STANDISH, Maine - #3 Saint Joseph's College (34-11, 14-6 GNAC) will face #1 Mitchell College (27-12, 16-4 GNAC) in the 2026 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Baseball Championship Series this Thursday and Friday in New London, Connecticut.

The GNAC champion earns an automatic berth into the 2026 NCAA Division III Baseball Championship, which begins with Regional play on Friday, May 15.

GNAC Championship Series Schedule (Hosted by Mitchell)

Thursday, May 7

• Game 1 – #1 Mitchell vs. #3 Saint Joseph's, 2:00 PM (LIVE STATS l VIDEO)

Friday, May 8

• Game 2 – #3 Saint Joseph's vs. #1 Mitchell, 11:00 AM (LIVE STATS l VIDEO)
• Game 3 – 45 minutes after Game 2 (if necessary)

HOW THEY GOT HERE

Saint Joseph's advanced to the championship series after going 4-1 in the GNAC Tournament, including three consecutive elimination-game victories. After opening with a 12-2 win over Norwich, the Monks fell to Lasell before defeating Norwich (8-0) and Lasell twice (17-5, 6-3) to claim the Pod B title.

Sophomore Jake Carlisle (Portsmouth, N.H.) led the offensive surge with multiple multi-hit performances, including a 5-for-5, four-RBI game against Norwich. Senior Jared Wilhelm (Tolland, Conn.) homered in three tournament games, while senior Michael Richards (Melrose, Mass.) hit a three-run homer in the elimination-game victory over Lasell. On the mound, senior Dylan Brander (Merrimack, N.H.), sophomore William Dionne (Somerset, Mass.), and freshman Tyler Nelson (Medford, Mass.) each earned wins during the run.

Mitchell reached the championship series with a 3-0 record in Pod A play, defeating Elms twice and Dean once by a combined 26-3 margin. The Mariners opened with a 7-1 win over Elms before rallying past Dean, 7-2, behind a five-run seventh inning. Mitchell then secured the Pod A title with a 12-0 victory over Elms.

Christopher Piscione, Kenneth Miller Jr., Jayden Sgro, and Michael Ficocelli paced the Mariners offensively throughout the weekend, while Thai-ler Sestokas, Andrew Manzo, Dom Yarson, and Ethan Chavez combined to allow just three runs over 27 innings.

TOURNEY BY THE NUMBERS

Saint Joseph's hit .409 (72-for-176) with 48 runs, 45 RBI, 23 extra-base hits, and a 1.129 OPS during the tournament. The Monks averaged 14.4 hits and 9.6 runs per game while posting a .476 on-base percentage and a .653 slugging percentage. Saint Joseph's pitchers recorded a 3.86 ERA over 42 innings and did not allow a home run during the five-game stretch.

Mitchell hit .374 (37-for-99) with 26 runs, 26 RBI, and a 1.002 OPS over three tournament games. The Mariners averaged 12.3 hits and 8.7 runs per contest while posting a .436 on-base percentage and a .566 slugging percentage. Mitchell's pitching staff compiled a 1.00 ERA over 27 innings and did not allow an extra-base hit.

HOW THEY STACK UP

Saint Joseph's ranks first in the GNAC in home runs (41), triples (13), ERA (4.26), shutouts (6), and sacrifice hits (33). The Monks also rank second in runs scored (314), total bases (612), walks (188), hit-by-pitches (78), and batting average against (.274).

Mitchell leads the conference in runs (364), doubles (89), RBI (332), extra-base hits (126), total bases (624), stolen bases (106), batting average (.338), on-base percentage (.442), slugging percentage (.483), and batting average against (.274). The Mariners also rank second in hits (436), ERA (4.79), and shutouts (5).

MEET THE COACHES

Saint Joseph's: Will Sanborn '86 (34th year, 885-498-6, .639) & Lincoln Sanborn '14 (1st year, 34-11, .756)

Mitchell: Shawn Gilblair (3rd year, 86-43, .667)

TOP PERFORMERS - SAINT JOSEPH'S

Hitters:

• Nic Frink (So., Scarborough, Maine) – .382 AVG, 63 H, 11 HR, 47 RBI, .636 SLG
• Jake Carlisle – .335 AVG, 53 H, 7 HR, 34 RBI
• Vinny O'Leary (Jr., North Quincy, Mass.) – .319 AVG, 41 R, 30 BB, .450 OBP
• Jared Wilhelm – 9 HR, 29 RBI, .545 SLG
• Nick Brindle (So., Pittsfield, Mass.) – .336 AVG, 22 RBI, .402 OBP

Pitchers:

• Dylan Brander – 7-2, 2.61 ERA, 6 CG
• Tyler Nelson – 4-0, 3.50 ERA, 40 K
• William Dionne – 4-1, 4 SV, 48 K

TOP PERFORMERS - MITCHELL

Hitters:

• Chas Terni Jr. – .354 AVG, 40 R, 40 RBI, 8 HR
• Michael Ficocelli – .378 AVG, 20 2B, 32 RBI
• Nicholas Bracale – .377 AVG, 31 RBI, .525 OBP
• Kenneth Miller Jr. – .393 AVG, 53 H, 29 RBI
• Christopher Piscione – .341 AVG, 32 RBI, .523 SLG

Pitchers:

• Thai-ler Sestokas – 7-1, 1.85 ERA
• Dom Yarson – 6-2, 2.10 ERA, 48 K
• Andrew Manzo – 5-0, 3.95 ERA

THE LAST TIME WE MET

Earlier this season (March 22), Saint Joseph's dropped a pair of one-run games to Mitchell in New London, falling 3-2 and 1-0, both losses coming in walk-off fashion. The Monks totaled 16 hits across the doubleheader and received strong starting pitching performances from Dylan Brander and Padraig Mac Seain (Brookline, N.H.), but Mitchell scored the winning run in the final inning of both contests.

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING

Mitchell holds a 5-3 edge in the all-time series. Saint Joseph's won last season's meeting in Standish, earning an 8-3 victory on April 22, 2025.