Misericordia first baseman Jason Sanfilippo carries the national championship trophy back onto the team’s home at Tambur Field on Friday.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Click here to subscribe today or Login.
Garrett McIlhenney, the Division III World Series MVP, addresses the fans that came to honor the baseball team Friday on the campus of Misericordia.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Fans welcome Misericordia’s national champion baseball team for a rally on Friday.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Fans in the stands cheer for the national champion baseball team as they stood on the baseball field at Misericordia in Dallas Township.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
The Misericordia national champion baseball team takes to Tambur Field on Friday after returning from the Division III World Series in Eastlake, Ohio.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
Misericordia baseball coach Pete Egbert addresses the fans that came to honor the team on Friday. Egbert earned his 600th career victory with the national championship win on Thursday.
Fred Adams | For Times Leader
DALLAS TWP. — It was a long bus ride back to town from Eastlake, Ohio, for the Misericordia Cougars, about six-and-a-half hours by Garrett McIlhenney’s estimation.
No one wants to spend that much time on a bus, but the ride was surely worth it for the Cougars — because they had some championship hardware on board with them.
Fresh off their Division III baseball national championship victory over Wisconsin-Whitewater on Thursday, the Cougars were welcomed back to campus on Friday for a victory rally at Tambur Field.
The bleachers behind home plate were packed with supporters waving and cheering as the Cougars made their triumphant return home.
“This doesn’t start without you guys sitting behind home plate,” McIlhenney said as he addressed the fans. “Everyone says that we’re a small school, but when you have something like this, it’s special.”
The Cougars capped off a 44-win season with a win in the third and final game of the Division III Championship Series on Thursday, beating Wisconsin-Whitewater 10-5 to claim the school’s first national championship.
McIlhenney was named the World Series MVP, and the Cougars leadoff man got a seven-run first inning started for his team in the most fitting way for this particular squad.
He got hit by a pitch, something Misericordia does more than any team in the nation, and something the Cougars have received national attention for over the last two seasons.
“That’s Coug ball. When you could play Coug ball the right way, it can win you a national championship,” McIlhenney said. “Being able to manufacture runs the way we do, it should gain more attention than it already does. … A lot of people haven’t believed in our style of play before, but they’d better now.”
In addition to McIlhenney, board of trustees members Dr. Deborah Smith-Mileski and Pat Finan-Castellano addressed the Misericordia fans, as did athletic director Chuck Edkins and coach Pete Egbert.
For Egbert, the win in the championship on Thursday also doubled as a milestone, as he picked up his 600th career victory as a head coach.
Egbert selflessly brushed aside the milestone when asked about it after Friday’s rally, keeping the focus squarely on his squad and what they’ve achieved together.
“It’s pretty cool, but the milestones are pretty silly,” Egbert said. “It just means that you’ve had a lot of good players around and have been at it for a while. But to do it in that setting in the national championship was pretty cool.”
The Cougars played eight games across seven days to win the national championship, including two on Thursday. After Misericordia beat Wisconsin-Whitewater in the Championship Series opener on Tuesday, the Warhawks topped the Cougars on Thursday morning to force a winner-take-all Game 3 later on in the day.
Connor Maryniak got the ball for Misericordia, and pitched 7.1 innings to earn the victory.
“I told coach I wanted the ball. … I knew I had to set the tone,” Maryniak said.
After one last ovation and the playing of “We Are the Champions” on the speakers, fans in attendance were treated to refreshments outside Tambur Field, and to greet and congratulate the players on their historic season.
Among the fans at Tambur Field was Kim Weaver, along with her daughter Lexi and son John, who plays for the Back Mountain American Legion program — another squad coached by Egbert.
“It’s amazing, we’re choked up a bit about it,” Weaver said. “These boys, I’ve been able to watch them for years now, and watch them grow.
“They are part of our community, and we’re thrilled to have them.”