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PREVIEW | BB | First Appearance in NCAA Tournament Starts Friday Morning for ETBU

5/19/2023 8:41:00 AM

MARSHALL, Texas – History continues to write a new place for East Texas Baptist University baseball as they enter their first NCAA Division III National Tournament. #15/#19 ETBU is hosting the Marshall, Texas Regional at Woods Field opening up the tournament at 11:00 a.m. on Friday morning.
 
"There are three quality programs coming to Marshall, Texas, to play in this regional and they have had great seasons. Historically, they have all done vey well in the NCAA Tournament. We are looking forward to having all of them here to play at Woods Field," said head coach Jared Hood.
 
ETBU opens up their post-season run at 11:00 a.m. on Friday.
 
Below are notes for the tournament.
 
Friday Game
Opponent: California Lutheran University
Record: 28-15 (SCIAC Champion) – automatic berth
Time: 11:00 a.m.
Stadium: Woods Field
Series: First Meeting
 
Cal Lutheran
The Kingsmen are not stranger to the post-season as they have made 15 NCAA West Regional appearances winning the national championship in 2017. They have played in six NCAA World Series and have won back-to-back SCIAC Tournament Championships. They bring a 28-15 record to the post-season and weren't regionally ranked headed into the SCIAC Tournament. They have won eight of their last 10 games. Headed into the SCIAC Tournament, they had dropped two of three to Chapman University but then defeated regionally ranked La Verne, 8-4, and took two from Chapman, 8-3, and 6-2. The Kingsmen are playing great baseball right now and have shown in the past that they are a post-season team.
 
Last year, they played at the Orange, Calif. Regional Tournament going 1-2. They lost to Pomona-Pitzer, 14-6, but then won the elimination game, 9-1, over Pacific. They then fell to Pomona-Pitzer, 7-5, finishing at 30-16.
 
They are led by Zach Lafata at the plate hitting .346 with 53 hits, 40 runs scored, and 26 RBI. Sean Blandino also has 53 hits and is batting .319 with 21 RBI and five home runs. Max Heverly leads the team with 34 RBI and has 47 hits. On the mound, Clay Rickerman has a 2.98 ERA in 27 appearances with a 3-2 record, eight saves, and 34 strikeouts. Luke Wechsler leads the team with 68 strikeouts and is 6-3 with a 3.35 ERA in 13 games started. Chris Torres has started 13 games and is 7-3 with a 3.75 ERA and 48 strikeouts. John Frazier is the third pitcher with 13 starts and is 6-5 with a 3.91 ERA and 48 strikeouts.
 

ETBU vs. California Teams
Cal Lutheran will be only the second California team that ETBU has played and are 2-7 overall vs. Chapman University. Chapman is the only California team ETBU has played with a home-and-home series in 2019 and 2020.
 
Chapman: 2-7 (last meeting – L, 15-13) – lost last five to them
 

ETBU vs. the SCIAC/West Coast Teams
Two teams from the SCIAC are coming to Marshall in Cal Lutheran and Pacific University (Ore.). ETBU has only faced Pacific University (Ore.), twice, in 2018 winning both meetings, 3-1, and 5-4, in Shreveport, La.
 
Other West Coast teams ETBU has faced are Whitworth University and Willamette University. ETBU is 2-4 in those contests. Overall, ETBU is 6-11 vs. West Coast teams vs. Chapman, Pacific, Whitworth, and Willamette.
 
ETBU in National Tournaments
It has been 22 years since ETBU was in a national tournament last playing in the National Christian Collegiate Athletic Association (NCCAA) World Series. They made three appearances in 1999, 2000, and 2001. They were the NCCAA World Series runners-up in 2001 going 30-15 on the year. They are 4-4 overall in the NCCAA National Tournament going 3-1 in 2001.
 
NCCAA World Series Appearance
2001
Faulkner 5, ETBU 4
ETBU 4, Mount Vernon Nazarene 2
ETBU 13, Malone 3
ETBU 3, Gardner Webb 2
 
2000
Olivet Nazarene 6, ETBU 3
Malone 9, ETBU 2
ETBU 6, Indiana Wesleyan 4
 
1999
Hillsdale Baptist 4, ETBU 3
Emmanuel College 3, ETBU 2
 
ASC Post Season Under Jared Hood
In eight ASC post season appearances, ETBU is 22-15 under Jared Hood going 12-5 in the last three seasons. This year, he went 5-1 in the ASC Tournament winning five elimination games to win the program's first-ever ASC Tournament Championship. ETBU has made four ASC Tournament Championship series with three-straight from 2021-2023.
 
2023: 5-1 – ASC Tournament Champions
2022: 4-2 – ASC Tournament runners-up
2021: 3-2 – ASC Tournament runners-up
2019: 2-2
2018: 0-2
2017: 3-2 – ASC Tournament runners-up
2016: 3-2
2015: 2-2
Total: 22-15
 
ETBU in the NCAA
ETBU is in eight NCAA categories ranked in the top 20. They lead the nation in doubles with 116 and are second in home runs at 70. Rounding out the top five, they are fourth in runs scored at 435.
 
Individually, Ben Lea leads the nation in home runs (22) and total bases (148). He is also third in slugging percentage (.974). Sayers Collins is second in the nation in strikeouts with 113. Brett Wagner is then 11th in RBI with 60.
 
