Denison Baseball Captures Second-Straight NCAA Super Regional Title

5/23/2026 10:30:14 PM

GRANVILLE, OH – Denison (45-1) claimed an 8-7 victory over Piedmont (33-15) in game two of the NCAA Division III Baseball Super Regionals. The Big Red now advance into the 2026 NCAA Baseball Championship Series for the second-consecutive time in program history.

The 2026 NCAA Division III Baseball Championship will be held at Classic Auto Group Park in Eastlake, Ohio May 29 - June 4 and will be hosted by the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission, Lake County Captains and the North Coast Athletic Conference.

Game 2: Denison 8, Piedmont 7

Denison erased an early two-run deficit, broke the game open with a four-run fifth inning, and held off a late three-run rally to defeat Piedmont 8-7.
Piedmont jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first, stringing together a pair of hit batters, a sacrifice bunt, an RBI single, an RBI fielder's choice, and a double to push across two runs.
The Big Red answered in the top of the third. Andrew Fazio (Minneapolis, MN/Southwest Minneapolis) and Nate Lloyd (Oakwood, OH/Oakwood) worked back-to-back walks, and Cade Nowik (Lake Forest, IL/Lake Forest) moved them up with a sacrifice bunt. Eron Vega (Evanston, IL/Evanston Township) tied the score on a sacrifice fly to center to bring home Fazio, and Jack Lutte (Venetia, PA/Peters Township) followed with an RBI single to right field to plate Lloyd and even the game at 2-2.
Denison took the lead in the top of the fourth. Jack Rollo (Chesterfield, MO/Mary Institute and Saint Louis Country Day School) and Kelly Crittenberger (McLean, VA/Potomac School) opened the inning with singles, and Fazio worked another walk to load the bases. Lloyd lifted a sacrifice fly to left field to score Rollo for a 3-2 advantage.
Piedmont answered with a run in the bottom of the fourth on a bases-loaded fielder's choice to tie the game at 3-3, but Ryan Paganelis (Batavia, IL/Marmion Academy) entered in relief and picked off a runner at second base to end the inning and keep the score tied.
The Big Red took control with a four-run top of the fifth. Erik Sundgren (Pittsburgh, PA/North Allegheny) and Max Fishbein (Atlanta, GA/Druid Hills) singled to put runners on the corners with two outs, and Rollo doubled to right center to drive in both runners for a 5-3 lead. Crittenberger drew a walk, and after a pitching change, Fazio reached on a fielder's choice to score Rollo. Lloyd capped the rally with an RBI double down the left field line to bring in Crittenberger and push the lead to 7-3.
Piedmont got a run back in the bottom of the fifth on another bases-loaded fielder's choice to make it 7-4 and Denison added an insurance run in the top of the sixth. Vega was hit by a pitch, Lutte singled to put runners at the corners, and Sundgren reached on a fielder's choice to score Vega for an 8-4 lead.
Piedmont mounted a late rally in the bottom of the ninth, opening the inning with back-to-back doubles to cut the lead to 8-5. Devin Parker (Lewis Center, OH/Olentangy Orange) entered with one out and Piedmont brought home two more runs on an RBI single and an RBI groundout, but Parker recorded the final out to seal the 8-7 win.
Robbie Lee (Washington, DC/Landon School) made the start for Denison, working 3.2 innings and allowing three earned runs on four hits with one strikeout. Paganelis worked 0.2 innings of scoreless relief, capped by the pickoff of a Piedmont runner at second base to end the fourth. Rollo took over on the mound in the fifth and worked four innings of relief, striking out three and holding Piedmont scoreless across the sixth, seventh, and eighth innings. Parker recorded the final two outs to close out the win.
Rollo led the offense in a two-way performance, finishing 3-for-4 with two RBI and a double, his ninth of the season. Lloyd added two hits, two RBI, and a double of his own, his eighth of the year. Fishbein and Crittenberger each contributed two hits, and Lutte also collected two hits and an RBI. Fazio reached base three times via two walks and scored once while driving in another run. The Big Red drew five walks and produced 13 hits in the win.

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