2018 SLIAC Baseball Tournament Preview

Overall Record: 20-18
SLIAC Record: 13-9
Tournament Trips: 17
Tournament Titles: 2
Last Title:2017

Greenville University 'PANTHERS'

Facing must-win games on the final weekend the Panthers came through and will be making their 5th consecutive tournament trip. The Panthers hit just 12 home runs this spring but ranked 4th in the league with a .299 team batting average and managed to score 232 runs. Austin Marsh leads the team with a .388 average and ranked second on the team with three home runs while driving in 27. Last year's SLIAC Player of the Year, Travis Ralls, hit 340 with two home runs and 26 RBI while also swiping 12 bases. The 2017 SLIAC Tournament MVP Jesse Getz hit .280 with 14 RBI and 11 stolen bases. Their pitching staff holds a 5.65 earned-run average and they ranked 3rd with three shutouts. Bryce Pearce led the team with 5 wins while holding a 3.98 earned-run average and finishing with 47 strikeouts. Jonah Moore led the team with 51 strikeouts and was second on the team in innings pitched. Sam Alender and Adam Lamb also topped 40 innings pitched. 

Spalding University 'GOLDEN EAGLES'

Spalding recorded 30 wins in a season for just the second time since joining the SLIAC, going 30-10 this year and winning the East Division. The Golden Eagles led the conference in nearly every offensive category including runs (333), average (.327), and home runs (37) while also finishing 2nd in stolen bases (85). Pacing their potent attack is sophomore outfielder Garrett Wilson. Wilson hit .453 with 27 RBI and 32 stolen bases from his leadoff spot. Eric Meyer (.404) makes Spalding the only team in the conference with multiple players hitting above .400 this spring. Clay Kelly is there to clear the bases hitting .395 with 5 home runs and a conference-best 48 RBI. The Spalding pitching staff is anchored by All-American Jimi Keating. Keating was 8-1 this year with a 2.40 E.R.A. and 95 strikeouts. Jack Parisi tallied five wins for Spalding while averaging more than 10 strikeouts per nine innings and Hayden Davenport joins the duo in having thrown at least 50 innings this year. 

Webster University 'GORLOKS'

The Gorloks extended their conference record by grabbing their 12th straight regular season title. The Gorloks 20 conference wins this season mark the first time a team has reached that milestone since the conference went to divisional play in 2014. Ranking 2nd in average (.322) and 1st in team E.R.A. (3.21) the Gorloks enter the tournament having won 19 straight games. Sophomore Kyler Kent is hitting .425 while hitting 6 home runs and driving in 35. Youth continues down the lineup as freshman Ben Swords is hitting .371 with 32 RBI and sophomore Adam Lovell is hitting .352 with 16 stolen bases. In fact, the Gorloks have five players in double figures in stolen bases this year. Matt Mulhearn turned in some ace numbers as a sophomore, going 8-2 with a 2.32 earned-run average and 67 strikeouts. Fellow sophomore Shane Donovan was 6-0 with a 1.88 E.R.A. while senior C.J. Lee was second on the team in innings pitched. 

Westminster College 'BLUE JAYS'

Westminster has won seven straight and finished the season with the second most home runs in the league (31) while hitting .311 as a team. Nick Bohlmann leads the Blue Jays with a .408 average, driving in 20 and tallying 10 stolen bases. Blake Strebler hit .371 with 5 home runs and 22 RBI while freshman Ryan Clavin burst onto the scene with a .336 average and 34 RBI while tying for the SLIAC lead with 8 home runs. Clavin not only made his name known at the plate but also worked 42 innings off the mound, finishing with 5 wins and a 4.46 E.R.A. Ian Cassidy went 7-2 this spring to lead the Blue Jays rotation. He finished with six complete games while striking out 63 in 68 innings pitched and holding a 3.54 earned-run average. Brothers Alex and Skyler Dickneite each threw over 40 innings and recorded over 30 strikeouts this season.