Lancaster, Pa. – (5/6/2024) – With the conclusion of the regular season and league schedules, Conference Commissioner Jessica Huntley has officially released the seeding for the upcoming 2024 Atlantic East Conference (AEC) Baseball Championship Tournament. A 7-11 league record earns Gwynedd Mercy University (14-24, 7-11) the #4 seed and a 3:00 p.m. postseason first-pitch at #1 Marymount University on Wednesday, May 8. As the #2 seed, Cabrini University will host #3 Immaculata University for a 3:00 p.m. contest on the same day.
 
The losers of both contests will meet for the tournament's first elimination game (9:00 a.m.) on Friday, May 10, which will be followed by a contest between Wednesday's winners (12:30 p.m.), and a second elimination game (4:00 p.m.) to determine who plays the tournament's unbeaten team for the AEC Championship on Saturday, May 11 (1:00 p.m./4:30 p.m.); both Friday and Saturday's competitions will take place at Shenandoah University's Kevin Anderson Field at Bridgeforth Stadium (Winchester, VA), while the Griffins' Wednesday afternoon game versus the Saints will take place at Capital One Park in Tysons, Virginia.
 
Gwynedd Mercy University played their AEC series with Marymount University in mid-April with the Saints ranking as the #25 team in the region according to D3Baseball.com. Marymount University swept the April-13 doubleheader (4-1, 7-2) and completed the series with a 15-5, April-14 win over the Griffins. Sophomore catcher Mike Storti (Philadelphia, Pa.) knocked in the only Red and Gold run of the opener with his fourth-inning single to left field (1-2), while a sacrifice fly freshman shortstop Drew Haines (Hammonton, N.J.) and a walk to senior left fielder Nick Price (Levittown, Pa.) plated the two Red and Gold runs in the fourth inning of game two (2-1). In game three, late runs pushed the Saints ahead for the double-digit difference; senior pitcher/infielder Frank Ebling (Cherry Hill, N.J.) knocked in two runs with a double-play ball in the first inning and a double to left center in the third inning, while sophomore outfielder Sam Junker (Ambler, Pa.) was one of three Griffins with multiple hits (2-for-4).

Gwynedd Mercy University makes their first AEC postseason appearance under Head Coach Joe Brooks thanks to a strong senior campaign from Ebling, a superb second season from Junker, and a talented group of newcomers who provided depth to the lineup and some excellent defense on the diamond. Ebling is currently 6-3 (10app-10gs) with a 2.21 earned run average (ERA) over 69.1 innings; he has allowed 17 earned runs on 58 hits and a dozen (12) walks, while striking our 51. Significant innings have also been logged by junior Cooper Root (Runnemede, N.J.) (10app-9gs, 62.2), senior Mitchell Bramsway (Temecula, Calif.) (11-6, 46.0), senior Joe Golden (Churchville, Pa.) (11-0, 26.2), and freshman Patrick Talley (Collingswood, N.J.) (9-6, 24.2).
 
Meanwhile, Junker anchored the Red and Gold lineup with a team-best .386 (49-for-127) batting average and team-high 26 runs-batted-in (RBI). With eight extra-base hits, 17 walks, and seven beanballs, he paired the league's sixth-best batting average with a .480 on-base percentage (OBP) and a .465 slugging percentage (SLG). Ebling and Root were also solid at the plate; the former scored 13 runs and knocked in 19 RBI on a .302 (29-for-96)/.391/.458 (AVG/OBP/SLG) slash line, while the latter scored a team-high 27 runs and plated another 17 on his .297 (38-for-128)/.408/.458 slash line.
 
Please visit GwyneddAthletics.com following Wednesday's contest for updates to the Griffins' postseason schedule.