Erie, Pa. - Mercyhurst baseball begins their run in the NCAA Tournament this Thursday, May 18th, when they take on East Stroudsburg in the first round of the Atlantic Regional on the campus of Seton Hill. After a successful regular season, the Lakers hope to bring some momentum into the postseason and make a deep run into May.
1. A Look Back
Mercyhurst is 28-15 to this point in the season and finished with a mark of 21-7 in conference play for their most wins in the PSAC since 2017. The team finished with three All-PSAC honorees in Jarrett Heilman, Eric Chorba, and Zachary Kourous with Heilman adding on, winning the PSAC West Pitcher of the Year distinction to become the 10th Laker to do so.
2. Short History
The Lakers have only seen East Stroudsburg on eight other occasions with their last meeting being in PSAC Tournament in 2022 when the Warriors won 5-0. Mercyhurst owns the all-time series with a record of 5-3 against their counterpart, winning three straight prior to the loss last season. Coach Spano and company saw their biggest victory against ESU come in 2017 in the PSAC Tournament when they defeated their counterpart 14-0, hoping for similar success this time around.
3. Getting Hot
In the Laker's last game, catcher John Susnik finished 3-4 with a trio of extra-base hits including two doubles and a home run with four RBIs on the day. The native of Willoughby, Oh. has heated up at the dish here in the last few weeks, going 9-25 in his last 10 games for a .360 batting average with six of those hits going for extra bases as he's hit three home runs and three doubles. The Laker backstop has found his groove at the right time to help anchor the middle of his team's order and make a deep run into the postseason.
4. Scouting the Warriors
East Stroudsburg is 35-12 on the season overall, finishing with a 16-8 mark in the PSAC to finish second in the East. They finished fourth in the PSAC in on-base percentage with a mark of .402 while being the top squad in stolen bases with 175 on the season in 207 attempts for an 84.5 success rate, making the game on the base paths imperative. The Warriors have three players that have stolen 30 or more bases so they'll look to make an impact on the bases with multiple players. Chase Nowak has been the team's ace, owning a 2.10 ERA in 77 innings with a 1.10 WHIP and allowing a .215 batting average, making him someone the Lakers hope to avoid.
5. What's Next
Mercyhurst will play the next day at either 11:00 a.m. or 2:30 p.m. depending on the results of day one once again at the Seton Hill Baseball Complex in Greensburg, Pa.
