LATHAM, N.Y. - The United East Baseball season is nearly upon us and this year 14 teams, including two new programs to the conference, will be vying for the United East title. Keystone College battled Penn State Harrisburg last year to earn the crown, but the field is hungry to end the Giant's winning ways. Catch the highlights of all of the programs below.
Find the link to the full United East baseball schedule here: BASEBALL SCHEDULE
Keystone College (34-14, 16-2 UEC)
Keystone has defined success for nearly two decades and are looking to continue that trend into 2025. Head Coach Jamie Shevchik enters his 23rd year and is looking to capture his 20th consecutive conference title. He’ll have plenty of chances to gear up for the conference schedule as the Giants battle with nationally ranked squads such as Washington & Jefferson and last year’s national champions, Misericordia. A slew of All-Conference members return to the lineup including Preseason All-American Darren Hagan, who batted .392 with 69 hits in 2024. That offense will be helped by Jacob Yager who hit just a hair under .400 last season. On the mound, All-Region righty, Sean Brennan, will be the Giants ace.
Coach’s Outlook: “We lost some key components from the 2024 team but we return a good mix of returners and talented additions to the 2025 roster. We're excited to play some new competition within our very competitive conference”
Penn State Harrisburg (35-11, 15-0 UEC)
The Lions made history last season as they became the first United East baseball program to earn an At-Large bid to the NCAA Championship, but are hungry for the automatic qualifier this year. Head Coach Ryan Bown enters his 13th year at the helm and has built a healthy schedule for his team including the nationally-ranked likes of Christopher Newport, Salisbury, Rowan and Johns Hopkins. His own squad, which ranks 21st in the ABCA national preseason poll, will have plenty of firepower though, including Carlos Irizarry whose .350 batting average helped him earn the Player of the Year in 2024. Aiding the offense will be Brendan Henn, who was the 2023 United East Championship MVP. On the bump, Danny Eden will be the ace as he earned All-Region honors just a year ago.
Coach’s Outlook: “The goal every year is to win the conference and advance through Regionals to the World Series.”
Penn State Abington (13-26, 8-7 UEC)
Penn State Abington will have a young program in 2025 but that doesn’t worry 3rd-year coach Joe Dimento. All-Conference Second Teamer Shane Fillman instills some confidence as he held a batting average of .371 while knocking in 37 runs last year. Joining him in the lineup is Jake Fallers, who slashed .330/.464/.484. On the hill, Owen Lynch will be back after finishing with a 3-1 record in 2024. The non-conference schedule will pose some tough challenges as Dimento has scheduled games against Immaculata and nationally-ranked Rowan.
Coach’s Outlook: “We got a young club with a lot to prove. Finishing second in the regular season was a jump from the year prior and we are looking to take the next step forward. We are returning three All-Conference hitters and a slew of new talent that could have us primed for a long postseason run.”
Cairn University (26-17, 14-4 UEC)
The Highlanders made some waves in the postseason last year and look to go even further in 2025. Brett Marks returns for his fourth year as the skipper and will have his team tested as he has scheduled two nationally-ranked opponents in Johns Hopkins University and Salisbury University. The team returns some studs though including Tyler Warr who earned All-Region honors after a Player of the Year nod by the conference. Last year's Rookie of the Year, Michael Gutierrez, will return to the bump for Cairn, coming off a year in which his seven wins set a school record. He’ll be tossing to an All-Region member behind the plate in Zach Bauers.
Coach’s Outlook: “Cairn returns a ton of key talent from their 2024 run that brought them back to a Skye division conference championship game first since 2019. The Highlanders broke multiple records including wins in a season (26) and conference wins (14). They also racked up nearly all postseason awards that included Player, Pitcher, and Coach of the Year honors.
Seniors Tyler Warr, Dylan Jackson, and Will Wikner are all returning after All-Conference campaigns, where Warr was also named 2nd Team All-Region by multiple outlets. Pitcher Brett Bottinger will take on a larger role this year after throwing 24 IP with a 3.75 ERA and only allowing 6 walks in 2024.
Junior All-Region winners Greg Jessup (RHP) and Zach Bauers (C) also return. Bauers has been a constant behind the plate after starting in 85 of 86 games in his young career. Jessup has also found tons of success in his first year on the mound. In 35.2 innings, he held opponents to a .231 BAVG with a 1.77 ERA and 36 K’s.
