WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (May 6, 2021) - The Sun Conference Baseball Championship Tournament begins for the first time in two years this morning from the Ball Park of the Palm Beaches. The No. 12 St. Thomas University Bobcats (33-17, 17-7) return as the second-seed in the tournament. STU looks to play in the fourth Sun Conference Championship game under Head Coach Jorge Perez and the program's second tournament title (2012) under the legendary bench boss.
In 2019, the last time the TSC Championship Tournament was played, St. Thomas entered as the second-seed, but dropped its first two games, and Thomas University (GA.) went on to win the tournament crown. The quick trip to West Palm Beach did not phase the Bobcats, as the team swept the Miami Gardens Bracket of the NAIA Opening Round, and advanced to the NAIA World Series National Championship Game for the second time in the program's history.
The 2021 Bobcats enter the postseason playing the team's best baseball season, having swept fourth-seed Webber International and defeated regular-season champion Southeastern in the final two Sun Conference series of the season. STU won 8-of-9 games to end the regular season.
St. Thomas placed six players on the 2021 All-Conference teams, with two first-team members and four second-team representatives. Ernesto Pino, the STU ace, has anchored the pitching staff this season. The senior holds a 7-1 record, with a 3.76 earned run average in 12 appearances, totaling 64.2 innings pitched and recording 75 strikeouts. Daniel Mondejar (first-team) has been a consistent presence in the Bobcat lineup all season. Mondejar has enjoyed a breakout campaign in 2021, finishing second on the team in batting average (0.383), second in home runs (9), second in on-base-percentage (0.463), and a team-leading (0.660) slugging percentage.
STU opens the Sun Conference Tournament against the Royals of Warner University. WU has been a proverbial thorn in the side of the Bobcats this season, as St. Thomas holds a 1-4 record against Warner. STU dropped two games in the Sun Conference Series against Warner and lost to WU twice in the annual Warner University Invitational over spring break. The Bobcats' only win of the 2021 season against Warner came in the Sun Conference series finale when STU won 6-5 in extra innings.
However, the last time the Sun Conference foes faced each other was seven weeks ago. Since the previous match-up, the Bobcats finished the season 18-8.
Sun Conference Tournament seedings
- Southeastern
- St. Thomas
- Keiser
- Webber International
- Warner
- University of South Carolina-Beaufort.
The road to Lewiston, ID., for the NAIA World Series begins in West Palm Beach for St. Thomas, and the journey begins this afternoon with first pitch scheduled for 12 p.m.
Tournament page
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