Team
Doubles – T-1st (116)
Home Runs – 2nd (70)
Runs – T-4th (435)
Slugging Percentage – 6th (.565)
Home Runs Per Game – 6th (1.52)
Hits  - 11th (520)
Batting Average – 19th (.338)
Scoring – 19th (9.5)
ERA – 48th (4.37)
 
Ben Lea
Home Runs – 1st (22)
Total Bases – 1st (148)
Slugging Percentage  - 3rd (.974)
Runs – 27th (57)

Brett Wagner
RBI – 11th (60)
Home Runs – 29th (13)
 
Sayers Collins
Strikeouts – 2nd (113)
 

ETBU in National Polls
ETBU is currently in two NCAA Division III National Polls being 15th in one and 19th in the other. ETBU fell one spot to 15th in an off week in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper poll and moved up three spots in the D3baseball.com poll. This is the sixth week in a row to be ranked in the CBN poll and second week in the D3baseball.com.
 
CBN Poll
American Baseball Coaches Assn.
NCAA Div. 3 Baseball Poll
(As of May 16, 2023)
Rank Team (2023 Record) Points PVS
1. Johns Hopkins, MD (39-4) 598 1
2. Salisbury, MD (30-5) 559 3
3. Lynchburg, VA (38-6) 533 5
4. Shenandoah, VA (38-7) 523 2
5. Birmingham-Southern, AL (36-9) 508 4
6. Denison, OH (34-8) 489 7
7. Aurora, IL (39-4) 476 10
8. Endicott, MA (39-6) 468 6
9. Wheaton, MA (37-6) 426 11
10. Baldwin Wallace, OH (31-10) 376 8
11. Christopher Newport, VA (31-9) 374 9
12. Wisconsin-La Crosse (31-9) 354 15
13. Marietta, OH (34-11) 352 12
14. Salve Regina, R.I. (37-8-1) 349 13
15. East Texas Baptist (35-11) 304 14
16. Eastern Connecticut St. (34-10) 261 18
17. Tufts, MA (31-9) 256 23
18. Augustana, IL (38-7) 245 20
19. N.C. Wesleyan (35-8) 235 22
20. Wisconsin-Stevens Point (29-11) 190 17
21. Randolph-Macon, VA (31-13) 184 16
22. Buena Vista, IA (30-9) 145 19
23. Cortland St., N.Y. (32-11) 144 24
24. Rowan, N.J. (30-13) 125 25
25. Misericordia, PA (33-12) 109 26
26. Arcadia, PA (32-12) 90 RV
27. Mitchell, CT (31-8) 87 27
28. Elizabethtown, PA (31-11) 75 28
29. Claremont, CA (28-11) 60 21
30. Wisconsin-Whitewater (30-13) 52 29
Also Receiving Votes: Webster, MO (48), Emory, GA (45), Spalding, KY (38), Pacific, OR (32), Penn State Harrisburg (28), La Verne, CA (27), Lewis & Clark, OR (25), St. John Fisher, N.Y. (24), Trinity, TX (23), Middlebury, VT (11), Case Western Reserve, OH (10), Bethel, MN (9), Catholic, D.C. (7), Cal. Lutheran (6), Ithaca, N.Y. (5), John Carroll, OH (5), Montclair St., N.J. (4), Washington & Jefferson, PA (2), Immaculata, PA (1), Mary Washington, VA (1).
 
2023 D3baseball.com/NCBWA Top 25, Week 12
Through the end of the Regular Season
# School (1st votes) Rec Pts Prev.
1 Johns Hopkins (23) 39-4 622 1
2 Salisbury (2) 30-5 583 3
3 Shenandoah 38-7 549 2
4 Endicott 39-6 546 4
5 Aurora 39-4 514 6
6 Lynchburg 38-6 510 5
7 Birmingham-Southern 36-9 454 7
8 Wheaton (Mass.) 37-6 441 8
9 Denison 34-8 402 11
10 Christopher Newport 31-9 365 10
11 Marietta 34-11 351 12
12 Baldwin Wallace 31-10 331 9
13 UW-La Crosse 31-9 328 15
14 Eastern Connecticut 34-10 277 14
15 UW-Stevens Point 29-11 240 13
16 Salve Regina 37-8-1 215 18
17 Augustana 38-7 204 17
18 North Carolina Wesleyan 35-8 187 20
19 East Texas Baptist 35-11 150 22
20 Randolph-Macon 31-13 128 16
21 Arcadia 32-12 123 rv
22 Cortland 32-11 102 25
23 Rowan 30-13 74 24
24 Buena Vista 30-9 68 23
25 Catholic 26-11 57 21
Dropped out: No. 19. Claremont-Mudd-Scripts.
Others receiving votes: UW-Whitewater 37, Misericordia 32, Tufts 29, Claremont-Mudd-Scripts 23, Penn St.-Harrisburg 23, La Verne 18, Rhode Island College 17, Cal Lutheran 17, Webster 12, UW-Oshkosh 11, Trinity (Texas) 11, St. Joseph's (L.I.) 11, Mitchell 10, Elizabethtown 8, Ithaca 7, Roanoke 7, Methodist 6, Lewis & Clark 4, Emory 3, Bethel (Minn.) 3, Case Western 3, John Carroll 3, Mary Washington 1, Pacific 1.
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