NCAA RELEASE

INDIANAPOLIS—Bethel University's baseball team won their first-ever MIAC Playoffs on Sunday afternoon and as a result, the Royals (32-9) received the conference's automatic bid to the 2018 NCAA Division III Baseball Championship. The NCAA Tournament berth is BU's first in program history.
 
Bethel was placed in the Duluth regional, along with Concordia-Chicago, North Central (IL), UW-Oshkosh, Dubuque, and Bethany Lutheran. The Royals will begin the tournament with a 7 p.m. game against UW-Oshkosh on Thursday, May 17 at Wade Stadium in Duluth, Minn.
 
Tournament Website | Live stats | Live Video | Wade Stadium | Regional Bracket (PDF)
 

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NCAA TOURNAMENT NOTES
 
First for everything
Bethel is making their first trip to the NCAA Division III Baseball Tournament after being crowned MIAC playoff champions for the first time in program history. The Royals edged St. Thomas in the opening round of the tournament by a final score of 5-4 thanks to a walk-off walk in the bottom of the 10th inning. They then knocked off top-seeded Saint John's 3-2 in the semifinals and then again in the finals by a final score of 8-0.
 
New milestones
2018 marks the third time in the last four years that Bethel has reached the 30-win plateau. The Royals first eclipsed 30 wins in 2015 when they won their first-ever MIAC regular-season title with a 30-9 record. BU went 33-10 in 2017 when winning their second regular-season crown and then 32-9 in 2018 when winning their first-ever MIAC tournament. Bethel is 114-47 (.708) since 2015, the best four-year mark in program history.
 
Pitching prowess
Bethel's pitching staff has put together an unprecedented season. Collectively, the Royals have a 1.80 earned run average (ERA) over the course of the entire 2018 campaign, which ranks No. 1 among all NCAA baseball teams—regardless of division. In fact, BU is the only program across the country with an ERA lower than 2.49. The Royals also rank No. 1 among all Division III teams in WHIP (1.04), No.3 in hits allowed per nine innings (7.12), No. 4 in shutouts (8) and walks allowed per nine innings pitched (2.28), and No. 9 in strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.98).
 
Defense wins championships
Bethel's pitchers have been blessed with a great defense behind them. The Royals have posted a .975 fielding percentage, which ranks No. 6 among all NCAA Division III teams. This year's fielding percentage is the second-best in program history, only behind last season's mark of .980, which ranks No. 2 all-time among all NCAA Division III baseball teams.
 
Bethel in the box
Bethel is hitting .318 as a team this season. The Royals boast seven players hitting .300 or better, including centerfielder Sam Horner (.369), who leads the team in hits (55), designated hitter John Leach (.363), who is tied for the team lead in doubles (10), and catcher Austin Ledin (.336), who leads the team in home runs (9) and total bases (86). BU has also posted a .394 on-base percentage and a .450 slugging percentage.

Three is the magic number
Bethel's magic number during the 2018 season is three. The Royals are 31-0 when scoring three or more runs in any contest, but they are just 1-9 when scoring less than three runs. Interestingly, BU is also 15-0 when scoring in the first inning.
  
Marsh is money
Closer Jake Marsh has had a memorable sophomore season. The right-handed reliever has gone 3-1 with a 0.63 ERA in 28.2 innings pitched and 18 relief appearances. He's earned nine saves this season, which ranks No. 10 among all NCAA Division III pitchers and No. 1 in the MIAC. Along with his seven saves last season, Marsh's 16 career saves breaks Bethel's all-time record, which was previously 14 set between 2006-09. Marsh, who recorded a 21-to-3 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 2018, tallied a win and a save in 3.2 innings of work during the MIAC Playoffs.

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TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE (FOUR DAYS)
 
Thursday, May 17, 2018
Game 1 | 11:00 am — #1 Concordia Chicago def. #6 Bethany Lutheran 13-12 
Game 2 | 3:00 pm — #2 North Central def. #5 Dubuque 8-7
Game 3 | 7:00 pm — #3  UW-Oshkosh vs. #4 Bethel
 
Friday, May 18, 2018
Game 4 | 11:00 am — Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2
Game 5 | 3:00 pm — Winner Game 1 vs. Loser Game 3
Game 6 | 7:00 pm — Winner Game 2 vs. Winner Game 3
 
Saturday, May 19, 2018
If four teams remain after Game 6, the following procedure will be observed:
Game 7 | 11:00 am — Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6
Game 8 | 3:00 pm — Winner Game 4 vs. Loser Game 6
Game 9 | 7:00 pm  — Loser Game 7 vs. Winner Game 8
Game 10 | Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 9
Game 11 | If necessary, same teams as in Game 10
 
If five teams remain after Game 6, the following procedure will be observed:
Game 7 | Loser Game 5 vs. Loser Game 6
Game 8 | Winner Game 4 vs. Winner Game 5
Game 9 | Winner Game 6 vs. Winner Game 7
 
Sunday, May 20, 2018
If two teams remain after Game 9, the following procedure will be observed:
Game 10 | Winner Game 8 vs. Winner Game 9
Game 11 | If necessary, same teams as in Game 10
 
If three teams remain after Game 9, the following procedure will be observed:
Game 10 | 12:00 pm — Winner Game 8 vs. Loser Game 9
Game 11 | 3:30 pm  — Winner Game 9 vs. Winner Game 10