Millersville, Pennsylvania - Millersville University junior pitcher Brandon Miller became the highest draft selection in Marauder history Friday when he was selected by the Seattle Mariners in the sixth round of the MLB First Year Player Draft.

Miller was chosen with the 177th overall pick, topping Jim Todd's 1969 10th-round draft position by four rounds. Todd went on to pitch for three major league clubs. Miller is the fourth player of Coach Jon Shehan's to be drafted and will join Chris Murphy and Tim Mayza to be one of three former Marauders currently pitching in the minor leagues. Miller was also the second Division II player taken in the 2016 draft.

Miller was rated as the No. 188 prospect in the draft according to MLB.com and was named as one of Baseball America's top Division II prospects prior to the season. He expected his name to go off the board early.

"I was watching the draft when I heard my name called," said Miller. "My advisor had told me that Seattle was planning to pick me in the sixth. (The moment) was awesome. It was a once in a lifetime experience."

While he just completed his junior season, Miller is expected to sign. According to the area scout that Miller spoke with following the selection, he is likely headed to the Everett AquaSox, a Class A Short Season affiliate, which plays in the Northwest League.

"I know they took Ryan Uhl (from IUP) last year," said Shehan. "They saw Brandon Miller more than any other team. We've become friends with the area scout through this because he was out a half-dozen times himself. He worked really hard to get Brandon. Seattle is really good with their pitchers. They've developed a bunch of quality arms and are high on PSAC guys."

After winning 12 games as a sophomore with the Marauders in 2015, Miller made a name for himself in the prestigious Cape Cod League. Miller went 4-0 with a 1.50 ERA and was the only non-Division I player named to the season's end league all-star team. He was also the winner of the team's Willard Nichols Most Outstanding Player Award.

He carried that momentum into an historic 2016 season with the Marauders. As the team's ace, Miller was a consensus first team All-American and was a finalist for the Brett Tomko Award. He also won two Atlantic Region pitcher of the year awards.Miller went 12-2 with a 1.42 ERA and 115 strikes while walking just 13 in 107 2/3 innings pitched. He set a Millersville single season record for strikeouts and innings pitched. He led Division II in WHIP, ranked third nationally in ERA, fourth in hits allowed per nine innings and sixth in strikeout-to-walk ratio.

In helping the Marauders to a NCAA Division II runner-up finish, he pitched three consecutive complete games in the NCAA Tournament, allowing just 16 hits, three walks and two earned runs in 27 innings.

"Coach Shehan and Coach (Ryan) Forrest know how to coach and teach the game," said Miller. "(Coach Forrest) helped refine my mechanics because when I came in as a freshman I was all out of whack. He was able to teach me how to throw different pitches. Coach Shehan helped develop maturity in me. They both had a key role in developing me as a pitcher and a man.

"I'd like to thank all the people at Millersville, the players and coaches," said Miller. "They made it one of the best experiences of my life. I will treasure it for the rest of my life."