With most conferences wrapping up their regular season schedules, here's a look at how some of the local Division-III clubs stand as the postseason inches closer.
Ryan McCarty deserves to be on a Wheaties box. The Penn State Abington (30-9, 16-4) star could win the D-III Triple Crown with 27 homers, 85 RBIs, and a .552 batting average. He tied the NCAA Division III single-game record for most home runs as he belted four in Game Two on Saturday as the Nittany Lions recorded a three-game sweep over Gallaudet University in the final United East Conference (UEC) doubleheader of the season.
McCarty, Penn State Abington, and head coach David Miller deserve more attention as Selection Day approaches.
What's next: United East Conference Tourney vs. Lancaster Bible on Friday.
Widener split a doubleheader with Hood over the weekend, earning the club the fourth seed in the MAC Commonwealth Tournament. The Pride finished the regular season with a 20-18 record and a 9-7 mark in MAC Commonwealth play to qualify for the conference tournament for the ninth time in 10 seasons.
What's next: MAC Commonwealth Quarterfinal vs. Messiah on Tuesday.
Swarthmore overcame a rough start to the season and now enter the Centennial Conference postseason as the No. 1 seed. The club split a weekend series with Franklin & Marshal to earn the top spot. The Garnett will host the tourney starting later this week.
What's next: Centennial Conference Tourney vs. Johns Hopkins on Thursday.
Arcadia set a program record with 34 wins following a weekend sweep of DeSales. The Knights, currently ranked No. 5/8 in the nation, concluded the regular season 19-2 on league play and 34-6 overall.
What's next: The Knights are the No. 1 seed in the in the upcoming MAC Freedom Championship and host DeSales, the No. 4 seed, in a best-of-three series starting on Friday.
Cairn played tight with Division-I Lehigh on Thursday before falling 9-4. The Highlanders have already clinched a CSAC postseason berth and their 25 wins marks a program record.
What's next: The Highlanders face Cabrini in a non-conference matchup on Tuesday. The CSAC tourney opens this weekend with Cairn facing Keystone on Friday.
Cabrini, Immaculata, and Gwynedd Mercy all appear to have secured spots in the Atlantic East Conference tourney that opens next weekend. That picture will become clear later this week.