• Millersville qualified for just two NCAA Tournaments from the foundation of the tournament in 1968 to 2010. Now, the Marauders are making their fourth appearance in the last five years and the third in a row. Millersville has been the No. 1 seed in the Atlantic Regional three times in that stretch and enter this season's as the No. 2 seed.
Jon Shehan is the only coach in program history to lead a team to more than two regional appearances. Millersville won the regional in 2000 and most recently in 2011. It is 16-11 all-time in regional play and a perfect 5-0 in opening round games. Millersville has also won at least two games in each of its five previous appearances. One season ago, the Marauders reached the final day of the tournament before falling to Seton Hill.
• All six teams in the field are no strangers to the regional. Mercyhurst is making its fourth appearance since 2009. Seton Hill and Winston-Salem State are in the field for the fifth consecutive year. Winston-Salem State has not won a game in those four previous appearances but Seton Hill went 4-0 and beat Millersville twice to advance to NCAA Championship in 2014. West Chester won the regional on its way to a NCAA Championship in 2012. This is the program's first appearance since that national title and the 12th all-time. West Virginia State pulled off two improbable, extra-inning wins against Shepherd for the Mountain East Championship. The Yellow Jackets lost the first game of their conference tournament and the won five consecutive games. They are in the field for the first time since 2007. Millersville (2000, 2011), Seton Hill (2014), West Chester (2006, 2009, 2012) and West Virginia State (1999, 2005) have all won regional championships.
• Millersville's run to the PSAC Championship was nothing short of impressive. It was the program's first conference tournament win since 1998. The Marauders scored at least seven runs in each of the four games and outscored their opponents 36-10. Starting pitchers
Brandon Miller,
Chris Murphy and
Jim McDade all pitched complete games. The bullpen threw 7.1 shutout innings, allowing just four hits.
• Millersville enters the regional with a 13-game winning streak, which is one away from the program record. Millersville has won nine or more games in a row three times this season with another streak of 13 coming from March 23-April 11. The Marauders have lost back-to-back games just once, and that was in the opening series at Winston-Salem State. Millersville is also just three wins away from the school record of 45. That mark was set by the 2000 club that won a regional title. Millersville has outscored its opponents 132-27 during the current winning streak. It has hit .354 compared to its opponents .176 average and has stolen 31-of-32 bases to its opponents 1-of-3. Millersville's pitching staff owns a 1.96 ERA in that stretch.
KEY TO WINNING REGIONAL• Staying in the winner's bracket is the key to winning the regional. Of the last six regional champions, four went 4-0. Only Shippensburg in 2013 and Kutztown in 2010 managed to lose game one and recover for a regional title. Another key is outstanding pitching. The last six winners have combined to allow just 2.2 runs per game in the regional. Seton Hill gave up just four total runs and shutout Millersville in the final game in 2014. Millersville outscored its opponents 30-12 in its 2011 title run.
THE MATCH-UP• Millersville and West Chester have been dueling at the top of the PSAC East for the last eight years. Since
Jon Shehan took over in 2008, West Chester holds a slight 17-16 lead in the series but Millersville is 15-6 against the rivals since 2011. The clubs split the regular season series this season. Two of the games were decided by one run and the series finale went into extra innings. Millersville out-hit the Golden Rams 32-22 in the series but committed five fielding errors, including three in the two losses. All four games were played at West Chester, and Millersville held leads into the fifth inning in both losses.
Chris Murphy and
Brandon Miller combined for 21 strikeouts in their two starts.
Jim McDade threw 4.2 shutout innings before leaving with an injury.
FROM WALK-ON TO MVP• Second baseman
David Summerfield walked on to the Millersville baseball program in the fall of 2013 and after winning a starting job, he has turned in one of the most impressive seasons in program history. An All-PSAC East First Team selection, Summerfield hit .526 with a homer, eight runs and six RBIs on his way to being named MVP of the PSAC Tournament. Summerfield upped his batting average to .456, which ranks fourth in Division II. Summerfield's average is currently the third-highest in Millersville history and he already has 16 more at bats than anyone else in the top 10 and 37 more than anyone in the top eight. His 78 hits are just two away from the program's single season school record--a mark held by Matt Knox (2000) and
Zach Stone (2013). Summerfield also ranks 24th nationally in hits and on base percentage.
THE IRONMAN• Millersville's own Ironman is
Tyler Orris. Orris has started 164 consecutive games at shortstop since stepping on to campus. The 2014 regional gold glove winner is leading the PSAC in assists for a third season in a row. Orris is one of three Marauders ever to steal 20-plus bases in back-to-back seasons and is just oen run away from setting the single-season record. He is hitting .457 as the leadoff hitter in an inning.
ACE OF THE STAFF•
Chris Murphy entered the season as the only pitcher to win the PSAC East Pitcher of the Year award twice. Now he's won it three times. Despite pitching for just three seasons, Murphy is 32-4 and ranks second in PSAC history in career wins. His .889 winning percentage is second-best all-time. Murphy has won 14 consecutive decisions dating back to April of 2014. That ranks second in PSAC history. Murphy is aiming to be one of just 14 pitchers in PSAC history with no losses over at least six decisions.
MILLER TIME•
Brandon Miller pushed Murphy for the pitcher of the year award. Miller tied with Murphy for the league lead in wins and innings, led the league in complete games and ranked third in strikeouts and batting average against.
• Miller was outstanding in his first PSAC Tournament start, tossing nine shutout innings against California. He struck out 12 and allowed just two hits and a walk. He carried a no-hitter into the sixth. In two career postseason starts, Miller is 2-0 and has not allowed an earned run in 15 innings. Miller has allowed just one earned run over his last 28 innings. He is 4-0 with a 0.32 ERA and 27 strikeouts to three walks in that stretch.
FOR STARTERS• Millersville's top three starters--Murphy, Miller and
Jim McDade--ranked 1, 2, 3 in the PSAC in innings pitched and have combined for 28 wins. The trio won PSAC East Pitcher of the Week honors a combined five times and NCBWA Atlantic Region Pitcher of the Week five times. All three pitched nine innings in the PSAC Tournament. They combined for a 18-1 record with 11 complete games and a 2.64 ERA against the PSAC East.
SLAMMIN' STOLTZFUS•
Dan Stoltzfus had just two career home runs entering his junior season, but he has hit 14 homers this season, tying a school record previously set by Ryan Brink (1998) and Matt Knox (2000). Stoltzfus also drove in eight runs in the PSAC Tournament to set a new program record with 76 RBIs. He is tied for sixth in Division II in RBIs. Stoltzfus' 123 total bases also rank second in program history. While Seton Hill's Nick Sell has already set a new PSAC record for RBIs, Stoltzfus is within four of the previous record of 80 set by Slippery Rock's Craig White in 1989.
