Baseball Nabs Fourth Seed in Auburn Regional
INDIANAPOLIS – The Mitchell College baseball team is one of 48 squads which will compete in the 2021 NCAA Division III Baseball Championship, as announced by the NCAA early Monday morning.
The Mariners (25-7 overall) will be the fourth seed in the Auburn, N.Y. regional and will face third-seeded Keystone College (21-4 overall) in the opening round of the double-elimination tournament, which begins Thursday, May 27. Game time is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. at Falcon Park.
Thursday's other games feature sixth-seeded Merchant Marine Academy (16-3 overall) against top-seeded Eastern Connecticut State University (32-6 overall) at 11 a.m., and fifth-seeded Tufts University (12-6 overall) against second-seeded SUNY Cortland (27-6 overall) at 2:30 p.m. Due to COVID restrictions, each regional will feature six teams instead of the usual eight.
Tournament action continues with three games on both Friday and Saturday, starting at 11:00 a.m. each day, along with two games on Sunday. The winner of the regional advances to the eight-team NCAA Division III World Series, which will be held June 4-9 at Perfect Game Field at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Mitchell was one of 42 teams in the field that qualified automatically by winning its conference championship. The Mariners, under 10th-year head coach Travis Beausoleil, went 3-0 to claim the 2021 New England Collegiate Conference Baseball Championship. Mitchell is making its sixth overall NCAA appearance (2018, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2011) and fifth under Beausoleil.
Keystone punched its NCAA ticket by winning the Colonial States Athletic Conference Championship on May 15. The Giants went 4-0 in the tournament to earn their 12th straight CSAC title and are making their 13th NCAA appearance.
The game will mark the second postseason meeting between the two programs. Mitchell and Keystone last clashed in the 2018 NCAA regionals, with the Giants pulling out a 3-2 victory in 11 innings at Clark University's Granger Athletic Complex.
2021 NCAA Division III Baseball Auburn, N.Y. Regional
1. Eastern Connecticut State University (32-6)
2. SUNY Cortland (27-6)
3. Keystone College (21-4)
4. Mitchell College (25-7)
5. Tufts University (12-6)
6. Merchant Marine Academy (16-3)
Thursday, May 27
Game 1: (#1 seed) Eastern Connecticut State (32-6) vs. (#6 seed) Merchant Marine Academy (16-3), 11 a.m.
Game 2: (#2 seed) Cortland (27-6) vs. (#5 seed) Tufts (12-6), 2:30 p.m.
Game 3: (#3 seed) Keystone (21-4) vs. (#4 seed) Mitchell (25-7), 6 p.m.
Friday, May 28
Game 4: Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2, 11 a.m.
Game 5: Winner Game 1 vs. Loser Game 3, 2:30 p.m.
Game 6: Winner Game 2 vs. Winner Game 3, 6 p.m.
Note: Spectators will be allowed, up to 1,400 people (50 percent of Falcon Park's capacity). Temperature checks will be conducted at the gate, and while masks are not required, fans are asked to bring them and also maintain proper social distancing. Ticket prices are $3 per day (cash only).
