NCAA Division III Championship Bracket

La Crosse, Wis. - The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse baseball team is set to host UW-Stevens Point in the best-of-three 2023 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III Super Regionals.  The Eagles (34-10) and Pointers (32-12) will meet for the first game on Friday, May 26 at noon at Copeland Park. Game two of the best-of-three series is scheduled for Saturday, May 27 at 11 a.m. The third and deciding game, if necessary, will start 45 minutes after the completion of game two. 

The winner of the Super Regional advances to the NCAA Division III Championships June 2-8 at Perfect Game Field at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. 

UWL, making its seventh appearance in the national tournament, advanced to the NCAA III Super Regional after going 3-1 at the NCAA III Regional May 19-21 at Copeland Park. The Eagles opened regional play with a 10-0 victory over Bethany Lutheran College (Minn.) before a 10-5 win over Bethel University (Mnn.) on May 20. Bethel (Minn.) forced a second championship game with a 4-3 win on May 21 before UWL came back to take the regional crown with a 16-3 victory over the Royals.  

UW-Stevens Point advanced to the Super Regional after winning a regional played at the Pointers' Zimmerman Field. UW-Stevens Point also went 3-1 to claim the regional title. After a 6-4 opening round win over Augustana College (Ill.) on May 19, the Pointers earned a 20-1 victory over Webster University (Mo.) on May 20. The Gorlocks of Webster (Mo.) forced a second championship game with a 10-4 win on May 21. UW-Stevens Point earned a 11-5 victory over Webster (Mo.) to win the regional championship.

UWL and UW-Stevens Point split its four-game regular-season series April 7-8 at Copeland Park. The Eagles opened the weekend with a 6-5 victory over the Pointers earned a 14-3 win in seven innings in the nightcap. UW-Stevens Point took the opener, 12-3, on April 8 with UWL winning the nightcap, 12-6. 

UWL, 22-15 all-time in the national tournament, made back-to-back appearances in the NCAA Division III Baseball Championship in 2015 and 2016. UWL made its first ever appearance in the NCAA III Championship in 2015 in Appleton, Wisconsin, advancing to the best-of-three championship series and a runner-up national finish. The Eagles finished 8-4 in the 2015 national tournament and 5-3 in 2016 while advancing to the championships in Appleton.  

Head coach Chris Schwarz has led UWL to six NCAA III appearances. The Eagles won back-to-back NCAA III Midwest Regional titles at Copeland Park in 2015 (5-1 record) and 2016 (4-0).  

UWL went 2-2 in the 1998 regional played at UW-Oshkosh in its first career NCAA Division III Championship.  The Eagles finished 1-2 in 2012 and 0-2 in 2014 with both regionals held at UW-Whitewater. UW-La Crosse advanced to the 2017 regional championship game at UW-Whitewater, falling to Concordia University-Chicago (Ill.) in the title game. The Eagles went 3-2 in the regional.

The Eagles are hitting .330 overall this season with Mac Born leading at .410. He ranks second on the team in RBI (47) and hits (64), third in home runs (8) and fifth in doubles (9). Jack Olver has started all 44 games this year while hitting .365 with a team-high 72 hits, 44 runs and 13 doubles. He is second in home runs (10) and third in RBI (46). Anthony Vivian leads UWL in home runs (17) and RBI (48) and ranks third in runs (39). His 17 home runs are a season-single school record, breaking Born's record of 16 set last season. 
 

UWL, 11-6 at home this year, are 120-44 at Copeland Park since starting to play its home games in 2014. The Eagles are averaging 8.0 runs per game this season, including a season-high 20 in a victory (20-5) at St. Olaf College (Minn.) April 13. UWL scored a school record 37 runs (37-7) against Finlandia University (Minn.) on May 1, 2021. The Eagles have scored at least 10 runs in 16 different games this season, including three of the four games in last week's regional.     

The team has recorded double-digit hits in 30 of 44 contests this season, including in seven of the last nine.  UWL had a season-high 22 hits in its 20-5 victory at St. Olaf College (Minn.) April 13.  The Eagles have 153 extra-base hits this year, including 95 doubles and 57 home runs. The 57 home runs are a single-season school record, breaking the previous mark of 55 in 2022. 

UWL has a 4.10 team earned run average in 2023. The Eagles have five complete-games and recorded four shutouts. The team has eight saves. UWL has recorded 342 strikeouts in 379.2 innings. Isaiah Katz is 7-0 this year with a 2.83 ERA with three complete-games. He leads the team in wins, complete-games, starts (11), shutouts (2), innings (70.0) and strikeouts (64). Tyler Schmitt is 6-2 on the year with a 2.61 ERA while holding opponents to a .191 batting average. He is second for UWL in wins (6) and innings (58.2) while ranking third in strikeouts (49). Caleb Matl leads the team with five saves and 17 appearances. He is 4-1 overall with a 2.17 ERA and holding opponents to a .192 average. 

It's 34 wins this year are tied for third in single-season school history. UWL also won 34 games in 2012. The Eagles won a school record 39 games in 2016 and 36 in 2015. 

UW-Stevens Point is 11-3 on the road this season. The Pointers are hitting .295 overall with Bradley Comer leading at .379 while starting all 44 contests. He leads UW-Stevens Point in hits (67) and RBI (52) while being tied for the team lead in doubles (12) with Payton Nelson and Jakob Boos. Comer is tied for second in home runs (10) with Kamden Oliver. Nelson leads the Pointers in home runs (13) and ranks second in RBI (47) while hitting .313. Brenden Canterbury is hitting .325 with seven home runs, eight doubles and one triple. UW-Stevens Point has hit 66 home runs this year.   

The Pointers have a 3.82 ERA with Casey Pickering leading the team in wins (7), innings (64.1) and starts (11). He is 7-2 overall with a 4.34 ERA. Nick Paulsen is 6-1 with a 2.53 ERA and Mason Weckler is 6-1 with a 4.05 ERA. Paulsen leads the team in strikeouts (53) while Weckler is second in innings (60.0). Sidney Ferry has a team-leading eight saves while going 2-1 with a 3.57 ERA and holding opponents to a .212 average.

2023 NCAA III Super Regional Schedule - Friday, May 26
Game #1 – UW-La Crosse vs. UW-Stevens Point - 12 p.m.

2023 NCAA III Super Regional Schedule - Saturday, May 27
Game #2 – UW-La Crosse vs. UW-Stevens Point - 11 a.m.
Game #3 – if necessary - UW-La Crosse vs. UW-Stevens Point - 45 minutes after completion of Game #2

Tickets are $8.00 per adult and $6.00 per youth/senior/student per day.  The front gate to Copeland Park will open one hour prior to the start of the first game for spectators.