MEC Baseball Tournament Preview: #2N Frostburg State vs #1S Charleston

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – The Frostburg State Baseball team is set to compete on day three of the MEC Tournament as the No. 2 seed in the North Division, as they are tasked with the defending champs of Charleston (WV) on Friday afternoon, with the Golden Eagles representing the No. 1 seed in the South.
 
How They Got Here
Frostburg once again has had an impressive season, sitting 35-15 overall in 2025 while holding a 18-10 record in conference play.  The Bobcats represent the second best team in both the North Division and overall MEC, coming in right behind new league member Point Park.  FSU opened their season with two wins over PSAC foes Slippery Rock and Kutztown down south, before securing a statement series win over No. 8 ranked East Stroudsburg at the time.  The Bobcats also defeated IUP, UPJ, Seton Hill (Pa.), and Shippensburg to increase their regional rankings, winning six out of 10 MEC series throughout the season.  Frostburg defeated West Virginia State yesterday in both teams first game of the tournament, rallying late to comeback for the 9-6 victory.
 
Charleston is back in the MEC Tournament as the top seed in the South with a 26-23 overall record and a 20-10 mark in conference competition.  UC is looking for their fourth consecutive MEC Title, as their first win of the 2025 season was over regional opponent West Chester.  The Golden Eagles struggled early on this year before MEC play, rallying to take five of their conference series.  Charleston had complete sweeps of Wheeling, Fairmont State, Wesleyan, and Glenville, prior to splitting their regular season finale series with WVSU.  UC defeated Fairmont on day one of the tournament by a final score of 9-3 to start their quest for cup number four.
 
The Matchup 
These two squads have a long history of battling back and forth, as the Bobcats hold the slight 6-5 edge in the all-time series.  FSU has taken the last four games played between the two teams, sweeping the Golden Eagles both this year and last for two series wins.  Frostburg defeated UC this season at home in March by scores of 7-3 and 11-8.  The two teams have only met once in the postseason, which is the last time Charleston came out on top, as the Golden Eagles won 12-8 in the 2023 MEC Tournament.
 
The Players
FSU is known for their well-rounded lineup, starting from the mound with MEC Pitcher of the Year and First Team All-MEC member senior Patrick Bauer, who leads the conference in wins (9), ERA (2.20), and strikeouts (89).  Bauer has thrown 65.1 innings this year, seeing two compete games, a WHIP of 1.01, and an opposing batting average of .225, giving up just 11 walks and 16 earned runs in his 12 appearances, helping him to an overall record of 9-1.  Joining Bauer on the First Team as another starting pitcher for the Bobcats is sophomore Jack Ray, as he shows a 4-2 record on the season with a 2.66 ERA, throwing 47.1 innings to go for 50 K's and just 14 earned runs and a .249 opposing batting average.  Senior Mikey Guy and sophomore Jackson Schalick represent Frostburg at the plate, being the duo of field players to be named First Team All-MEC for FSU.  The former leads the team in hits (69) for a team-high in RBI (52) and doubles (14), while the latter represents a team-high 44 runs, while tying for second most hits on the team with 48.  Junior Jake Holler is another force at the plate for Frostburg in his first year with the team, leading the squad in batting average at .390 and slugging percentage at .600, while ripping 39 hits in 38 games to earn him Second Team All-MEC honors.  Senior Jacob McDonald, another starting pitcher for FSU, received Second Team All-MEC honors as well, seeing a 6-3 record on the season, serving a 3.96 ERA in 52.1 innings while striking out 52 for the second most K's on the team.  Rounding out the pitching for the Bobcats is redshirt senior Nate Vermillion, who was also placed on the Second Team, serving as Frostburg's main relief pitcher in 2025.  The closer has showed a 1.64 ERA in 18 appearances, throwing 22 innings for 21 strikeouts, a .207 opposing batting average, and a team-high eight saves.  Redshirt junior Ben Wieman, finishes out the lineup for FSU, as he was given All-MEC Honorable Mention as utility, knocking 20 hits and a team-high seven bombs in 37 games, while scoring 25 runs and collecting 27 RBI.
 
UC is carried by First Team All-MEC member Evan Ulrich, who has solid numbers all-around with a team-high 50 hits for a .368 batting average, while also seeing a team-high in runs (30) and RBI (28).  Casey Finck has come on strong towards the end of the year, earning himself Second Team All-MEC honors with a .394 batting average and 39 hits across just 28 games, while also belting out six home runs and collecting 25 RBI.  Samuel Lemond and Trent Dosenbach were both given All-MEC Honorable Mention, as the former has 38 hits, 23 runs, and 25 RBI on the season so far, while the latter is right behind him with 32 hits, 20 runs, and 17 RBI.  Campbell Spradling was the lone pitcher for the Golden Eagles to be placed on an All-Conference Team, receiving Honorable Mention as well for a 3-2 record, 3.22 ERA, and a team-high 41 strikeouts through 44.2 innings and 14 appearances, with nine being starts.  Other players to look out for on Charleston are Collin Kemp, who has a team-high .378 batting average to go along with 48 hits, 21 runs, and 19 RBI, as well as Austin Perando who has a team-high five wins on the mound, along with Scott Templeton who has four saves and Tanner Evans who has three.
 
The Rest of the Field
The overall number one seed of Point Park holds the No. 1 slot in the North, as they are set to face the No. 2 seed of the South, West Virginia State, with the Yellow Jackets on the brink of elimination.  The No. 3 team in the North, Fairmont State, eliminated Concord, the No. 3 team of the South, keeping their postseason hopes alive as they await their opponent for day three.
 
 
2025 MEC Baseball Championship Seedings
NORTH: #1 Point Park, #2 Frostburg State, #3 Fairmont State
SOUTH: #1 Charleston, #2 West Virginia State, #3 Concord
 
Thursday, May 8 – DAY 2
#2N Frostburg State def. #2S West Virginia State 9-6
#3N Fairmont State def. #3S Concord 12-2 (7 innings)
 
Friday, May 9 – DAY 3
#1N Point Park vs #2S West Virginia State – 12 PM
#1S Charleston vs #2N Frostburg State – 3:30 PM
#3N Fairmont State vs TBA – 7 PM