Sophomores Mikey Gutierrez (RHP), who nabbed Rookie-of-the-Year, and Nathan Schurga (SS) will also assume their roles from last year.
Cairn also brings in a handful of transfers who will fill in the loss of graduates at 2B and in the Outfield. On the mound, they return over 3/4 of their innings. Freshman Josh Smeltzer, who had a stellar fall, will look to find his way either in the lineup or on the mound quickly. With additions to the coaching staff, as well, Cairn has their sights set on a conference championship in 2025.”
Wilson College (20-17, 13-5 UEC)
Wilson produced a 20-win season just a year ago and are looking to add even more this season as head coach Vaughn Parker enters his second year at the helm. The team will have a couple of hefty tune ups before getting into conference play including a battle with McDaniel and Mt. Aloysius. They’ll be plenty of offense in the Phoenix lineup though as Jordan Daphney and Dean Mercer recorded batting averages of .428 and .377 just a year ago. They also will have stud pitcher Dallas Gilbert on the rubber, holding opposing batters to a sub-.220 batting average in 2024.
Coach’s Outlook: “Our expectations are high for the 2025 season. The team’s offseason work ethic was praiseworthy. The talent and leadership of returning players and newcomers is promising. We’re eager to compete. This is an exciting team to watch!”
Rosemont College (11-28, 8-10 UEC)
The Raven program enters its fourth year of existence, meaning this will be the most veteran squad that they have ever started with. Ross Trachtenberg has been the skipper all four years and is looking to take his squad back to the postseason. He’ll battle some other United East squads in non-conference play including Saint Elizabeth and Penn State Brandywine which could pay dividends in a Championship run. Zack Nutley will be the Raven ace as he has piled up 76 punch outs in his career at Rosemont. Offensively, the team will look to seniors Jamen Palladino and Chris Walton, who have combined for 159 hits in their three years.
Coach’s Outlook: “s a fourth year program, we are a senior heavy team. We are looking to build on the success that we had last year making the postseason. We've got a terrific coaching staff, and a new group of younger players that could make an immediate impact on our program. We've added a Junior Varsity program to help our players continue to develop.”
Lancaster Bible College (21-17-1, 7-7-1 UEC)
The Chargers are looking to return to the postseason as they ended last season with a record of 7-7-1 in conference play. Ryan McFarlane is back at the helm in his second year and has plenty of talent to work with. All-Region stud Dylan Witkowski is a two-way player who batted .378 in 2024 while also punching out 47 players from the rubber. Owen Shimmel will work in a similar capacity as he held a 3.09 ERA last year while accruing 13 hits. Andrew Workman will be the ace though, striking out 57 over 53.2 innings of work. A couple of tough regional tune ups will help Lancaster Bible get ready for conference play as the team takes on both McDaniel and Mount Aloysius.
Coach’s Outlook: “We've grown from where we were last spring. As long as guys keep pushing one another, we should be able to make a run this year.”
St. Mary’s College of Maryland (12-20, 7-8 UEC)
It's a veteran squad for the Seahawks as 15 seniors will be on the roster as the team enters the 2025 season. Seniors Cole Tarleton and Trevor Smith are both part of that veteran leadership as they each batted over .380 in 2024. Head Coach Bernie Stratchko is looking to build off a strong finish to last year as he enters his ninth year. He’s added some tough non-conference play to help with the season including battles against Salisbury University and Marymount.
Coach’s Outlook: “St. Mary's is looking to follow up a strong finish in last year's Conference Tournament with a veteran heavy squad featuring 15 seniors.”
Penn College (17-21, 5-10 UEC)
Penn College fielded a young squad in 2024 but that core has grown and are hungry to make noise in 2025. Chris Howard will lead the Wildcats as he enters his 19th year. He’s built a heavy schedule that includes an early matchup against Gettysburg as well as an April showdown against Immaculata. He’ll be looking at two second years for leadership in Dallas Griess and Sam Staib. Griess was named the Rookie of the Year as he maintained a batting average of .389 while Staib picked up a Second Team All-Conference nod as he maintained an ERA of 2.39 over 17 appearances. The squad will also return Nathan Gustkey behind the plate who was out from injury in 2024.
