GRANVILLE, Ohio- The NCAA announced the field for the 2021 Division III Baseball Regionals and Denison University will travel to Decatur, Illinois for a six-team double elimination regional beginning on Thursday, May 27 and continuing through Sunday, May 30. Denison will face the host, Millikin University, in the opening game at 5 p.m. EDT (4 p.m. CDT)Â on May 27 (the game time was changed on Wednesday due to an unfavorable weather forecast).
This is Denison's third consecutive NCAA Regional appearance and the third appearance in program history. The Big Red enter the postseason with a record of 23-11. On Friday, Denison defeated the College of Wooster in the best two-out-of-three NCAC Championship Series.
Joining Denison at the Decatur regional will be top-seeded Washington University-St. Louis and No. 2 seeded Webster University. Denison is the No. 3 seed followed by No. 4 Millikin, No. 5 Transylvania, and No. 6 Illinois College.
How to Follow: Millikin University will provide
live video and
live stats for all games at the regional.
Denison is making its third consecutive NCAA Regional Tournament appearance. The Big Red played in the Holly Springs, North Carolina regional in 2018 and appeared at the Adrian, Michigan regional in 2019. Denison is 1-4 all-time in NCAA Tournament play.
Call Him Skip: Denison is led by ninth year head coach
Mike Deegan. He is the program's all-time leader in wins at 220-117 (.653) and was recently named the NCAC Coach of the Year for the third time in his career. Deegan is a former assistant coach and player at perennial Division III power Marietta College. He is a member of the Marietta Athletics Hall of Fame. He has also authored a book titled "Let it Rip" that focuses on personal development and leadership. It is available for purchase on Amazon.
Bash Brothers: Denison seniors
Brian McAuliffe and
Will Krushena are two of the most dangerous hitters in all of Division III. McAuliffe became the program's career leader in home runs (29) and runs batted in (154) this season. Krushena is right behind his teammate with 150 career RBI and his 49 doubles are just six shy of the DU record.
Old Dogs, New Tricks: Despite being fifth-year seniors, Krushena and McAuliffe made position switches in 2021. Krushena spent the majority of his career at first base with McAuliffe manning the hot corner. This year, Krushena made the move to left field while McAuliffe made the switch across the diamond to first base.
Are you Experienced?: Denison has plenty of experience up and down its lineup. McAuliffe, Krushena,
Max Lahn,
Ty Robinson, and
Anthony Ruggieri have combined for 584 games played and 527 starts since 2018. The fivesome have appeared together in 87 percent of Denison's contests over the last four years. McAuliffe needs one more game played to pass Jack Blanchard '18 as the program's career leader in games played. Both have made 160 appearances in a Big Red uniform.
Iron Man: Will Krushena has played and started every game played (134) since the start of the 2018 season. He was an ABCA second team All-American in 2019. That season he posted a program-best 28-game hitting streak and finished the year with a .374 batting average with 69 RBI.
To the Max: Shortstop
Max Lahn is a former all-region selection who is batting .328 with eight doubles and three home runs. Lahn is a .351 career hitter who enjoyed a breakthrough 2019 season that saw him lead the team with a .439 batting average.
Awards Season: Denison placed six players on the All-NCAC first team and swept the Player of the Year and Coach of the Year awards.
Brian McAuliffe was named NCAC Player of the Year and
Charlie Fleming was named Pitcher of the Year while Deegan took home COY honors. McAuliffe,
Max Lahn, Krushena,
Dylan Hunter, Fleming, and
Taylor Perrett were named to the all-conference first-team.
Lynyrd Skynyrd Jones: Hoover, Alabama native
Ty Robinson has roamed the outfield as a regular starter since the 2019 season. This season he has spent most of his time in centerfield. He blasted a pivotal two-run homer to give Denison a 5-2 lead in the fifth inning of the deciding game of the NCAC Championship Series with Wooster.
Power Surge: Denison ranked second in the NCAC and 41
st in Division III in total home runs with 34. The single-season record for home runs is 37 set in 2019. The Big Red have done its damage in 12 less games than 2019.
Big Buck Hunter: Junior
Dylan Hunter has flourished in his first season as a starter. He is batting .361 with five doubles, four home runs, 25 RBI, and a .441 OBP in 27 starts. Hunter has spent most of his time serving as the DH in 2021. He's also been great in the clutch, batting .375 (9-for-25) with two outs.
