HADLEY, Mass. – Colby and Middlebury finished as the divisional leaders in the NESCAC Baseball standings and are the top seeds out of the East and West, respectively.
The top four teams in each division qualify for the NESCAC Championship based on the standings from the round-robin divisional play. The eight teams will play a cross-divisional quarterfinal best-of-three series on the campus of the higher seeds on May 4 and 5. The winners from the quarterfinal weekend will advance to the championship weekend, May 10-12, at Tufts University. The NESCAC Champion will receive the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
2023 Championship Recap
In Game 6, the Tufts Jumbos, the top seed in the NESCAC East Division, scored at least one run in seven straight innings en route to a 12-1 win over Middlebury, the No. 2 seed from the West Division, in the 2023 NESCAC Baseball Championship Game at Coombs Field on the campus of Colby College. The Jumbos led 5-0 after three innings and 7-0 after five. Patrick Solomon went 4-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBI to pace Tufts at the plate. The Jumbos knocked out 13 hits and drew 10 walks in the contest. Connor Podeszwa pitched a gem, allowing five hits over 8.2 innings with seven strikeouts.
Championship History
Six programs have won a NESCAC Baseball title since 2001. Tufts leads the way with seven championships (last: 2023). Amherst has claimed five conference crowns, its last in 2021 and Trinity owns four titles (last: 2012). Middlebury won its second title in 2022. Wesleyan (last: 2015) and Williams (last: 2007) join the Panthers with two NESCAC titles.
#1 EAST – Colby Mules
2024 Record: 9-3 NESCAC
NESCAC Tournament Appearances (including this year): 3
NESCAC Finals Appearances: 0
NESCAC Titles Won: 0
Notes: Colby is making three consecutive appearances in the NESCAC Championship for the first time in program history and is the top seed in the East for the first time … The Mules’ 25 wins heading into the regular-season finale versus Plymouth State on May 1 are the most in program history since 2001 … Colby will host West No. 4 seed Wesleyan in the quarterfinal series and rematch of the 2022 NESCAC Quarterfinals which Colby won, 2-0 … The 2024 quarterfinals mark just the second meeting between the teams in the NESCAC postseason.
#2 EAST – Tufts Jumbos
2024 Record: 7-5 NESCAC
NESCAC Tournament Appearances (including this year): 18
NESCAC Finals Appearances: 12 (last: 2023)
NESCAC Titles Won: 7 (last: 2023)
Notes: 2023 NESCAC Champion … Tufts is the No. 2 seed in the East for the first time since 2019 … The Jumbos are making their ninth consecutive appearance in the NESCAC Tournament and 20th overall … Tufts hosts West No. 3 seed Hamilton in the quarterfinal series marking the first meeting between the team in the NESCAC postseason series … The Jumbos have won six straight games entering their regular-season finale versus WPI on May 2.
#3 EAST – Bowdoin Polar Bears
2024 Record: 6-6 NESCAC
NESCAC Tournament Appearances (including this year): 10
NESCAC Finals Appearances: 2 (last: 2012)
NESCAC Titles Won: 0
Notes: Bowdoin is the No. 3 seed in the East for the first time and making its third straight appearance in the NESCAC Tournament and its 10th appearance overall … The Polar Bears travel to Amherst, the No. 2 seed in the West … The teams have played each other six times in the NESCAC postseason, most recently in the 2022 quarterfinals where the Mammoths swept the Polar Bears … Bowdoin looks to make back-to-back trips to the NESCAC Championship Weekend.
#4 EAST – Trinity Bantams
2024 Record: 5-7 NESCAC
NESCAC Tournament Appearances (including this year): 13
NESCAC Finals Appearances: 7 (last: 2016)
NESCAC Titles Won: 4 (last: 2012)
Notes: Trinity is the No. 4 seed in the East for the first time … The Bantams travel to the top seed in the West, Middlebury, for a rematch of last year’s quarterfinals which the Panthers won 2-0 … Trinity looks to advance to the championship weekend for the first time since 2016 … The 2024 quarterfinal series marks the second time the teams will compete against each other in the NESCAC postseason.
#1 WEST – Middlebury Panthers
2024 Record: 9-3 NESCAC
NESCAC Tournament Appearances (including this year): 7
NESCAC Finals Appearances: 5 (last: 2023)
NESCAC Titles Won: 2 (last: 2022)
Notes: 2023 NESCAC Runners-Up … Middlebury has qualified for the NESCAC Championship for the third straight year and is the No. 1 seed in the West for the fourth time in program history … The Panthers will host a quarterfinal series for the third consecutive season when they face Trinity, the No. 3 seed in the East … The series will be a rematch of the 2023 quarterfinals which the Panthers won, 2-0, and just the second meeting in the NESCAC postseason series between the teams.
#2 WEST – Amherst Mammoths
2024 Record: 8-4 NESCAC
NESCAC Tournament Appearances (including this year): 15
NESCAC Finals Appearances: 7 (last: 2021)
NESCAC Titles Won: 5 (last: 2021)
Notes: Amherst is the No. 2 seed in the West for the first time since 2017 … The Mammoths, who have qualified for the NESCAC postseason for the fourth year in a row, host Bowdoin, the No. 3 seed in the East in the quarterfinal series … The matchup is a rematch of the 2022 quarterfinal series that Amherst won, 2-0 … The NESCAC postseason series is knotted at 3-3 overall.
#3 WEST - Hamilton Continentals
2024 Record: 6-6 NESCAC
NESCAC Tournament Appearances (including this year): 3
NESCAC Finals Appearance: 1 (last: 2022)
NESCAC Titles Won: 0
Notes: Hamilton has qualified for its third straight NESCAC Championship and is the West No. 3 seed for the second straight season … The Continentals travel to Tufts, the East No. 2 seed in the first meeting between the teams in the NESCAC postseason … Hamilton has won three its last four and five of its last seven games heading into its regular-season finale versus Utica on April 30 … The Continentals look to get back to the NESCAC Championship game after making their first appearance in program history in 2022.
#4 WEST – Wesleyan Cardinals
2024 Record: 5-7 NESCAC
NESCAC Tournament Appearances (including this year): 12
NESCAC Finals Appearances: 3 (last: 2015)
NESCAC Titles Won: 2 (2014 & 2015)
Notes: Wesleyan has qualified for the NESCAC Championship for the third consecutive season and 12th time overall … The Cardinals will travel to Colby, the top seed in the East, for the quarterfinal series … It will be a rematch of the 2022 NESCAC Quarterfinals that the Mules won, 2-0 … Wesleyan last played in the championship weekend in 2018
