances since the format was adopted in 2019.
Misericordia hosted their regional tournament last weekend and, after being defeated in the winner's bracket, they had to win out the remaining games to claim the regional championship. The Cougars defeated Washington and Jefferson, 10-7, on Friday before falling to Salve Regina, 11-4, on Saturday. Misericordia then eliminated W&J again, 12-8, to get the right to have a rematch with Salve Regina for the championship. Having to defeat the Seahawks twice, the Cougars claimed the first game, 12-9, and took the winner-take-all game seven by the score of 19-6.
Brett Carson (Ashville, Ohio/Teays Valley) is ready to help lead his Etta Express teammates to Cedar Rapids. Carson won the OAC player of the year award by leading the conference in hits (86) and RBIs (57). He also leads his team with 21 doubles, 12 home runs, and a .424 batting average. The Pioneers got a great regional tournament last weekend out of
Nick Bonnizzio (Hudson, Ohio/Twinsburg). The junior infielder hit .500 (6-12) including four runs scored and five runs batted in.
Trent Valentine (Byesville, Ohio/Cambridge) will be a projected starter in game one this weekend. Valentine put together a 7-0 record in 14 starts as the Pioneers' number one starter in the rotation. The left hander pitched a total of 77 innings and tallied 63 strikeouts. Another option will be
Kail Hill (Marietta, Ohio/Marietta), who leads the Pioneers with 10 victories and four saves on the season. He's pitched 67 innings and struck out 64 batters in his time on the mound this season. Carson pitched a 2-0 shutout in the regional championship on Sunday, working 7.0 innings, only giving up only three hits and striking out seven for the victory.
The Pioneers will be going up against a Misericordia team that has a potent offense and also like to run. The Cougars have a .322 team batting average, a team .459 slugging percentage, and have swiped over 130 bases on the season. Sophomore leadoff hitter Garrett McIlhenney sets the table well for his teammates. He has a .400 batting average with five home runs and 35 runs batted in. The speedy infielder also leads his team with two triples and 40 stolen bases.
Fifth-year senior infielder Derrick Vosberg also provides run production with a .346 batting average and a team-leading 61 RBIs. Connor Maryniak, a senior outfielder, hits for power (seven home runs) and drives in runs (36 RBI). Senior first baseman Brady Madden has driven in 51 runs and is second on the team with six homers.
Misericordia will probably count on senior lefty David McCurry in game one. McCurry has a 6-1 record in 60.2 innings pitched. He has a 3.86 ERA with 44 strikeouts on the season. Another option could be sophomore righty Steve Rinda. He has a 6-4 record with 45 strikeouts in 58 innings pitched.
Complete tournament information can be found on the Super Regional website by clicking
HERE.
Fans can follow the Etta Express all season long at
pioneers.marietta.edu. You can also follow the Pioneers on Facebook at
facebook.com/MariettaCollege and @MariettaPioneer on Twitter and Instagram.