Don't Sleep on Ruggieri: Senior
Anthony Ruggieri has bounced between second base and third base in 2021 but he's been a staple in the lineup since 2019. With personality-plus, Ruggieri was the subject of the Denison Sports Network's "
Mic'd Up" series in the fall. The Pittsburgh native has made 78 starts and played in 98 games since 2018. He went 5-for-5 in Denison's last NCAA regional game against Adrian in 2019.
Oh Danny Boy: Junior
Danny Alvarez has made 22 starts this season making the majority of his appearances in right field. He is batting .339 with two home runs and 13 RBI. Alvarez has not made and error in 42 total chances and leads outfielders with three assists.
Platoon Time: Denison has been playing a combination of Patrick Neenhan (12 starts),
Owen Wilson (two starts), and
Gavin Thompson (5 starts) at third base while also using
Sam Correa (6 starts) and
Josh Bohn (4 starts) at second base. When Correa or Bohn play second, expect to see Ruggieri at third. When it's Neenhan, Wilson or Thompson at third, it's usually Ruggieri at second.
The Quarterback: Daniel Spencer has started 25 games behind the plate for DU in 2021. He's batting .321 with a .430 OBP.
Charlie Glennon (.242./.455/.325) backs up Spencer behind the dish.
Arnie's Army: Senior reliever
Jack Arnstein was named the MVP of the NCAC Championship Series. He pitched six innings of scoreless relief in Denison's 13-inning victory in game one of the series. Arnstein scattered two hits and two walks while doubling his previous career high for innings pitched in a game. He returned in the third and deciding game the following day to earn a three-inning save. He leads the team with three saves while carrying a 3.49 ERA in a team-high 14 appearances.
Aces High: Denison enters the regional with two pitchers at the top of the rotation in sophomore
Charlie Fleming and senior
Taylor Perrett. Fleming is 6-1 and was named the 2021 NCAC Pitcher of the Year. Perrett boasts a .425 ERA and a 4-2 record in nine starts. He's been the stalwart of the rotation since his rookie year in 2018, throwing a team-high 206.1 innings while going 18-7 with a 3.79 career ERA. Both were first-team All-NCAC selections in 2021.
The Big Lefty: Phil Mickelson isn't the only lefthander having a good week. Denison southpaw
Will McManaman is 3-2 with a 4.38 ERA as the team's No. 3 starter. He led Denison to the game three win over Wooster on Friday by pitching 6.0 innings, scattering seven hits while allowing two earned runs. He's only been hit hard once this season and that came in a 14-0 non-conference loss to Wooster back on March 27. Omit that game and his ERA would be 2.95.
Our Pen: We've already talked about Arnstein's incredible performance in the NCAC Championship so be prepared to see him in more high leverage situations. He will be joined by
Caleb Struewing (1.96 ERA, 14 App., 18.1 IP),
Jarrett Hyder (5.23 ERA, 9 App., 10.1 IP), and
Henry Haack (7.64 ERA, 8 App., 17.2 IP).
Color War: Denison's game one opponent, the Millikin Big Blue, check in with a 31-14 record and are winners of the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) Tournament. Brent Beals is second in the nation with 23 doubles and Caleb Buehrle's 2.10 ERA leads the pitching staff. Frank Bryan leads the offense with a .355 batting average.
The Rest of the Bracket: The winner of the Denison-Millikin opener will play the winner of the Webster-Transylvania first round game. Webster is ranked No. 3 in the most recent D3baseball.com Top-25 poll and is 35-6. Transy checks into the postseason with a 31-10 record. The top of the bracket features the No. 1 ranked team in Division III, WashU (28-3), against Illinois College (21-17). The Bears are making its 13
th NCAA Tournament appearance.
Denison University Baseball Quick Facts
Location: Granville, Ohio
Founded: 1831
Colors: Red and White
Nickname: Big Red
Conference Affiliation: North Coast (NCAC)
Enrollment: 2,300 undergraduates (on-campus)
President: Dr. Adam Weinberg
Associate Vice President and Director of Athletics:
Nan Carney-DeBord '80
Athletics Communications Contact:
Craig Hicks
Website:
https://denisonbigred.com
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