BEREA, Ohio — The Baldwin Wallace baseball team is characterized by brotherhood, as much as it is experience.
"This is a great group of seniors, and I wouldn't wanna be finishing my career with any other group of guys," says senior right-handed pitcher Garrett Miller.
The roster is comprised of 19 seniors who have bonded over the years, dreaming of an NCAA Division III Championship.
"It is emotional, but it's exciting. It's where we wanted to get to,” said senior infielder Luke Vonderhaar.
"The goal was always the World Series. We're here, but our job is not finished. We wanna win it," said senior infielder Alexis Castillo.
The Yellow Jackets swept Aurora in the best-of-three super regional last weekend, advancing to the World Series for just the third time in program history and the second year in a row.
"I think a lot of us were star-struck last year because it was such a fun run, and we didn't know what to expect. A lot of us had never been in that position before," said Vonderhaar.
"Given how many guys we're returning, not only are we grateful to be here, but we wanna win the thing this year," said Miller.
"Last year was great. It gives you confidence and a little bit of experience. You have confidence when you know what to expect out there," said head coach Brian Harrison.
Five-seed Baldwin Wallace will face four-seed Endicott, a familiar postseason opponent, in its first game on Friday. The Yellow Jackets beat Endicott to punch their ticket to the World Series in 2022.
"I'm sure they want revenge. It would be human nature. If we got swept by them, we would want revenge," said Miller.
"I would say the only edge would be in the familiarity of it. You play who you play, so in the end, you can only beat yourself," said Vonderhaar.
Regardless of who they play, the Yellow Jackets are confident they're playing their best baseball heading into June.
"We've got great hitters who have been swinging the bat really well, and our pitching has been incredible, so we think momentum is on our side," said Harrison.
"If we play the game that we can play, we can play with anybody in the country," said Vonderhaar.
"We're gonna lay it all out on the field. We're gonna give everything we can," said Miller.
The World Series runs from June 2-8 on Perfect Game Field at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Carly Mascitti is a sports anchor at News 5 Cleveland. Follow her on Twitter @carlymascitti.
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