NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP PREVIEW: No. 9/11 Endicott Faces No. 1/1 Denison Wednesday In Game One

June 2, 2026

EASTLAKE, Ohio — The No. 9/11 nationally ranked Endicott baseball team continues its quest for a national championship in perhaps its greatest challenge yet. The Gulls face No. 1/1 Denison in the 2026 national championship best-of-three series, which begins on Wednesday at 12 PM ET. Here's your inside look at the upcoming series.

ENDICOTT SEASON NOTES

Both programs are making their first-ever respective appearances in the national championship series. The Gulls have reached the College World Series (CWS) in four consecutive seasons (2023-26), while the Big Red have appeared in back-to-back CWS' after earning their first-ever berth in 2025.
As a team, Endicott ranks first nationally in WHIP (1.15), first in hits allowed per game (7.01), fourth in ERA (3.29), and seventh in runs (488).
Endicott is led by All-American pitchers Brady Stuart (Hudson, Mass.) and Matt Pappalardo (Pelham, N.H.), as well as All-American shortstop TJ Liponis (Scarborough, Maine). Each contingent of the trio have posted career-best seasons in 2026.
Stuart was named the D3baseball.com National Pitcher of the Year. He features an ERA of 1.51, a record of 9-0, a .90 WHIP, and 97 K in 83.1 IP. His 97 K are third-most ever in single-season program history, while his 225 career strikeouts are most in program history.
Since the beginning of postseason play (5/7, Conference of New England (CNE) First Round against Nichols), Liponis is slashing .406/.488/.710 with a team-high 28 hits and nine doubles. He has also smashed four homers and driven in 20 runs during that span.
Brenden Walsh (Reading, Mass.) crushed his 14th homer of the season against Adrian on Monday. He is now just three homers shy of the program's single-season record 17 (Brendan O'Neil M'24). Additionally, Walsh's 67 RBI are the most in program single-season history.
The Gulls have gone to an if-necessary game in the CNE, Regional, Super Regional, and CWS Tournaments so far. They are 4-0 in each of those if-necessary games.

DENISON SEASON NOTES

Denison entered the NCAA Tournament field of 64 as the top overall seed.
The Big Red rattled off a 44-game win streak between 2/27 - 5/29. They lost the streak in their opening game of the CWS, to eighth-seeded East Baptist, by a 5-1 score.
Denison looks to become the first team since Montclair State in 2000 to win the national championship after dropping its CWS opener.
Nationally, Denison ranks second in runs (534), third in batting average (.355), third in ERA (3.07), seventh in WHIP (1.26), and 10th in OBP (.455).
The Big Red have won nine games by exactly one run this season.
Offensively, they are led by outfielder Erik Sundgren (Pittsburgh, Pa.) and junior catcher Jack Lutte (Venetia, Pa.). Sundgren slashed .376/.492/.685 with 11 homers and 62 RBI. Sundgren, who was named D3baseball.com and American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Region VII Player of the Year, slashed .438/.514/.769 with 12 homers and 68 RBI. Both student-athletes were named All-Americans.
On the mound, Will Rettig (Perrysburg, Ohio) highlights the Big Red's staff. The 6-6, 215-pound senior right-handed All-American features an ERA of 2.41, a record of 12-1, a WHIP of 1.17 and a total of 82 strikeouts in 93.1 IP.

TEAM INFO

WHAT'S NEXT

The two teams meet for a best-of-three series. Game one will be played Wednesday at 12 PM, while game two is set for Thursday at 11 AM. An if-necessary game three would be played approximately 50 minutes after the conclusion of game two.

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(Photo Credit - Jake Goodman '26)