Coach’s Outlook: “After fielding a team with 8-9 freshmen at a time per game in 2024, we are looking to bounce back with a year of experience under our belt. We are looking forward to competing with a roster that is deeper at every position in '25.”
University of Valley Forge (14-23, 6-12 UEC)
Hitting the double-digit win mark for the second-straight season, the Patriots are setting even larger goals in 2025. Head Coach Neil Herman returns for his second season as the UVF skipper and has scheduled some competitive non-conference opponents including games against Eastern and Houghton during spring break. All-Conference member Carlos Terc will play a major role on the base paths as his 43 stolen bases was ranked third in the nation. Zack Haines will aid with the efforts as he led the entire nation in on-base percentage in 2024 as he maintained an OBP of .612. Colin Orndorff will also be a valuable asset as he hit a .399 last year.
Coach’s Outlook: “This is a hungry squad that has put themselves in position to take the next steps forward this season in the hopes to compete and make the playoffs for the first time ever.”
Penn State Berks (7-25-1, 2-12-1 UEC)
Penn State Berks will rely on a young roster to try and get the squad back to the postseason in 2025. Erik Amspacher will lead the squad as he enters his fourth season as the head coach. He’s added some quality competition to the schedule including contests against SUNY Old Westbury and SUNY Plattsburgh to open up the month of March. Offense will be led by Isaiah Dull, who batted .326 in 2024. On the bump, JD Mudri will be the main go-to as he punched out 18 batters in 16 innings last season.
Coach’s Outlook: “We are a very young but talented team. We should have a solid bounce back season.”
Saint Elizabeth University (8-29, 4-14 UEC)
The Eagles will sport a young roster in 2025 with an increase in talent across the board. Daniel Furbeck enters his sixth year as the skipper, looking to bounce his team back into postseason play. He has some stiff competition to open the year including bouts with Drew and Fairleigh-Dickinson. Some of the roster's strength will come from their two-way players including Gabe Castro who maintained a .414 batting average and Trevor Policastro who hit .380.
Coach’s Outlook: “Talent & physicality have improved across the board. Young team has a lot of good underclassmen. 2nd year off of our first ever class re-build.”
Penn State Brandywine (23-15)
Penn State Brandywine is eager to get the season underway as it will be the Lions’ first year playing in both Division III and the United East. Vinny Gallo is the bench captain for the squad, entering his ninth year of work. Last year, his squad posted a record of 23-15 including four wins against DIII teams. Ryan Snyder will lead the offense as he is coming off a year in which he accrued 52 hits with a batting average of .385. Helping him out will be Ryan Brown and Mike DiGirolamo who both had over 35 hits. Brandywine looks to get tested early as they take on Marywood twice in non-conference play as well as Stockton University.
Coach’s Outlook: “ Very excited to be D3, and looking forward to a huge step up in competition. Looking to surprise some people and very excited about the returners we have along with the Transfers/Freshman brought in.”
Notre Dame of Maryland University (First Year Program)
The Gators will enter uncharted territory as the baseball program is set to kick off its inaugural season. Matt Backert will lead, coming in with plenty of experience as he headed the CCBC Dundalk (NJCAA) team the four years prior. Two transfers in Ben Boyer and Tyler Sampson will provide some leadership in the dugout but the Gators are also excited for freshman outfielder Hunter Beil. The squad jumps right in with a tough non-conference schedule that includes contests against Gettysburg, McDaniel and Mary Washington.
Coach’s Outlook: “We are a new program with a team mostly consisting of freshman. We've put together a strong team and while we will be extremely young and inexperienced, I believe we have a competitive group of guys hungry to win.”
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The United East boasts 17 NCAA Division III full member institutions which include: Bryn Athyn College, Cairn University, Cedar Crest College, Gallaudet University, Keystone College, Lancaster Bible College, Notre Dame of Maryland University, Penn College, Penn State Abington, Penn State Berks, Penn State Brandywine, Penn State Harrisburg, Rosemont College, Saint Elizabeth University, St. Mary's College of Maryland, University of Valley Forge, and Wilson College. For more information, please visit gounitedeast.com.