Seton Hill baseball sprints out to best start in program history

When the season schedule was distributed to baseball players at Seton Hill, there was a glaring omission: opponents.

It was not an oversight. It was on purpose.

“The times and dates are there but no opponents,” coach Marc Marizzaldi said. “It might say ‘Seton Hill vs. … doesn’t matter’ or ‘Seton Hill at … who cares?’ We focus on playing our game. No game is bigger than another.”

The same can’t be true for the Griffins’ opponents. They no doubt have Seton Hill underlined, circled, asterisked and highlighted — maybe even spelled out in capital letters – on their schedules.

“We know we’re going to get everyone’s best game,” Marizzaldi said.

Seton Hill is off to its best start in program history and is showing no signs of slowing down. The Griffins took a 12-0 mark into the week and are ranked No. 9 in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association national Division II poll.

The Griffins are a big-swinging team but one with perspective. Tragedy and a world-changing pandemic struck last season, which appears to have motivated a group determined to win its third PSAC title in five years.

Would-be freshman pitcher Maclean Maund, a Penn-Trafford alum, was killed in a vehicle accident in January, 2020. The season-shortening pandemic soon followed and a promising season was dashed.

“It could have gone one of two ways,” said grad student and Greensburg Central Catholic graduate Tommy Pellis, who is hitting .514 (18 for 35) with four home runs, 15 RBIs and 20 runs scored. “We could have got down on ourselves. But we didn’t. We realized we couldn’t control it. We saw it as an opportunity to get better.”

Said Marizzaldi: “Our guys have earned this. They are a galvanized group. They have been through some things.”

All of the essential ingredients are there for high-octane Seton Hill. There are hit-for-average guys and power hitters, and unflappable defensive players who back a solid pitching staff.

“We have a lot of depth and a lot of younger guys have gotten on the bump for us,” said senior center fielder Derek Orndorff, who has a .421 average, seven homers and 19 RBIs. “The upperclassmen have helped the younger guys along. The thing about us is we like to be aggressive. Coach Maz is OK with mistakes, as long as they’re aggressive mistakes. We all trust each other.”

The team’s .293 batting average is nice. So are the 18 home runs, the 7.9 runs per game and the combined 2.53 ERA.

The homers, known as “Griffin bombs,” end with players dunking a small basketball through a Nerf hoop outside of the dugout. The Griffins have outscored their opponents, 111-28.

“It’s just all been so much fun,” Orndorff said.

But Marizzaldi credits the defense for much of his team’s success.

“That is the key to everything,” he said. “Heading into the season, we didn’t know our rotation. We had a lot of untested guys. Our pitchers have been good, but it’s not like we’re striking out an insane amount of people. When we don’t hit, we’re still making plays.”

Senior Ben Vicini slid into the No. 1 pitcher spot after an injury to senior Jared Kollar’s throwing hand. Kollar, who was 2-0, is not expected to miss the entire season.

Vicini is 2-0 with 24 strikeouts in 21⅓ innings.

“This team just feels different,” Vicini said. “Everyone works together, and we’re all so selfless. The confidence shows on the field.”

Junior Caiden Wood is 3-0 in five relief appearances, while five other pitchers have at least one win.

Senior Tyler Peterson is hitting .350, sophomore Owen Sabol (Norwin) has a .333 average, and sophomore Jack Oberdorf (Greensburg Salem) is batting .324.

Sabol is the shortstop, while Oberdorf plays third. The Griffins have just seven errors.

“Our pitching has been phenomenal,” said Pellis, who took advantage of the NCAA granting an extra year to last year’s seniors.“You feel like you don’t need that many runs with them out there.”

Junior Tanner Froelich has three homers and Oberdorf has left the yard twice.

“The seniors have been waiting for this chance,” Marizzaldi said. “They are still upset that our (fourth elimination) game was canceled in 2019. The last 14 months have really tested our guys.”

Seton Hill won the PSAC in ‘17 and ‘18. It won a regional title in ‘14 and advanced to the College World Series in Cary, N.C., where it finished 1-2.