Phil Sedalis takes off after a hit. Sedalis had 5 RBIs in the game versus Catholic. Alliance, OH. Saturday, May 17, 2025. - Photo via Rowan Athletics
No. 15 Rowan baseball (33-10) tied a school-record by scoring 26 runs in their win over the Catholic University Cardinals (29-16) on Saturday, May 17, in their second game of the NCAA Regional tournament at Mount Union University. It was the most runs of offense the Profs scored all season and their win advanced them to the Regional Finals.
The Profs’ hot offense also totaled a season-high 25 hits to go along with their record-tying afternoon. Phil Sedalis and Karson Harcourt led the way with 5 RBIs apiece as each player in the lineup recorded at least one hit.
“We talk about depth, we have depth. There’s a lot of it in our lineup,” Harcourt said.
Rowan’s offensive dominance wouldn’t surface initially as Catholic started off the scoring with a 2-run homer from Mitchel Johnson off of Steven Maiers in the top of the first.
Sedalis responded with a 2-run home run of his own in the bottom of the inning to tie things up. Brayden Davis would also hit a home run a few at-bats later and scored Marco Mannino as the Profs exploded for eight runs to give them a 8-2 lead.
“We poked the bear a little bit and went right back at them. We didn’t stop right there,” Sedalis said.
And that was exactly the case for the Profs, as their eight-run first inning was just a taste for how the tide of this game would flow.
Catholic starting pitcher Roman Tozzi, who posted a 3.60 ERA, was pulled after just one inning in what was his worst performance this season. He gave up a season-high eight earned runs against the Profs, his most since April 19 when he allowed Scranton to score five.
The Cardinals bullpen arms were no match for the red hot bats of Rowan. Despite scoring two more runs in the second to bring them within four, a 12-run response from Rowan in the bottom half of the inning would put things out of reach.
Even with all the offensive outbursts from Rowan, the Cardinals seemed to keep finding ways to answer as they scored nine total runs on the afternoon. Luckily, Dickson says, his teams’ responses were much bigger.
“I’m proud that they were able to battle back when Catholic continued to push us to the limit,” Dickson said. “It shows who we are as a club and it shows who we are as individuals.”
Rowan ran through their lineup twice and led 23-9 in the fourth as the team tied their total runs scored mark in a single-inning this season. The Profs also scored 12 runs in an inning back on April 5 versus Montclair State. They went on to win 21-4 in that New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) matchup.
“I’m proud of the way our offense competed today. To be down in an important winners bracket game and come back just shows the resiliency of this team,” Dickson said. “Obviously, the offense was on point today.”
Once again, Rowan finds themselves competing in a Regional Final, with their eyes set on their first berth to a Super Regional since 2023. They exited in last year’s Regional Final at the expense of Denison, who handed them both of their losses in the 2024 NCAA Regional tournament.
Catholic went on to defeat tournament host Mount Union 10-8 in the losers bracket game following their loss to Rowan Saturday afternoon. Their win advanced the Cardinals to the regional final, where they will face the Profs for the second time in the Regionals.
In what will be a rematch against Rowan on Sunday, May 18, Sedalis says he isn’t worried. His and the team’s mentality continues to remain the same.
“Whoever we play is in our way for our ultimate goal of just playing as long as possible,” Sedalis said. “It’s just another day, so we’re [team] gonna go out and get ready for tomorrow.”
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