Wooster's Streak of Conference Titles Snapped at Four, as Denison Takes Rubber Match of NCAC Championship Series 10-5

The College of Wooster's remarkable run – and the North Coast Athletic Conference all-time record for consecutive baseball championships – came to an end on Friday afternoon, as the Fighting Scots were denied a fifth-straight title by Denison University, which took the winner-take-all game of the NCAC Championship Series 10-5 at Art Murray Field.

Wooster (25-13) scored first in Friday's rubber match, with junior shortstop Tyler Chumita lacing a two-run ground-rule double to left field in the third inning. Junior catcher Alex Gasper led off the inning with his first hit of the championship series, and junior center fielder Ben Gbur's shot down the right field line landed just inside the paint. Junior right fielder Ben Hines, Wooster's top hitter on the week, moved everyone up 90 feet on a sacrifice bunt, prior to the double.

Denison (23-11), which won its second straight NCAC Tournament/Championship Series in the winner-take-all game against Wooster, took the lead in the bottom of the third on left fielder Will Krushena's three-run homer. The longball factored heavily into Denison's success, with center fielder Ty Robinson clubbing a two-run shot for his first dinger of the year in the fifth, and senior first baseman Brian McAuliffe breaking the game wide open with his team-leading 12th round-tripper of the year in the seventh. McAuliffe's dinger made it a 10-2 game.

While the Scots had too big a hole to climb out of, Wooster did make it interesting in the ninth. Senior pinch hitter Noah Clement ripped a single into right center and senior second baseman Gabe Sherman took a pitch the opposite way for a single in his final Art Murray at bat. Later, Gbur hit a two-run single and Hines plated the Scots' final run for his sixth RBI of the championship series.

Both teams finished with 14 hits. Chumita had three of Wooster's, while Gbur, Hines, and Sherman all had two, as did first-year designated hitter Eli Westrick, who finished the championship series with five. First-year Corey Knauf (1-1) allowed three unearned runs in his 2 2/3 innings of work. Sophomore Ryan Sullivan and junior Colin Springer were among the five relief pitchers the Scots used, and they each had a scoreless frame.

One of Wooster's biggest highlights came in the third when junior left fielder Dominic Stilliana laid out for catcher Daniel Spencer's fly ball in the gap. That highlight-reel catch saved two runs, as it marked the final out of the inning.

Krushena went 3-for-5 with four RBI and two runs scored, designated hitter Dylan Hunter went 3-for-4 with two runs, and junior Will McManaman had his best career outing against the Scots. McManaman allowed two runs on seven hits in six innings. Jack Arnstein (save 3) went the rest of the way, allowing three runs on seven hits in three innings with five strikeouts. He was named the NCAC Championship Series MVP, in large part due to his six innings of two-hit shutout relief during Thursday's 13-inning marathon, which was won by Denison 7-6.

By virtue of Friday's win, Denison is the NCAC's automatic qualifier to the NCAA Div. III Regional Tournament. Wooster has to remain hopeful it'll see its name as one of the Pool C (at-large) teams when the national selection committee announces the field late Sunday night (May 23). There are just 48 teams in the tournament this year, as the field size was shrunk with COVID, so just six bids between Pool B and Pool C are available this spring.

Should it be the end of the line for the Scots' 2021 season, this year's senior class – Clement, pitcher Jay DiBacco, pitcher Evan Faxon, pitcher Jack Jones, outfielder Zach Schuch, Sherman, and pitcher Steve Spidell – won 99 games (99-42), captured two NCAC titles, and made two NCAA appearances, with the program advancing to the "Div. III World Series" in 2018.