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2021 NCAC Baseball Championship
Thursday-Friday, May 20-21
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| Thursday, May 20 |
Friday, May 21 |
| Game 1: Denison 5, Wooster 4 (13 inn.) - Box Score | Photos |
Game 3: Denison 10, Wooster 5 - Box Score | Photos |
| Game 2: Wooster 7, Denison 6 (10 inn.) - Box Score | Photos |
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Directions -- History
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GAME THREE
The Denison Big Red (23-11) captured the 2021 North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) baseball championship with a 10-5 victory over Wooster on Friday at Art Murray Field in Wooster, Ohio. The NCAC Championship was the first in program history for the Big Red, and second NCAC tournament title after winning the first in 2019.
Wooster (25-13) was first to dent the scoreboard, as junior Tyler Chumita (Hilliard, OH/Hilliard Darby) hit a two-run ground-rule double in the top of the third inning. Denison responded in the bottom of the inning as senior Will Krushena (Bloomfield Hills, IL/Highland Park) yanked a three-run home run to left-center, scoring Max Lahn (Charlotte, NC/Providence Day School) and Brian McAuliffe (Tuckahoe, NY/Fordham Prep).
The Big Red extended their lead to 5-2 in the fifth inning as senior outfielder Ty Robinson (Hoover, AL/Hoover) played long ball, hitting a two-run shot to right field. The Red and White followed with a three-run sixth inning and a McAuliffe blast in the seventh made the Denison lead 10-2.
Wooster tried to mount a ninth-inning comeback as Ben Gbur (Hilliard, OH/Hilliard Darby) collected a two-RBI single, followed by a Ben Hines (Farmington, MN/Lakeville South) RBI single. The Fighting Scots' couldn't complete the comeback, however, falling 10-5.
Denison senior pitcher Jack Arnstein (Highland Park, IL/Highland Park) was named the Most Valuable Player of the Championship Series after pitching nine innings between Thursday and Friday's games. In game one on Thursday, Arnstein picked up the pitching victory after throwing six scoreless innings in the back half of the game. On Friday, he pitched the final three innings, picking up a save for the Big Red.
As NCAC champions, Denison has earned the league's automatic bid into the 2021 NCAA Division III Baseball Championship. The NCAA Division III bracket will be revealed on Sunday, May 23 by 11:59 p.m. via press release on NCAA.com. The Division III Baseball Championship is June 4-9 at Perfect Game Field at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
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GAMES ONE & TWO
Denison and Wooster split the first two games of the NCAC Championship Series on Thursday at Art Murray Field in Wooster, Ohio. Denison posted a 5-4 13-inning victory in game one, while Wooster collected a 7-6 10-inning thriller in game two. The decisive game three of the NCAC Championship Series will be on Friday, May 21, at 1:30 PM from Art Murray Field.
In game one, the Fighting Scots were first to hang a crooked number on the scoreboard, scoring twice in the top of the first inning. With a couple of runners aboard, Dane Camphausen (McLean, VA/Landon School) doubled down the left-field line, scoring Ben Hines (Farmington, MN/Lakeville South) and Ben Gbur (Hilliard, OH/Hilliard Darby). Denison responded with two runs of their own in the bottom of the inning. Senior Will Krushena (Bloomfield Hills, MI/Detroit Country Day) doubled to the left-center gap, scoring Brian McAuliffe (Tuckahoe, NY/Fordham Prep) and Dylan Hunter (Bethesda, MD/St. John's).
The game stayed deadlocked until the fifth inning when Wooster's Hines cracked a two-run home run to left field, putting the Fighting Scots up, 4-2. Denison got one of those runs back in the sixth inning and tied it in the seventh on a pair of sacrifice flies.
The game went to extra innings knotted at four where the Big Red won it in the 13th inning. With Hunter aboard, McAuliffe doubled down the left-field line, scoring the speedster from first base and giving Denison a 5-4 victory.
The Big Red carried the momentum into game two, scoring first with a two-RBI single by Hunter in the second inning. Denison added its third run in the top of the third inning as Jake Welsch (Glenmoore, PA/Downingtown West) doubled down the line, scoring Krushena.
Wooster responded with a four-run fifth inning, highlighted by a two-run single by Hines, scoring Gbur and Dominic Stilliana (Youngstown, OH/Boardman).
Tied at six, the game went to extra innings where Wooster loaded the bases in the bottom of the 10th as Hines stepped to the plate. With a 3-2 count, the junior outfielder hit a sacrifice fly to center, scoring Stilliana to give the Fighting Scots a 7-6 victory.
The extra-inning tournament games were the first to go past the advertised nine innings since DePauw and Wooster played to 11 innings in game three of the 2016 NCAC Tournament. The Tigers won that extra-innings contest, 10-9.
The winner of the 2021 NCAC Baseball Championship Series will receive the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament. The Division III baseball championship is June 4-9 at Perfect Game Field at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
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Wooster set to Host Denison in NCAC Baseball Championship Series
Wooster and Denison have earned the top seeds from the East and West Divisions, respectively. As the top seeds of each division, the Fighting Scots and Big Red advance to the 2021 NCAC Baseball Championship Series.
Wooster advances to the championship series after compiling a 9-3 East record, while Denison clinched the No. 1 seed in the West after posting an 11-5 record. The two teams split a non-conference four-games series during the regular season, in which the Fighting Scots captured two wins on Saturday, March 27 (11-6, 14-0), and the Big Red claimed two victories on Sunday, March 28 (11-9, 13-8).
The championship series will be hosted by Wooster with two nine-inning games scheduled for Thursday, May 20, with the first pitch slated for 12:00 p.m. Game two will be played 30 minutes after game one. If game three is necessary, a nine-inning game will be played Friday, May 21, at 1:30 p.m. The winner of the championship series will earn the conference's automatic berth into the 2021 NCAA Division III Baseball Tournament.
All-time, Wooster leads the conference with 19 NCAC Championship titles (1985, 1987-88, 1990-91, '95, '98, '02, 2004-06, 2009-10, 2012-13, 2016-19), followed by Ohio Wesleyan with 10 (1986, '89, '92, '94, '96, 2000-01, '03, 2007-08), Allegheny with four (1985, '93, '97, '99) and DePauw (2014), Oberlin (2015) and Wabash (2011) with one championship title apiece.
Spectator Policy
All NCAC championship events will be conducted using the respective campus visitors' policies; at this time, visiting team spectators are not permitted at any NCAC campus. Masking and social distancing policies are also in effect. Failure to comply with protocols will result in removal from campus.
Note: Conference policy will determine the championship field if team availability changes due to COVID 19 protocols prior to the championship series.
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2021 NCAC Baseball Championship Format
The top seeds from the East and West Divisions will advance to a best-of three championship series, which will be hosted by the East Divisional top seed, unless the two schools agree to a change to accommodate facility or campus situations. Teams will play a doubleheader on the first day of play, followed by a single game the next day, if necessary. All games are nine innings.
Spectators will be permitted according to the host institution's campus visitors' policy.
The winner of the best-of three championship series will claim the 2021 NCAC Championship and also earn the conference's automatic berth into the NCAA Division III Tournament.
2021 NCAC Divisions:
East – Allegheny, Hiram, Kenyon, Wooster
West – Denison, DePauw, Ohio Wesleyan, Wabash, Wittenberg