It’s no secret that Wheaton College has built a baseball program with rich history and tradition.
The shortened NEWMAC season didn’t stop the Lyons from writing a lengthy new chapter of their all-time story that included postseason victories over nationally-ranked Babson and Southern Maine for the conference and NCAA Hartford Regional titles, respectively, and ended with another trip to the Division 3 College World Series.
Despite boasting a 21-7 record, Wheaton’s journey ended short of the ultimate goal as it bowed out of title contention following consecutive losses to eventual national champion Salisbury and Cortland in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. On Sunday night, Cortland scored four runs in the ninth inning to eliminate the Lyons, 6-2.
“I have no regrets about anything we did or how we played today,” said 25th-year head coach Eric Podbelski, whose team made its fourth World Series appearance, all since 2006. “We hit a lot of balls really hard and that’s the way the game goes sometimes. We’ve had those days where things have fallen and gone our way for us, but unfortunately (Sunday) wasn’t one of those days.”
